Improvement Of Applications Research Articles

Electron Leaks in Biophotovoltaics: A Multi‐Disciplinary Perspective

AbstractBiophotovoltaics (BPV), which exploits the natural oxygenic photosystem for energy production, provides a sustainable solution to produce carbon neutral or negative energy from sunlight to meet the growing global energy demand. BPV integrates oxygenic photoautotrophic microorganisms in an electrochemical cell, and harvests the water‐splitting derived photosynthetic electrons to an electrical circuit. Here e. g. electricity or H2, etc, can be produced, thus directly coupling sunlight and water to energy. Despite of the rapid development in the past decade, the system efficiency of BPV still needs magnitude‐level improvement for practical applications. In this perspective paper, we aim to address the electron transfer pipeline in BPV starting from the water splitting by the living whole‐cell catalysts to external electron sinks (i. e. mediator/anode) and eventually to the cathode, from multidisciplinary aspects. We calculated the electron leaks along the electron transfer pipeline to different metabolic electron sinks, and prospectively predicted an untapped potential for extracellular electron transfer rate. BPV could potentially reach an energy efficiency that is two orders of magnitude higher than its current status. An interdisciplinary research approach, that should combine systems and synthetic biology, bioprocess engineering and material science, among others, is proposed to broach the upper boundary of BPV technology.

End Face Detection of Rebar Based on Improved PP YOLO

This paper introduces an improved PP-YOLO network method to enhance the accuracy of rebar end identification and counting in construction engineering. The network is optimized for the specific characteristics of rebar images, enhancing its recognition capabilities for rebars of various sizes and shapes. Notably, the network structure introduces new pathways in the 4th and 5th layers, enabling more effective learning and identification of rebar features from low-level characteristics, thus improving overall recognition and counting accuracy. Additionally, an optimized data augmentation strategy, tailored to the unique features of rebar images, replaces the traditional Mixup method. Specific algorithms are introduced to enhance the network's efficiency in learning rebar image characteristics. These improvements led to excellent performance in rebar end face recognition tests, achieving an average precision (AP) of 96.23%, a 1.07% increase compared to the original model. This significant performance improvement confirms the effectiveness of our proposed improvements in practical applications, offering new perspectives for the development of rebar detection technology in the construction industry.

K-doped P2-Na0.67−xKxNi0.33−yMn0.67CuyO2 cathode material with enhanced cycle performance for sodium-ion batteries

As one of the typical compositions for Ni/Mn-based layered oxides, P2-Na0.67Ni0.33Mn0.67O2 is widely studied due to its high capacity and wide voltage. However, its electrochemical performance requires further improvement for practical application as a cathode material of sodium-ion batteries. In this study, we successfully synthesized a series of K-doped P2-Na0.67−xKxNi0.33−yMn0.67CuyO2 (x = 0, 0.01, 0.06, 0.10, 0 < y < 0.16) cathode materials using a convenient sol-gel method. During the initial discharge, the NKNMC0.06 electrode delivers a high capacity of 120.3 mAh g−1 at 100 mA g−1 when charged and discharged from 1.5 to 4.2 V. And the electrode retains a specific capacity of 101.6 mAh g−1, with a good capacity retention rate of 84.5 % after 100 cycles. The enhanced cycle performance can be attributed to the appropriate amount of K+ ions occupying the Na+ sites and providing support between the transition metal layers, which stabilizes the crystal structure and improves cycle stability of the electrode. Moreover, larger-sized K+ ions expand the Na+ diffusion channel, facilitating Na+ diffusion. Furthermore, the pouch cell of NKNMC0.06 delivers a capacity of 0.28 Ah during the first discharge and maintains a capacity retention rate of 78.2 % after 100 cycles.

α-Synuclein: A fusion chaperone significantly boosting the enzymatic performance of PET hydrolase

Extensive use of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) has brought about global environmental problems. A recently reported PET hydrolase (PETase) discovered from Ideonella sakaiensis showed high potential for degrading PET at moderate temperatures, but its activity and stability need further improvement for practical applications. Herein, we proposed to use α-synuclein (αS) as a fusion chaperone and created six PETase-αS fusion enzymes with linkers of different types and lengths. All the fusion enzymes exhibited improved enzymatic performance, presenting 1.5 to 2.6-fold higher activity towards bis-2(hydroxyethyl) terephthalate than PETase, as well as significantly increased stabilities. Fluorescence spectroscopy indicated that the chaperone fusion tightened the overall conformation and resulted in the opening of the substrate binding pocket, which led to the improved thermal stability and catalytic activity of the fusion enzymes. Remarkably, one of the fusion proteins, PETase-[(GS)(EK)]10-αS, showed 3.2 to 5.1 times higher PET degradation capability than PETase. The significantly boosted PET degradation performance was not only attributed to the enhanced enzymatic activity and stability, but also possibly due to the binding affinity of the fused αS domain for PET. These findings demonstrated that αS was an effective fusion chaperone for significantly enhancing the enzymatic performance of PETase.

Heterogeneous domain adaptation for intracortical signal classification using domain consensus

Most domain adaptation studies have made efforts to solve the problem of homogeneous data shifts, which share the same feature and label space in both domains. However, for the heterogeneous scenarios, it still needs improvements in practical applications for intracortical brain-computer interface (iBCI) systems. To address this issue, we propose a domain adaptation framework for decoding reaching and grasping movements of iBCI systems in two heterogeneous scenarios, i.e., partial domain adaptation (PDA) and open set domain adaptation (OSDA). The proposed framework combined the neural activity vector (NAV) features and the domain consensus clustering (DCC) method for iBCI classification. For heterogeneous scenarios, the framework can map common classes according to the clusters with the highest domain consensus score at the semantic-level and distinguish private classes at the sample-level. We evaluated the framework on the data, which were collected from three array electrodes implanted in three regions of cerebral cortexes from one monkey across two sessions, each consisting of four continuous days. The proposed framework outperformed than four PDA and two OSDA methods, which effectively reduced the disparity of feature and label space in two heterogeneous scenarios. Consequently, our results demonstrated that the proposed framework is a new solution for decoder calibration in two heterogeneous scenarios, and it facilitates the generality of the iBCI system for clinical applications.

Unraveling the reaction mechanisms of electrode materials for sodium‐ion and potassium‐ion batteries by in situ transmission electron microscopy

AbstractSodium ion batteries (SIBs) and potassium ion batteries (PIBs) have caught numerous attention due to the low cost and abundant availability of sodium and potassium. However, their power density, cycling stability and safety need further improvement for practical applications. Investigations on the reaction mechanisms and structural degradation when cycling are of great importance. In situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is one of the most significant techniques to understand and monitor electrochemical processes at an atomic scale with real‐time imaging. In this review, the current progress in unraveling reaction mechanisms of electrode materials for SIBs and PIBs via in situ TEM is summarized. First, the importance of in situ TEM is highlighted. Then, based on the three types of electrochemical reaction, i.e., intercalation reaction, conversion reaction and alloying reaction, the structural evolution and reaction kinetics at atomic resolution, and their relation to the electrochemical performance of electrode materials are reviewed and described in detail. Finally, future directions of in situ TEM for SIBs and PIBs are proposed. Therefore, the in‐depth understanding revealed by in situ TEM will give an instructive guide in rational design of electrode materials for high performance electrode materials of SIBs and PIBs.

Lithium‐Ion Mobility in Layered Oxide Li2(La0.75Li0.25)(Ta1.5Ti0.5)O7 Containing Lithium on both Intra and Inter‐Stack Positions

AbstractWith the aid of neutron diffraction and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, we have demonstrated the effect of the increase in lithium concentration and distribution on Li‐ion conductivity. This has been done through the synthesis of a layered oxide Li2(La0.75Li0.25)(Ta1.5Ti0.5)O7, with the so‐called Ruddlesden‐Popper type structure, where bilayer stacks of (Ta/Ti)O6 octahedra are separated by lithium ions, located in inter‐stack spaces. There are also intra‐stack spaces that are occupied by a mixture of La and Li, as confirmed by neutron diffraction. The distribution of lithium over both inter‐ and intra‐stack positions leads to the enhancement of Li‐ion conductivity in Li2(La0.75Li0.25)(Ta1.5Ti0.5)O7 compared to Li2La(TaTi)O7, which has a lower concentration of lithium ions, located only in inter‐stack spaces. The analyses of real and imaginary components of electrochemical impedance data confirm the enhanced mobility of ions in Li2(La0.75Li0.25)(Ta1.5Ti0.5)O7. While the Li‐ion conductivity needs further improvement for practical applications, the success of the strategy implemented in this work offers a useful methodology for the design of layered ionic conductors.

Enhanced desalination performance of aluminium fumarate MOF-incorporated electrospun nanofiber membrane with bead-on-string structure for membrane distillation

Although electrospun nanofiber membranes (ENMs) are attractive for membrane distillation (MD), the desalination performance needs further improvement for practical applications. In this work, aluminium fumarate (AlFu) metal organic frameworks (MOFs) were incorporated into polyvinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene (PVDF-HFP) nanofiber membranes via electrospinning to obtain substantial performance improvement. The results showed that the fluxes of the composite ENMs were increased by 60% and 114% when adding 0.1 and 2 wt% of AlFu MOF, respectively, compared to the pristine PVDF-HFP ENM. The systematic characterization proved that, the mean pore sizes of the composite ENMs were enlarged due to the unique bead-on-string structures, which was the key factor for flux enhancement demonstrated by theoretical calculation. The improved thermal efficiency in DCMD process due to the low thermal-conductivity of AlFu MOF also helps to increase permeate flux. Other factors such as increased surface roughness and additional nanochannels for water vapors were also considered helpful in flux enhancement. The optimum membrane (2 wt% AlFu MOF) showed stable desalination performance during a 46-h DCMD test using seawater as feed, demonstrating the durability and robustness of the composite ENMs. The present study confirms the positive role of MOFs for performance enhancement of ENMs in DCMD application, showing great potential in seawater desalination.

Foreign experience of the practical implementation of crisis management tools enterprise

The article considers foreign experience of the practical implementation of anti-crisis management tools of the enterprise studied the theoretical concepts and developments in the field of crisis management with regard to financial aspects to create effective solutions and ways of its improvement for practical application at the domestic enterprises. Marketing commodity policy is invited to consider and to develop in interrelationship and interdependence with the innovative and investment policy of the company.

Heterogeneous CPU+GPU-Accelerated FDTD for Scattering Problems With Dynamic Load Balancing

To fully exploit hardware resources and maximize the throughput of the heterogeneous systems, a graphics processing unit (GPU)+CPU collaborative computing method for the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method scattering simulation is proposed in this article. For the workload imbalance caused by different computational performances and device-module affinity of different processors in the heterogeneous systems, a dynamic load balancing method is proposed, which can distribute parallel tasks intelligently according to the captured runtime performance index of processors. The method proposed herein can be applied to different heterogeneous hardware environments adaptively, owing to its online adjustment of workload distribution. Simulation results show that the proposed dynamic load balancing-based heterogeneous parallel FDTD method does not introduce additional errors in solving the scattering problems and has a great improvement in efficiency compared to a parallel implementation using a single kind of processor. It shows up to $56.76\times $ and $5.85\times $ speedups over the multicore CPU and multi-GPU parallel execution, respectively, which is quite an attractive improvement for practical applications.

Novel black bismuth oxide (Bi2O3) with enhanced photocurrent generation, produced by high-pressure torsion straining

Bismuth oxide (Bi2O3), a yellow semiconductor ceramic, is considered as an advanced photoactive energy material, but its activity still needs further improvement for practical applications. In this study, black Bi2O3 with nanocrystalline structure and large fraction of oxygen vacancies is synthesized by mechanical straining via the high-pressure torsion (HPT) method. The black oxide exhibits enhanced light absorbance under both UV and visible lights. It shows a bipolar photocurrent behavior with up to six times higher photocurrent density compared with the unprocessed yellow Bi2O3. This study shows the high potential of severely-strained black Bi2O3 for photovoltaic, photoconductivity and photocatalytic applications.

Extending the detection range and response of TiO2 based hydrogen sensors by surface defect engineering

With the increasing usage of hydrogen energy, the requirements for hydrogen detection technology is increasingly crucial. In addition to bringing down the working temperature, further improvement in the response and broadening the detection range of hydrogen sensors in particular are still needed. TiO2 based sensors show great promise due to their stable physical and chemical properties as well as low cost and easy fabrication, but their detection range and low concentration response requires further improvement for practical applications. Here (002) oriented rutile TiO2 thin films are prepared by a hydrothermal method followed by annealing in either air, oxygen, vacuum or H2 and the hydrogen sensing performance are evaluated. Raman results show that TiO2 thin films annealed in vacuum and hydrogen have more oxygen vacancies, while those annealed in air and oxygen have a more stoichiometric surface. Annealing in an oxygen-rich atmosphere is shown to extend the detection range of the TiO2 sensors while annealing in anaerobic atmospheres increases their response. At high hydrogen concentrations surface adsorbed O2− is the dominant factor, while at low concentrations the Schottky barrier between Pt and TiO2 is key to achieving a high response. Here we show controlling the TiO2 surface properties is essential for optimizing hydrogen detection over specific concentration ranges. We demonstrate that adjusting the annealing conditions and ambient provides a simple method for tuning the performance of room temperature operating TiO2 based hydrogen sensors.

Highly Exfoliated and Functionalized Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes as Fast-Charging, High-Capacity Cathodes for Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Compared with traditional metal-oxide lithium-ion battery (LIB) cathodes, nanocarbon-based cathode materials have received much attention for potential application in LIBs because of their superior power density and long-term cyclability. However, their lithium-ion storage capacity needs further improvement for practical applications, and the trade-off between capacity and conductivity, when oxygen functional groups as lithium-ion storage sites are introduced to the nanocarbon materials, needs to be addressed. Here, we report a sequential oxidation-reduction process for the synthesis of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) for LIB cathodes with fast charging, long-term cyclability, and high gravimetric capacity. A LIB cathode based on highly exfoliated (dbundle < 10 nm) and oxygen-functionalized single-walled carbon nanotubes is obtained via the modified Brodie's method using fuming nitric acid and a mild oxidant (B-SWCNTs). Post treatment including horn sonication and hydrogen thermal reduction developed surface defects and removed the unnecessary C-O groups, resulting in an increase in the Li-ion storage capacity. The B-SWCNTs exhibit a high reversible gravimetric capacity of 344 mA h g-1 at 0.1 A g-1 without noticeable capacity fading after 1000 cycles. Furthermore, it delivers a high gravimetric energy density of 797 W h kgelectrode-1 at a low gravimetric power density of 300 W kgelectrode-1 and retains its high gravimetric energy density of ∼100 W h kgelectrode-1 at a high gravimetric power of 105 W kgelectrode-1. These results suggest that the highly exfoliated, oxygen-functionalized single-walled carbon nanotubes can be applied to LIBs designed for high-rate operations and long cycling.

Activation of peroxymonosulfate by chemically modified sludge biochar for the removal of organic pollutants: Understanding the role of active sites and mechanism

Abstract Peroxymonosulfate (PMS)-based advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) are promising tools for wastewater treatment. However, the production of high-efficient PMS activator from low-cost material still needs further improvement for practical application. Herein, we reported a series of sludge-derived biochar as catalysts for PMS activation and subsequent degradation of organic pollutants such as acid orange 7, rhodamine B, methylene blue, methyl orange, and their combination. Chemical treatment (e.g., NH4OH, KOH, or HCl treatment before, after, or both before and after pyrolysis) and various pyrolytic conditions were employed for synthesizing sludge biochar based-catalysts. Our best as-synthesized catalyst exhibited excellent performance in oxidative degradation of recalcitrant organics in PMS/acidic media, which was superior to many previously reported carbocatalysts. A non-radical process performed by pyridinic N was the dominant catalytic mechanism, while pyrrolic N, activated C(+) and surface area supported the adsorption of pollutants. A significant correlation between reaction rate constant and dye adsorption suggested that the non-radical oxidation process influenced by both pollutant adsorption and PMS activation. This study not only provides a facile rote of efficient sludge valorization, but also gives new scientific insight into the specific role of N species and other functional groups of carbocatalysts in PMS-based AOPs.

NiSx@MoS2 heterostructure prepared by atomic layer deposition as high-performance hydrogen evolution reaction electrocatalysts in alkaline media

Abstract

Automatic Deep Extraction of Robust Dynamic Features for Industrial Big Data Modeling and Soft Sensor Application

Dynamic is one of the main bottlenecks in the industrial soft sensor application, due to the difficulties in representing and extracting dynamic data features. Meanwhile, an end-to-end deep network owns the ability to characterize sequence data information, but its fitting ability requires improvements in practical applications. In this article, an ensemble tree model with transferable and robust dynamic features extracted by a newly developed automatic dynamic feature extractor is proposed. First, the dynamic feature extractor with an encoding–decoding structure can provide effective dynamic features, which is equivalent to crossing and nonlinear mapping of sequences under the supervision of a decoder. Meanwhile, a new “regularization” method by smoothing dynamic features based on attention weights is proposed to denoise and alleviate the overfitting of the regressor after adding new features. Then, the extracted dynamic features can be transferred to the regressor with strong generalization ability, which takes into account the feature extraction of the deep network and the generalization of strong models. Finally, application results on a debutanizer distillation process show that the incorporation of robust dynamic features can significantly improve the soft sensing performance, compared to traditional methods. Moreover, the proposed model is further implemented through a cloud computing platform for industrial big data analytics.

NiCo2O4@Polyaniline Nanotubes Heterostructure Anchored on Carbon Textiles with Enhanced Electrochemical Performance for Supercapacitor Application

NiCo2O4 is one of the most promising supercapacitor electrode materials. However, its capacitance and cycle stability require further improvement for practical application. Herein, a porous NiCo2O4...

Radiative cooling by silicone-based coating with randomly distributed microbubble inclusions

We demonstrate that white coatings consisting of silicone embedded with randomly distributed microbubbles provide highly efficient daytime radiative cooling with inexpensive materials and fabrication processes. In our material system, sunlight is strongly scattered with minimal absorption, and heat is effectively removed through mid-infrared (IR) radiation. In our previous study, solid microsphere-based coatings outperformed commercial solar-rejection white paint in cooling efficiency, but their mechanical robustness needed improvement for practical applications. The material system in our work substantially enhances the mechanical robustness while providing superior cooling performance to commercial solar-rejection paint. For ease of processing, we use nonoptimized structures with reduced optical scattering strength. Strong solar rejection is yet achieved by increasing coating thickness. This strategy is desirable for practical rooftop applications where coating thickness is of minor importance in comparison to cooling performance and materials cost. In addition, silicone is stable in extraterrestrial environments and efficiently radiates heat over broad mid-IR spectrum. These material properties of our silicone coatings promise great potential for radiative cooling in space applications.

TiVN composite hollow mesospheres for high-performance supercapacitors

Vanadium nitride (VN) is a promising electrode material for supercapacitors (SCs) with high theoretical capacitance value, but their capacitance at high current densities requires further improvement for practical applications. In contrast, titanium nitride (TiN) exhibits higher electronic conductivity with low capacitance. Herein, a TiVN composite is constructed through a facile solvethermal method issuing nitridation by carbon nitride (C3N4). The TiVN composite with hierarchical mesoporous hollow spheres combines the higher capacitance of VN and higher electronic conductivity of TiN, which exhibits high specific capacitance of 729 F g−1 at 2 A g−1 and cycling stability of 85.9% after 300 cycles.

Parity‐Time‐Symmetric Optical Lattice with Alternating Gain and Loss Atomic Configurations

AbstractSince the periodic parity‐time (PT)‐symmetric potential can possess unique properties compared to a single PT cell (with only two coupled components), various schemes have been proposed to realize PT symmetry in optical lattices. Here, a PT‐symmetric optical lattice is experimentally constructed with simultaneous gain and loss in an atomic medium. The gain and loss arrays are created in the four‐level N‐type configurations excited by spatially alternating strong and weak pump fields, respectively, which do not require discrete diffractions and can be realized more easily with more relaxed operating conditions. Also, the gain and loss coefficients can be modified independently. The dynamical behaviors of the system are investigated by measuring the phase difference between two adjacent gain and loss channels. The demonstrated PT‐symmetric lattice with easy accessibility and better tunability shows obvious advantages in exploiting more peculiar properties and great improvements in practical applications of periodic PT‐symmetric potentials.