State of charge (SOC) is a crucial index used in the assessment of electric vehicle (EV) battery storage systems. Thus, SOC estimation of lithium-ion batteries has been widely investigated because of ...their fast charging, long-life cycle, and high energy density characteristics. However, precise SOC assessment of lithium-ion batteries remains challenging because of their varying characteristics under different working environments. Machine learning techniques have been widely used to design an advanced SOC estimation method without the information of battery chemical reactions, battery models, internal properties, and additional filters. Here, the capacity of optimized machine learning techniques are presented toward enhanced SOC estimation in terms of learning capability, accuracy, generalization performance, and convergence speed. We validate the proposed method through lithium-ion battery experiments, EV drive cycles, temperature, noise, and aging effects. We show that the proposed method outperforms several state-of-the-art approaches in terms of accuracy, adaptability, and robustness under diverse operating conditions.
Eggplant or brinjal (Solanum melongena) is a popular vegetable grown throughout Asia where it is attacked by brinjal fruit and shoot borer (BFSB) (Leucinodes orbonalis). Yield losses in Bangladesh ...have been reported up to 86% and farmers rely primarily on frequent insecticide applications to reduce injury. Bangladesh has developed and released four brinjal varieties producing Cry1Ac (Bt brinjal) and is the first country to do so. We report on the first replicated field trials comparing four Bt brinjal varieties to their non-Bt isolines, with and without standard insecticide spray regimes. Results of the two-year study (2016-17) indicated Bt varieties had increased fruit production and minimal BFSB fruit infestation compared with their respective non-Bt isolines. Fruit infestation for Bt varieties varied from 0-2.27% in 2016, 0% in 2017, and was not significantly affected by the spray regime in either year. In contrast, fruit infestation in non-Bt lines reached 36.70% in 2016 and 45.51% in 2017, even with weekly spraying. An economic analysis revealed that all Bt lines had higher gross returns than their non-Bt isolines. The non-sprayed non-Bt isolines resulted in negative returns in most cases. Maximum fruit yield was obtained from sprayed plots compared to non-sprayed plots, indicating that other insects such as whiteflies, thrips and mites can reduce plant vigor and subsequent fruit weight. Statistically similar densities of non-target arthropods, including beneficial arthropods, were generally observed in both Bt and non-Bt varieties. An additional trial that focused on a single Bt variety and its isoline provided similar results on infestation levels, with and without sprays, and similarly demonstrated higher gross returns and no significant effects on non-target arthropods. Together, these studies indicate that the four Bt brinjal lines are extremely effective at controlling BFSB in Bangladesh without affecting other arthropods, and provide greater economic returns than their non-Bt isolines.
Correction for 'Development of electrochemical sensors for quick detection of environmental (soil and water) NPK ions' by M. I. Hossain
et al.
,
RSC Adv.
, 2024,
14
, 9137-9158,
...https://doi.org/10.1039/D4RA00034J
.
All over the world, technology is becoming more and more prevalent in agriculture. Different types of instruments are already being used in this sector. For the time being, every farmer is trying to ...produce more crops on a piece of land. Eventually, soil loses its nutrients; however, to grow more crops, farmers use more fertilizers without knowing the proper conditions of the soil in real time. To overcome this issue, many scientists have recently focused on developing electrochemical sensors to detect macronutrients,
i.e.
, nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K), in soil or water rapidly. In this review, we focus mainly on the recent developments in electrochemical sensors used for the detection of nutrients (NPK) in different types of samples. As it is outlined, the use of smart and portable electrochemical sensors can be helpful for the reduction of excess fertilizer and can play a vital role in maintaining suitable conditions in soils and water. We are optimistic that this review can guide researchers in the development of a portable and suitable NPK detection system for soil nutrients.
When a plant shows deficiency syndromes, sometimes it becomes too late for the farmer to apply fertilizer, as most rely on checking plant leaves to assess their nutrition level. Electrochemical sensors can bring revolution here. Other pollutants (NPK) can also be determined using these sensors.
Aims
The aim of this study was to evaluate the antagonistic activity of halotolerant bacteria against rice brown stripe pathogen Acidovorax oryzae.
Methods and Results
Fifteen of 136 isolates of ...halotolerant bacteria exhibited strong in vitro and in vivo antagonistic activity against both strains of A. oryzae. The 15 antagonistic isolates were identified as ‘operational group Bacillus amyloliquefaciens’ based on physiological and biochemical features, fatty acid profiles as well as sequence analysis of 16S rRNA, gyrA and rpoB genes. Furthermore, this result indicated that the most effective antagonistic isolates K5‐3 and PPB6 could produce siderophore in iron‐limiting medium, and four kinds of secondary metabolites based on MALDI‐TOF analysis. In addition, the culture filtrates of isolates K5‐3 and PPB6 caused the damage of cell membrane evidenced by the TEM images, and resulted in 73–80% reduction in cell numbers, 55–65% reduction in biofilm formation, and 42–50% reduction in swimming ability of both strains of A. oryzae.
Conclusions
These isolates in particular K5‐3 and PPB6 of halotolerant bacteria markedly inhibited the growth of A. oryzae.
Significance and Impact of the Study
To our knowledge, this is the first report on biological control of halotolerant bacteria against bacterial brown stripe of rice.
A thin and broadband frequency-selective surface (FSS)-based magnetic absorber is presented for low-microwave frequency applications. The design consists of double layers of FSS with the combination ...of two different magnetic substrates, which provides a much broader bandwidth compared to existing single-layered designs. The magnetic materials are in-house made by mixing different ratios of carbonyl-iron powder with silicone elastomer polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). The simple single-square loop (SSL) structure is used for both FSSs that are printed on a standard FR4 material using lossy resistive sheet. This configuration allows the use of a closed-form equivalent-circuit model for a fast and efficient bandwidth optimization. A genetic algorithm (GA) is utilized to obtain the design parameters for broadband absorption with minimum overall thickness. The measured results confirm that the proposed absorber operates from 0.78 to 4.8 GHz with −10 dB reflectivity. The design achieves 144% fractional bandwidth with a 10.12 bandwidth-to-thickness ratio.
An accurate equivalent circuit (EC) design approach for wideband nonmagnetic absorbers operating at the low microwave frequency (1-10 GHz) is presented. Following the impedance matching approach, ...this communication introduces an EC model based on the simulated data and synthetic asymptotes for single- and double-layer frequency-selective surface (FSS)-based nonmagnetic absorbers. Two simple and commonly used resistive FSSs, i.e., square patch and single square loop, are considered in this communication. Compared to the full-wave simulations, the proposed EC model shows more than 95% accuracy. By employing the proposed model and genetic algorithm-based optimization, several designs of broadband absorbers are demonstrated. The presented single- and double-layer FSSs show 126% and 161% fractional bandwidth, respectively, with the total thickness close to the Rozanov limit. The results confirm that the proposed method is a simple and efficient way of designing thin wideband absorbers using single- or double-layer FSS configurations.
The Malayan box turtle (Cuora amboinensis) (MBT) is a vulnerable and protected turtle species, but it is a lucrative item in the illegal wildlife trade because of its great appeal as an exotic food ...item and in traditional medicine. Although several polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays to identify MBT by various routes have been documented, their applicability for forensic authentication remains inconclusive due to the long length of the amplicon targets, which are easily broken down by natural decomposition, environmental stresses or physiochemical treatments during food processing. To address this research gap, we developed, for the first time, a species-specific PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) assay with a very short target length (120 bp) to detect MBT in the food chain; this authentication ensured better security and reliability through molecular fingerprints. The PCR-amplified product was digested with Bfa1 endonuclease, and distinctive restriction fingerprints (72, 43 and 5 bp) for MBT were found upon separation in a microfluidic chip-based automated electrophoresis system, which enhances the resolution of short oligos. The chances of any false negative identifications were eliminated through the use of a universal endogenous control for eukaryotes, and the limit of detection was 0.0001 ng DNA or 0.01% of the meat under admixed states. Finally, the optimized PCR-RFLP assay was validated for the screening of raw and processed commercial meatballs, burgers and frankfurters, which are very popular in most countries. The optimized PCR-RFLP assay was further used to screen MBT materials in 153 traditional Chinese medicines of 17 different brands and 62 of them were found MBT positive; wherein the ingredients were not declared in product labels. Overall, the novel assay demonstrated sufficient merit for use in any forensic and/or archaeological authentication of MBT, even under a state of decomposition.
Here we present a detailed ab initio study of two experimentally synthesized bismuth niobate BiNbO4 (BNO) polymorphs within the framework of density functional theory (DFT). We synthesized ...orthorhombic α-BNO and triclinic β-BNO using a solid-state reaction technique. The underlying Pnna and P1 crystal symmetries along with their respective phase purity have been confirmed from Rietveld refinement of the powdered X-ray diffraction measurements in combination with generalized gradient approximation of Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof (GGA-PBE) based DFT simulations. The scanning electron micrographs revealed average grain sizes to be 500 nm and 1 μm for α-BNO and β-BNO respectively. The energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy identified the Bi, Nb, and O with proper stoichiometry. The phase purity of the as-synthesized samples was further confirmed by comparing the local density approximation (LDA) norm-conserving pseudo-potential based DFT-simulated Raman peaks with that of experimentally measured ones. The relevant bond vibrations detected in Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy were matched with GGA-PBE derived phonon density of states simulation for both polymorphs. The structural stability and the charge dynamics of the polymorphs were verified from elastic stress and born charge tensor simulations respectively. The dynamical stability of the α-BNO was confirmed from phonon band structure simulation using density functional perturbation theory with Heyd–Scuseria–Ernzerhof (HSE06) hybrid functional. The electronic band gaps of 3.08 and 3.36 eV for α-BNO and β-BNO measured from UV-Vis diffuse reflectance measurements were matched with the sophisticated HSE06 band structure simulation by adjusting the Hartree–Fock exchange parameter. Both GGA-PBE and HSE06 functional were used to simulate complex dielectric function and its derivatives with the help of Fermi's golden rule to define the optical properties in the linear regime. All these may have provided a rigorous theoretical analysis for the experimentally synthesized α-BNO and β-BNO polymorphs.
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