Delineating homogeneous domains of fractured rocks using topological manifolds and deep learning

Determining homogeneous domains statistically is helpful for engineering geological modeling and rock mass stability evaluation.In this text,a technique that can integrate lithology,geotechnical and structural information is proposed to delineate homogeneous domains.This technique is then applied to a high and steep slope along a road.First,geological and geotechnical domains were described based on lithology,faults,and shear zones.Next,topological manifolds were used to eliminate the incompatibility between orientations and other parameters(i.e.trace length and roughness)so that the data concerning various properties of each discontinuity can be matched and characterized in the same Euclidean space.Thus,the influence of implicit combined effect in between parameter sequences on the homogeneous domains could be considered.Deep learning technique was employed to quantify abstract features of the characterization images of discontinuity properties,and to assess the similarity of rock mass structures.The results show that the technique can effectively distinguish structural variations and outperform conventional methods.It can handle multisource engineering geological information and multiple discontinuity parameters.This technique can also minimize the interference of human factors and delineate homogeneous domains based on orientations or multi-parameter with arbitrary distributions to satisfy different engineering requirements.

Dynamic analysis of axle box bearings on the high-speed train caused by wheel-rail excitation

To explore the impact of wheel-rail excitation on the dynamic performance of axle box bearings,a dynamic model of the high-speed train including axle box bearings is developed.Subsequently,the dynamic response characteristics of the axle box bearing are examined.The investigation focuses on the acceleration characteristics of bearing vibration under excitation of track irregularities and wheel flats.In addition,experiments on both normal and faulty bearings are conducted separately,and the correctness of the model and some conclusions are verified.According to the research,track irregularity is unfavorable for bearing fault detection based on resonance demodulation.Under the same speed conditions,the acceleration peak of bearing is inversely proportional to the length of the wheel flat and directly proportional to its depth.The paper will contribute to a deeper understanding of the dynamic performance of axle box bearings.

Establishment of the thermo-mechanical coupling model of axle box bearings with track irregularity excitation and analysis of its temperature characteristics

As an important component of the running gear of high-speed trains,axle box bearings can cause lubricating grease failure and damage to bearing components under continuous high-temperature operation,which will affect the normal operation of highspeed trains.Therefore,bearing temperature is one of the key parameters to be monitored in the online monitoring system for trains.Based on the thermal network method,this paper establishes a thermal network model for the axle box bearing,considering the radial thermal deformation of the double-row tapered roller bearing components caused by the oil film characteristics and the temperature variations of the lubricating grease.A thermo-mechanical coupling model for the grease-lubricated double-row tapered roller axle box bearing of high-speed trains with track irregularity excitation is established.The correctness of the model is verified using the test bench data,and the temperature of the bearing at different rotational speeds,loads,fault sizes,and ambient temperatures are investigated.

水稻分蘖氮响应调控机理研究进展

氮肥是作物产量增加最主要的驱动因素,然而氮肥滥用会造成生态环境的严重破坏。因此,提高作物氮素利用效率(nitrogen use efficiency,NUE)对未来农业可持续发展至关重要。产量性状对氮素的敏感性是衡量作物氮素利用效率的重要指标。禾本科作物的分蘖数、穗粒数和粒重是产量的直接决定因子,虽然影响三者本身的分子机制已有大量研究,但氮素对这些性状的调控机理仍知之甚少。分蘖数是对氮素响应最为敏感的性状之一,也是氮肥促进作物增产的关键要素。因此,研究氮素如何调控水稻的分蘖发育对于提高作物产量尤为重要。本文总结了水稻氮素利用效率的影响因素和分蘖发育的调控机理,聚焦氮素如何调控水稻分蘖发育的机制,并对该领域未来研究工作进行了展望,以期为作物氮高效精准改良提供参考。

Establishment of Dynamic Model for Axle Box Bearing of High-Speed Trains Under Variable Speed Conditions

In this study,a dynamic model for the bearing rotor system of a high-speed train under variable speed conditions is established.In contrast to previous studies,the contact stress is simplifed in the proposed model and the compensation balance excitation caused by the rotor mass eccentricity considered.The angle iteration method is used to overcome the challenge posed by the inability to determine the roller space position during bearing rotation.The simulation results show that the model accurately describes the dynamics of bearings under varying speed profles that contain acceleration,deceleration,and speed oscillation stages.The order ratio spectrum of the bearing vibration signal indicates that both the single and multiple frequencies in the simulation results are consistent with the theoretical results.Experiments on bearings with outer and inner ring faults under various operating conditions are performed to verify the developed model.

Analysis of the Temperature Characteristics of High-speed Train Bearings Based on a Dynamics Model and Thermal Network Method

High-speed trains often use temperature sensors to monitor the motion state of bearings.However,the temperature of bearings can be affected by factors such as weather and faults.Therefore,it is necessary to analyze in detail the relationship between the bearing temperature and influencing factors.In this study,a dynamics model of the axle box bearing of high-speed trains is established.The model can obtain the contact force between the rollers and raceway and its change law when the bearing contains outer-ring,inner-ring,and rolling-element faults.Based on the model,a thermal network method is introduced to study the temperature field distribution of the axle box bearings of high-speed trains.In this model,the heat generation,conduction,and dispersion of the isothermal nodes can be solved.The results show that the temperature of the contact point between the outer-ring raceway and rolling-elements is the highest.The relationships between the node temperature and the speed,fault type,and fault size are analyzed,finding that the higher the speed,the higher the node temperature.Under different fault types,the node temperature first increases and then decreases as the fault size increases.The effectiveness of the model is demonstrated using the actual temperature data of a high-speed train.This study proposes a thermal network model that can predict the temperature of each component of the bearings on a high-speed train under various speed and fault conditions.

Characteristic analysis of mechanical thermal coupling model for bearing rotor system of high-speed train

Based on Newton’s second law and the thermal network method,a mechanical thermal coupling model of the bearing rotor system of high-speed trains is established to study the interaction between the bearing vibration and temperature.The influence of lubrication on the vibration and temperature characteristics of the system is considered in the model,and the real-time relationship between them is built up by using the transient temperature field model.After considering the lubrication,the bearing outer ring vibration acceleration and node temperature considering grease are lower,which shows the necessity of adding the lubrication model.The corresponding experiments for characteristics of vibration and temperature of the model are respectively conducted.In the envelope spectrum obtained from the simulation signal and the experimental signal,the frequency values corresponding to the peaks are close to the theoretical calculation results,and the error is very small.In the three stages of the temperature characteristic experiment,the node temperature change of the simulation model is consistent with the experiment.The good agreement between simulation and experiments proves the effectiveness of the model.By studying the influence of the bearing angular and fault size on the system node temperature,as well as the change law of bearing lubrication characteristics and temperature,it is found that the worse the working condition is,the higher the temperature is.When the ambient temperature is low,the viscosity of grease increases,and the oil film becomes thicker,which increases the sliding probability of the rolling element,thus affecting the normal operation of the bearing,which explains the phenomenon of frequent bearing faults of high-speed trains in the low-temperature area of Northeast China.Further analysis shows that faults often occur in the early stage of train operation in the low-temperature environment.

Research on hunting stability and bifurcation characteristics of nonlinear stochastic wheelset system

A stochastic wheelset model with a nonlinear wheel-rail contact relationship is established to investigate the stochastic stability and stochastic bifurcation of the wheelset system with the consideration of the stochastic parametric excitations of equivalent conicity and suspension stiffness.The wheelset is systematized into a onedimensional(1D)diffusion process by using the stochastic average method,the behavior of the singular boundary is analyzed to determine the hunting stability condition of the wheelset system,and the critical speed of stochastic bifurcation is obtained.The stationary probability density and joint probability density are derived theoretically.Based on the topological structure change of the probability density function,the stochastic Hopf bifurcation form and bifurcation condition of the wheelset system are determined.The effects of stochastic factors on the hunting stability and bifurcation characteristics are analyzed,and the simulation results verify the correctness of the theoretical analysis.The results reveal that the boundary behavior of the diffusion process determines the hunting stability of the stochastic wheelset system,and the left boundary characteristic value cL=1 is the critical state of hunting stability.Besides,stochastic D-bifurcation and P-bifurcation will appear in the wheelset system,and the critical speeds of the two kinds of stochastic bifurcation decrease with the increase in the stochastic parametric excitation intensity.

Land Breeze and Thermals: A Scale Threshold to Distinguish Their Effects

Land breeze is a type of mesoscale circulation developed due to thermal forcing over a heterogeneous landscape. It can contribute to atmospheric dynamic and hydrologic processes through affecting heat and water fluxes on the land-atmosphere interface and generating shallow convective precipitation. If the scale of the landscape heterogeneity is smaller than a certain size, however, the resulting land breeze becomes weak and becomes mixed up with other thermal convections like thermals. This study seeks to identify a scale threshold to distinguish the effects between land breeze and thermals. Two-dimensional simulations were performed with the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System （RAMS） to simulate thermals and land breeze. Their horizontal scale features were analyzed using the wavelet transform. The thermals developed over a homogeneous landscape under dry or wet conditions have an initial scale of 2-5 km during their early stage of development. The scale jumps to 10-15 km when condensation occurs. The solution of an analytical model indicates that the reduced degree of atmospheric instability due to the release of condensation potential heat could be one of the contributing factors for the increase in scale. The land breeze, on the other hand, has a major scale identical to the size of the landscape heterogeneity throughout various stages of development. The results suggest that the effects of land breeze can be clearly distinguished from those of thermals only if the size of the landscape heterogeneity is larger than the scale threshold of about 5 km for dry atmospheric processes or about 15 km for moist ones.

Research on Iron Loss of Switched Reluctance Starter/Generator for Energy Storage

In order to better realize the energy recovery and storage of hybrid EVs(HEVs),a switched reluctance starter/generator(SRS/G)with both starting and power generation functions is investigated in this paper.First,the iron loss of SRS/G is mainly studied to reduce the motor loss and improve the power generation efficiency.Then,the energy storage of hybrid EVs can be effectively improved.Secondly,a magnetic flux density(MFD)waveforms solution method is proposed to solve the difficulty in calculating the iron loss of the SRS/G.Compared with the commonly used finite element method,the proposed solution method has the advantages of simple,fast and small computational amount.Meanwhile,considering the different operating conditions of SRS/G,the iron loss models for both the time-domain and frequency-domain are established.In addition,the calculation formula of the variable coefficient Bertotti three-term loss separation is improved.As the hysteresis loss coefficient,the Steinmetz coefficient and the stray loss coefficient are respectively fitted by the Fourier fitting method.This method is also applied to solve the iron loss of SRS/G.Finally,through an experimental verification,it is indicated that the development of proposed method has high accuracy.

Analysis of temperature characteristics of high-speed train wheelset system under complex operating conditions

With the rapid advancements in high-speed train technology,the importance of ensuring the safety of train operations has become paramount.Bearings,being a critical component of train bogies,have garnered significant attention for their role in maintaining safety standards.Monitoring the temperature of bearings to evaluate their motion state is a common practice in high-speed trains,emphasizing the need for further research into temperature fluctuations.In this study,a dynamic model is developed for the bearing rotor system of high-speed trains.By considering the contact points between raceways and rolling elements,the power loss in the bearing is obtained and a transient temperature-field model of the system is established.The relationship between node temperature and factors such as ambient temperature,train running speed,and load is illustrated,with a detailed presentation of the influence of bearing fault type and size on node temperature.The analysis results reveal that the node temperature increases with higher values corresponding to those quantifiable factors and is most affected by rolling element fault.Additionally,it is observed that the temperature rises rapidly in the initial stage and gradually flattens out over time.The comparative analysis of temperature under different fault conditions shows that the node temperature is most affected by the rolling element fault.Experiments and actual line temperature data are used to verify the validity of the model.The comparison results show that the simulation aligns well with experimental and line data.The transient temperature-field model of the bearing rotor system in high-speed trains can effectively simulate and predict the temperature change process of each node of the system.The simulation results hold certain theoretical guiding significance for further research and practical applications in ensuring train operation safety.

Composite fault mechanism and vibration characteristics of high-speed train axle-box bearings

Axle-box bearings are crucial components of high-speed trains and operate in challenging conditions.As service mileage increases,these bearings are susceptible to various failures,posing a safety risk to high-speed train operations.Thus,it is crucial to examine the deployment methods of axle-box bearings.A dynamic model of axle-box bearings for high-speed trains with compound faults is constructed by setting up separate faults in two rows of double-row tapered roller bearings based on a single-fault model.The model's high accuracy in expressing compound faults is verified through corresponding experimental results.Then,the frequency domain diagram of system vibration response under varying rotational speed conditions is obtained,and the amplitude corresponding to the single frequency is extracted and analyzed to identify the optimal rotational speed band for composite fault diagnosis.Finally,the optimal speed band is analyzed under different faults,different load sizes,and different composite fault types.It can be concluded that the determination of the optimal speed band is solely influenced by the composite fault type and is independent of the fault and load sizes.Finally,it is concluded that the energy proportion of faults in different positions changes periodically with the change in speed,and this phenomenon is not affected by the fault sizes or load magnitude.

A Critical Review of Single-Crystal LiNi_(x)Mn_(y)Co_(1-x-y)O_(2) Cathode Materials

To meet the range requirements of electric vehicles,the lithium nickel-rich manganese cobalt oxides(nickel-rich LiNi_(x)Mn_(y)Co_(1-x-y)O_(2);x≥0.5 or NMC)material is a promising contender due to its superior energy and power density.Commercial polycrystalline nickel-rich NMC(PC-NMC)materials typically exhibit layered structures in which primary particles aggregate to form secondary particles to increase the contact area density.Thereby increasing the cathode energy density.However,PC-NMC materials present a number of challenges in terms of cycle life and thermal stability,many of which stem from their extensive surface area,including severe surface phase transitions,intergranular microcracks,oxygen evolution,and transition metal dissolution.To address these challenges,single-crystal NMC(SCNMC)materials were introduced,which exhibited higher capacity retention and thermal robustness owing to their unique structures,characterized by lower active surface area and heightened mechanical strength.Nevertheless,SC-NMC materials also had their own problems,including sluggish Li+bulk diffusion kinetics and nonuniform distribution of lattice strain,as well as their complex high-temperature calcination process.This review concentrates on discussing the merits and demerits of SC-NMC over PC-NMC materials and introduces the current research efforts aimed at improving the electrochemical performance of SC-NMC.

Ketogenic diet alleviates colitis by reduction of colonic group 3 innate lymphoid cells through altering gut microbiome

Accumulating evidence suggests that ketogenic diets(KDs)mediate the rise of circulating ketone bodies and exert a potential antiinflammatory effect;however,the consequences of this unique diet on colitis remain unknown.We performed a series of systematic studies using a dextran sulfate sodium(DSS)animal model of inflammatory colitis.Animals were fed with a KD,low-carbohydrate diet(LCD),or normal diet(ND).Germ-free mice were utilized in validation experiments.Colon tissues were analyzed by transcriptome sequencing,RT2 profiler PCR array,histopathology,and immunofluorescence.Serum samples were analyzed by metabolic assay kit.Fecal samples were analyzed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing,liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.We observed that KD alleviated colitis by altering the gut microbiota and metabolites in a manner distinct from LCD.Quantitative diet experiments confirmed the unique impact of KD relative to LCD with a reproducible increase in Akkermansia,whereas the opposite was observed for Escherichia/Shigella.After colitis induction,the KD protected intestinal barrier function,and reduced the production of R0Ryt+CD3_group 3 innate lymphoid cells(ILC3s)and related inflammatory cytokines(IL-17a,IL-18,IL-22,Ccl4).Finally,fecal microbiota transplantation into germ-free mice revealed that the KD-mediated colitis inhibition and ILC3 regulation were dependent on the modification of gut microbiota.Taken together,our study presents a global view of microbiome-metabolomics changes that occur during KD colitis treatment,and identifies the regulation of gut microbiome and ILC3s as novel targets involving in IBD dietary therapy.

Genetic improvement toward nitrogen-use efficiency in rice: Lessons and perspectives

The indispensable role of nitrogen fertilizer in ensuring world food security together with the severe threats it poses to the ecosystem makes the usage of nitrogen fertilizer a major challenge for sustainable agriculture.Genetic improvement of crops with high nitrogen-use efficiency(NUE)is one of the most feasible solutions for tackling this challenge.In the last two decades,extensive efforts toward dissecting the variation of NUE-related traits and the underlying genetic basis in different germplasms have been made,and a series of achievements have been obtained in crops,especially in rice.Here,we summarize the approaches used for genetic dissection of NUE and the functions of the causal genes in modulating NUE as well as their applications in NUE improvement in rice.Strategies for exploring the variants controlling NUE and breeding future crops with“less-input-more-output”for sustainable agriculture are also proposed.

Modulation of nitrate-induced phosphate response by the MYB transcription factor RLI1/HINGE1 in the nucleus

The coordinated utilization of nitrogen(N)and phosphorus(P)is vital for plants to maintain nutrient balance and achieve optimal growth.Previously,we revealed a mechanism by which nitrate induces genes for phosphate utilization;this mechanism depends on NRT1.1B-facilitated degradation of cytoplasmic SPX4,which in turn promotes cytoplasmic-nuclear shuttling of PHR2,the central transcription factor of phosphate signaling,and triggers the nitrate-induced phosphate response(NIPR)and N-P coordinated utilization in rice.In this study,we unveiled a fine-tuning mechanism of NIPR in the nucleus regulated by Highly Induced by Nitrate Gene 1(HINGE1,also known as RLI1),a MYB-transcription factor closely related to PHR2.RLI1/HINGE1,which is transcriptionally activated by PHR2 under nitrate induction,can directly activate the expression of phosphate starvation-induced genes.More importantly,RLI1/HINGE1 competes with PHR2 for binding to its repressor proteins in the nucleus(SPX proteins),and consequently releases PHR2 to further enhance phosphate response.Therefore,RLI1/HINGE1 amplifies the phosphate response in the nucleus downstream of the cytoplasmic SPX4-PHR2 cascade,thereby enabling fine-tuning of N-P balance when nitrate supply is sufficient.

Identification of microRNAs in rice root in response to nitrate and ammonium

Nitrate and ammonium are two major nitrogen （N） sources for higher plants, but they differ in utilization and signaling. MicroRNAs （miRNAs） play an essential role in N signal transduction; however, knowledge remains limited about the regulatory role of miRNAs responsive to different N sources, especially in crop plants. To get global overview on miRNAs involved in N response in rice, we performed high-throughput small RNA-sequencing under different nitrate and ammonium treatments. The results demonstrated that only 16 and 11 miRNAs were significantly induced by nitrate and ammonium under short-term treat-ment, respectively. However, 60 differentially expressed miRNAs were found between nitrate and ammonium under long-term cultivation. These results suggested that miRNA response greatly differentiates between nitrate and ammonium treatments. Furthermore, 44 miRNAs were found to be differentially expressed between high- and low-N conditions. Our study reveals comprehensive expression profiling of miRNAs responsive to different N sources and different N treatments, which advances our understanding on the regulation of different N signaling and homeostasis mediated by miRNAs.

Traditional Chinese medicines and their active ingredients sensitize cancer cells to TRAIL-induced apoptosis

The rapidly developing resistance of cancers to chemotherapy agents and the severe cytotoxicity of such agents to normal cells are major stumbling blocks in current cancer treatments.Most current chemotherapy agents have significant cytotoxicity,which leads to devastating adverse effects and results in a substandard quality of life,including increased daily morbidity and premature mortality.The death receptor of tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand(TRAIL)can sidestep p53-dependent pathways to induce tumor cell apoptosis without damaging most normal cells.However,various cancer cells can develop resistance to TRAIL-induced apoptosis via different pathways.Therefore,it is critical to find an efficient TRAIL sensitizer to reverse the resistance of tumor cells to TRAIL,and to reinforce TRAIL’s ability to induce tumor cell apoptosis.In recent years,traditional Chinese medicines and their active ingredients have shown great potential to trigger apoptotic cell death in TRAIL-resistant cancer cell lines.This review aims to collate information about Chinese medicines that can effectively reverse the resistance of tumor cells to TRAIL and enhance TRAIL’s ability to induce apoptosis.We explore the therapeutic potential of TRAIL and provide new ideas for the development of TRAIL therapy and the generation of new anticancer drugs for human cancer treatment.This study involved an extensive review of studies obtained from literature searches of electronic databases such as Google Scholar and PubMed."TRAIL sensitize"and"Chinese medicine"were the search keywords.We then isolated newly published studies on the mechanisms of TRAIL-induced apoptosis.The name of each plant was validated using certified databases such as The Plant List.This study indicates that TRAIL can be combined with different Chinese medicine components through intrinsic or extrinsic pathways to promote cancer cell apoptosis.It also demonstrates that the active ingredients of traditional Chinese medicines enhance the sensitivity of cancer cells to TRAIL-mediated apoptosis.This provides useful information regarding traditional Chinese medicine treatment,the development of TRAIL-based therapies,and the treatment of cancer.

The divergence of brassinosteroid sensitivity between rice subspecies involves natural variation conferring altered internal auto-binding of OsBSK2

Japonica/geng and indica/xian are two major rice(Oryza sativa)subspecies with multiple divergent traits,but how these traits are related and interact within each subspecies remains elusive.Brassinosteroids(BRs)are a class of steroid phytohormones that modulate many important agronomic traits in rice.Here,using different physiological assays,we revealed that japonica rice exhibits an overall lower BR sensitivity than indica.Extensive screening of BR signaling genes led to the identification of a set of genes distributed throughout the primary BR signaling pathway with divergent polymorphisms.Among these,we demonstrate that the C38/T variant in BR Signaling Kinase2(OsBSK2),causing the amino acid change P13L,plays a central role in mediating differential BR signaling in japonica and indica rice.OsBSK2in indica plays a greater role in BR signaling than OsB SK2in japonica by affecting the auto-binding and protein accumulation of OsBSK2.Finally,we determined that OsBSK2 is involved in a number of divergent traits in japonica relative to indica rice,including grain shape,tiller number,cold adaptation,and nitrogen-use efficiency.Our study suggests that the natural variation in OsB SK2 plays a key role in the divergence of BR signaling,which underlies multiple divergent traits between japonica and indica.

OsCPL3 is involved in brassinosteroid signaling by regulating OsGSK2 stability

Glycogen synthase kinase 3(GSK3)proteins play key roles in brassinosteroid(BR)signaling during plant growth and development by phosphorylating various substrates.However,how GSK3 protein stability and activity are themselves modulated is not well understood.Here,we demonstrate in vitro and in vivo that C-TERMINAL DOMAIN PHOSPHATASELIKE 3(Os CPL3),a member of the RNA Pol II CTD phosphatase-like family,physically interacts with Os GSK2 in rice(Oryza sativa).Os CPL3 expression was widely detected in various tissues and organs including roots,leaves and lamina joints,and was induced by exogenous BR treatment.Os CPL3 localized to the nucleus,where it dephosphorylated Os GSK2 at the Ser-222 and Thr-284 residues to modulate its protein turnover and kinase activity,in turn affecting the degradation of BRASSINAZOLERESISTANT 1(BZR1)and BR signaling.Loss of Os CPL3 function resulted in higher Os GSK2 abundance and lower Os BZR1 levels,leading to decreased BR responsiveness and alterations in plant morphology including semi-dwarfism,leaf erectness and grain size,which are of fundamental importance to crop productivity.These results reveal a previously unrecognized role for Os CPL3 and add another layer of complexity to the tightly controlled BR signaling pathway in plants.