Size Of Medium Research Articles

Establishment of an efficient and wide-spectrum droplet-vitrification cryopreservation for raspberry (Rubus idaeus L.) germplasm and assessments of genetic integrity and vegetative growth in the regenerants

By optimizing size of shoot tips, preculture medium and exposure duration to PVS2, we established an efficient and wide-spectrum droplet-vitrification cryopreservation for shoot tips of raspberry (Rubus idaeus L.). This protocol yielded 80–100% and 67–100% of survival and shoot regrowth levels in cryopreserved shoot tips across 23 raspberry genotypes. Genetic integrity was assessed in cryo-derived regenerants after 3 months of post-cryopreservation using inter simple sequence repeat (ISSR), single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs), and insertions and deletions (InDels). ISSR did not detect any polymorphic bands in the cryo-derived regenerants. Although the number of SNPs and InDels decreased in the cryo-derived regenerants, variation trends were similar between the cryo-derived regenerants and the control. Plant vegetative growth and root growth were assessed in the cryo-derived plants after 9 weeks of growth in greenhouse. There were no significant differences in plant vegetative growth measured by plant height, number of fully-opened leaved, leaf area, and fresh and dry weight between the cryo-derived plants and the control, although significant differences were observed in root growth measured by root total length, root average diameter and root volume between the two types of plants. The results obtained in the present study indicate that the droplet-vitrification method has great potential for cryopreservation of raspberry germplasm.

Unification of insertion and supercapacitive storage concepts: Storage profiles in titania

Insertion storage in battery electrodes and supercapacitive storage are typically considered to be independent phenomena and thus are dealt with in separate scientific communities. Using tailored experiments on titanium oxide thin films of various thicknesses, we demonstrate the simultaneous occurrence of both processes. For the interpretation of the entire storage profile encompassing both contributions, the (free) energies of the charge carriers in the mixed conductor and the neighboring phase are the only materials parameters required. The experimental results enable no less than a unification of insertion and supercapacitive storage, the first being dominant for thick films, the latter for thin films or negligible electronic conductivity. Therefore, the size of the storage medium and the nature of the current collecting phases can be used to tune power density versus energy density.

Effects of Two Types of Estrogen on the Follicular Wave for in Vivo Oocyte Collection in Brown Swiss Cows

The manipulation of follicular waves through hormonal treatments, such as estrogen administration, plays a crucial role in optimizing in-vivo oocyte collection for assisted reproductive technologies. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of two specific types of estrogen on follicular wave dynamics and their impact on in-vivo oocyte collection in Brown Swiss cows. Fourteen cows, in their first lactation, weighing approximately 340 kg were randomly assigned to one of two treatments including T1 (estradiol cypionate) and T2 (estradiol benzoate). Both treatments were administered at 1.2 mg of estrogen, at day 0 of the experiment. All Brown Swiss cows were provided with a diet entirely consisting of alfalfa grazing. On day 7, follicular wave dynamics were assessed using a DP-50 vet ultrasound device equipped with a 7.5 MHz transducer for transvaginal follicular aspiration guidance. Follicle counts were categorized into three size ranges including 2-4 mm (small), 4-8 mm (medium), and greater than 8 mm (large). Additionally, the quantity and quality (viable oocytes) of the collected oocytes were evaluated by the Ovum Pick Up (OPU) team for oocyte viability on day 7. The study assessed the follicular dynamics (number of follicles) and efficiency of oocyte collection (viable oocytes) in cows treated with Estradiol Cypionate (T1) and Estradiol Benzoate (T2). The average number of small, medium-sized, and large follicles size were 6.048 ± 6.037, 3.16 ± 2.01, and 0.53 ± 0.67 respectively. The total number of follicles was 9.59 ± 3.56. The mean number of viable oocytes recovered was 3.024 ± 1.66, while the mean number of non-viable oocytes was 1.47 ± 1.01. The results indicated no significant differences between treatments in the size of small, medium, and large follicles, nor in the total number of follicles and viable oocytes recovered. However, a significant difference was observed in the number of non-viable oocytes recovered, with a higher mean in T2 (1.86) compared to T1 (1.09). The results indicated an adequate follicular response and viable oocyte recovery in both treatment groups (estradiol cypionate and estradiol benzoate). However, variations in oocyte viability were observed, with estradiol cypionate showing a slight advantage.

Real-time two-dimensional visualization reveals the transport mechanisms of biochar colloids in the presence of DOM in porous media

Biochar colloids (BCs) have attracted much attention globally, and their fate and transport in the subsurface are significantly influenced by soil-dissolved organic matter (DOM) in soil. This study utilized a real-time and non-invasive visualization system to reveal the transport and retention behavior of BCs in the presence of DOM in two-dimensional porous media. Results indicated that the presence of DOM enhanced the transport of BCs, due to its increased negative charge density and increased repulsion between BCs. The change in the particle size of the porous medium was also shown to affect the BCs transport in the porous media. Additionally, the negative charge of BCs shielded by high IS, the mobility of BCs decreased by 30.37 % from 1 mM to 50 mM. When the pH was increased from 5 to 9, the oxygen-containing functional groups of BCs and DOM were dissociated, and the mobility of BCs increased by 32.41 %. Through a simplified Double-Monod model, we fitted the breakthrough curves for BCs transport in porous media (R2 > 0.94). Moreover, the mechanism of different conditions on colloid clogging behavior was further elucidated through the DLVO theory. These findings extend the understanding of the environmental behavior of BCs in the presence of DOM derived from soil, enabling us to assess better and predict their environmental risks.

Исследование инициирования волны фильтрационного горения газа открытым пламенем

One of the processes of filtration combustion, namely the process of filtration combustion of gas, is considered. Its importance and practical significance are emphasized. The current state of research is shown and the need to study the non-stationary processes of filtration combustion of gas is revealed. The article examines one of the non-stationary processes of filtration combustion of gas, which is of great importance: the process of formation of a wave of filtration combustion of gas, which occurs when a burning gas mixture moves through an inert porous medium towards the flow of a combustible mixture. This process occurs when devices using filtration combustion of gas are operating: devices for afterburning poor gas mixtures, radiation burners, etc. A comprehensive study of this process has been carried out, including mathematical modeling and experimental research. The necessity of using a comprehensive study is shown. A method for processing experimental data is proposed. The factors influencing the process of formation of the filtration combustion wave of gas when it is initiated by an open flame are established. The influence of the gas mixture feed rate, heat loss from the porous medium to the external environment, and the grain size of the porous medium on the ignition process and the movement of the filtration combustion wave of gas was revealed.

Quantitative response of the spatial distribution of diesel oil to freezing and thawing temperatures in groundwater

The mobilization and redistribution of organic contaminants in groundwater is the basis and key to explore its dynamic evolution and appropriate remediation. The naturally occurring diametrical temperature gradient during freezing and thawing cycle leads to distinct behaviors of organic contaminants in groundwater. In this study, the pore-scale distribution of diesel oil in the porous media was quantitatively divided into capillary fluid state (CFS) and free fluid state (FFS) based on multiphase flow dynamics, employing low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (LF-NMR) technology. The pore-scale distribution of diesel oil depends not only on the freezing and thawing cycle but also on the temperature gradient according to LF-NMR results. The content of diesel oil in the CFS generally increases with a positive temperature gradient (e.g. freezing) compared to a negative temperature gradient (e.g. thawing), while the content of diesel oil in the FFS generally decreases. This dependence of the temperature gradient on pore-scale distribution of the diesel oil is positively correlated with the particle size of the porous medium. Furthermore, the pore-scale distribution of the diesel oil during the freezing and thawing cycle is influenced by the kinematic viscosity of the diesel oil. There is an exponential relationship between the diesel oil content and the kinematic viscosity, independent of the freezing or thawing process. During the freezing process, the diesel oil migrates from FFS to CFS, while this migration is reversed during the thawing process. The reverse migration of the diesel oil between the freezing and thawing processes leads to a spatial redistribution of the diesel oil, which is controlled by both the fluid energy and the capillary force. The present work provide meaningful guidance for the remediation of groundwater contamination in cold regions.

Effects of fluid composition in fluid injection experiments in porous media

Experiments on fluid flow in porous media, using fluids loaded with solids of various grain sizes, have been conducted in a modified Hele-Shaw setup. This setup utilised weakly cemented porous media with specific hydraulic and mechanical properties. Fluid injection in coarse granular media with clean or low-concentration fine particles, results in infiltration only, with pressure close to the material tensile strength, while injection in finer granular material causes damage alongside infiltration, with the fluid pressure still close to the material tensile strength. When larger particle sizes or higher particle concentrations are used in the mixture, the fluid travels further within the porous medium, primarily influenced by the grain size of the granular medium. In the latter case, the Darcy flow equation with an effective permeability term can be employed to determine the pressure differential. For the largest particle sizes included in the fluid, the equation is still applicable, but the effective permeability requires adjustment for particle size within the fluid rather than the granular medium. This is crucial when the injection point is locally clogged. The experiments show that fracturing conditions are controlled by different mechanisms. Dimensional and statistical analysis was used to classify the injection pressures to regimes predicted by fracturing theory or by Darcy law with modified effective permeabilities. The findings show that both the material properties and fluid composition are important designing parameters.

Effects of Silver Nanoparticles on the Red Microalga Porphyridium purpureum CNMN-AR-02, Cultivated on Two Nutrient Media.

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of 10 and 20 nm nanoparticles (AgNPs) on the growth and biochemical composition of microalga Porphyridium purpureum CNMN-AR-02 in two media which differ by the total amount of mineral salts (MM1 with 33.02 g/L and MM2 with 21.65 g/L). Spectrophotometric methods were used to estimate the amount of biomass and its biochemical composition. This study provides evidence of both stimulatory and inhibitory effects of AgNPs on different parameters depending on the concentration, size, and composition of the nutrient medium. In relation to the mineral medium, AgNPs exhibited various effects on the content of proteins (an increase up to 20.5% in MM2 and a decrease up to 36.8% in MM1), carbohydrates (a decrease up to 35.8% in MM1 and 39.6% in MM2), phycobiliproteins (an increase up to 15.7% in MM2 and 56.8% in MM1), lipids (an increase up to 197% in MM1 and no changes found in MM2), antioxidant activity (a decrease in both media). The composition of the cultivation medium has been revealed as one of the factors influencing the involvement of nanoparticles in the biosynthetic activity of microalgae.

Comparative Study and Evaluation of Sediment Deposition and Migration Characteristics of New Sustainable Filter Media in Micro-Irrigation Sand Filters

The quartz sand filter medium used in micro-irrigation media filters has the disadvantages of short filtration cycle, surface filtration, and mining pollution. Selecting resources as new filter media is essential to improve the performance of the media filter and boost sustainable development. In this study, the traditional quartz sand filter medium and two new filter media were selected, and their corresponding filtration performances were comparatively studied. The influence of the type, particle size, and height of the filter medium on filtration performance was evaluated. The sediment content and distribution based on the size of particles in quartz sand, crushed glass, and glass bead filter layers was measured and analyzed. The hydraulic performance of different filter columns was analyzed. The results showed that for a given particle size, quartz sand exhibits the best sediment retention ability. This promoted the aggregation of small sediment particles into larger ones, whereas the crushed glass and bead glass filter layers promoted the splitting of large sediment particles into smaller ones, which enabled the reduction of blockage during the micro-irrigation process. The filtration rate of the quartz sand filter column exhibited the least fluctuation relative to crushed glass and glass bead filter media, and the pressure in each column exhibited a linear incremental change. In summary, glass microbeads are not suitable as filter material, crushed glass is suitable for general micro-irrigation systems, and quartz sand is suitable for micro-irrigation systems with elaborate filtration requirements. The findings of this study can provide theoretical guidance for the selection of the micro-irrigation filter material.

The intrinsic relationship of the thermal stress intensity factor and the temperature difference at the crack surface

The intrinsic relationship of the thermal stress intensity factor and temperature difference between the upper and lower surface of the crack have been studied in this paper. The results show the thermal stress intensity factor is always proportional to the temperature difference between the upper and lower crack surface, and the ratio depends only on material parameters and crack length, but is independent of loading condition. For a finite medium problem, the above conclusion is still valid by simply adding a size related correction factor. When the size of medium is 10 times larger than the crack size, the size related correction factor is less than 1.019, that is, the error is less than 2%. Our conclusion provides a theoretical basis to estimate the localization thermal stress intensity factor simply by measuring the temperature difference of the crack surface.

Cation-crosslinked κ-carrageenan sub-microgel medium for high-quality embedded bioprinting

Three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting embedded within a microgel bath has emerged as a promising strategy for creating intricate biomimetic scaffolds. However, it remains a great challenge to construct tissue-scale structures with high resolution by using embedded 3D bioprinting due to the large particle size and polydispersity of the microgel medium, as well as its limited cytocompatibility. To address these issues, novel uniform sub-microgels of cell-friendly cationic-crosslinked kappa-carrageenan (κ-Car) are developed through an easy-to-operate mechanical grinding strategy. These κ-Car sub-microgels maintain a uniform submicron size of around 642 nm and display a rapid jamming-unjamming transition within 5 s, along with excellent shear-thinning and self-healing properties, which are critical for the high resolution and fidelity in the construction of tissue architecture via embedded 3D bioprinting. Utilizing this new sub-microgel medium, various intricate 3D tissue and organ structures, including the heart, lungs, trachea, branched vasculature, kidney, auricle, nose, and liver, are successfully fabricated with delicate fine structures and high shape fidelity. Moreover, the bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells encapsulated within the printed constructs exhibit remarkable viability exceeding 92.1% and robust growth. This κ-Car sub-microgel medium offers an innovative avenue for achieving high-quality embedded bioprinting, facilitating the fabrication of functional biological constructs with biomimetic structural organizations.

Arbitrary Wireless Energy Distribution within an Epsilon Near‐zero Environment

AbstractEfficient power distribution to multiple receivers with controlled amounts is critical for wireless communication and sensing systems. Previous efforts have attempted to improve power transfer efficiency through strong coupling and parity‐time (PT) symmetry, providing attractive opportunities for flexible energy flow control. In this study, a novel method for achieving arbitrary power distribution is proposed and numerically demonstrated by leveraging the unique properties inside an epsilon near‐zero (ENZ) environment. Specifically, it shows that the power from a single source can be transferred to multiple receivers inside an ENZ medium with negligible loss by modifying optical properties of receivers rather than introducing sophisticated active control modules. Importantly, full power transfer is independent of the size and shape of the ENZ medium, as well as the positions of the receivers and source. A realizable system is further designed with effective zero index at microwave frequencies to confirm the high efficiency of energy transfer. The innovative approach, employing photonic doping for advanced and efficient wireless power transfer, may shed light on the new generation of energy efficient communication/sensing systems with versatile control functionalities.

Automatic coronary artery segmentation of CCTA images using UNet with a local contextual transformer.

Coronary artery segmentation is an essential procedure in the computer-aided diagnosis of coronary artery disease. It aims to identify and segment the regions of interest in the coronary circulation for further processing and diagnosis. Currently, automatic segmentation of coronary arteries is often unreliable because of their small size and poor distribution of contrast medium, as well as the problems that lead to over-segmentation or omission. To improve the performance of convolutional-neural-network (CNN) based coronary artery segmentation, we propose a novel automatic method, DR-LCT-UNet, with two innovative components: the Dense Residual (DR) module and the Local Contextual Transformer (LCT) module. The DR module aims to preserve unobtrusive features through dense residual connections, while the LCT module is an improved Transformer that focuses on local contextual information, so that coronary artery-related information can be better exploited. The LCT and DR modules are effectively integrated into the skip connections and encoder-decoder of the 3D segmentation network, respectively. Experiments on our CorArtTS2020 dataset show that the dice similarity coefficient (DSC), Recall, and Precision of the proposed method reached 85.8%, 86.3% and 85.8%, respectively, outperforming 3D-UNet (taken as the reference among the 6 other chosen comparison methods), by 2.1%, 1.9%, and 2.1%.

Understanding the Microscopic Mechanism of Clogging of both Fibrous and Mesh Filters in Flooded-bed Wet Scrubbers

Flooded-bed scrubbers are commonly employed in continuous miners to capture and remove dust particles at the cutting face in underground coal mines. To date, the mechanism of filter clogging as well as the evolution of pressure drop has not been well understood. In this work, clogging of filters in a relevant flooded-bed scrubber environment have been investigated in a laboratory setting by spraying a slurry onto a filter assembly while pulling the air through. Two types of filters have been investigated, including a) a multi-layer mesh filter and 2) a fibrous woven filter. Results showed that the differential pressure (or pressure drop) increased with an accumulation of clogged particles within the filter. The timed evolution of the pressure drop varied with both pore size and pore structure of the filter medium. When dust particles were much smaller than the pore size of the filter, dust particles predominantly accumulated inside the filter pack. When dust particles had comparable or larger sizes compared with the pore (or mesh) size of the filter medium, the filter was dominantly clogged at its front layers. Experimental results were compared with a modified model to account for the development of the pressure drop across the filter. The clogging of scrubber filters may be presented in two mechanisms, namely a) internal clogging and b) caking. The present result demonstrates the fundamental mechanism of clogging of dust particles within fibrous and mesh filters during dust capture and removal by flooded-bed wet scrubbers as well as other engineering applications involving in multi-phase interaction within a porous medium.

Aluminium oxide grid blasting: grid size and blasting pressure influence on the substrate surface contamination, roughness and ceramic plasma spray coating adhesion strength

This paper concerns influence of grit blasting parameters (grid blast media size and blasting pressure) on blasted surface contamination by entrapped grid blast particles and roughness of a blasted mild steel surface and a subsequent influence of given surface specifications on a thermal spray coating adhesion strength. Main goal of an experiment presented in this paper is basic optimization of grid size of alumina oxide blasting medium and blasting pressure in order to reduce surface contamination by grid residues trapped on the surface. Those residues are known to cause reduction in adherent forces between coating and blasted substrate, functioning as major stress concentrators especially under high mechanical and/or temperature loads. Mutual relations between grid size and blasting pressure as input parameters, and surface contamination, surface roughness and adhesion of an atmospheric plasma sprayed ceramic coating is evaluated. It was found that higher surface roughness does not necessarily lead to higher adhesion of thermally sprayed coating. The resulting adhesion strength seems to be determined by the synergistic effect of the suitable roughness profile, residual blasting particles and feedstock particle size of the deposited coating. This is supported by the observed highest adhesions (around 22 MPa) of ceramic alumina-titania APS coating to the surface with lowest measured roughness (as low as Ra 2.7) but also the lowest contamination level by blasting residues (4.6 to 6.7 %).

The impact of amplitude modulation frequency in harmonic motion imaging on inclusion characterization.

Ultrasound elasticity imaging techniques aim to provide a non-invasive characterization of tissue mechanical properties to detect pathological changes and monitor disease progression. Harmonic motion imaging (HMI) is an ultrasound-based elasticity imaging technique that utilizes an oscillatory acoustic radiation force to induce localized displacements and estimate relative tissue stiffness. Previous studies have applied a low amplitude modulation (AM) frequency of 25 or 50 Hz in HMI to assess the mechanical properties of different tissue types. In this study, we investigate the dependence of AM frequency in HMI and whether the frequency can be adjusted based on the size and mechanical properties of the underlying medium for enhanced image contrast and inclusion detection. A tissue-mimicking phantom with embedded inclusions at different sizes and stiffnesses was imaged within a range of AM frequencies from 25 to 250 Hz at 25-Hz step size. The AM frequency at which the maximum contrast and CNR are achieved depends on the size and stiffness of the inclusions. A general trend shows that contrast and CNR peak at higher frequencies for smaller inclusions. In addition, for some inclusions with the same size but different stiffnesses, the optimized AM frequency increases with the stiffness of the inclusion. Nevertheless, there is a shift between the frequencies at which the contrast peaks and those with maximum CNR. Finally, in agreement with the phantom findings, imaging an ex-vivo human specimen with a 2.7-cm breast tumor at a range of AM frequencies showed that the highest contrast and CNR are achieved at the AM frequency of 50 Hz. These findings indicate that the AM frequency can be optimized in different applications of HMI, especially in the clinic, for improved detection and characterization of tumors with different geometries and mechanical properties.

Nanoscale optimization of the opto-hydrodynamical air-water interface deformation

The aim of this work is to demonstrate numerically an optimal enhancement of nanoscale opto-hydrodynamic deformation of an air-water interface that involves an interaction between the size of the fluid medium and geometry of the continuous wave laser beam for a fixed radiation pressure force. We find a critical value of beam radii (ωc) which produces the maximum deformation with a rapid onset time (ton∼O(10−8) s) and high saturation time (tsat∼O(10−2) s). Additionally, we show how the beam radius and water depth regulate an early onset and saturation time which depends linearly on the water depth once the optimal condition is achieved. Interestingly, we also show the stable and dynamic zones for deformation at the air-water interface. It is possible to validate our numerical results by using a variety of experimentally derived parameters, and these findings affect the characterization of complex fluids at the nanoscale.

Maximizing the scattering of multiwavelength phonons in novel biphasic high-entropy ZrCoSb-based half-Heusler alloys

The thermoelectric (TE) performance of p-type ZrCoSb-based half-Heusler (HH) alloys has been improved tremendously in recent years; however, it remains challenging to find suitable n-type ZrCoSb-based HH alloys due to their high lattice thermal conductivity (κL). In this work, n-type Zr1−xTaxCo1−xNixSb HH alloys were firstly designed by multisite alloying. The evolution of the Raman peak proved that alloy scattering, phonon softening, anharmonicity, entropy-driven disorder, and precipitates had a combined effect on decreasing κL by 46.7% compared to that of pristine ZrCoSb. Subsequently, Hf0.75Zr0.25NiSn0.99Sb0.01 was introduced into Zr0.88Ta0.12Co0.88Ni0.12Sb to further suppress κL. Remarkably, the grain size of the biphasic HH alloys was refined by at least one order of magnitude. A biphasic high-entropy HH alloy with y = 0.2 exhibited the minimum κL of ∼2.44 W/(m·K) at 923 K, reducing by 67.7% compared to that of ZrCoSb. Consequently, (Zr0.88Ta0.12Co0.88Ni0.12Sb)0.9(Hf0.75Zr0.25NiSn0.99Sb0.01)0.1 exhibited the highest TE figure of merit (∼0.38) at 923 K. The cooperation between the entropy and biphasic microstructure resulted in multiscale defects, refined grains, and biphasic interfaces, which maximized the scattering of the multiwavelength phonons in HH alloys. This work provides a new strategy for further reducing the grain size and κL of medium- and high-entropy HH alloys.

Organising music’s structures: The classification of musical forms in Western art music

This article analyses the classification of musical forms in Western art music. It examines how some sources in the music domain classify musical forms, and the categorisations and complexities inherent within these classifications. It analyses the table of contents from music domain textbooks, treating them as knowledge organisation systems, as well as analysing music domain descriptions of the knowledge organisation of forms. Form is found to be a complicated type of information, with an intriguing relationship to genre. The analysis of domain classifications reveals five key categorisations: texture, sectionalisation, size of structure, definable-ness and medium. Various complexities about form are elicited, such as form-as-process, complicated whole-part form relationships, an interesting spectrum of definable-ness, and the dependency of form on medium and texture. This article examines a rarely discussed type of information, form, and its approach could be usefully extended to other subjects.

Effect of level of Interleukin 1 beta (Il-1B) and Luteinizing hormone (LH) impacts on the size of the ovarian follicles of local cows

This study was conducted in the laboratories of the Department of Animal Production Techniques at the Technical College in Mussaib (TCM) from September 2021 to January 2022 to study the relationship between Interleukin 1 beta (il-1B) and Luteinizing hormone (LH) with ovarian follicle size on local cows. 150 reproductive systems were collected from non-pregnant local cows, which slaughtered in the abattoirs of Babylon Province and were transported to the laboratory within two hours. Ovaries were removed (300 ovaries) and their dimensions were measured. The follicles were measured and classified into three categories. Follicular fluid was drawn from the visible follicles (2-8) on the surface of each ovary and placed in an Eppendorf tube to measure the concentration level of Interleukin 1 beta (il-1B) and Luteinizing hormone (LH) in the follicular fluid. The results showed a significant high superiority (P<0.01) of an increase in the level of interleukin-1beta over the size of large, medium and small follicles. A significant high effect (P<0.01) of increasing the level of the ovulation hormone on follicle size was observed for all small, medium and large groups. We conclude from this study that the concentrations of cytokines (interleukin-1beta) and hormones (Luteinizing hormone) are influenced by the size of the ovarian follicle.