Different Types Of Surfaces Research Articles

Deep Learning Method for Evaluating Photovoltaic Potential of Rural Land Use Types

Rooftop photovoltaic (PV) power generation uses building roofs to generate electricity by laying PV panels. Rural rooftops are less shaded and have a regular shape, which is favorable for laying PV panels. However, because of the relative lack of information on buildings in rural areas, there are fewer methods to assess the utilization potential of PV on rural buildings, and most studies focus on urban buildings. In addition, in rural areas, concentrated ground-mounted PV plants can be built on wastelands, hillsides, and farmlands. To facilitate the overall planning and synergistic layout of rural PV utilization, we propose a new workflow to identify different types of surfaces (including building roofs, wastelands, water surfaces, etc.) by applying a deep learning approach to count the PV potential of different surfaces in rural areas. This method can be used to estimate the spatial distribution of rural PV development potential from publicly available satellite images. In this paper, 10 km2 of land in Wuhan is used as an example. The results show that the total PV potential in the study area could reach 198.02 GWh/year, including 4.69 GWh/year for BIPV, 159.91 GWh/year for FSPV, and 33.43 GWh/year for LSPV. Considering the development cost of different land types, several timespans (such as short-, medium-, and long-term) of PV development plans for rural areas can be considered. The method and results provide tools and data for the assessment of PV potential in rural areas and can be used as a reference for the development of village master plans and PV development plans.

Surface Waterproofing Techniques: A Case Study in Nova Lima, Brazil

Considering the various problems caused by infiltration in civil construction, this study aimed to identify the most appropriate waterproofing methods for different types of surfaces. A study was conducted on the mechanisms of water infiltration on surfaces and the waterproofing methods available on the market, focusing on asphalt blankets, in addition to a literature review highlighting state-of-the-art methods on this topic. A case study was also conducted in a residence in Nova Lima, Brazil, analyzing different waterproofing techniques, including their characteristics and stages. Among the conclusions, it is highlighted that the implementation of adequate project, installation, inspection, and maintenance techniques can significantly reduce the waterproofing failure rate and repair costs, and that the excellent choice of materials, along with the skill of the labor force in the application, is fundamental to guarantee the adequate performance of these materials in buildings.

Influence of surface condition and prolonged running on impact accelerations

ABSTRACT Running can be performed on different types of surfaces with distinct characteristics. These differences between the running surfaces may affect impact accelerations during prolonged running. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of the type of running surface (motorised treadmill (MT), curved non-motorised treadmill (cNMT), and overground (OVG)) and prolonged running in impact accelerations, spatiotemporal parameters and perceptual variables. In the current study, twenty-one recreational runners completed three randomised crossover prolonged running test on these surfaces consisting of a 30-minute run at 80% of the individual maximal aerobic speed. A two-way repeated-measure analysis of variance, with the level of significance set at p < 0.05, showed a reduction in impact accelerations, such as tibia peak acceleration, when running on cNMT vs MT (p = 0.001, ES = 4.2) or OVG (p = 0.004, ES = 2.9). Running on cNMT produced an increase in stride frequency (p = 0.023, ES = 0.9) and higher rating of perceived effort (p < 0.001, ES = 8.9) and heart rate (p = 0.001, ES = 2.9) compared to OVG, with no differences between treadmills. These findings suggest that impact accelerations, spatiotemporal parameters, rating of perceived exertion and heart rate are different between the surfaces analysed, what should be taken into consideration when running on these surfaces.

Towards Automatic Design of Reflective Optical Systems

Traditional optical design processes can only obtain a few design solutions after a time‐consuming trial‐and‐error process. During this process, how to select the numbers and sequence of surfaces of different types (spherical, aspherical, and freeform) required by the system remains a difficult problem. Currently, no automatic design method is available for reflective optical systems that contain multiple surface types. Therefore, an automatic design framework for reflective systems is proposed that can output a series of design results with various combinations of surface types automatically after input specifications and constraints. In the first design example, 76 design results with imaging qualities near the diffraction limit are obtained that have 11 different surface type combinations. This framework realizes the automatic design of this type of system, paving the way toward general automatic optical design and significantly improving the efficiency of the optical design process. Using this framework, the numbers and sequence of the surfaces of different types required by the optical system can be determined reasonably, solving a difficult problem that has long puzzled designers. The proposed framework reduces the requirement for design experience and allows more people to participate in optical design processes.

Prediction of virus survival timescales in surrogate respiratory sessile droplets

The spreading of respiratory diseases through deposited saliva droplets is strongly dependent on the water evaporation process that may determine the virus viability due to the increase in concentration of nonvolatile compounds that are harmful for the virus. The drying time of a virus-laden droplet is influenced by environmental conditions, such as relative humidity and temperature, physical properties, such as the features of the surface on which it is deposited, and the wetting regime. Under this perspective, we addressed the modeling of an evaporating sessile droplet resting on a flat smooth surface, extending a previous diffusion-based model from the same authors. The evaporation behavior of sessile droplets of aqueous sodium chloride solutions and the virus viability of a surrogate virus (MS2) have been simulated considering different wetting regimes to account for different types of surfaces, ranging from highly hydrophilic to highly hydrophobic, as well as different ambient conditions, in terms of temperature and relative humidity. The results of calculations were given in terms of time evolution of contact angle, contact radius, mixture volume, and salt concentration, unveiling the importance of different wetting regimes for evaporation behavior and drying time. Longer evaporation times have been observed as temperature decreases and relative humidity increases. With reference to a surrogate virus, we evaluated the virus viability at different selected conditions, observing the classical U-shape of relative viability as a function of relative humidity of the environment at a certain temperature.

The Influence of the Substrate on the Functionality of Spin Crossover Molecular Materials.

Spin crossover complexes are a route toward designing molecular devices with a facile readout due to the change in conductance that accompanies the change in spin state. Because substrate effects are important for any molecular device, there are increased efforts to characterize the influence of the substrate on the spin state transition. Several classes of spin crossover molecules deposited on different types of surface, including metallic and non-metallic substrates, are comprehensively reviewed here. While some non-metallic substrates like graphite seem to be promising from experimental measurements, theoretical and experimental studies indicate that 2D semiconductor surfaces will have minimum interaction with spin crossover molecules. Most metallic substrates, such as Au and Cu, tend to suppress changes in spin state and affect the spin state switching process due to the interaction at the molecule-substrate interface that lock spin crossover molecules in a particular spin state or mixed spin state. Of course, the influence of the substrate on a spin crossover thin film depends on the molecular film thickness and perhaps the method used to deposit the molecular film.

FPGA-based parallel implementation to classify Hyperspectral images by using a Convolutional Neural Network

Thanks to its richness in extractable features, Hyperspectral images (HSI) find an accelerated use in medical, industrial, agricultural, and environmental fields. In this paper, we present a wavelet-based reduction technique that creates a Hypercube containing the most significant features extracted from the original HSI and representing a multi-dimensional array that is utilized for training a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), which is designed here to classify different types of surfaces or materials. The performance of this approach is tested and proved using two distinct datasets. Then, we compare the same approach with the PCA, a widely used reduction method. The most important contribution of this paper is the implementation of an FPGA-based parallel accelerator to train the same suggested CNN in only 10% of the computational time compared to the classical CPU-based techniques. The Microblaze will be explained and exploited here to play the role of an embedded microprocessor.

Antifungal therapy of Candida biofilms: Past, present and future

Virtually all Candida species linked to clinical candidiasis are capable of forming highly resistant biofilms on different types of surfaces, which poses an additional significant threat and further complicates therapy of these infections. There is a scarcity of antifungal agents, and their effectiveness, particularly against biofilms, is limited. Here we provide a historical perspective on antifungal agents and therapy of Candida biofilms. As we reflect upon the past, consider the present, and look towards the future of antifungal therapy of Candida biofilms, we believe that there are reasons to remain optimistic, and that the major challenges of Candida biofilm therapy can be conquered within a reasonable timeframe.

Accounting for surface reflectance spectral features in TROPOMI methane retrievals

Abstract. Satellite remote sensing of methane (CH4) using the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) aboard the Copernicus Sentinel-5 Precursor (S5-P) satellite is key to monitor and quantify emissions globally. Overall, the S5-P methane data are of satisfying quality, demonstrated by the product validation with ground-based measurements from the Total Carbon Column Observing Network (TCCON). However, analysis of TROPOMI dry-air column mixing ratio (XCH4) data has pointed to a few false methane anomalies up to 20–40 ppb that can potentially be misinterpreted as enhancements due to strong emission sources. These artefacts are caused by spectral features of the underlying surfaces of specific materials (e.g. carbonate rocks), which are not well represented in the forward model of the retrieval algorithm. In this study we show that the observed anomalies are due to the surface model which describes the spectral dependence of the Lambertian albedo by a second-order polynomial in wavelength. By analysing the ECOSTRESS library that contains laboratory spectra for different types of surfaces, we find that a quadratic function might not be the most optimal representation of the surface reflectance spectral dependencies in the short-wave infrared (SWIR) range. Already the use of a third-order polynomial improves the methane data such that the anomalies disappear at several locations (e.g. Siberia, Australia and Algeria) without affecting the data quality elsewhere, and the quality of the fit significantly improves. We also found that the known bias in retrieved methane for low-albedo scenes slightly improves, but still, a posterior correction needs to be applied, leaving open the question about the root cause of the albedo bias. After applying the adjusted surface model globally, we perform the routine validation with TCCON and Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT) data. GOSAT comparison does not significantly improve, while TCCON validation results show a small improvement in some stations of 2–4 ppb, up to a factor of 10 smaller than the artificial XCH4 enhancements. This reflects that TCCON stations are not close to any of the corrected artefacts, hinting at a limitation of the current validation approach of the S5-P XCH4 data product.

Methicillin-Susceptible Staphylococcus aureus Biofilm Formation on Vascular Grafts: an In Vitro Study.

The aim of this study was to quantify in vitro biofilm formation by methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) on the surfaces of different types of commonly used vascular grafts. We performed an in vitro study with two clinical strains of MSSA (MSSA2 and MSSA6) and nine vascular grafts: Dacron (Hemagard), Dacron-heparin (Intergard heparin), Dacron-silver (Intergard Silver), Dacron-silver-triclosan (Intergard Synergy), Dacron-gelatin (Gelsoft Plus), Dacron plus polytetrafluoroethylene (Fusion), polytetrafluoroethylene (Propaten; Gore), Omniflow II, and bovine pericardium (XenoSure). Biofilm formation was induced in two phases: an initial 90-minute adherence phase and a 24-hour growth phase. Quantitative cultures were performed, and the results were expressed as log10 CFU per milliliter. The Dacron-silver-triclosan graft and Omniflow II were associated with the least biofilm formation by both MSSA2 and MSSA6. MSSA2 did not form a biofilm on the Dacron-silver-triclosan graft (0 CFU/mL), and the mean count on the Omniflow II graft was 3.89 CFU/mL (standard deviation [SD] 2.10). The mean count for the other grafts was 7.01 CFU/mL (SD 0.82). MSSA6 formed a biofilm on both grafts, with 2.42 CFU/mL (SD 2.44) on the Dacron-silver-triclosan graft and 3.62 CFU/mL (SD 2.21) on the Omniflow II. The mean biofilm growth on the remaining grafts was 7.33 CFU/mL (SD 0.28). The differences in biofilm formation on the Dacron-silver-triclosan and Omniflow II grafts compared to the other tested grafts were statistically significant. Our findings suggest that of the vascular grafts we studied, the Dacron-silver-triclosan and Omniflow II grafts might prevent biofilm formation by MSSA. Although further studies are needed, these grafts seem to be good candidates for clinical use in vascular surgeries at high risk of infections due to this microorganism. IMPORTANCE The Dacron silver-triclosan and Omniflow II vascular grafts showed the greatest resistance to in vitro methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus biofilm formation compared to other vascular grafts. These findings could allow us to choose the most resistant to infection prosthetic graft.

Observations of Nematicity, Dopants, and Zero-Bias Conductance Peaks for the Ca0.9La0.1FeAs2 Superconductor

Ca1-xLaxFeAs2 (CLFA112) belongs to a new family of Fe-based superconductors (FeSCs) and has a unique crystal structure featuring an arsenic zigzag chain layer, which has been proposed to be a possible two-dimensional topological insulator. This suggests that CLFA112 is a potential topological superconductor-a platform to realize Majorana fermions. Up to now, even a clear superconducting (SC) gap in CLFA112 has never been observed, and the SC properties of CLFA112 remain largely elusive. In this letter, we report the results of an atomic-scale investigation of the electronic structure of CLFA112 crystals using low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). We revealed four different types of surfaces exhibiting distinct electronic properties, with all surfaces displaying dominating 2 × 1 surface reconstructions. On a Ca/La layer on top of an FeAs layer, a clear SC gap of ~12 mV was observed only at the crevices (vacancies) where the FeAs layer can be directly accessed. Remarkably, the FeAs termination layer displayed a dispersing nematic modulation both in real and q space. We also present peculiar zero-bias conductance peaks for the very As chain layer that is believed to exhibit a topological edge state as well as the influence of La dopants on the As chain layer.

Efficacy of deltamethrin emulsifiable concentrate against stored-product insects

Stored-product insects are specially adapted to dry conditions and to a diet of grains and grain dust. Under favorable environmental conditions, insect populations multiply rapidly and spread in stored food. Prevention of pests' development can be achieved by a variety of methods, including the use of insecticides. Deltamethrin is a synthetic pyrethroid commonly used as an insecticide in grain storage. In Israel, deltamethrin emulsifiable concentrate (Keshet 2.5% EC) is the only pyrethroid insecticide formulation permitted for use in stored grain. Although deltamethrin is used routinely, insect populations develop consistently in warehouses and newly stored grain is rapidly infested. In the current study, we examined the efficacy of deltamethrin emulsifiable concentrate for the control of adult Sitophilus oryzae (L.) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), Rhyzopertha dominica (F.) (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae) and Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae). The insecticide was sprayed on surfaces including plastic, self-made concrete, two kinds of ready-mix concrete, as well as harvested wheat. When deltamethrin concentrations of 0.2–2.0 ppm was applied to the grain, insect mortality increased with the application rate, with complete mortality observed at 2.0 ppm. A dose of 0.2 ppm was found to be insufficient to protect the grain. Plastic surfaces and surfaces of different types of concrete were sprayed with a 4% aqueous solution of deltamethrin emulsifiable concentrate (deltamethrin concentration 0.1 mg/m2). Deltamethrin emulsifiable formulation was found to be effective on a nonporous surface and when sprayed directly on insects, but was not very effective as a residual insecticide on porous surfaces.

Zero velocity surface in the general three-body-problem

The zero-velocity surfaces of the general planar three-body problem are constructed in the form space, the factor-space of the configuration space by transfer and rotation. Such a space is the space of congruent triangles, and the sphere in this space is similar triangles. The integral of energy in the form space gives the equation of the zero velocity surface. These surfaces can also be obtained based on the Sundman inequality. Such surfaces separate areas of possible movement from areas where movement is impossible. Without loss of generality, we can assume that the constant energy is −1/2 and the sought for surfaces depend only on the magnitude of the angular momentum of the problem, J. Depending on this value, five topologically different types of surfaces can be distinguished. For small J, the surface consists of two separate surfaces, internal and external ones, the motion is possible only between them. With J increasing the inner surface increases, the outer surface decreases, the surfaces first have a common point at some value of J, with a further increasing of J, their topological type changes and finally the zero-velocity surface splits into three disjoint surfaces, the motion is possible only inside them. Examples of the corresponding surfaces are given for each of these types, their sections in the plane xy and in the plane xz and the surfaces themselves are constructed, their properties are studied.

FLUID LEAVES: EFFECTS OF FLUID FLOW ON LEAF SHAPES AND FIBONACCI SERIES

The liquid chain and other fluid phenomena, which resemble leaves of plants, are categorized as fluid leaves. Liquid chain happens when two liquid jets hit each other at an angle, or when the liquid jet flows on smooth surfaces. Liquid leaves are not just limited to fluid engineering, but also to biology. The literature shows that the liquid chain looks like leaves, but there are not many resources explaining the physics of the shape being in the form of a leaf. In this work, the author shows that liquid impacting different types of surfaces does form a leaf–like structure. The detailed theory on biology and liquid leaves is mentioned in the application section for better understanding of the scope of this study. This paper visualizes different types of leaves with changes in surface types, and it also reports a new property of fluids found from a simple experiment involving the droplet coalescence. It is remarkable to find that the fluid property is the reason for Fibonacci Series in the universe, including living and non-living things.

The use of machine learning tools for modeling the countermeasure environment of robotic means and mobile objects of monitoring

In this article, an analysis of research related to the problems and areas of application of machine learning was carried out and it becomes clear that reinforcement learning is an important tool for the development of highly effective and adaptive control systems. This approach opens perspectives for the development of intelligent systems that can effectively adapt to changes in the environment and provide a reliable and optimal level of control under conditions of uncertainty and variability. In the course of the research, a complex environment modelling technique was developed for the task of searching and chasing moving objects by robotic means as part of reinforcement learning. The methodology includes defining goals and objectives, modelling the environment, defining states, actions, and rewards, formulating the state transition function, defining the reward function, modelling completion criteria, using convolutional neural networks to analyse the environment, and integrating the model into reinforcement learning algorithms. A feature of the developed methodology is its ability to adapt to various environmental conditions and dynamic changes occurring in it. The use of graphical representation of the environment allows you to reproduce in detail the real conditions in which the robotic means operate, including obstacles, areas of visibility and different types of surfaces. The use of convolutional neural networks for environmental analysis is an innovative approach that allows you to automate the process of determining the impact of the environment on the parameters of robotic vehicles and moving objects. CNN training on the collected data about the environment provides accurate prediction of influence coefficients in different areas, which allows optimizing strategies of robot behaviour depending on changes in conditions. In general, the developed environment modelling technique allows not only to accurately reproduce the real conditions in which robotic means operate, but also provides flexibility and adaptability when environmental conditions change. This opens up vast opportunities for training and improving reinforcement learning algorithms, increasing the effectiveness of robots in performing their tasks in various real-world scenarios.

A Novel Projection Distortion Correction Method on Patient's Body Surface

In this paper, the projection distortion correction method of patient's body surface is studied. First, the applicability of four typical projection image distortion correction methods to different surfaces were compared. Secondly, Based on the correction method based on quadratic surface fitting, and a correction method based on point cloud mapping was designed, which uses structured light to extract the point cloud information on the surface of the projection screen for coordinate transformation. Combined with the depth information, it solves the distortion problem of complex surface projection images, expands the surface applicability of the correction method, and improves the correction accuracy and real-time performance. The projection distortion correction of different types of surfaces is realized by simulation, and the correction effect of the two methods is compared. The correction time is shortened from 67s to 7s by the correction method based on point cloud mapping. Finally, organ simulation experiment was used to verify the intraoperative feasibility, and the virtual "perspective" display effect was presented as a whole.

Fabrication of Inorganic Coatings Incorporated with Functionalized Graphene Oxide Nanosheets for Improving Fire Retardancy of Wooden Substrates.

Flame-retardant chemicals are frequently used within consumer products and can even be employed as a treatment on the surface of different types of materials (e.g., wood, steel, and textiles) to prevent fire or limit the rapid spread of flames. Functionalized graphene oxide (FGO) nanosheets are a promising construction coating nanomaterial that can be blended with sodium metasilicate and gypsum to reduce the flammability of construction buildings. In this work, we designed and fabricated novel and halogen-free FGO sheets using the modified Hummers method; and subsequently functionalized them by pentaerythritol through a chemical impregnation process before dispersing them within the construction coating. Scanning electron microscopic images confirm that the FGO-filled coating was uniformly dispersed on the surface of wooden substrates. We identified that the FGO content is a critical factor affecting the fire retardancy. Thermogravimetric analysis of the FGO coating revealed that higher char residue can be obtained at 700 °C. Based on the differential scanning calorimetry, the exothermic peak contained a temperature delay in the presence of FGO sheets, primarily due to the formation of a thermal barrier. Such a significant improvement in the flame retardancy confirms that the FGO nanosheets are superior nanomaterials to be employed as a flame-retardant construction coating nanomaterial for improving thermal management within buildings.

Quality control and purification of ready-to-use conjugated gold nanoparticles to ensure effectiveness in biosensing

Introduction: Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and their conjugates are used for many applications in the field of sensors. Literature lacks procedures able to separate, purify and characterize these species in native conditions without altering them while assuring a high throughput. This technological gap can be reduced by exploiting Asymmetrical Flow Field Flow Fractionation multidetection platforms (AF4 multidetection).Method: This work describes a complete set of strategies based on the AF4 system, from nanoparticle synthesis to separative method optimization to conjugates screening and characterization, achieving quantitative control and purification of ready-to-use conjugated Gold nanoparticles and ensuring effectiveness in biosensing.Results and Discussion: AF4-multidetection was used to study AuNPs with different types of surface coating [Poly ethylene glycol, (PEG) and Citrate], their binding behaviour with protein (Bovine serum albumin, BSA) and their stability after conjugation to BSA. A robust but flexible method was developed, able to be applied to different AuNPs and conjugating molecules. The morphology and conjugation mechanism of AuNPs-BSA conjugates were evaluated by combining online Multiangle light scattering (MALS) and offline Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS) measures, which provided an important feature for the quality control required to optimize bio-probe synthesis and subsequent bioassays.

How changing environments alter the microbial composition and ecological response in marine biofilms: a mini review

ABSTRACT Marine environments are made up of different types of surfaces with different physicochemical and biological features. The aim of this study is to review literatures on how stress induced by changing marine environment alters microbial biofilm niches and triggers ecological responses. The present review show how Greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) and climate change causes alteration of the marine environment leading to temperature change, acidification and increase in deoxygenation of marine environment. The mini review also shows the processes involve in microbial biofilms formation in marine environment. The mini review shows the role play by marine biofilm in the sustainability of marine environment. The role of marine biofilm in marine carbon sequestration was also discussed because carbon is the most important tool for the building of biomolecules such as nucleic acids, proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids. The present study report processes involve in marine nitrogen deposition and the role of marine biofilm in the process of nitrogen transformation and deposition. The effect of GHGE on ecological response in marine biofilms was also fully explained in this mini review..

Surface patterning strategies for performance enhancement in triboelectric nanogenerators

Triboelectrification is reported as a surface phenomenon and is explained by the electron cloud overlap model explained in the Wang transition concept. Therefore, the performance enhancement of Triboelectric Nanogenerators (TENGs) need to be explored through strategies to engineer the surfaces for increased surface contact area and surface roughness. Surface patterning strategies holds a significant role in upscaling the performance and widening the fields of application of TENGs. The current review article is dedicated to presenting various surface patterning methods, which comes under the physical modification of surfaces. Techniques such as lithography, plasma assisted methods, laser irradiation techniques, electrochemical anodization and other geometrical patterning are discussed. It is noted that the surface modification offered by laser induced graphene is effective for fabricating high performance TENGs. One of the major advantages reported with lasing polyimide and laser induced graphene composite for TENG application is that the composite could act as an electrode for both dielectric to conductor interface and metal free dielectric-dielectric interfaces. Additionally, block copolymer lithography has been identified to be an effective method for fabricating vertically aligned nanopatterned surfaces with high contact surface area. Apart from that, the pressurised plasma jets in non-thermal plasma treatment are also proved to be highly suitable for effective and selective etching of different types of surfaces. Surface texturing by electrochemical anodization has been employed on metallic substrates for developing high performance TENG electrodes. Current challenges faced by various surface patterning approaches and possible suggestions for future developments are also discussed in detail.