Intrinsic Nature Research Articles

Active learning for data efficient semantic segmentation of canine bones in radiographs.

X-ray bone semantic segmentation is one crucial task in medical imaging. Due to deep learning's emergence, it was possible to build high-precision models. However, these models require a large quantity of annotated data. Furthermore, semantic segmentation requires pixel-wise labeling, thus being a highly time-consuming task. In the case of hip joints, there is still a need for increased anatomic knowledge due to the intrinsic nature of the femur and acetabulum. Active learning aims to maximize the model's performance with the least possible amount of data. In this work, we propose and compare the use of different queries, including uncertainty and diversity-based queries. Our results show that the proposed methods permit state-of-the-art performance using only 81.02% of the data, with time complexity.

A Reproducing Kernel Hilbert Space Framework for Functional Classification

The intrinsic infinite-dimensional nature of functional data creates a bottleneck in the application of traditional classifiers to functional settings. These classifiers are generally either unable to generalize to infinite dimensions or have poor performance due to the curse of dimensionality. To address this concern, we propose building a distance-weighted discrimination (DWD) classifier on scores obtained by projecting data onto one specific direction. We choose this direction by minimizing, over a reproducing kernel Hilbert space, an empirical risk function containing the DWD classifier loss function. Our proposed classifier avoids overfitting and enjoys the appealing properties of DWD classifiers. We further extend this framework to accommodate functional data classification problems where scalar covariates are involved. In contrast to previous work, we establish a nonasymptotic estimation error bound on the relative misclassification rate. Through simulation studies and a real-world application, we demonstrate that the proposed classifier performs favorably relative to other commonly used functional classifiers in terms of prediction accuracy in finite-sample settings. Supplementary materials for this article are available online.

External Illumination Enables Coaxial Sensing of Surface and Subsurface Molten Pool Geometry in LPBF

Laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) attracts the attention of high-end manufacturing sectors for its capability of depositing free-form components with elevated mechanical properties. However, due to the intrinsic nature of the feedstock material and the interaction with the laser beam, the process is prone to defect formation and manufacturing inaccuracies. Therefore, the development of a monitoring architecture capable of measuring the geometrical features of the process tool (i.e., the melt pool generated by the laser-material interaction) is of paramount importance. This information may then be exploited to evaluate process stability. In this work, a high-speed camera was implemented coaxially in the optical chain of an LPBF system to extrapolate the geometrical features of the molten pool surface and its oscillatory behaviour, with elevated spatial and temporal resolution. A secondary light source was tested in both coaxial and off-axis configuration to dominate process emission and assess optimal illumination conditions for extracting the molten pool’s geometrical features. Preliminary results showed that the off-axis configuration of the illumination light enabled direct measurement of the molten pool surface geometry. A newly developed image processing algorithm based on illuminated images obtained via the coaxial observation frame was employed to provide automated identification of the melt pool geometry. Moreover, bright reflections of the external illumination over the melt surface could be clearly observed and used to characterise the oscillatory motion of the molten material. This information may therefore be taken as an indirect indicator of the molten pool penetration depth, hence providing information regarding the subsurface geometry. A successive experimental investigation showed the capability of the monitoring architecture to resolve the molten pool’s length, width and area with elevated acquisition frequency. Molten pool surface oscillations in the kHz range could be correlated to the penetration depth while the molten pool width measured via the high-speed imaging setup corresponded to the track width of the depositions. Hence, the methodological approach for the concurrent measurement of the molten pool’s geometry in three spatial dimensions was demonstrated and may be used to track the stability of LPBF depositions.

Rational Designing of Co–N–C Electrocatalysts for Comprehensive Elucidation of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Activities in the Oxygen Reduction Reaction

The catalytic efficacy of an electrocatalyst is mostly apprised by the intrinsic activity of individual active sites and/or by extrinsic activity, which is dependent on the active site density. In oxygen electrochemistry, extrinsic activity can influence the concomitant current density, while intrinsic activity can potentially influence the onset potential, exchange current density, and half-wave potential besides the current density. Modulation of intrinsic activity is mostly limited as it is mainly dependent on the electronic and chemical structure of active sites. The extrinsic activity can be improved by employing the post-synthesis modifications without disturbing the inherent catalytic nature (i.e., intrinsic activity) of individual active sites to ensure the utility of maximum instituted centers. In this work, we have made an attempt to elucidate the intrinsic and extrinsic activities of Co–N–C-based nanostructures to promote the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) efficiency, which is further elucidated by X-ray absorption spectroscopic studies. The experimental finding suggests that an increase in the N content (∼9 at %) in the host medium, that is, carbon, decisively impacts the intrinsic nature of electrocatalysts with a positive shift in the ORR onset potential of ∼ 131 mV and a nearly 1.5-fold increase in the exchange current density, a matrix that gives a measure of the ability to support catalytic activity inherently. The targeted removal of electrochemically less effective Co nanoparticles (which block/obscure the active centers Co–Nx in their vicinity) ensures the structural intactness as the C 1s full width at half maximum of the host matrix along with ORR onset potentials and Tafel slopes remains unchanged. The experimental finding further indicates that the current density can be improved by a factor of 2.6 (i.e., from 2.13 to 5.65 mA/cm2), ensuring the effective utilization of electrocatalysts. Overall, the rational combination of intrinsic and extrinsic activities can be valuable to design a variety of transition metal-carbon based electrocatalysts for diverse electrochemical energy devices.

H-abstractions by O2, NO2, NH2, and HO2 from H2NO: Theoretical study and implications for ammonia low-temperature kinetics

Unraveling the low-temperature chemistry of ammonia is still an open challenge in combustion kinetics, yet of primary importance because of the novel combustion concepts operating in these conditions, as well as of the rising interest on ammonia as an energy carrier. In this work, a fundamental investigation of the H-abstraction reactions from H2NO by O2, NO2, NH2, and HO2 was performed. These reactions, which belong to the radical-radical abstraction class, associate a high sensitivity to the key low temperature ammonia combustion parameters, to a high uncertainty in rate constant values. Theoretically, the investigation of reactions belonging to this class is complicated by their intrinsic multireference nature. To address this issue, a structured theoretical methodology that relies heavily on the use of CASPT2 calculations was devised. The predicted rate constants highlighted significant deviations from the rates commonly adopted in the state-of-the-art mechanisms, most often based on analogies and estimations. In order to understand their impact on ammonia low-temperature kinetics, the obtained rates were integrated into a kinetic model, which was used to investigate ammonia oxidation and ignition at low-temperature and oxygen-rich conditions. It was found that O2 and NH2 play the major role, as abstractors, in regulating ammonia oxidation and ignition. In particular, ignition delay time predictions proved extremely sensitive to the adopted rates: modifying each of them within their theoretical uncertainty caused deviations by even an order of magnitude, and totally changed the predictive features of the mechanism. The kinetic analysis highlighted then the need of a targeted optimization of the critical rates, downstream of the present work and within their uncertainty boundaries, to further refine the mechanism capability over a wide range of operating conditions.

The nanomechanical nature of cementitious calcium-(alumino)silicate-hydrate under ultra-low temperature attack: An intrinsic transition and the role of aluminum for bottom-up enhancement

Herein, the intrinsic nanomechanical transition of calcium-(alumino)silicate-hydrate (C-(A)-S-H) upon ultra-low temperature attack and the potential role of aluminum incorporation as a bottom-up enhancement strategy are investigated. C-(A)-S-H is experimentally synthesized using an efficient hydrothermal reaction, and statistical AFM-based indentation, nitrogen sorption, SEM, and AFM observations are carried out. Note that the C-A-S-H is clarified in more ordered topographic features than Al-free C-S-H. The nanomechanical measurements reveal that the ultra-low temperature attack provoked the nano-brittleness of C-(A)-S-H. Nevertheless, the nanomechanical degradation is seen for Al-free C-S-H only. This brittle transition is attributed to the rise of the high-density phase fraction, though the elastic moduli of its decomposed phases decrease. In comparison, the brittle transition of C-A-S-H is ascribed to the increasing elastic moduli of its decomposed phases. It is further proved that such transitions are irrelevant to the packing nature of gel grains but involved with the variation of their intrinsic nanomechanical natures since the gel pore systems remain stable under the ultra-low temperature attack. These results advance fundamental knowledge toward developing cryogenic stable cement-based materials from a bottom-up insight.

Residuals-based fault diagnosis of industrial automation systems using timed and untimed Interpreted Petri nets

The problem of detecting and isolating a fault using a discrete event model has received a lot of attention over the last two decades. Indeed, industrial automated systems can be usually modelled by a discrete event system. The problem is particularly significant if a fault-free model is used. Recently, residuals, well-known in continuous time systems context, have been proposed to obtain set of candidate faults from real time observations for discrete event system also. They have been obtained using finite state automata. In this paper, inspired by these works, residuals are formulated using Petri net models, both timed and un-timed ones. The computation of residuals for net models requires some efforts to update and predict the state, especially in timed models, but it returns to be highly efficient and scalable thanks to the local state representation and intrinsic distributed nature of the these models. A practical example, consisting of a plant simulated by using a 3D environment interfaced to a Programmable Logic Controller to simulate/emulate the closed-loop behaviour, is used to illustrate the results of the paper.

Detection of SARS-CoV-2 in a dog with hemorrhagic diarrhea

BackgroundSevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of COVID-19, has infected several animal species, including dogs, presumably via human-to-animal transmission. Most infected dogs reported were asymptomatic, with low viral loads. However, in this case we detected SARS-CoV-2 in a dog from the North African coastal Spanish city of Ceuta presenting hemorrhagic diarrhea, a disease also reported earlier on in an infected dog from the USA.Case presentationIn early January 2021, a West Highland Terrier pet dog from Ceuta (Spain) presented hemorrhagic diarrhea with negative tests for candidate microbial pathogens. Since the animal was in a household whose members suffered SARS-CoV-2 in December 2020, dog feces were analyzed for SARS-CoV-2, proving positive in a two-tube RT-PCR test, with confirmation by sequencing a 399-nucleotide region of the spike (S) gene. Furthermore, next-generation sequencing (NGS) covered > 90% SARS-CoV-2 genome sequence, allowing to classify it as variant B.1.177. Remarkably, the sequence revealed the Ile402Val substitution in the spike protein (S), of potential concern because it mapped in the receptor binding domain (RBD) that mediates virus interaction with the cell. NGS reads mapping to bacterial genomes showed that the dog fecal microbiome fitted best the characteristic microbiome of dog’s acute hemorrhagic diarrhea.ConclusionOur findings exemplify dog infection stemming from the human SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, providing nearly complete-genome sequencing of the virus, which is recognized as belonging to the B.1.177 variant, adding knowledge on variant circulation in a geographic region and period for which there was little viral variant characterization. A single amino acid substitution found in the S protein that could have been of concern is excluded to belong to this category given its rarity and intrinsic nature. The dog’s pathology suggests that SARS-CoV-2 could affect the gastrointestinal tract of the dog.

Formate diffusion engineering of hole transport layer for highly efficient N-I-P perovskite solar cells

The dominant hole transport material in the state-of-the-art n-i-p perovskite solar cells (PSCs) mainly is Spiro-OMeTAD, which suffer from the instability issue caused by the intrinsic nature of additives and dopants. Here, a formate diffusion engineering of Spiro-OMeTAD is proposed to improve the stability and performance of PSCs. By adding a novel bis(trifluoromethyl)benzylamine formate into the Spiro-OMeTAD, both the conductivity and hole mobility of the Spiro-OMeTAD layer are enhanced. Results of ionic distribution profiling validate evidence of formate diffusion from the Spiro-OMeTAD layer into the perovskite bulk. The diffused formate could effectively reduce the interfacial non-radiative recombination of perovskite/Spiro-OMeTAD interface and adjust the interfacial energy level, thus enhancing the carrier extraction. This concurrent Spiro-OMeTAD engineering and surface passivation scheme renders higher efficiency in n-i-p PSCs. This formate diffusion strategy, which synergistically couples electrical property of hole conductor and defect passivation of perovskite layer, could open a route to develop high-performance optoelectronic devices.

Key Experiment and Quantum Reasoning

For around five decades, physicists have been experimenting with single quanta such as single photons. Insofar as the practised ensemble reasoning has become obsolete for the interpretation of these experiments, the non-classical intrinsic probabilistic nature of quantum theory has gained increased importance. One of the most important exclusive features of quantum physics is the undeniable existence of the superposition of states, even for single quantum objects. One known example of this effect is entanglement. In this paper, two classically contradictory phenomena are combined to one single experiment. This experiment incontestably shows that a single photon incident on an optical beam splitter can either be reflected or transmitted. The almost complete absence of coincident clicks of two photodetectors demonstrates that these two output states are incompatible. However, when combining these states using two mirrors, we can observe interference patterns in the counting rate of the single photon detector. The only explanation for this is that the two incompatible output states are prepared and kept simultaneously—a typical consequence of a quantum superposition of states. (Semi-)classical physical concepts fail here, and a full quantum concept is predestined to explain the complementary experimental outcomes for the quantum optical “non-waves” called single photons. In this paper, we intend to demonstrate that a true quantum physical key experiment (“true” in the sense that it cannot be explained by any classical physical concept), when combined with full quantum reasoning (probability, superposition and interference), influences students’ readiness to use quantum elements for interpretation.

Lineage-specific protein repeat expansions and contractions reveal malleable regions of immune genes.

Functional diversification, a higher evolutionary rate, and intense positive selection help a limited number of immune genes interact with many pathogens. Repeats in protein-coding regions are a well-known source of functional diversification, adaptive variation, and evolutionary novelty in a short time. Repeats play a crucial role in biochemical functions like functional diversification of transcription regulation, protein kinases, cell adhesion, signaling pathways, morphogenesis, DNA repair, recombination, and RNA processing. Repeat length variation can change the associated protein's interaction, efficacy, and overall protein network. Repeats have an intrinsic unstable nature and can potentially evolve rapidly and expedite the acquisition of complex phenotypic traits and functions. Because of their ability to generate rapid, adaptive variations over short evolutionary distances, repeats are considered "tuning knobs." Repeat length variation in specific genes, like RUNX2 and ALX4, is associated with morphological and physiological changes across vertebrates. Here we study repeat length variation as a potent source of species-specific immune diversification across several clades of tetrapods. Moreover, we provide a clade-wise comprehensive list of immune genes with repeat types for future studies of morphological/evolutionary changes within species groups. We observe significant repeat length variation of FASLG and C1QC in Rodentia and Primates' contrasting species groups, respectively.

Behavioral correlates of temporal attention biases during emotional prosody perception

Emotional prosody perception (EPP) unfolds in time given the intrinsic temporal nature of auditory stimuli, and has been shown to be modulated by spatial attention. Yet, the influence of temporal attention (TA) on EPP remains largely unexplored. TA studies manipulate subject’s motor preparedness according to an upcoming event, with targets to discriminate during short attended trials arriving quickly, and, targets to discriminate during long unattended trials arriving at a later time point. We used here a classic paradigm manipulating TA to investigate its influence on behavioral responses to EPP (n = 100) and we found that TA bias was associated with slower reaction times (RT) for angry but not neutral prosodies and only during short trials. Importantly, TA biases were observed for accuracy measures only for angry voices and especially during short trials, suggesting that neutral stimuli are less subject to TA biases. Importantly, emotional facilitation, with faster RTs for angry voices in comparison to neutral voices, was observed when the stimuli were temporally attended and during short trials, suggesting an influential role of TA during EPP. Together, these results demonstrate for the first time the major influence of TA in RTs and behavioral performance while discriminating emotional prosody.

Detecting subsea permafrost layers on marine seismic data: An appraisal from forward modelling

ABSTRACTDetecting the top and base subsea permafrost from 2D seismic reflection data in shallow marine settings is a non‐trivial task due to the occurrence of strong free surface multiples. The potential to accurately detect permafrost layers on conventional 2D seismic reflection data is assessed through viscoelastic modelling. Reflection imaging of permafrost layers is examined through the evaluation of specific characteristics of the subsurface, acquisition parameters and their impact. Results show that limitations are related to the principles of the method, the intrinsic nature of the permafrost layers, and the acquisition geometry. The biggest challenge is the occurrence of free surface multiples that overprint the base permafrost reflection, with the worst‐case scenario the case of a thin layer of ice‐bonded sand. Wedge models suggest that if the base permafrost is dipping, it would intersect internal and free surface multiples of the seafloor and the top permafrost and be detected. Also, the amplitude ratio of the base permafrost reflection and the multiples decreases with the increasing thickness of permafrost. Therefore, the crosscutting relationship between the reflection at base permafrost reflection and the multiples might not be enough to detect the base permafrost for thicker permafrost layers. Finally, the experiment results show that, for partially ice‐bonded layers, the attenuation combined with the low reflectivity of the basal interface limits the likelihood to resolve the base permafrost, especially for thick permafrost layers.

Electrochemically induced NiOOH/Ag+ active species for efficient oxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural

Understanding the intrinsic nature of materials is considered as a critical approach to reach the desirable catalytic activity. However, there is still a lack of sufficient research on rational reconstruction of catalyst, especially in the field of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) oxidation. This work successfully reconstituted Ni MOF/Ag via surface-electrochemical activation, revealing that Ni3+/Ag+ is the main active species for HMF oxidation. This unique evolution not only acquired high-valence active species, but also stably anchored Ag species to the catalyst surface through the generated NiOOH. Importantly, the initial-potential of activated Ni MOF/Ag for HMF oxidation is much smaller than oxygen evolution reaction (OER), so HMF oxidation is more favorable than OER. Meanwhile, open-circuit potential vs. time experiments well illustrated that Ni3+/Ag+ species exhibited the superior self-healing ability during the conversion of HMF → 2, 5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA). Nearly 100% HMF conversion and 98.6% Faraday efficiency of FDCA were obtained at 1.623 V vs. RHE. Therefore, a structure–activity relationship between the reconstructed Ni3+/Ag+ species and HMF oxidation was deeply dissected for efficient production of FDCA.

On quasi-geodesic mappings of special pseudo-Riemannian spaces

The present paper continues the study of quasi-geodesic mappings f:(Vn, gij, Fih) → (V'n,g'ij, Fih) of pseudo-Riemannian spaces Vn, V'n with a generalized-recurrent structure Fih of parabolic type. By a generalized recurrent structure of parabolic type on Vn we mean an almost Hermitian affinor structure of parabolic type for which the covariant derivative of the structural affinor Fih satisfies the condition F(i,j)h=q(i Fj)h.
 In the previous paper by the authors [Proc. Intern. Geom. Center, 13:3 (2020) 18-32] it was proved that the class of pseudo-Riemannian spaces with generalized-recurrent structure of parabolic type is closed with respect to the considered mappings and the generalized recurrence vectors in (Vn, gij,Fih) and (V'_n, g'ij, Fih) may be distinct. In this article, it is assumed that the mapping f preserves the generalized recurrence vector qi.
 We construct geometric objects that are invariant under the quasi-geodesic mapping of generalized-recurrent spaces of parabolic type and recurrent-parabolic spaces. A number of conditions are given on these objects, which lead to the fact that a generalized-recurrent space of parabolic type admits a parabolic K-structure, and a recurrent-parabolic space admits a Kählerian structure of parabolic type.
 We study special types of these mappings that preserve some tensors of an intrinsic nature.

138P Dissecting intra-tumoral heterogeneity in localized HR+/Her2− breast cancer using single cell DNA sequencing

Localized breast cancer (LBC) embraces multiple genetic mutagenic events during the tumour development. Each mutation, at both gene copy number variant (CNV) and single-nucleotide variant (SNV) levels, may generate distinct cellular subclones within the same tumour, resulting in intra-tumoral heterogeneity (ITH). Although ITH is a risk factor for therapy-resistance and relapse, its intrinsic nature at the single-cell level remains obscure. Here, we investigate the genetic mechanism underlying ITH in a cohort of hormone receptor-positive/HER2-negative (HR+/HER2–) LBC.

Sensitivity analysis applied to SiC failure probability in TRISO modeled with BISON

A sensitivity analysis on the failure probability of the Silicon Carbide (SiC) layer in tristructural isotropic (TRISO) nuclear fuel during transient conditions predicted by the BISON fuel performance code is performed. The principal goal of the analysis is to understand the most important parameters dictating SiC failure behavior in BISON during Reactivity Initiated Accidents (RIAs). SiC brittle fracture probability is modeled using Weibull statistics. A total of seven inputs related to SiC failure has been selected for the analysis, including the Weibull statistics parameters, elastic moduli for SiC and Pyrolitic Carbon (PyC) and SiC stress-free temperature. A 1D TRISO BISON model has been established for various reactivity insertions performed at the Nuclear Safety Research Reactor (NSRR). The principal advantage associated with the 1D TRISO model developed in this work is its computational efficiency. The Sobol variance decomposition method is used, and the sensitivity indices are presented for eight different values of the energy deposition. The results show that the two most important parameters impacting the predicted SiC failure probability are the Weibull modulus and the characteristic stress, and a co-variance amongst these parameters is obtained for low reactivity insertions. An additional new finding of this work is that the relative importance of Weibull parameters depends on the energy deposition, and thus reactivity, regime. For low energy depositions, two parameters are of influence on SiC failure probability, while for high energy depositions only one parameter impacts failure probability results. Moreover, optimization of the Weibull modulus and characteristic stress is performed by minimizing the RMSE between BISON failure probability predictions and experimental failure fractions for each energy deposition. This work also demonstrates the validity of the NSRR tests BISON simulations and of the respective sensitivity analysis results as conservative, yet indicative for slower transients characterized by lower deposited energies. Such verification is achieved through the partial extension of the analysis to a group Control Rod Withdrawal reproduced from a previous study. Another novel result of this analysis is that no single set of Weibull parameters can reproduce all reactivity insertion experimental failure results, which is related to the intrinsic nature of SiC failure properties, and a new range for the parameters is proposed to produce a failure probability envelope that encompasses the experimental fractions. Additionaly, this work proposes a new approach for future failure analysis with BISON, consisting in the use of Weibull parameters ranges, rather than fixed sets, along with failure envelopes generation.

The Importance of Positive Factors in Protecting Adverse Mental Health Outcomes and Suicidal Behavior among Citizens of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries

Research on positive factors underlies strategies for promoting mental health and preventing suicidal behaviors. Objectives: To assess the importance of social support, self-esteem, and resilience in protecting against adverse mental health outcomes and suicidal behavior in different Portuguese Language Countries. Method and Results: We collected an online sample of 1006 citizens from the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLC), mean age of 41.76 years. Instruments assessed psychological symptoms, suicidal behaviors, social support, self-esteem, and resilience. We found statistically significant differences between CPLC countries, and positive factors were found to be inversely correlated with adverse mental health and suicidal behavior. Conclusions: Positive factors protect mental health and prevent suicidal behaviors. Self-esteem was particularly important, likely due to its intrinsic nature which has an overall influence on other psychological assets. Cultural differences should be taken in account when planning preventive and protective programs that should be specific to cultural needs.

Biodiversity Offsetting: Ethical Views within Environmental Organisations in the European Union

Biodiversity offsetting is a nature conservation instrument that is increasingly used but also strongly criticised. Previous studies have identified the ethical underpinnings of this criticism, but if and how ethically-based objections exist among persons active in nongovernmental environmental organisations is not clear. This study, therefore, explores occurring ethical views through seven in-depth interviews within this group of stakeholders. Among the results, the respondents in general took a consequential ethical view, according to which both benefits and costs with biodiversity offsetting should be considered and balanced, resting on a strong biocentric or ecocentric base, albeit within an ethical frame of restrictions for when to not use the instrument, indicating a strong deontological ethical basis. Overall, the respondents did not consider that the existence of intrinsic nature values, which they recognised, nor the potential commodification of such values, constituted definite barriers to biodiversity offsetting. Moreover, they did not see that offsetting, per se, would lead to non-virtuous attitudes towards nature. On social justice issues, the views diverged significantly. However, all respondents underlined a strong need for improved governance, including to prevent biodiversity offsetting of high nature values, to restrict flexibilities, and to apply multipliers with sufficient margins.

Electrically stimulated droplet injector for reduced sample consumption in serial crystallography

With advances in X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs), serial femtosecond crystallography (SFX) has enabled the static and dynamic structure determination for challenging proteins such as membrane protein complexes. In SFX with XFELs, the crystals are typically destroyed after interacting with a single XFEL pulse. Therefore, thousands of new crystals must be sequentially introduced into the X-ray beam to collect full data sets. Because of the serial nature of any SFX experiment, up to 99% of the sample delivered to the X-ray beam during its “off-time” between X-ray pulses is wasted due to the intrinsic pulsed nature of all current XFELs. To solve this major problem of large and often limiting sample consumption, we report on improvements of a revolutionary sample-saving method that is compatible with all current XFELs. We previously reported 3D-printed injection devices coupled with gas dynamic virtual nozzles (GDVNs) capable of generating samples containing droplets segmented by an immiscible oil phase for jetting crystal-laden droplets into the path of an XFEL. Here, we have further improved the device design by including metal electrodes inducing electrowetting effects for improved control over droplet generation frequency to stimulate the droplet release to matching the XFEL repetition rate by employing an electrical feedback mechanism. We report the improvements in this electrically triggered segmented flow approach for sample conservation in comparison with a continuous GDVN injection using the microcrystals of lysozyme and 3-deoxy-D-manno-octulosonate 8-phosphate synthase and report the segmented flow approach for sample injection applied at the Macromolecular Femtosecond Crystallography instrument at the Linear Coherent Light Source for the first time.