Conventional Mode Research Articles

ATP-Coated Dual-Functionalized Titanium(IV) IMAC Material for Simultaneous Enrichment and Separation of Glycopeptides and Phosphopeptides.

Protein glycosylation and phosphorylation are two of the most common post-translational modifications (PTMs), which play an important role in many biological processes. However, low abundance and poor ionization efficiency of phosphopeptides and glycopeptides make direct MS analysis challenging. In this study, we developed a hydrophilicity-enhanced bifunctional Ti-IMAC (IMAC: immobilized metal affinity chromatography) material with grafted adenosine triphosphate (denoted as epoxy-ATP-Ti4+) to enable simultaneous enrichment and separation of common N-glycopeptides, phosphopeptides, and M6P glycopeptides from tissue/cells. The enrichment was achieved through a dual-mode mechanism based on the electrostatic and hydrophilic properties of the material. The epoxy-ATP-Ti4+ IMAC material was prepared from epoxy-functionalized silica particles via a convenient two-step process. The ATP molecule provided strong and active phosphate sites for binding phosphopeptides in the conventional IMAC mode and also contributed significantly to the hydrophilicity, which permitted the enrichment of glycopeptides via hydrophilic interaction chromatography. The two modes could be implemented simultaneously, allowing glycopeptides and phosphopeptides to be collected sequentially in a single experiment from the same sample. In addition to standard protein samples, the material was further applied to glycopeptide and phosphopeptide enrichment and characterization from HeLa cell digests and mouse lung tissue samples. In total, 2928 glycopeptides and 3051 phosphopeptides were identified from the mouse lung tissue sample, supporting the utility of this material for large-scale PTM analysis of complex biological samples. Overall, the newly developed epoxy-ATP-Ti4+ IMAC material and associated fractionation method enable simple and effective enrichment and separation of glycopeptides and phosphopeptides, offering a useful tool to study potential crosstalk between these two important PTMs in biological systems. The MS data have been deposited to the ProteomeXchange Consortium via the PRIDE partner repository with the data set identifier PXD029775.

Combination of CAR‑T cell therapy and radiotherapy: Opportunities and challenges in solid tumors (Review).

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy has emerged as a new and breakthrough cancer immunotherapy. Although CAR-T cell therapy has made significant progress clinically in patients with refractory or drug-resistant hematological malignancies, there are numerous challenges in its application to solid tumor therapy, including antigen escape, severe toxic reactions, abnormal vascularization, tumor hypoxia, insufficient infiltration of CAR-T cells and immunosuppression. As a conventional mode of anti-tumor therapy, radiotherapy has shown promising effects in combination with CAR-T cell therapy by enhancing the specific immunity of endogenous target antigens, which promoted the infiltration and expansion of CAR-T cells and improved the hypoxic tumor microenvironment. This review focuses on the obstacles to the application of CAR-T technology in solid tumor therapy, the potential opportunities and challenges of combined radiotherapy and CAR-T cell therapy, and the review of recent literature to evaluate the best combination for the treatment of solid tumors.

Strong Ligand Control for Noble Metal Nanostructures.

ConspectusNanosynthesis is the art of creating nanostructures, with on-demand synthesis as the ultimate goal. Noble metal nanoparticles have wide applications, but the available synthetic methods are still limited, often giving nanospheres and symmetrical nanocrystals. The fundamental reason is that the conventional weak ligands are too labile to influence the materials deposition, so the equivalent facets always grow equivalently. Considering that the ligands are the main synthetic handles in colloidal synthesis, our group has been exploring strong ligands for new growth modes, giving a variety of sophisticated nanostructures. The model studies often involve metal deposition on seeds functionalized with a certain strong ligand, so that the uneven distribution of the surface ligands could guide the subsequent deposition.In this Account, we focus on the design principles underlying the new growth modes, summarizing our efforts in this area along with relevant literature works. The basics of ligand control are first revisited. Then, the four major growth modes are summarized as follows: (1) The curvature effects would divert the materials deposition away from the high-curvature tips when the ligands are insufficient. With ligands fully covering the seeds, the sparser ligand packing at the tips would then promote the initial nucleation thereon. (2) The strong ligands may get trapped under the incoming metal layer, thus modulating the interfacial energy of the core-shell interface. The evidence for embedded ligands is discussed, along with examples of Janus nanostructures arising from the synthetic control, including metal-metal, metal-semiconductor, and metal-C60 systems using a variety of ligands. (3) Active surface growth is an unusual mode with divergent growth rates, so that part of the emerging surface is inhibited, and the growth is focused onto a few active sites. With seeds attached to oxide substrates, the selective deposition at the metal-substrate interface produces ultrathin nanowires. The synthesis can be generally applied to grow Au, Ag, Pd, Pt, and hybrid nanowires, with straight, spiral, or helical structures, and even rapid alteration of segments via electrochemical methods. In contrast, active surface growth for colloidal nanoparticles has to be more carefully controlled. The rich growth phenomena are discussed, highlighting the role of strong ligands, the control of deposition rates, the chiral induction, and the evidence for the active sites. (4) An active site with sparse ligands could also be exploited in etching, where the freshly exposed surface would promote further etching. The result is an unusual sharpening etching mode, in contrast to the conventional rounding mode for minimized surface energy.Colloidal nanosynthesis holds great promise for scalable on-demand synthesis, providing the crucial nanomaterials for future explorations. The strong ligands have delivered powerful synthetic controls, which could be further enhanced with in-depth studies on growth mechanisms and synthetic strategies, as well as functions and properties.

Comparative study of titanium carbide films deposited by plasma-enhanced and conventional magnetron sputtering at various methane flow rates

Titanium carbide (TiCx) films were deposited by reactively sputtering Ti target with varied methane (CH4) flow rates using an unbalanced magnetron sputtering equipment operating in conventional (CMS) and plasma-enhanced (PEMS) mode. The microstructure and properties of the TiCx films were mainly scrutinized with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, nano indentation, and ball-on-disk tribo-test. As the CH4 flow rate is increased from 4 to 16 sccm, x in the TiCx films deposited by PEMS and CMS is gradually increased from 0.28 to 0.96 and 0.28 to 0.73, respectively; and the concentration of TiC phase in the films rises. A densified microstructure with strong preferred growth is observed in the PEMS-deposited films, while a loose columnar microstructure with almost random growth exists in the CMS-deposited films. When the CH4 flow rate is increased, the hardness of the films deposited by PEMS is firstly increased and then decreased, and reaches a maximum value of 29.6 GPa; but that of CMS-TiCx film is fluctuated below 10.6 GPa. The friction coefficient of TiCx-coated samples against pure aluminum is gradually increased with increasing CH4 flow rate from 4 to 14 sccm, accompanied by a reduction of the aluminum adhesion. The wear rate of the TiCx-coated samples as a function of the CH4 flow rate is firstly decreased and then increased. The lowest wear rate of the PEMS-prepared samples is 7.2 × 10−16 m3/(N·m) obtained at a CH4 flow rate of 14 sccm, while that of the CMS-prepared samples is 9.3 × 10−15 m3/(N·m) obtained at 12 sccm. Therefore, PEMS is a promising method to prepare TiCx films with a good combination of the mechanical properties and wear-resistance against pure aluminum.

Untargeted metabolomics-based approach using UHPLC-HRMS to authenticate carrots (Daucus carota L.) based on geographical origin and production mode

Carrots produced in different agricultural regions with organic or conventional mode were analyzed by untargeted UHPLC-HRMS using reversed-phase and HILIC modes. Data were first treated separately, and further combined to possibly improve results. An in-house data processing workflow was applied to identify relevant features after peak detection. Based on these features, discrimination models were built using chemometrics. A tentative annotation of chemical markers was performed using online databases and UHPLC-HRMS/MS analyses. An independent set of samples was analyzed to assess the discrimination potential of these markers. Carrots produced in the New Aquitaine region could be successfully discriminated from carrots originating from the Normandy region by an OLPS-DA model. Arginine and 6-methoxymellein could be identified as potential markers with the C18-silica column. Additional markers (N-acetylputrescine, l-carnitine) could be identified thanks to the polar column. Discrimination based on production mode was more challenging: some trend was observed but model metrics remained unsatisfactory.

Methane and n-hexane ignition in a newly developed diaphragmless shock tube

Shock tubes have been routinely used to generate reliable chemical kinetic data for gas-phase chemistry. The conventional diaphragm-rupture mode for shock tube operation presents many challenges that may ultimately affect the quality of chemical kinetics data. Numerous diaphragmless concepts have been developed to overcome the drawbacks of using diaphragms. Most of these diaphragmless designs require significant alterations in the driver section of the shock tube and, in some cases, fail to match the performance of the diaphragm-mode of operation. In the present work, an existing diaphragm-type shock tube is retrofitted with a fast-acting valve, and the performance of the diaphragmless shock tube is evaluated for investigating the ignition of methane and n-hexane. The diaphragmless shock tube reported here presents many advantages, such as eliminating the use of diaphragms, avoiding substantial manual effort during experiments, automating the shock tube facility, having good control over driver conditions, and obtaining good repeatability for reliable gas-phase chemical kinetic studies. Ignition delay time measurements have been performed in the diaphragmless shock tube for three methane mixtures and two n-hexane mixtures at P5 = 10–20 bar and T5 = 738–1537 K. The results obtained for fuel-rich, fuel-lean, and oxygen-rich (undiluted) mixtures show very good agreement with previously reported experimental data and literature kinetic models (AramcoMech 3.0 [1] for methane and Zhang et al. mechanism [2] for n-hexane). The study presents an easy and simple method to upgrade conventional shock tubes to a diaphragmless mode of operation and opens new possibilities for reliable chemical kinetics investigations.

Pulse Power Generation Chronoamperometry as an Advanced Readout for (Bio)sensors: Application for Noninvasive Diabetes Monitoring.

We propose pulse power generation (PPG) amperometry as an advanced readout realized for Prussian blue (PB)-based (bio)sensors. In contrast to the conventional power generation mode, when the current response is generated upon continuous short-circuiting, the suggested pulse regime is fulfilled by periodic opening and shorting of the circuit. Despite PB being electroactive, the pulse readout is advantageous over conventional steady-state power generation, providing up to a 15-fold increased signal-to-background ratio as well as dramatically improved sensitivity exceeding 10 A·M-1·cm-2 for H2O2 sensors and 3.9 A·M-1·cm-2 for glucose biosensors. Such analytical performance characteristics are, most probably, achieved due to the enrichment of the diffusion layer by analyte mass transfer from the bulk upon opening of the circuit. Due to an improved sensitivity-to-background ratio, reduced flow-rate dependence, and enhanced operational stability, the regime allows reliable monitoring of blood glucose variations through sweat analysis with the on-skin device.

Combustion and Exhaust Emission Improvement in a 3-Cylinder Mpfi Engine Through Downsizing

This research aims to compare the potential and existing conditions of a small-sized spark ignition (SI) engine with a 1.0-liter capacity suitable for cylinder deactivation. The cylinder deactivation strategy is used to solve the issues of inefficient combustion and increased exhaust emission under part loading. Consequently, the possibility of implementing cylinder deactivation in terms of decreased exhaust pollution has been assessed. A computerized, 1.0-liter, 4-stroke, water-cooled, spark-ignition engine with an open engine control unit (ECU) and multi-point fuel injection (MPFI) was used for the trials. Both modes were tested at 2500 revolutions per minute (RPM) under loads of 15, 30, and 45 N-m. The spark plug and fuel injector deactivate the cylinder. The results show that when the highest possible load is used, the peak cylinder pressure is 55.78% higher, and the maximum heat release rate is 53.96% more in the deactivation mode than in the traditional mode. In deactivation mode, the mass fraction consumed is larger at each crank angle point, suggesting a faster rate of combustion and increased combustion efficiency. The increased mean gas temperature permits the catalytic converter to perform more efficiently after downsizing. When compared to the conventional mode, carbon monoxide (CO) emission is almost non-existent at full load, unburned hydrocarbon (UHC) is reduced by 92.89%, and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) are reduced by 35% in the deactivation mode. Furthermore, the experiment indicated that, when employed at part load, the deactivation mode is more beneficial than the standard mode in terms of better combustion stability and lesser emissions.

Design of thrust augmentation control schedule during mode transition for turbo-ramjet engine

A thrust augmentation control schedule was designed for turbo-ramjet engine during mode transition process to achieve high thrust performance. First, a mathematical model of turbo-ramjet engine was established, analyzing the reason for the existence of an insufficient thrust working range under conventional mode transition control schedule. On this basis, a thrust augmentation control schedule was devised for the thrust insufficient range considering the matching between the air inlet available airflow and the engine demand airflow. The control schedule could increase the flow capacity of the engine and reduce the overflow drag of air inlet by opening the ramjet bypass while keeping the turbofan components working at the maximum state, which could improve the maximum installation thrust performance of the engine and achieve a better air inlet/engine matching. By further designing the optimal regulation rule for the rear variable area bypass injector (RVABI), the installed thrust of the engine could be increased by more than 37.93% at most, while simultaneously reducing the fuel consumption by 0.16%. Finally, the turbo-ramjet engine was simulated along the isobaric flight path. The simulation results revealed that under conventional mode transition control schedule, the thrust insufficient occurred when Mach number is above 2.7. The designed thrust augmentation control schedule could effectively improve the maximum thrust of the thrust drop zone and provide sufficient thrust margin for engine during the whole working process. At the same time, considering the smooth thrust and thrust augmentation requirements, a compromise mode transition control schedule between the thrust augmentation control schedule and the conventional mode transition schedule is proposed. This control schedule could address the problem of insufficient thrust at high Mach numbers while the smoothness transition of engine total thrust could be guaranteed.

Comparison of direct and port injection of methanol in a RCCI engine using diesel and biodiesel as high reactivity fuels

In this work, methanol dual-direct injection (DI2 mode) was compared with the port injection of methanol (RCCI mode) when biodiesel and diesel fuel were employed as HRFs (High Reactivity Fuels). This study presents an innovative dual-direct injection strategy as an alternative method to the commonly utilized port injection strategy in RCCI engines, and evaluates its impact on both engine performance and pollutant emissions. The engine was operated at a constant speed of 2400 rpm by a single-cylinder diesel research engine, and BMEP of 1.57, 3.15, and 4.72 bar (20 %, 40 %, and 60 % of max torque) with methanol was injected using both the DI2 and RCCI modes while diesel fuel and biodiesel were injected directly. In reactivity-controlled compression ignition (RCCI) mode, NOx emissions were reduced by 60 % and 62 % for diesel fuel and biodiesel, respectively, while the reduction accounted as 92 % and 80 % in smoke opacity. However, CO and unburned HC emissions were measured as higher for advanced modes than conventional mode using diesel fuel and biodiesel. According to experimental results obtained for DI2, unburned HC and CO emissions were reduced (up to 63 % and 22 %) when compared with RCCI mode. In addition, for DI2, NOx emissions were slightly higher than in RCCI mode, mainly due to the high injection pressure (50 bar) of DI2 mode. In comparison to conventional diesel injection (CDI), cylinder pressure and heat release rate (HRR) decreased as the premixed ratio (Rp) increased at 20 % load, while cylinder pressure and HRR increased with load and Rp increased. In both diesel and biodiesel experiments, ignition delay increased as Rp increased. The ignition delay was found to be longer in RCCI mode than in DI2 mode. It was concluded that DI2 was a beneficial way to control inefficient combustion during RCCI operation fuelled by diesel fuel and biodiesel.

τ±νγγ and to probe the fermiophobic Higgs boson with high cutoff scales

The light fermiophobic Higgs boson hf in the type-I two-Higgs-doublet model can evade the current search programs at the LHC since its production through the quark-antiquark annihilation and gluon fusion is not feasible. The particle can be more elusive if the model retains stability up to the Planck scale because the efficient discovery channels are missing from the existing search chart. Through the comprehensive scanning, we show that all the viable parameter points with the Planck cutoff scale require {m}_{h_f}in [80, 120] GeV and {M}_{A/{H}^{pm }}in [90, 150] GeV. Since hfhf→ γγW+W− and H±→ τ±ν/hfW± are dominant in this case, two final states are more efficient to probe hf than the conventional search mode of 4γ + W±/Z. One is τ±νγγ from pp → H±(→ τ±ν)hf(→ γγ) and the other is (ℓ± = e±, μ±) from pp → H±(→ hfW±)hf→ γγW+W−W±, pp → H±(→ hfW±)A(→ hfZ) → γγW+W−W±Z, and pp → H+(→ hfW+)H−(→ hfW−) → γγW+W−W+W−. The inclusive consists of a same-sign dilepton, two prompt photons, and missing transverse energy. We perform the signal-background analysis at the detector level. With the total integrated luminosity of 300 fb−1 and the 5% background uncertainty, two proposed channels at the 14 TeV LHC yield signal significances above five in the entire viable parameter space of the fermiophobic type-I with a high cutoff scale.

Turbulence-resistant high-capacity free-space optical communications using OAM mode group multiplexing.

Twisted light carrying orbital angular momentum (OAM), which features a helical phase front, has shown its potential applications in diverse areas, especially in free-space optical (FSO) communications. Multiple orthogonal OAM beams can be utilized to enable high-capacity FSO communication systems. However, for practical OAM-based FSO communication links, atmospheric turbulence will cause serious power fluctuations and inter-model crosstalk between the multiplexed OAM channels, impairing link performance. In this paper, we propose and experimentally demonstrate a novel OAM mode-group multiplexing (OAM-MGM) scheme with transmitter mode diversity to increase system reliability under turbulence. Without adding extra system complexity, an FSO system transmitting two OAM groups with a total of 144 Gbit/s discrete multi-tone (DMT) signal is demonstrated under turbulence strength D/r0 of 1, 2, and 4. In our experiments, the proposed OAM-MGM scheme helps to achieve bit-error-rate (BER) mostly less than 3.8 × 10-3 under turbulence strength D/r0 of 1 and 2 with a total transmitted power of 10 dBm. Compared with the conventional OAM mode multiplexed system, the system interruption probability decreases from 28% to 4% under moderate turbulence strength D/r0 of 2.

Day surgery unit robotics thoracic surgery: feasibility and management.

Day surgery has been widely carried out in medical developed countries such as Europe and the United States with high efficiency, safety and economy. The development of thoracic day surgery started late, and currently only a few top three hospitals carry thoracic day surgery. In recent years, with the continuous in-depth application of the concept of accelerated rehabilitation surgery (ERAS) in the field of surgery, thoracic surgery ERAS has also entered clinical practice with remarkable results. At present, the application of day surgery in the field of thoracic surgery is still in its infancy, and the application of robot-assisted thoracic surgery in thoracic surgery has brought new opportunities for the popularization of day surgery in thoracic surgery. We retrospectively reviewed 86 patients underwent thoracic day surgery under the application of robot-assisted surgery system and through systematic randomization method choose 86 patients underwent conventional thoracic surgery under the application of robot-assisted surgery system at our Institute between 2020 and 2022. We analyzed the clinical and pathological features between the two groups. The clinical feature of location of the nodules, the size of nodules, pN, histology and postoperative complications were homogenous between the two groups. The average age was significantly higher in the conventional mode group, the ratio of male patients and the patients with history of smoking were significantly lower in day-surgery mode group. The major surgical method in conventional mode group was lobectomy resection (48.8%). While the segmental resection was the major surgical in day surgery mode group. The hospital stay and the time of drain was significant longer in conventional mode group. And the total medical cost in conventional was more than day-surgery mode group. While the histology and postoperative complications were homogenous between the two groups. Before this, day surgery and robotics assistant surgery in thoracic surgery had been proved feasibility and safety. However, there was no report of day surgery unit robotics assistant thoracic surgery. Our clinical practice demonstrated that the method of day surgery unit robotics thoracic surgery is feasibility and safety enough.

One-step multi-compositional oxidation of YSi alloy: Experiments and ab initio computation

YSi alloy is a promising candidate as oxidation resistant coatings for both the bond coat of environmental barrier coatings (EBCs) and anti-ablation coatings at a high temperature of ∼1300 °C. In this study, a one-step multi-compositional oxidation by rapid heating oxidation mode is proposed to reduce the oxidation rate by 3.6 times compared to conventional slow heating oxidation mode. Results show that preferentially formed Y2O3 oxide initiates a multi-step oxidation, produces a cracking and porous oxides, and thereby resulting in a fast oxidation with pesting. The one-step multi-compositional oxidation with a compact and dense Y2Si2O7 scale contributes to the much better oxidation resistance for rapid heating oxidation mode of YSi alloy. The stable formation of Y2Si2O7 scale is comprehensively understood by the energy barrier, charge density and electronic level based on density functional theory. This study demonstrates a promising application of YSi alloy by rapid heating oxidation mode.

Optimization and assessment method for total energy system retrofit in the petrochemical industry considering clean energy substitution for fossil fuel

Carbon emission peak and neutrality prospect has expedited the revolution of conventional energy utilization mode, particularly in highly energy-intensive industries. The petrochemical industry bears great responsibility for energy conservation and carbon emission reduction. TES (Total Energy System) retrofit schemes in the petrochemical industry classified as REST (Retrofitting through Energy-Saving Techniques) and RSFC (Retrofitting through Substituting Fossil fuel with Clean energy) have emerged in large numbers recently. It is challenging for energy managers to optimize and assess TES retrofit schemes simultaneously and globally, once clean energy supply is involved. State-of-the-art assessment and optimization method for TES retrofitting is urgently needed. This work proposes a novel optimization and assessment method based on the exergy conversion and consumption processes to figure out the most cost-effective retrofit schemes in view of exergy analysis. The method features with the simulation of TES, the clean energy substitution for fossil fuel, the optimization of the subsystems, and the exergy efficiency assessment of retrofit schemes. The double-parallel-loop application framework is then presented, which deals with the optimization and assessment of RSFC and REST simultaneously. Combined plants of continuous catalytic reforming and aromatic extraction plants along with their matched TES are investigated. A MINLP optimization model is formulated and programmed with GAMS software. The optimal results show that the total exergy consumption decreased by 3200 kW with clean energy substitution. Sensitivity analysis explores the energy conservation benefits and exergy efficiency improvement when clean energy with different qualities and quantities substituting for fossil fuel, which provides valuable information for feasibly implementing retrofit schemes. Comparison of scenarios reveals the interacting influence between the implementation of RSFC and REST, which is significant for decision-making when multiple retrofit schemes are alternatives. Real-world case investigations demonstrate the validation and efficacy of the proposed method. The main findings of this study are significant and quantitative references for petrochemical industrial practice, which would contribute to energy conservation and carbon emission reduction in the future.

Adaptive Mode Filter for Lamb Wavefield in the Wavenumber-Time Domain Based on Wavenumber Response Function

Aerospace thin-walled structures are susceptible to various forms of damage and they can be effectively inspected using Lamb wavefields. However, Lamb wavefields contain at least two dispersive modes which interfere with the generation of a clear image for damage visualization. Conventional mode filters produce inconsistent results due to the need for the ad hoc or manual adjustment of the processing parameters by experienced users. An automatic, adaptive mode filter is proposed to remove human subjectivity, thereby improving the consistency of the results and making it more practical to utilize. It converts the wavefield from the space-time domain to the wavenumber-time domain and then consolidates the data in the time and angular axes into a wavenumber response function (WRF) where the modes can be automatically isolated. The single-mode data were converted back into space-time domain for result visualization. Its effectiveness was experimentally proven by keeping 78.2–122.0% of energy for a wanted mode and suppressing the energy of an unwanted mode to 0.1–4.5%. Its automatic adaptability was demonstrated through the improved visibility of a blind hole, corrosion, water-ingress in honeycomb panel, and impact damage in a complex composite wing. Consistent results can be generated in a highly efficient manner while significantly reducing the computational workload and hardware requirements.

Kink Modeling and Simulations Based on Field Theory of Multiscale Plasticity (FTMP) Part I: Explicit Kink Model and Double Compression Test

This study describes the basic capabilities of an “Explicit” kink model based on Field Theory of Multiscale Plasticity (FTMP), where the incompatibility tensor-incorporated additional degrees of freedom (DOFs), mediated by the Rank-1 connectivity-based projection direction with variable shear measure, directly drives the kink field evolutions in addition to the conventional slip mode. Not only inhomogeneous but realistic kink morphologies but also slightly improved energy releasing characteristics are shown to be reproduced. Furthermore, virtual double compression tests are performed on thus obtained kinked samples, demonstrating the kink strengthening that qualitatively agrees with experiments. Further enrichment of the model via the incompatibility-based DOFs introduced also in the slip model is shown to be able to simulate even more realistic kink morphologies and the attendant rotation angle distributions accurately.

Formulation and Nutritional Characterization of Mustard and Sesame Oilseed Cake Extract-Based Functional Drinks

The current investigation was carried out to develop polyphenol-enriched functional drinks from oil industry waste. Purposely, polyphenols were extracted from the mustard and sesame oilseed cakes through ultrasound-aided extraction alongside conventional extraction mode for comparison purposes. Among the oilseed cake extracts, sesame with methanol and ultrasonic extraction exhibited best results for TPC, DPPH, FRAP, ABTS, and β-carotene as 39 ± 0.04 g GAE/100 g, 35 ± 0.02 g TE/100 g, 20 ± 0.02 g TE/100 g, 18 ± 0.03 g TE/100 g, and 35 ± 0.05 g TE/100 g, respectively, and mustard showed 31 ± 0.04 g GAE/100 g, 20 ± 0.01 g TE/100 g, 16 ± 0.02 g TE/100 g, 12 ± 0.01 g TE/100 g, and 30 ± 0.05 g TE/100 g, respectively. In case of conventional extraction and methanol as solvent, sesame revealed outcomes for TPC, DPPH, FRAP, ABTS, and β-carotene as 13 ± 0.02 g GAE/100 g, 17 ± 0.03 g TE/100 g, 10 ± 0.01 g TE/100 g, 21 ± 0.04 g TE/100 g, and 15 ± 0.03 g TE/100 g, respectively, compared to mustard which showed for TPC, DPPH, FRAP, ABTS, and β-carotene as 11 ± 0.02 , 12 ± 0.01 , 08 ± 0.01 , 17 ± 0.03 , and 10 ± 0.01 , respectively. Likewise, for mustard oilseed cake extract with conventional extraction technique and water as solvent, minimum findings were observed for TPC, DPPH, FRAP, ABTS, and β-carotene as 07 ± 0.01 , 09 ± 0.02 , 06 ± 0.01 , 14 ± 0.03 , and 07 ± 0.01 , respectively. T0 without extracts, T1 (sesame oilseed cake extract based Functional drink) , and T2 (mustard oilseed cake extract based Functional drink). The recorded values for total phenols, total flavonoids, total carotenoids, and vitamin C in T0, T1, and T2 were 29.79 ± 6.05 , 32.53 ± 7.05 , and 30.5 ± 5.05 ; 26.33 ± 5.05 , 30.60 ± 7.05 , and 29.75 ± 5.05 ; 2.11 ± 0.05 , 2.12 ± 0.05 , and 2.08 ± 0.01 ; and 31.7 ± 7.05 , 30.5 ± 5.05 , and 29.6 ± 6.05 , respectively. Likewise, sensory evaluation for color, flavor, sweetness, sourness, and overall acceptability during 2 months of storage depicted acceptable scores. The inclusive best outcomes for phytochemical analysis were achieved with sesame oilseed cake extracts by applying ultrasonic extraction technique and methanol as solvent. In the same way, among the developed functional drinks, T1 (sesame oilseed cake extract-based functional drink) exhibited best physiochemical as well as storage characteristics.

Comparison of Academic Results during Conventional and Online Modes of Learning: A Case Study of Two Groups of Saudi University Students

The COVID-19 outbreak disrupted all aspects of people’s lives, including pedagogy and instruction at universities, where its impact was felt globally, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is no exception. This paper discusses and compares the academic results during the conventional mode of learning (spring semester of 2019) and during the online mode of learning (spring semester of 2020), which was throughout the pandemic period. Specifically, the study considers two Saudi groups of fifty students who were enrolled in the Department of Health Information Management and Technology at the University of Hafr Al-batin in the eastern region of Saudi Arabia. The students’ accumulative marks in six first-year courses in two semesters were analyzed and compared by calculating the passing/failure percentages, descriptive statistics (mean, median, mode, standard deviation, variance, maximum, minimum, and range), and the p-value of an inferential t-test. Additionally, the students filled out a six-category survey about their experiences and level of satisfaction with online learning compared to the regular learning mode. It was concluded that more students passed with higher grades in the year 2020 in five theoretical courses. Differently, it was deduced that practical courses such as computer applications had similar passing averages in the two years; the course required students to submit continuous assignments and projects in a fixed time period. Additionally, the participants revealed in their filled online survey that they preferred many features of the remote learning mode and the online assessment methodology. They inclined toward online learning for its flexibility and effectiveness, even though they confessed to having less interaction and focus during online sessions. Thus, the results imply to authorities in the Ministry of Higher Education to carefully and gradually embed online teaching for selected subjects with exam validation measures such as time strict limits, question banks, randomizations, and other security features.

SCAPS 3201 simulation of tunable heterostructured p-CdTe and n-CdS thin films-based solar cells

This paper presents a numerical simulation using SCAPS 3201 and an electrometer for the investigation of electrical behavior at the interface of heterostructured Cadmium telluride and cadmium sulfide thin films. The paper also explicitly compares the theoretical and experimental results of the synthesized materials via the electrodeposition route. Parameters such as electrical conductivity types and energy band gaps used in the simulation were obtained from the various analytical procedure employed in contrast to the conventional mode of application of the SCAPS simulation. In most research works on CdTe/CdS-based solar cells, the conductivity type, p-type, and n-type used in the SCAPS simulation were based on assumption. However, in this study, photoelectrochemical (PEC) cell measurement of the material's conductivity type helped in the identification of p-type CdTe and n-type CdS. The material's properties were examined using an X-ray Diffractometer (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), ultraviolet–visible spectrophotometer (UV-VIS), (PEC), and electrometer. The energy band gaps at varied cathodic potentials and the grain size of the CdTe thin films were estimated as 1.47–1.89 eV and 56 nm while that of the CdS was estimated at 2.37–2.46 eV and 115 nm. The results indicate a noticeable drastic improvement in the performance of electrodeposited p-CdTe and n-CdS thin film-based solar cells, which aid the tuning of the growth potential. The extracted electrical parameters (JSC = 15.22, Voc = 749, FF = 0.82 and QE = 9.0% at 520 nm) using SCAPS and electrometer are evidence of the improvement made and the results from both the SCAPS and electrometer are in tandem.