The green building assessment emphasizes the indoor environment quality (IEQ) by looking into the indoor air quality, lighting quality, acoustics, ventilation and thermal comfort conditions, which ...can be enhanced by effective initiatives at the early design stage. Designers and engineers usually consider exploiting passive designs to achieve a sustainable goal in building projects. In such background, this paper presents a holistic passive design approach by incorporating a robust sensitivity analysis to an efficient multi-objective optimization process to assess a typical high-rise residential building in hot and humid regions like Hong Kong. EnergyPlus and jEPlus are adopted to conduct modelling experiments with an input parametric matrix generated by the Latin Hypercube Sampling (LHS). All related indoor environment performance indices including the daylight, natural ventilation and thermal comfort are treated as optimization objectives and constraints to fulfil the local green building guidance. The non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) is coupled with jEPlus to obtain the Pareto frontier by thoroughly searching the problem space constructed with screened out significant input variables from the sensitivity analysis. Furthermore, different post-optimization analysis methods are applied to decide the final optimum solution, where the total unmet time decreased by 11.2% in contrast with the baseline case.
•A holistic optimization approach for a passively designed building is presented.•NSGA-II algorithm is coupled with EnergyPlus to conduct the modelling experiment.•Sensitivity analyses are conducted to screen out significant influential factors.•Different ranking methods are applied to further process Pareto optimal solutions.•Synergy of energy and indoor environment is considered in reaching final solutions.
Poly(ionic liquid) (PIL)‐based porous membranes are extensively investigated as soft polymer actuators. While PILs have shown significant advancements in membrane fabrication and stabilization of ...metal nanoparticles (MNPs), research on integrating MNPs into porous membranes to achieve actuation behavior under multiple stimuli is limited. Herein, this work presents a new paradigm for designing a porous PIL‐polyacrylic acid (PAA) membrane with a distinct MNP gradient via a top‐bottom diffusion approach involving a metal salt precursor solution and NaBH4 as a reducing agent. The strong binding sites provided by PILs, combined with the gradient distribution of ‐COO− groups across the membrane cross‐section, play a significant role in controlling the MNPs’ gradient distribution. Interestingly, the MNPs within the membrane display excellent catalytic activity in exothermic reactions such as H2O2 decomposition, dissipating uneven heat that quickly permeates the membrane network. This induces asymmetrical swelling of polymer chains, resulting in rapid membrane bending. Furthermore, such MNP‐loaded membrane could serve as a portable test paper for visually monitoring H2O2. This advancement paves the way for the development of intricate smart actuation materials and expands their practical applications in various real‐life scenarios.
The Poly(ionic liquid)‐based membrane (PILTf2N‐PAA) with a distinctive metal nanoparticles (MNPs) gradient along its cross‐section is fabricated via a templated‐based method. The MNPs within hybrid membrane displays excellent catalytic performance toward H2O2 decomposition, dissipating uneven heat that quickly permeates the membrane network. This induces asymmetrical swelling of polymer chains, ultimately causing rapid membrane bending.
High-performance and low-cost bifunctional electrocatalysts play crucial roles in oxygen reduction and evolution reactions. Herein, a novel three-dimensional (3D) bifunctional electrocatalyst was ...prepared by embedding CoO nanoparticles into nitrogen and sulfur co-doped carbon nanofiber networks (denoted as CoO@N/S-CNF) through a facile approach. The carbon nanofiber networks were derived from a nanostructured biological material which provided abundant functional groups to nucleate and anchor nanoparticles while retaining its interconnected 3D porous structure. The composite possesses a high specific surface area and graphitization degree, which favors both mass transport and charge transfer for electrochemical reaction. The CoO@N/S-CNF not only exhibits highly efficient catalytic activity towards oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in alkaline media with an onset potential of about 0.84 V, but also shows better stability and stronger resistance to methanol than Pt/C. Furthermore, it only needs an overpotential of 1.55 V to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm−2, suggesting that it is an efficient electrocatalyst for oxygen evolution reaction (OER). The ΔE value (oxygen electrode activity parameter) of CoO@N/S-CNF is calculated to be 0.828 V, which demonstrates that the composite could be a promising bifunctional electrocatalyst for both ORR and OER.
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In this paper, we design transmit beamforming for a full duplex base station (FD-BS) considering both self-interference mitigation and physical-layer security. The proposed design is formulated as ...minimizing the power consumption of FD-BS under different signal-to-interference-and-noise-ratio (SINR) constraints. Semidefinite relaxation (SDR) is used to convert the initial nonconvex optimization to be a convex semidefinite programming (SDP) problem. Then the optimality of SDR is strictly proved by showing the existence of the rank-one optimal solutions. To reduce the computational complexity, we develop zero forcing beamforming-based suboptimal algorithms, where the solutions can be obtained using golden search and closed-form solutions can be derived in each step. Simulation results are then provided to verify the efficiency of the proposed algorithms.
The effective capture of iodine with high volatility and poisonousness is significant for reprocessing the spent nuclear fuel. In this article, we report a hierarchically porous poly(ionic ...liquid)‐organic cage composite membrane (PIL@CC3) possessing a gradient content distribution of CC3 cage crystals throughout the membrane to capture iodine vapor. The introduction of microporous CC3 can significantly enhance the uptake capacity of iodine up to 980 mg g−1, which is superior to that of a pristine PIL membrane carrying large meso‐ and macropores (99 mg g−1), and CC3 crystalline powder (662 mg g−1). Such enhanced performance benefits from the micro‐meso‐macroporous structure of the PIL@CC3 membrane in which the large meso‐ and macropores facilitate the mass transfer of iodine molecules from the external environment into the surface of the CC3 crystal, followed by diffusion of iodine molecules from the CC3 surface into the interior and exterior pores of the CC3 crystal. In addition, the asymmetric distribution of CC3 crystals across the PIL@CC3 membrane also displays its advantage in intercepting trace iodine, revealing its great potential for practical application. This study provides an idea for constructing hierarchically porous membrane composites for the removal of toxic vapors.
A hierarchically micro‐meso‐macroporous poly(ionic liquid)‐organic cage composite membrane with a gradient content distribution of organic cage crystals throughout the membrane was prepared. The composite membrane allows for rapid diffusion of iodine vapor, leading to an outstanding iodine uptake capacity. Furthermore, such porous membrane can be processed into membrane modules for trace iodine vapor capture and interception, revealing its great potential for practical application.
The inflammatory mechanism of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) has been widely studied, and it is believed that the regulation of this mechanism is of great significance to the prognosis. In the early ...stage of the acute phase of ICH, the release of a large number of inflammatory factors around the hematoma can recruit more inflammatory cells to infiltrate the area, further release inflammatory factors, cause an inflammatory cascade reaction, aggravate the volume of cerebral hematoma and edema and further destroy the blood-brain barrier (BBB), according to this, the crosstalk between cells may be of great significance in secondary brain injury (SBI). Because most of the cells recruited are inflammatory immune cells, this paper mainly discusses the cells based on the inflammatory mechanism to discuss their functions after ICH, we found that among the main cells inherent in the brain, glial cells account for the majority, of which microglia are the most widely studied and it can interact with a variety of cells, which is reflected in the literature researches on its pathogenesis and treatment. We believe that exploring multi-mechanism and multi-cell regulated drugs may be the future development trend, and the existing research, the comparison and unification of modeling methods, and the observation of long-term efficacy may be the first problem that researchers need to solve.
A robust electrode–electrolyte interface is the cornerstone for every battery system, as demonstrated in the meandering history of the development of Li‐ion batteries (LIBs). In the thrust to replace ...the graphite anode with more energetic ones in LIBs, the effectual strategy for stabilizing the original graphite–electrolyte interface becomes obsolete and a new anode–electrolyte interface needs reconfiguration. Unfortunately, this interface has become the Achilles' heel for those anodes, such as Li‐metal anode (LMA) and Si‐based anode owing to their excessive reductivity, enormous volume change, and so forth. Encouragingly, in the last decade, impressive progress has been made on taming these extremely unstable interfaces and on the solid‐state batteries (SSBs) that are reported to be less susceptible to parasitic reactions. One of the distinguished strategies is the application of artificial Li‐alloying intermetallic interphases onto the surface of LMA, via the direct introduction of foreign metals to the Li anode or indirect hetero‐cations doping in the electrolyte, to regulate the Li deposition/stripping behavior, which has markedly improved the stability of the LMA–electrolyte interface. In parallel, the intermetallic interphases are also witnessed to profoundly enhance the anode–solid electrolyte contact and the corresponding charge transfer kinetics in various SSBs. This review will provide a panoramic overview of the application of the intermetallic interphases at the anode–electrolyte interfaces in the lithium metal batteries (LMBs), SSBs, and also derivative works in the conventional LIBs, which will focus on different concepts, methodologies, and understandings from the encircled studies.
In this review, we summarized the recent advances and achievements in the application of intermetallic interphases in regulating the anode–electrolyte interface in both the LMBs and LIBs, with the main emphasis laid onto the former, in both liquid‐electrolyte and solid‐state embodiments. It will concentrate on the ideas, methodologies, and interpretations of the working mechanisms behind different approaches.
Background
Obturator hernia is an infrequent pelvic hernia observed in elderly, emaciated and multiparous women. It often presents with nonspecific clinical symptoms, making it difficult to diagnose.
...Methods
We conducted a retrospective descriptive study on 11 patients admitted to our hospital for obturator hernia from 2009 to 2020.
Results
All the patients were diagnosed with intestinal obstruction due to incarcerated obturator hernia preoperatively. Eight patients underwent laparotomy with low midline incision. Laparoscopic approach was tried on the other three patients with two patients converting to open surgery because of inadequate visualization, and only one patient received laparoscopic repair. Of the 10 patients receiving laparotomy, seven cases received obturator hernia repair with a match and three cases were subjected to bowel resection (two cases intestinal necrosis and one case intestinal perforation). Simple peritoneal closure was performed on the three contaminated cases. One patient died of septic shock and multiple organ failure.
Conclusion
The emergent computed tomography allow for early and precise diagnosis of incarcerated obturator hernia. Laparotomy with low midline incision is commonly used to manage obturator hernia in an emergency, whereas laproscopic approach may only apply to some selected cases.
Obturator hernia (OH) should be suspected in multiparous, underweight, elderly women with intestinal obstruction and/or medial thigh pain. The emergent CT imaging allow for an early and precise diagnosis in incarcerated OH. Early surgical intervention, either open or laparoscopic, are essential to achieve improved outcomes for patients. Laproscopic approach may only apply to some selected cases.
The capability to significantly shorten the synthetic period of a broad spectrum of open organic materials presents an enticing prospect for materials processing and applications. Herein we ...discovered 1,2,4‐triazolium poly(ionic liquid)s (PILs) could serve as a universal additive to accelerate by at least one order of magnitude the growth rate of representative imine‐linked crystalline open organics, including organic cages, covalent organic frameworks (COFs), and macrocycles. This phenomenon results from the active C5‐protons in poly(1,2,4‐triazolium)s that catalyze the formation of imine bonds, and the simultaneous salting‐out effect (induced precipitation by decreasing solubility) that PILs exert on these crystallizing species.
1,2,4‐Triazolium poly(ionic liquid) (PIL) is an additive to accelerate by at least one order of magnitude the crystallization rate of imine‐linked crystalline open organics (organic cages, covalent organic frameworks (COFs), and macrocycles). This acceleration effect stems from the active C5 protons in polytriazolium that catalyze formation of imine bonds and the salting‐out effect of PILs on these crystallizing species.
Recently, the worldwide pulsar timing array(PTA) collaborations, such as the Chinese Pulsar Timing Array (CPTA), the European PulsarTiming Array (EPTA), the North American Nanohertz Observatory for ...Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav) and the Parkers Pulsar Timing Array (PPTA) published the analysis of PTA data, which is consistent with the Hellings–Downs curve, thus provides evidence for the existence of stochastic gravitational wave backgrounds (SGWB). In this paper, we will show that such SGWB signal observed by PTA can be explained by the gravitational waves (GWs) induced from double-inflection-point inflationary model in the framework of supergravity with a single chiral superfield. In this model, one of the inflection points leads to a large peak in the scalar power spectrum at small scales, and when this peak re-enters the horizon, it will induce GWs with the frequencies around nanohertz. In addition, we show that the high-density regions corresponding to the peak can collapse into planet-mass primordial black holes (PBHs), thus act as a component of dark matter (DM).
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