Characterizing the Conductivity and Enhancing the Piezoresistivity of Carbon Nanotube-Polymeric Thin Films.

The concept of lightweight design is widely employed for designing and constructing aerospace structures that can sustain extreme loads while also being fuel-efficient. Popular lightweight materials such as aluminum alloy and fiber-reinforced polymers (FRPs) possess outstanding mechanical properties, but their structural integrity requires constant assessment to ensure structural safety. Next-generation structural health monitoring systems for aerospace structures should be lightweight and integrated with the structure itself. In this study, a multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT)-based polymer paint was developed to detect distributed damage in lightweight structures. The thin film's electromechanical properties were characterized via cyclic loading tests. Moreover, the thin film's bulk conductivity was characterized by finite element modeling

Profit-Maximizing Planning and Control of Battery Energy Storage Systems for Primary Frequency Control

We consider a two-level profit-maximizing strategy, including planning and control, for battery energy storage system (BESS) owners that participate in the primary frequency control (PFC) market. Specifically, the optimal BESS control minimizes the operating cost by keeping the state of charge (SoC) in an optimal range. Through rigorous analysis, we prove that the optimal BESS control is a "state-invariant" strategy in the sense that the optimal SoC range does not vary with the state of the system. As such, the optimal control strategy can be computed offline once and for all with very low complexity. Regarding the BESS planning, we prove that the the minimum operating cost is a decreasing convex function of the BESS energy capacity. This leads to the optimal BESS sizing that strikes a balance between the capital investment and operating cost. Our work here provides a useful theoretical framework for understanding the planning and control strategies that maximize the economic benefits of BESSs in ancillary service markets

Insufficient ER-stress response causes selective mouse cerebellar granule cell degeneration resembling that seen in congenital disorders of glycosylation

BACKGROUND: Congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDGs) are inherited diseases caused by glycosylation defects. Incorrectly glycosylated proteins induce protein misfolding and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. The most common form of CDG, PMM2-CDG, is caused by deficiency in the cytosolic enzyme phosphomannomutase 2 (PMM2). Patients with PMM2-CDG exhibit a significantly reduced number of cerebellar Purkinje cells and granule cells. The molecular mechanism underlying the specific cerebellar neurodegeneration in PMM2-CDG, however, remains elusive. RESULTS: Herein, we report that cerebellar granule cells (CGCs) are more sensitive to tunicamycin (TM)-induced inhibition of total N-glycan synthesis than cortical neurons (CNs). When glycan synthesis was inhibited to a comparable degree, CGCs exhibited more cell death than CNs. Furthermore, downregulation of PMM2 caused more CGCs to die than CNs. Importantly, we found that upon PMM2 downregulation or TM treatment, ER-stress response proteins were elevated less significantly in CGCs than in CNs, with the GRP78/BiP level showing the most significant difference. We further demonstrate that overexpression of GRP78/BiP rescues the death of CGCs resulting from either TM-treatment or PMM2 downregulation. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that the selective susceptibility of cerebellar neurons to N-glycosylation defects is due to these neurons’ inefficient response to ER stress, providing important insight into the mechanisms of selective neurodegeneration observed in CDG patients

A Study of Third-party Online Payment: Risk Control and Supervision Analysis

In recent years, with the continuous development of E-commerce, the third-party online payment pattern is gaining increasingly popularity among users. Characterized by its convenience, high-credibility and safety, it has become the mainstream pattern of online payment. With its rapid development, the third-party online payment has drawn more and more attention among people from all circles. And the focus of the attention is on the risks of using this platform. In this paper, the author introduces the present development status of the third-party online payment. On the basis of that, the paper focuses on the risk analysis and supervision in the process of operation by employing scenario analysis and list technique. In order to prevent and control risks in the third-party online payment, we should study the third-party online payment market thoroughly and take all aspects into consideration. It will shape a healthy and stable development trend only when all parties related work cooperatively

Research on measuring method of large-caliber gun muzzle vibration

In this paper, a measuring system based on binocular vision is developed for the research on large-caliber gun muzzle vibration. The system is consisted of two high-speed cameras and other equipment. The two-step calibration method based on radial constraint is adopted in order to complete the calibration, the inter-frame differential multiplication method is used to detect the centroid of moving target accurately, the improved Kalman filter tracking algorithm is used to obtain the motion trajectory of the muzzle identification point. The system is applied to practice for a type of muzzle vibration measurement and meaningful original data is acquired

Nutrition Diet of Grazing Sheep and Forage Supply on Natural Grassland

Forages are a major asset of any livestock operation and the foundation of most rations in a forage-based livestock system. The available nutrients in a forage influence individual animal production (e.g. gain per animal), while the amount of forage produced affects production per hectare. The relationship between voluntary food intake and animal productivity is well recognized. Many studies related to the regulation of food consumption by sheep and cattle have been reported (Provenza 1996). Willoughby (1958) dis-cussed a number of factors which might influence the herbage intake of grazing animals. By contrast, less attention has been given to the nutritional supply which influences the intake of herbage by grazing animals. It is necessary to know about animal daily nutrient requirements for production and forage supply in order to evaluate grazing capacity

TGFBI Gene Mutation Analysis of Clinically Diagnosed Granular Corneal Dystrophy Patients Prior to PTK: A Pilot Study from Eastern China

This study investigated the TGFBI gene mutation types in outpatients clinically diagnosed with granular corneal dystrophy (GCD) prior to phototherapeutic keratectomy (PTK), also calculated the mutation rate of subjects with normal corneas, but positive family history. Clinical GCD outpatients and consanguineous family members were enrolled in this study. Among total 42 subjects: 24 patients from 23 unrelated families had typical signs of GCD on corneas; 5 patients from 5 unrelated families had atypical signs; 13 subjects from 11 unrelated families had no corneal signs but positive family history. Using Avellino gene test kit, the TGFBI mutation detection was performed on DNA samples from all subjects. 36 subjects were detected to carry heterozygous TGFBI gene mutations. Among 24 clinical GCD patients, the proportion of R124H, R555Q, R124L, R555W and R124C were 37.5%, 16.7%, 25.0%, 20.8% and 0%, respectively, and 2 patients had been diagnosed with GCD according to the opacities thriving after LASIK (R124H) and PRK (R555W). The mutation rate of 13 subjects having no signs but positive family history was 69.2%. R124H mutation is the most prominent mutation type among GCD outpatients in Eastern China. It is recommended to conduct gene detection for patients with positive family history prior to refractive surgeries

Profit-Maximizing Planning and Control of Battery Energy Storage Systems for Primary Frequency Control

We consider a two-level profit-maximizing strategy, including planning and control, for battery energy storage system (BESS) owners that participate in the primary frequency control (PFC) market. Specifically, the optimal BESS control minimizes the operating cost by keeping the state of charge (SoC) in an optimal range. Through rigorous analysis, we prove that the optimal BESS control is a "state-invariant" strategy in the sense that the optimal SoC range does not vary with the state of the system. As such, the optimal control strategy can be computed offline once and for all with very low complexity. Regarding the BESS planning, we prove that the the minimum operating cost is a decreasing convex function of the BESS energy capacity. This leads to the optimal BESS sizing that strikes a balance between the capital investment and operating cost. Our work here provides a useful theoretical framework for understanding the planning and control strategies that maximize the economic benefits of BESSs in ancillary service markets