Transition Scheme Research Articles

EquiFlowShard: A Blockchain Sharding Protocol with Optimized Account Distribution

Blockchain sharding is a scalable solution for distributed ledgers, but may be hindered due to cross-shard transactions and uneven workload distribution. This paper presents EquiFlowShard, an advanced blockchain sharding protocol designed to improve robustness and enhance cross-shard efficiency. Specifically, by employing Optimized Account State Distribution Algorithm (OSADA), EquiFlowShard dynamically assigns and segments account states, so as to minimize cross-shard transaction volume and balance shard workloads. In addition, the protocol introduces the SFlow mechanism to facilitate secure and consistent state transfers and a Smooth Transition scheme to mitigate performance impacts during state reconfigurations. Evaluation results confirm that EquiFlowShard outperforms existing benchmark protocols in terms of throughput, transaction confirmation latency, and cross-shard transaction ratio, demonstrating its effectiveness in dynamic blockchain environments.

Dielectric properties depend on the crystal structure of perovskite-type RbTaO3 synthesized at high pressure.

We successfully synthesized perovskite-type RbTaO3 at 1173 K under 4 GPa. RbTaO3 crystalized as a cubic system (Pm3̄m space group (SG), a = 4.04108(3) Å) at 300 K in contrast to the orthorhombic perovskite-type RbNbO3 prepared under the same conditions. During the cooling process, it reversibly transformed into a tetragonal phase (SG: P4mm) at 270 K, and into an orthorhombic phase (SG: Amm2) at 80 K. Corresponding to the phase transition, the relative permittivity showed a peak at 270 K with a maximum value of approximately 2000 and a kink at 80 K. This transition scheme is analogous to well-known displacement-type ferroelectrics of BaTiO3 and KNbO3. This is in contrast to KTaO3, which retains a cubic system and quantum paraelectric properties at the lowest temperature.

Discrete Analysis of Spatial and Temporal Variability of Geosystems of Baikal Siberia

The discrete spatial and temporal variability of the geosystem characteristics at the regional level (geomes) on the territory of Baikal Siberia has been theoretically and statistically studied. The concepts and equations of a unified quantum theory aimed at a fractional description of processes and phenomena in terms of the functional state of geomes in the Hilbert space of the superposition of functions of the altitude distribution of geosystems were used. Frequency distributions by elevation gradations were determined based on the combination of an electronic geome map and a digital terrain model. Geomes differ in modal height values corresponding to their highest occurrence – optimal conditions of existence in the territory. Distributions are transformed into indicators of integrated hazard, which are statistically transformed into information functions of through quantum theory. The coefficients of variability of these functions in terms of location height are quantized, differ by geomes, which is confirmed by the results of theoretical analysis. A map of the quantum levels of spatial and temporal variability of the geomes of Baikal Siberia and a scheme of spatial and temporal transitions between quantum levels (geomes) are constructed. The methods of forecasting the dynamics and evolution of geosystems are substantiated and new procedures for calculating the quantum variability of the temporal and spatial position of geomes are proposed.

Energy Transition Study of the Scheme for Replacing Steam Power Plants with Nuclear Power Plants Regarding Safety Aspects, Supporting Infrastructure, and Regulation Availability

Coal has been an essential contributor to the modern economy, but it is also a cause of global climate warming and environmental problems. Therefore, many countries have undertaken initiatives to achieve net zero emissions and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in recent years, including Indonesia, with a genuine commitment stipulated in Law Number 59 of 2024 as part of the energy transition. A literature study has been conducted on the energy transition scheme of replacing coal power plants (CPP) with nuclear power plants (NPP) and its influence on safety aspects, supporting infrastructure, and regulatory availability. The paper aims to analyze the options covered in replacing the CPP boiler with an NPP and its effect on safety aspects, supporting infrastructure, and regulatory availability. A literature study compared implementation practices in Poland, the People's Republic of China, and the United States. The results of the analysis show that the replacement of CPP to NPP is applicable due to the similarity of systems and components between the two plants. The important elements in replacing CPP with NPP are site, reactor technology, supporting infrastructure, human resources, and regulations. Keywords: coal power plants (CPP), nuclear power plants (NPP), energy transition, regulation

Horodynamic Mapping of Open Sands in the East of the Stavropol Region

The desertification processes that are dynamically occurring in the north-east of the Stavropol Territory are closely interrelated with climatic conditions, which necessitates the rapid mapping of qualitative changes in the state of open sands in accordance with various scenarios. The mapping was carried out on the basis of the technique of chorodynamic (diachronic) mapping for two periods (July-August 2022 and June-July 2023), data on the monthly dynamics of open sand areas, precipitation and dust storms were used to select time slices. The mapping was carried out visually on the basis of multispectral satellite images of Landsat for each month. In 2022, 14 dust storms were registered, in 2023 none were registered, and days with critical wind speeds were accompanied by heavy precipitation, in connection with which a significant decrease in the visible areas of open sands was revealed as a result of overgrowth. Based on the available data, using overlay operations, schemes of qualitative transitions in the test area (part of the Levokumsky district) corresponding to qualitative transitions in the “dry” and “wet” scenarios were compiled. Despite the progressive overgrowth of the sands, stimulated by the absence of dust storms and abundant precipitation in 2023, starting from areas with the lowest sediment capacity, the restoration of the original plant communities without carrying out phytomeliorative measures is extremely unlikely due to high anthropogenic load and seed desertification, as a result of which low-value annual crops grow on open sands (weed solyanka, kumarchik, nightshade horned, etc.).

Multi-fidelity simulation of inlet mode transition with smooth thrust of turbine based combined cycle

A multi-fidelity simulation method of external and internal flow has been developed using commercial software to achieve a smooth thrust of the turbine-based combined-cycle (TBCC) propulsion system. This platform enables the investigation of the flow field and performance of the TBCC propulsion system at different mode transition schemes. The integrated multi-fidelity simulation includes the inlet, turbojet engine, ramjet engine, and nozzle, providing insights into the operation process of the TBCC propulsion system during the transition from turbojet mode to ramjet mode. Three mode transition schemes are proposed: critical mode transition, constant aerodynamic interface plane (AIP) Mach number mode transition, and linear mode transition. From the perspective of TBCC inlet, the performance of the critical mode transition exhibits the best performance among these mode transition schemes, while the linear mode transition performs the worst. However, from the viewpoint of the TBCC propulsion system and the hypersonic vehicle, the performance of constant AIP Mach number mode transition is the best. The non-dimensional thrust increases almost linear from 1.0 to 1.2, enabling hypersonic vehicle to accelerate steadily during the transition from turbojet mode to ramjet mode.

13 μm emission InAs/AlSb quantum cascade lasers with high slope efficiency and peak output power enabled by diagonal transition design

Long wavelength InAs/AlSb quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) emitting at 13 μm, based on a diagonal transition scheme design through band structure engineering, have been grown and fabricated. This band structure engineering focuses on enhancing transition efficiency and suppressing carrier leakage. Our 3-mm-long, 25-μm-wide InAs/AlSb QCL has achieved a slope efficiency of 210 mW/A and a maximum peak power of 515 mW, despite encountering a substantial waveguide loss of 27 cm−1 and a relatively high threshold of 4.8 kA/cm2, due to the elevated residual doping level. Our InAs/AlSb QCL devices have demonstrated record-breaking performance in terms of slope efficiency, maximum peak power, and injection efficiency. Cavity length analysis suggests that reducing the residual doping by half could pave the way for achieving continuous wave output power in the realm of hundreds of milliwatts at room temperature for our designed 13 μm QCLs.

EURAD state-of-the-art report: development and improvement of numerical methods and tools for modeling coupled processes in the field of nuclear waste disposal

The Strategic Research Agenda (SRA; https://www.ejp-eurad.eu/publications/eurad-sra) of the European Joint Programme on Radioactive Waste Management (EURAD; https://www.ejp-eurad.eu/) describes the scientific and technical domains and sub-domains and knowledge management needs of common interest between EURAD participant organizations. Theme number 7 is entitled “Performance assessment, safety case development and safety analyses.” A list of research and development priorities and activities of common interest to be addressed within EURAD for theme 7 have been established. Amongst others, the Understanding and modelling of multi-physical Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical-Chemical coupled processes (THMC) occurring in radioactive waste disposal is a major and permanent issue to support optimization of design and safety case abstraction. To tackle this challenge a research work package entitled “DONUT: Development and improvement of numerical methods and tools for modelling coupled processes” has been conducted within the EURAD join programming initiative. The purpose of this work package is to improve/develop methods or numerical tools in order to go a step further in development of (i) relevant, performant and cutting-edge numerical methods that can easily be implemented in existing or new tools, in order to carry out high-performance computing to facilitate the study of highly coupled processes in large systems, (ii) numerical scale transition schemes for coupled processes, (iii) innovative numerical methods to carry out uncertainty and sensitivity analyses. In this paper the work carried out within the DONUT work package is put in perspective regarding the existing concept and literature on the field. It does not pretend to be exhaustive but rather to put emphasis on particular issues tackled during the project.

Attribute-Based Designated Combiner Transitive Signature Scheme

Transitive signatures allow any entity to obtain a valid signature of (i,k) by combining signatures of (i,j) and (j,k). However, the traditional transitive signature scheme does not offer fine-grained control over the combiner. To address this issue, we propose a formal definition of the attribute-based designated combiner transitive signature (ABDCTS) and its security model, where only entities whose inherent attributes meet the access policy can combine signatures. By introducing the fine-grained access control structure, control over the combiner is achieved. To demonstrate the feasibility of our primitive, this paper presents the first attribute-based designated combiner transitive signature scheme. Under an adaptive chosen-message attack, we prove its security based on the one-more CDH problem and the co-CDH problem, and that its algorithms have robustness.

Mathematical principles of mechanical movements

The article proves that kinematic and dynamic theories in classical mechanics by I. Newton, considered a mathematical model of body displacement, are based on the laws of arithmetic progression (or linear function), trigonometry and quadratic function (equation). It is shown that formulas, equations of motion and graphs of dependencies in these theories are mathematical mechanisms that implement the relationship between uniformly varying mechanical quantities and quantities that implement (modify) changes. It is shown that the transition of a uniform change of one value to an accelerated (progressive) change occurs according to the scheme of transition of a linear function into a quadratic equation. It is shown that the formula of an arithmetic progression (linear function) is created by moving from variables in a quadratic equation to a time variable, and from changing and changing parameters to the coordinate, velocity and acceleration of the progression. In order for the content of the article to correspond to the topic, priority was given to mathematical initiatives (prerequisites, originals) of all the problems under consideration.

Caregivers' burden of care during emergency department care transitions among older adults: a mixed methods cohort study.

Improving care transitions for older adults can reduce emergency department (ED) revisits, and the strain placed upon caregivers. We analyzed whether caregivers felt a change in burden following a care transition, and what may be improved to reduce it. This mixed-methods observational study nested within LEARNING WISDOM included caregivers of older patients who experienced an ED care transition. Burden was collected with the brief Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI-12), and caregivers also commented on the care transition. A qualitative coding scheme of patient care transitions was created to reflect themes important to caregivers. Comments were randomly analyzed until saturation and themes were extracted from the data. We followed both the SRQR and STROBE checklists. Comments from 581 caregivers (mean age (SD) 64.5 (12.3), 68% women) caring for patients (mean age (SD) 77.2 (7.54), 48% women) were analyzed. Caregivers overwhelmingly reported dissatisfaction and unmet service expectations, particularly with home care and domestic help. Communication and follow-up from the ED emerged as an area for improvement. Caregivers who reported an increased level of burden following a patient's care transition had significantly higher ZBI scores than caregivers who self-reported stable burden levels. Caregivers with increasing, stable, and improved levels of subjective burden all reported areas for improvement in the care transition process. Themes centering on the capacity to live at home and inadequate communication were most frequently mentioned and may represent serious challenges to caregivers. Addressing these challenges could improve both caregiver burden and ED care transitions.

Assessment of Karst Groundwater Vulnerability to Contamination as a Tool for Delineation of Source Protection Zones: A Case Study in the Crimean Mountains

The assessment of groundwater vulnerability to contamination provides a hydrogeological basis for the designation of protection zones for drinking water sources. This paper presents a case study from the Crimean Mountains where karst groundwater plays a primary role in water supply. Groundwater vulnerability assessment has been carried out for two large karst springs: the Ayan and Krasnopeshcherny. For this purpose, a method adapted to the conditions of karst water formation in the region, called the Mountain-Crimean method, was used. The resulting source vulnerability maps of selected test sites demonstrate both similarities and differences. The common feature is the area predominance of the moderate vulnerability class, with a minor share of the low vulnerability class. However, the vulnerability classes on the two catchments have different placement patterns, as does the presence or absence of a high vulnerability class. The catchment area of the Krasnopeshcherny spring appeared to be more sensitive to pollution than the Ayan spring. The main reason is the hydrodynamic conditions of the deep parts of the karst aquifers drained by the springs. The karst aquifer of the Krasnopeshcherny spring has a much higher groundwater flow dynamic than that of the Ayan spring. The study closes by proposing a scheme of transition from vulnerability map to sanitary protection zones for karst water intakes in accordance with the regulatory standards of the Russian Federation.

Calculation of the Activation Energy of Electrical ε2‐Conductivity of Weakly Compensated Semiconductors

A model of tunneling (jumping) migration of charge carriers near their mobility edge in the upper band of neutral states of majority hydrogen‐like impurities is proposed to calculate the energy of thermal activation of electrical ‐conductivity of weakly compensated semiconductors. The difference from the known Hubbard model consists in the scheme of interimpurity transitions of charge carriers and in the method of calculating the position of their tunnel mobility edge. The drift mobility edge of free charge carriers corresponds to the thermal ionization energy of majority impurities , which is located near the c‐band bottom or the v‐band top in n‐ and p‐type semiconductors, respectively, and is due to the overlap of excited states of electrically neutral majority impurities. The position of the tunnel mobility edge for ‐conductivity is determined by taking into account the Coulomb interaction of the majority impurities in the charge states and . It is assumed that doping and compensating impurities form a single simple nonstoichiometric cubic lattice in a crystal matrix. The calculations of the activation energy on the insulator side of the insulator–metal concentration phase transition for weakly compensated p‐Si:B, n‐Si:P, and n‐Ge:Sb crystals quantitatively agree with known experimental data.

A diffusive‐discrete crack transition scheme for ductile fracture at finite strain

SummaryThis study presents a diffusive‐discrete crack transition scheme for stably conducting ductile fracture simulations within a finite strain framework. In the developed scheme, the crack initiation and propagation processes are determined according to an energy minimization problem based on crack phase‐field theory, and the predicted diffusive path is transformed to a discrete representation using the finite cover method during the staggered iterative scheme. In particular, for stably conducting ductile fracture simulations, three computational techniques, the staggered iterative configuration update technique, the subincremental damage update technique, and the crack opening stabilization technique, are introduced. The first and second techniques can be used regardless of whether discrete cracks are considered, and the third technique is specialized for diffusive‐discrete crack transition schemes. Accordingly, ductile fracture simulations with the developed scheme rarely encounter troublesome problems such as oscillations in the displacement field and severe distortion of finite elements that can lead to divergence of calculations. After the crack phase‐field model for ductile fractures is formulated and discretized, the numerical algorithms for realizing the diffusive‐discrete crack transition while maintaining computational stability are explained. Several representative numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the performance and capabilities of the developed approach.

Sustainability certification for renewable hydrogen: An international survey of energy professionals

Hydrogen produced from renewable energy is being promoted to decarbonise global energy systems. To support this energy transition, standards, certification, and labelling schemes (SCLs) aim to differentiate hydrogen products based on their system-wide carbon emissions and method of production characteristics. However, being certified as low-carbon, clean, or green hydrogen does not guarantee broader sustainability across economic, environmental, social, or governance dimensions. Through an international survey of energy-sector and sustainability professionals (n = 179), we investigated the desirable sustainability features for renewable hydrogen SCLs and the perceived advantages and disadvantages of sustainability certification. Our mixed-method study revealed general accordance on the feasible inclusion of diverse sustainability criteria in SCLs, albeit with varying degrees of perceived essentiality. Within the confines of the data, some differences in viewpoints emerged based on respondents’ geographical and supply chain locations, which were associated with the sharing of costs and benefits. Qualitatively, respondents found the idea of SCL harmonisation attractive but weighed this against the risks of duplication, complicated administrative procedures, and contradictory regulation. The implications of this research centre on the need for further studies to inform policy recommendations for an overarching SCL sustainability framework that embodies the principles of harmonisation in the context of multistakeholder governance.

Smart Mobility and Sensor Based-BRT Crusade, the Challenge for Auto Mechanics and Technicians in Africa

African countries with no globally recognized auto manufacturing factories are flooded with the most modern automobiles as soon as they are commercialized in the absence of commensurate skilled local auto mechanics across the continent. In the wake of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) scheme in Abuja Nigeria, the first set of luxurious buses purchased ended up as junks within a short period of operation largely due to lack of technician competency. The continuous patronage of a few multinational workshop garages like Toyota, Honda, Kia Motors, etc is hindering the transport agencies from breaking even. This paper is therefore aimed at evaluating the state of bus auto-mechanics and technicians in Nigeria for sustainable hybrid buses for effective BRT in the country. Google search engine was used to source secondary data from dedicated transport and energy-related sites like National Research Council (NRC) Agora Verkehrswende and GIZ, Smart city study, USDoT, and Africa Transport Solution, for the current paradigm shift in automobile energy management. Participatory surveys were carried out in two major motor mechanic villages that house over two hundred (200) workshops. The study reveals that there is a yawning gap between the societal ideal auto-mechanic expectations and the operational woe realities. This work becomes very relevant in view of global urbanization and the crusade for Hybrid Bus Rapid Transit (HBRT) in urban mobility as a panacea to COP28 carbon emission reduction. It is recommended that policymakers in urban transportation at all levels should ensure the certification and re-training of the motor mechanics to be able to maintain those imported modern buses while investing in ITS-based road infrastructure for sustainable BRT in their country

Research on the risk assessment of the power grid enterprises’ agency power purchase business in China: A hybrid multi-attribute decision-making framework based on FUCOM-F and GRA-MARCOS

To steadily promote the reform of sales electricity prices, China has innovatively proposed to carry out grid enterprises’ agency power purchase business (GEAPPB) as a transitional scheme for industrial and commercial users to enter the power market in the future. However, because the GEAPPB covers a wide range of users and involves complex business processes, the risks throughout the process of the GEAPPB will affect the organization and operation of the business. This paper proposes a GEAPPB risk assessment technique. First, a risk evaluation index system containing 10 indicators is designed based on the characteristics and development process of GEAPPB. Second, a risk assessment model based on the fuzzy full consistency method (FUCOM-F) and gray relational analysis (GRA)-improved MARCOS is constructed. Finally, seven grid enterprises in China are taken as examples to verify the validity and scientificity of the model. The results show that improving the accuracy of power forecasting, optimizing the agency power purchase strategy, and strengthening demand response management are the key schemes to reduce the risk of GEAPPB. Compared with the other three evaluation models, the proposed model has good applicability and effectiveness for the risk evaluation of GEAPPB.

Development of transition schemes and optimization measures between normal slab track and ladder-type sleeper track

Severe vibrations and deterioration of track system are often observed due to the sudden change in support stiffness between normal slab track (NST) and damping track. To improve the dynamic performance of both the train and track system when a train runs on the transition zone between the NST and the damping track, we focused on the ladder-type sleeper track (LS track) and developed several optimized transition schemes. Firstly, a train-LS track coupled dynamics mode is developed, and it was verified using field testing. Afterward, using the dynamic responses of train and track systems in the transition zone between the NST and the resilient-fastener slab track (RFS track) as a reference, the shortcomings of the traditional transition scheme are identified, and the optimal transition scheme is developed by comparison of the proposed multiple schemes. Finally, the device for suppressing track vibration (DSTV) is installed on the longitudinal sleeper to alleviate the vibration of the LS track and improve the overall stability of the vehicle and track system during the transition zone. The results indicate that the optimal transition scheme proposed in this study lead to significant improvements in the dynamic performance of both the vehicle and LS track.

Aero-ZnS prepared by physical vapor transport on three-dimensional networks of sacrificial ZnO microtetrapods.

Aeromaterials represent a class of increasingly attractive materials for various applications. Among them, aero-ZnS has been produced by hydride vapor phase epitaxy on sacrificial ZnO templates consisting of networks of microtetrapods and has been proposed for microfluidic applications. In this paper, a cost-effective technological approach is proposed for the fabrication of aero-ZnS by using physical vapor transport with Sn2S3 crystals and networks of ZnO microtetrapods as precursors. The morphology of the produced material is investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), while its crystalline and optical qualities are assessed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy, respectively. We demonstrate possibilities for controlling the composition and the crystallographic phase content of the prepared aerogels by the duration of the technological procedure. A scheme of deep energy levels and electronic transitions in the ZnS skeleton of the aeromaterial was deduced from the PL analysis, suggesting that the produced aerogel is a potential candidate for photocatalytic and sensor applications.

BARET: Balanced Attention Based Real Image Editing Driven by Target-Text Inversion

Image editing approaches with diffusion models have been rapidly developed, yet their applicability are subject to requirements such as specific editing types (e.g., foreground or background object editing, style transfer), multiple conditions (e.g., mask, sketch, caption), and time consuming fine-tuning of diffusion models. For alleviating these limitations and realizing efficient real image editing, we propose a novel editing technique that only requires an input image and target text for various editing types including non-rigid edits without fine-tuning diffusion model. Our method contains three novelties: (I) Target-text Inversion Schedule (TTIS) is designed to fine-tune the input target text embedding to achieve fast image reconstruction without image caption and acceleration of convergence. (II) Progressive Transition Scheme applies progressive linear interpolation between target text embedding and its fine-tuned version to generate transition embedding for maintaining non-rigid editing capability. (III) Balanced Attention Module (BAM) balances the tradeoff between textual description and image semantics. By the means of combining self-attention map from reconstruction process and cross-attention map from transition process, the guidance of target text embeddings in diffusion process is optimized. In order to demonstrate editing capability, effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed BARET, we have conducted extensive qualitative and quantitative experiments. Moreover, results derived from user study and ablation study further prove the superiority over other methods.