Mode Power Research Articles

Curcumin analogue: Synthesis, DFT and nonlinear optical studies

The synthesis of a new curcumin analogue dye via 3-chloro-2,4-pentanedion condensing with an aromatic aldehyde is considered. Following that, the synthesized compound is diagnosed utilizing spectroscopic methods, including FTIR, mass, 1H NMR, and 13CNMR. The curcumin analogue geometric optimization and theoretical studies are conducted on thermodynamic properties using DFT. The B3LYP techniques, which are hybrid functional with a 6–311+G(d) as the basis set, are adopted to compute the HOMO, LUMO, and Mullikan atom charges of the studied compound. The curcumin analogue dye nonlinear optical (NLO) properties are examined under excitation with a 473 nm, low power, cw and TEM00 mode laser beam. The index of nonlinear refraction (INLR) and coefficient of nonlinear absorption (CNLA) are estimated using diffraction patterns for the former and Z-scan for the latter. The INLR reaches a value as high as 6.86×10−11 m2/W, while the CNLA reaches 2.23×10−3 cm/W. All-optical switching (AOS) is tested in the novel curcumin analogue dye using two methods: static AOS and dynamic AOS.

Thermodynamic and optimization analysis of a fuel cell-based combined cooling, heating, and power system integrated with LNG-fueled chemical looping hydrogen generation

Chemical looping combustion technology is essential to achieve efficient decarbonized electricity generation for fossil-fueled power plants. However, the existing chemical looping hydrogen generation (CLHG)-driven cogeneration systems have complex refrigeration units and energy-consuming carbon capture. This study proposes a novel solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC)-based combined cooling, heating, and power (CCHP) system, which is integrated with the CLHG and fueled by a liquid natural gas (LNG) regasification process. The system is designed to enhance the overall performance by directly recovering LNG cold energy for cooling and liquefying the resulting CO2. The energy and exergy performance of the system under the baseline design case are evaluated. Subsequently, we discuss the impact of key design parameters on system performance and weigh between cooling/heating power and net power generation for the system dominated by the combined heat and power (CHP)/combined cooling and power (CCP) mode. Our findings reveal that the proposed system exhibits an electrical efficiency of 66.92 % and an exergy efficiency of 53.94 % under the baseline design case. The exergy loss ratio for condenser1 is identified as the highest among all components, accounting for 29.50 %. The constituent unit with the largest exergy loss contribution is the LNG regasification unit, followed by the SOFC unit, CLHG unit, transcritical CO2 cycle unit, and heating unit. More hydrogen needs to be replenished when fuel flow in the CLHG and fuel utilization in the SOFC are used to improve system performance. The optimal electrical and exergy efficiencies of the system predominantly designed in CCP mode surpass those in CHP mode by 4.27 % and 0.57 %, respectively. The results can guide potential applications of CLHG-based cogeneration systems.

Demystifying the Chinese local state: Planning and contesting urban growth at Hexi New Town, Nanjing

Taking note of the limitations of previously dominant political economy perspectives on China’s urban transformation, and inspired by recent works calling for “beyond-growth” and “micro-level” studies of the Chinese state, as well as ethnographic approaches to the state, this paper aims to explore the often-untold everyday politics of decision-making processes in China’s state-led urban development. Using an urban design project at Hexi New Town in Nanjing, China, as an empirical lens, the article makes three main contributions. Firstly, it reveals how the Chinese local state is constitutive of and lived through intense negotiations and contestations over urban visions, subjectivities, and rules of practices in everyday life. Secondly, building upon existing ethnographic approaches to the state, which focus primarily on state-society dynamics, this paper develops a framework to re-conceptualize the power topology within the Chinese local state as a field of relational modalities (ruling power relations (re)enacted in everyday practices) and relational embeddedness (situated positionalities and subjectivities of state actors). Thirdly, it further shows how the power modalities (the interplay of political-economy power vs technical-power, territorial power vs trans-territorial power) of the Chinese local state are constantly reworked, sometimes re-enacted, sometimes challenged, through both formal and tacit rules in the state’s everyday life. As such, the article provides a new set of entry points to open the black-box of the Chinese local state and to explore the relational nature and an ethnographic perspective of the local state and urban politics in China and beyond.

Modern approaches to therapeutic oligonucleotide manufacturing.

Therapeutic oligonucleotides are a powerful drug modality with the potential to treat many diseases. The rapidly growing number of therapies that have been approved and that are in advanced clinical trials will place unprecedented demands on our capacity to manufacture oligonucleotides at scale. Existing methods based on solid-phase phosphoramidite chemistry are limited by their scalability and sustainability, and new approaches are urgently needed to deliver the multiton quantities of oligonucleotides that are required for therapeutic applications. The chemistry community has risen to the challenge by rethinking strategies for oligonucleotide production. Advances in chemical synthesis, biocatalysis, and process engineering technologies are leading to increasingly efficient and selective routes to oligonucleotide sequences. We review these developments, along with remaining challenges and opportunities for innovations that will allow the sustainable manufacture of diverse oligonucleotide products.

Ultrasound for fillers: a preprocedural and postprocedural tool

Ultrasound is a powerful imaging modality that assesses vascular and musculoskeletal structures. In the context of filler application, live visualization with ultrasound can be utilized pre and postprocedurally to evaluate critical anatomic points, detect filler remnants, mitigate vaso-occlusive crises, and guide corrective therapies. As ultrasound utilization gains traction in aesthetic dermatology, this article aims to increase knowledge of how injectors can benefit from this evaluation tool.

A study of pulsed high voltage driven hollow-cathode electron beam sources through synchronous optical trigger

In this study, a pulsed, high voltage driven hollow-cathode electron beam sources through an optical trigger is designed with characteristics of simple structure, low cost, and easy triggering. To validate the new design, the characteristics of hollow-cathode discharge and electron beam characterization under pulsed high voltage drive are studied experimentally and discussed by discharge characteristics and analyses of waveform details, respectively. The validation experiments indicate that the pulsed high voltage supply significantly improves the frequency and stability of the discharge, which provides a new solution for the realization of a high-frequency, high-energy electron beam source. The peak current amplitude in the high-energy electron beam increases from 6.2 A to 79.6 A, which indicates the pulsed power mode significantly improves the electron beam performance. Besides, increasing the capacitance significantly affects the high-current, lower-energy electron beam more than the high-energy electron beam.

Combined control of PM and NOx emissions by corona discharge

This work investigates the potential of corona discharge to control particulate matter and NOx emissions from small-scale biomass combustion. The electrostatic precipitator (ESP) was designed and used to suppress emissions from a 15-kW heating unit. The ESP was operated at different power modes at both polarities and demonstrated the capability to reduce NOx emissions with a removal efficiency of 78 % while PM concentration was reduced to a magnitude of particle content in ambient air. The efficiency of ESP was evaluated considering the technological parameters, namely the reduced electric field, Nt-product, and specific input energy. The growth in NOx abatement was observed when the energy input exceeded 1 J/L for both polarities and Nt-product exceeded 4.5 × 108 s/cm3/1 × 109 s/cm3 for negative/positive corona. The results of this work may contribute to understanding the processes in corona discharge and optimising corona discharge systems for various applications.

Thermodynamic investigation of a Carnot battery based multi-energy system with cascaded latent thermal (heat and cold) energy stores

Carnot batteries store electricity in thermal form, allowing for power balancing and also multi-vector energy management as a unique asset. Cascaded thermal energy storage therefore has a vital role in Carnot battery, particularly multi-energy systems delivering electricity and thermal energy at various temperatures. Here, we propose a Carnot battery multi-energy system with cascaded latent thermal energy stores. The effects of compressor pressure ratio, total stage number, stage area and fluid velocity in tubes, on system-level coefficient of performance and total exergy efficiency are investigated. The results show that both the coefficient of performance and exergy efficiency increase significantly and then level off with the total stage number and stage area increasing, while they only increase slightly before a significant decrease with the increase of fluid velocity in tubes. The selection of compressor pressure ratios relates to the demands of cold, heat and electricity. The multi-energy system achieves a maximum coefficient of performance of 95.0% in combined cooling, heating and power mode. Although the thermodynamic performance yileds comparable with Carnot battery systems integrated with packed-bed or liquid-based sensible heat stores, the Carnot battery multi-energy system can deliver electricity and multi-grade heat and cold simultaneously, thus increasing flexibility in future energy systems.

Hybrid 3C-silicon carbide-lithium niobate integrated photonic platform

In this paper, we demonstrate a novel hybrid 3C-silicon carbide-lithium niobate (3C-SiC-LN) platform for passive and active integrated nanophotonic devices enabled through wafer bonding. These devices are fabricated by etching the SiC layer, with the hybrid optical mode power distributed between SiC and LN layers through a taper design. We present a racetrack resonator-based electro-optic (EO) phase shifter where the resonator is fabricated in SiC while using LN for EO-effect (r33≈ 27 pm/V). The proposed phase shifter demonstrates efficient resonance wavelength tuning with low voltage-length product (Vπ.Lπ ≈ 2.18 V cm) using the EO effect of LN. This hybrid SiC-LN platform would enable high-speed, low-power, and miniaturized photonic devices (e.g., modulators, switches, filters) operable over a broad range of wavelengths (visible to infrared) with applications in both classical and quantum nanophotonics.

Laser drilling through Hashma sandstone

The application of laser in the drilling and perforation of oil wells can achieve great benefits such as reduced drilling costs and time with a higher rate of penetration (ROP) and elimination of casing necessity in oil and gas well drilling. This paper presents an original experimental investigation of Laser cutting through Hashma sandstone (a common quarry rock in Egypt) to develop a good understanding of the laser cutting process in sandstone. Five blocks of Hashma sandstone with dimensions of 35 cm × 35 cm × 10 cm were utilized to study the effects of the various parameters involved in the lasing (cutting) process in order to evaluate the cutting process through sandstone, investigate the effect of laser parameters on the process and the cutting mechanisms. The experimental results showed that the laser drilling can provide lower specific energy (SE) compared to conventional drilling methods, revealed the effect of various laser and rock parameters (such as beam power, intensity, duration, sample size, and orientation) on the cutting process, and demonstrated the laser cutting mechanisms through sandstone such as thermal spallation and melting mechanisms. Several parameters must be optimized for an optimum laser cutting process with the lowest SE, such as using the optimum beam power, beam duration (or Lasig time), and beam mode (continuous or pulsed). The optimum parameters may change from one case to another and depend on the overall interactions among the various variables such as thermal dissipation rate and purging system efficiency.

Scheduling of Continuous Annealing With a Multi-Objective Differential Evolution Algorithm Based on Deep Reinforcement Learning

This paper studies a multi-objective scheduling problem in a continuous annealing operation of the steel industry, which is to simultaneously determine the production batch sizes for coils and their schedules so as to minimize the cost of setup, earliness, and tardiness. A large batch can reduce the setup costs but lead to a cost increase in earliness and tardiness. Thus, the conflict objectives of minimizing setup cost, earliness, and tardiness can be formulated separately. In this paper, we formulate a multi-objective optimization model for the problem and develop an adaptive multi-objective differential evolutionary based on deep reinforcement learning (AMODE-DRL) for effectively obtaining the Pareto solutions. In the proposed AMODE-RDL, DRL is integrated into the MODE algorithm as a controller, which can adaptively select mutation operators and parameters according to different search domains. Computational results on randomly generated instances and the practical problem instances show that DRL can effectively guide MODE to select mutation operators and parameters. The proposed algorithm can obtain better solutions compared to other powerful multi-objective evolutionary and adaptive MODE algorithms. <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">Note to Practitioners</i> —Setup usually leads to a decrease in production capacity and an increase in production costs. Similarly, earliness and tardiness costs are also crucial. These costs correspond to production, customer demand, and inventory, which are common objectives in production systems. However, the three objectives are generally conflicting, and it is very hard for practitioners to make appropriate decisions with manual experience. The multi-objective optimization methods can provide different scheduling for practitioners who may choose the suitable one according to current working conditions. Accordingly, the proposed model and algorithm can extend to other fields with similar characteristic problems.

LLC resonant converter analysis in PO mode

The PO mode under time-domain analysis is a kind of discontinuous conduction mode (DCM) which is beneficial to reduce the switching loss of the converter, but the calculation of the gain and frequency characteristics of the converter in this mode is cumbersome and difficult to be solved. Based on the analysis method of time domain approximation, the PO operating mode characteristics of the LLC resonant converter are analyzed, and a simple and accurate voltage gain calculation formula is theoretically deduced. Simple analytical expressions for the PO mode power boundary conditions are given based on the voltage variations of the magnetizing inductance and capacitance. A simulation model of the studied converter is established, and the simulation can prove that the proposed voltage gain formula and PO mode boundary conditions are correct.

Development of Biomechanical Response Curves for the Calibration of Biofidelic Measuring Devices Used in Robot Collision Testing.

Collaborative robots (cobots) can be employed in close proximity to human workers without safety fences. The operation mode Power and Force Limiting requires that cobots not exceed the biomechanical limits of ISO/TS 15066 to ensure protection against injuries caused by collisions with them. Collision tests must be performed to prove that cobots cannot exceed the biomechanical limits. Such tests are performed with a biofidelic measuring device that measures contact forces and replicates the biomechanics of the human body. Biomechanical response curves serve as a reference for the calibration of such devices. In order to be able to compare measurements and limits correctly and reliably, the limits and response curves for calibration must be obtained from the same data with the same methodology. In this article, we present a new technique for developing biomechanical response curves, which employs a statistical model we used to calculate biomechanical limits for cobots in a previous study. This technique's development process entails normalizing the data over force, resampling them and then fitting the newly obtained samples to a log-normal distribution. The statistical model makes it possible to produce response curves for the same quantile we used for the limits. Our technique adds a confidence region around each response curve to express the sufficiency of the available data. We have produced response curves for 24 different body locations for which we have calculated limits. These curves will enable manufacturers of cobot testing equipment to calibrate their measuring devices precisely.

Characterization of lamina propria remodeling in pediatric eosinophilic esophagitis using second harmonic generation microscopy

Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is a chronic inflammatory condition characterized by an intense infiltration of eosinophils into the esophageal epithelium. When not adequately controlled, eosinophilic inflammation can lead to changes in components of the extracellular matrix (ECM) of the lamina propria. Particularly, alterations to the collagen fiber matrix can lead to lamina propria fibrosis (LPF), which plays an important role in the fibrostenotic complications of EoE. Current approaches to assess LPF in EoE are prone to inter-observer inconsistencies and provide limited insight into the structural remodeling of the ECM. An objective approach to quantify LPF can eliminate inter-observer inconsistencies and provide novel insights into the fibrotic transformation of the lamina propria in EoE. Second harmonic generation (SHG) microscopy is a powerful modality for objectively quantifying disease associated alterations in ECM collagen structure that is finding increasing use for clinical research. We used SHG with morphometric analysis (SHG-MA) to characterize lamina propria collagen fibers and ECM porosity in esophageal biopsies collected from children with active EoE (n = 11), inactive EoE (n = 11), and non-EoE (n = 11). The collagen fiber width quantified by SHG-MA correlated positively with peak eosinophil count (r = 0.65, p < 0.005) and histopathologist scoring of LPF (r = 0.52, p < 0.005) in the esophageal biopsies. Patients with active EoE had a significant enlargement of ECM pores compared to inactive EoE and non-EoE (p < 0.005), with the mean pore area correlating positively with EoE activity (r = 0.76, p < 0.005) and LPF severity (r = 0.65, p < 0.005). These results indicate that SHG-MA can be utilized to objectively characterize and provide novel insights into lamina propria ECM structural remodeling in children with EoE, which could aid in monitoring disease progression.

Non-identity accounts: Personal myths, cultural scripts and narrative alignment

This article explores narrative practices of reverse biographical identity work: how people compose and present accounts of non-identity formation. When asked to reflect upon a lost, unlived experience, participants drew upon shared discursive resources: in particular cultural scripts. They performed aligning actions to position their individual tale in relation to dominant, preferred versions of these wider social narratives, making moral status claims to being normative or transgressive. These techniques manifested in three aspects of the stories: personal myths and central themes, sequential ordering and teleological reasoning, and counterfactual emotion tones supporting motive talk. Just like stories of actualised identity, therefore, non-identity accounts forge meaningful connections between self and society, reflecting and enacting modes of narrative power.

Environmental and economic dispatching strategy for power system with the complementary combination of wind-solar-hydro-thermal-storage multiple sources

The linkage, coordination, and complementary cooperation of energy supply can improve the efficiency of transportation and utilization. At present, the level of new energy consumption needs to be improved, the coordination of the source network load storage link is insufficient, and the insufficient complementarity of various types of power sources in the power system. This article fully explores the differences and complementarities of various types of wind-solar-hydro-thermal-storage power sources, a hierarchical environmental and economic dispatch model for the power system has been established. Among them, the upper level model takes the flexible consumption of new energy as the optimization goal, the middle level model uses a combination of hydropower station and energy storage to minimizes the fluctuation variance and peak-to-valley difference of the net load curve, the lower level model aims to achieve optimal environmental and economic benefits of the power system, comprehensively considers the coal consumption cost, startup and shutdown cost, energy storage operation cost, and pollutant emissions of thermal power units, determines the startup and shutdown mode and output power of thermal power units. Finally, an improved IEEE 6-machine 30-node system is used as an example for simulation analysis, the results show that after applying the proposed hierarchical environmental and economic dispatch strategy of the power system, the fluctuation variance and the peak-to-valley difference of the net load curve have been reduced by 46.3% and 31.5%, respectively, and the environmental and economic benefits of the system is improved by 5.1% compared with the traditional economic dispatch strategy. It can meet the requirements of energy system cleaning and decarbonization while improving the operation economy, which verifies the effectiveness of the proposed environmental economic dispatch model.

Ascorbic acid potentiates photodynamic inactivation mediated by octyl gallate and blue light for rapid eradication of planktonic bacteria and biofilms

This study reported for the first time that Ascorbic acid (AA) could appreciably boost the efficiency of Octyl gallate (OG)-mediated photodynamic inactivation (PDI) on Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus in planktonic and biofilm states. The combination of OG (0.075 mM) and AA (200 mM) with 420 nm blue light (212 mW/cm2) led to a >6 Log killing within only 5 min for E. coli and S. aureus and rapid eradication of biofilms. The mechanism of action appears to be the generation of highly toxic hydroxyl radicals (•OH) via photochemical pathways. OG was exposed to BL irradiation to generate various reactive oxygen radicals (ROS) and the addition of AA could transform singlet oxygen (1O2) into hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), which could further react with AA to generate enormous •OH. These ROS jeopardized bacteria and biofilms by nonspecifically attacking various biomacromolecules. Overall, this PDI strategy provides a powerful microbiological decontamination modality to guarantee safe food products.

The effect of deformation rate on the process of hot extrusion with dispensing of round hollow semi-finished products

Background. Stamping of round hollow semi-finished products by hot reverse extrusion is one of the initial operations in the manufacture of hollow products for special purposes. The force and shape change of the metal during hot plastic forming is significantly affected by the deformation rate or the speed of movement of the deforming tool. For special-purpose products, certain mechanical properties are required in the wall height and bottom part. The wall height properties are ensured at subsequent stretching transitions with thinning of the semi-finished product obtained by hot extrusion, which involves working out the metal structure by plastic deformation to achieve the required properties. Therefore, it is an urgent task to study the effect of the deformation rate on the force and shape change of the metal during hot reverse extrusion of hollow semi-finished products.Goal. To determine the influence of the deformation rate on the parameters of hot reverse extrusion with the dispensing of hollow semi-finished products from round and square billets by means of finite element method (FEM) modeling and to compare the results of theoretical researches.Methodology of implementation. Theoretical researches of extrusion power modes, specific forces, and the stress-strain state of metal were carried out by modeling using the FEM in the DEFORM software environment.Results. The FEM was used to model the process of hot reverse extrusion with dispensing of round hollow semi-finished products from mild steel with protrusions at the end of the bottom part on the side of the cavity and on the outer surface. The deformation rate was in the range of 20 to 80 mm/sec. Round and square cross-sectional blanks were used. The dependence of the extrusion force on the punch displacement was determined. The distribution of specific forces on the deforming tool was determined. The stress-strain state and temperature distribution in the deformed metal at the end of extrusion were determined. The development of the metal structure by hot plastic deformation was evaluated and the results obtained were comparedConclusions. The effect of the deformation rate on the parameters of hot reverse extrusion with dispensing of round hollow semi-finished products was determined

New coordinated drive mode switching strategy for distributed drive electric vehicles with energy storage system

High performance and comfort are key features recommended in hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) design. In this paper, a new coordination strategy is proposed to solve the issue of undesired torque jerks and large power ripples noticed respectively during drive mode commutations and power sources switching. The proposed coordinated switching strategy uses stair-based transition function to perform drive mode commutations and power source switching’s within defined transition periods fitting the transient dynamics of power sources and traction machines. The proposed technique is applied on a battery/ supercapacitor electric vehicle whose traction is ensured by two permanent magnet synchronous machines controlled using direct torque control and linked to HEV front and rear wheels. Simulation results highlight that the proposed coordinated switching strategy has a noteworthy positive impact on enhancing HEV transient performance as DC bus fluctuations were reduced to a narrow band of 6 V and transient torque ripples were almost suppressed.

Could near focus endoscopy, narrow-band imaging, and acetic acid improve the visualization of microscopic features of stomach mucosa?

Conventional magnifying endoscopy with narrow-band imaging (NBI) observation of the gastric body mucosa shows dominant patterns in relation to the regular arrangement of collecting venules, subepithelial capillary network, and gastric pits. To evaluate the effectiveness of a new one-dual (near) focus, NBI mode in the assessment of the microscopic features of gastric body mucosa compared to conventional magnification. During 2021 and 2022, 68 patients underwent proximal gastrointestinal endoscopy using magnification endoscopic modalities subsequently applying acetic acid (AA). The GIF-190HQ series NBI system with dual focus capability was used for the investigation of gastric mucosa. At the time of the endoscopy, the gastric body mucosa of all enrolled patients was photographed using the white light endoscopy (WLE), near focus (NF), NF-NBI, AA-NF, and AA-NF-NBI modes. The WLE, NF and NF-NBI endoscopic modes for all patients (204 images) were classified in the same order into three groups. Two images from each patient for the AA-NF and AA-NF-NBI endoscopic modes were classified in the same order. According to all three observers who completed the work independently, NF magnification was significantly superior to WLE (P < 0.01), and the NF-NBI mode was significantly superior to NF magnification (P < 0.01). After applying AA, the three observers confirmed that AA-NF-NBI was significantly superior to AA-NF (P < 0.01). Interobserver kappa values for WLE were 0.609, 0.704, and 0.598, respectively and were 0.600, 0.721, and 0.637, respectively, for NF magnification. For the NF-NBI mode, the values were 0.378, 0.471, and 0.553, respectively. For AA-NF, they were 0.453, 0.603, and 0.480, respectively, and for AA-NF-NBI, they were 0.643, 0.506, and 0.354, respectively. When investigating gastric mucosa in microscopic detail, NF-NBI was the most powerful endoscopic mode for assessing regular arrangement of collecting venules, subepithelial capillary network, and gastric pits among the five endoscopic modalities investigated in this study. AA-NF-NBI was the most powerful endoscopic mode for analyzing crypt opening and intervening part.