Flexible,high-density,laminated ECoG electrode array for high spatiotemporal resolution foci diagnostic localization of refractory epilepsy

High spatiotemporal resolution brain electrical signals are critical for basic neuroscience research and high-precision focus diagnostic localization,as the spatial scale of some pathologic signals is at the submillimeter or micrometer level.This entails connecting hundreds or thousands of electrode wires on a limited surface.This study reported a class of flexible,ultrathin,highdensity electrocorticogram(ECoG)electrode arrays.The challenge of a large number of wiring arrangements was overcome by a laminated structure design and processing technology improvement.The flexible,ultrathin,high-density ECoG electrode array was conformably attached to the cortex for reliable,high spatial resolution electrophysiologic recordings.The minimum spacing between electrodes was 15μm,comparable to the diameter of a single neuron.Eight hundred electrodes were prepared with an electrode density of 4444 mm^(-2).In focal epilepsy surgery,the flexible,high-density,laminated ECoG electrode array with 36 electrodes was applied to collect epileptic spike waves inrabbits,improving the positioning accuracy of epilepsy lesions from the centimeter to the submillimeter level.The flexible,high-density,laminated ECoG electrode array has potential clinical applications in intractable epilepsy and other neurologic diseases requiring high-precision electroencephalogram acquisition.

On the thermodynamics of plasticity during quasi-isentropic compression of metallic glass

Entropy production in quasi-isentropic compression (QIC) is critically important for understanding the properties of materials under extremeconditions. However, the origin and accurate quantification of entropy in this situation remain long-standing challenges. In this work, a framework is established for the quantification of entropy production and partition, and their relation to microstructural change in QIC. Cu50Zr50is taken as a model material, and its compression is simulated by molecular dynamics. On the basis of atomistic simulation-informed physicalproperties and free energy, the thermodynamic path is recovered, and the entropy production and its relation to microstructural change aresuccessfully quantified by the proposed framework. Contrary to intuition, entropy production during QIC of metallic glasses is relativelyinsensitive to the strain rate ˙γ when ˙γ ranges from 7.5 × 10^(8) to 2 × 10^(9)/s, which are values reachable in QIC experiments, with a magnitudeof the order of 10^(−2)kB/atom per GPa. However, when ˙γ is extremely high (>2 × 10^(9)/s), a notable increase in entropy production rate with˙γ is observed. The Taylor–Quinney factor is found to vary with strain but not with strain rate in the simulated regime. It is demonstrated thatentropy production is dominated by the configurational part, compared with the vibrational part. In the rate-insensitive regime, the increase inconfigurational entropy exhibits a linear relation to the Shannon-entropic quantification of microstructural change, and a stretched exponential relation to the Taylor–Quinney factor. The quantification of entropy is expected to provide thermodynamic insights into the fundamentalrelation between microstructure evolution and plastic dissipation.

Strengthening-softening transition and maximum strength in Schwarz nanocrystals

Recently,a Schwarz crystal structure with curved grain boundaries(GBs)constrained by twin-boundary(TB)networks was discovered in nanocrystalline Cu through experiments and atomistic simulations.Nanocrystalline Cu with nanosized Schwarz crystals exhibited high strength and excellent thermal stability.However,the grainsize effect and associated deformation mechanisms of Schwarz nanocrystals remain unknown.Here,we performed large-scale atomistic simulations to investigate the deformation behaviors and grain-size effect of nanocrystalline Cu with Schwarz crystals.Our simulations showed that similar to regular nanocrystals,Schwarz nanocrystals exhibit a strengthening-softening transition with decreasing grain size.The critical grain size in Schwarz nanocrystals is smaller than that in regular nanocrystals,leading to a maximum strength higher than that of regular nanocrystals.Our simulations revealed that the softening in Schwarz nanocrystals mainly originates from TB migration(or detwinning)and annihilation of GBs,rather than GB-mediated processes(including GB migration,sliding and diffusion)dominating the softening in regular nanocrystals.Quantitative analyses of simulation data further showed that compared with those in regular nanocrystals,the GB-mediated processes in Schwarz nanocrystals are suppressed,which is related to the low volume fraction of amorphous-like GBs and constraints of TB networks.The smaller critical grain size arises from the suppression of GB-mediated processes.

High Density 3D Carbon Tube Nanoarray Electrode Boosting the Capacitance of Filter Capacitor

Electric double-layer capacitors(EDLCs)with fast frequency response are regarded as small-scale alternatives to the commercial bulky aluminum electrolytic capacitors.Creating carbon-based nanoarray electrodes with precise alignment and smooth ion channels is crucial for enhancing EDLCs’performance.However,controlling the density of macropore-dominated nanoarray electrodes poses challenges in boosting the capacitance of line-filtering EDLCs.Herein,a simple technique to finely adjust the vertical-pore diameter and inter-spacing in three-dimensional nanoporous anodic aluminum oxide(3D-AAO)template is achieved,and 3D compactly arranged carbon tube(3D-CACT)nanoarrays are created as electrodes for symmetrical EDLCs using nanoporous 3D-AAO template-assisted chemical vapor deposition of carbon.The 3D-CACT electrodes demonstrate a high surface area of 253.0 m^(2) g^(−1),a D/G band intensity ratio of 0.94,and a C/O atomic ratio of 8.As a result,the high-density 3D-CT nanoarray-based sandwich-type EDLCs demonstrate a record high specific areal capacitance of 3.23 mF cm^(-2) at 120 Hz and exceptional fast frequency response due to the vertically aligned and highly ordered nanoarray of closely packed CT units.The 3D-CT nanoarray electrode-based EDLCs could serve as line filters in integrated circuits,aiding power system miniaturization.

Numerical Modeling and Technico-Economic Analysis of a Hybrid Energy Production System for Self-Consumption: Case of Rural Area in the Comoros

This study aims to provide electricity to a remote village in the Union of Comoros that has been affected by energy problems for over 40 years. The study uses a 50 kW diesel generator, a 10 kW wind turbine, 1500 kW photovoltaic solar panels, a converter, and storage batteries as the proposed sources. The main objective of this study is to conduct a detailed analysis and optimization of a hybrid diesel and renewable energy system to meet the electricity demand of a remote area village of 800 to 1500 inhabitants located in the north of Ngazidja Island in Comoros. The study uses the Hybrid Optimization Model for Electric Renewable (HOMER) Pro to conduct simulations and optimize the analysis using meteorological data from Comoros. The results show that hybrid combination is more profitable in terms of margin on economic cost with a less expensive investment. With a diesel cost of $1/L, an average wind speed of 5.09 m/s and a solar irradiation value of 6.14 kWh/m2/day, the system works well with a proportion of renewable energy production of 99.44% with an emission quantity of 1311.407 kg/year. 99.2% of the production comes from renewable sources with an estimated energy surplus of 2,125,344 kWh/year with the cost of electricity (COE) estimated at $0.18/kWh, presenting a cost-effective alternative compared to current market rates. These results present better optimization of the used hybrid energy system, satisfying energy demand and reducing the environmental impact.

Goal-oriented error estimation applied to direct solution of steady-state analysis with frequency-domain finite element method

Based on the concept of the constitutive relation error along with the residuals of both the origin and the dual problems, a goal-oriented error estimation method with extended degrees of freedom is developed. It leads to the high quality locM error bounds in the problem of the direct-solution steady-state dynamic analysis with a frequency-domain finite element, which involves the enrichments with plural variable basis functions. The solution of the steady-state dynamic procedure calculates the harmonic response directly in terms of the physical degrees of freedom in the model, which uses the mass, damping, and stiffness matrices of the system. A three-dimensional finite element example is carried out to illustrate the computational procedures.

Machine Learning‑Enhanced Flexible Mechanical Sensing

To realize a hyperconnected smart society with high productivity,advances in flexible sensing technology are highly needed.Nowadays,flexible sensing technology has witnessed improvements in both the hardware performances of sensor devices and the data processing capabilities of the device’s software.Significant research efforts have been devoted to improving materials,sensing mechanism,and configurations of flexible sensing systems in a quest to fulfill the requirements of future technology.Meanwhile,advanced data analysis methods are being developed to extract useful information from increasingly complicated data collected by a single sensor or network of sensors.Machine learning(ML)as an important branch of artificial intelligence can efficiently handle such complex data,which can be multi-dimensional and multi-faceted,thus providing a powerful tool for easy interpretation of sensing data.In this review,the fundamental working mechanisms and common types of flexible mechanical sensors are firstly presented.Then how ML-assisted data interpretation improves the applications of flexible mechanical sensors and other closely-related sensors in various areas is elaborated,which includes health monitoring,human-machine interfaces,object/surface recognition,pressure prediction,and human posture/motion identification.Finally,the advantages,challenges,and future perspectives associated with the fusion of flexible mechanical sensing technology and ML algorithms are discussed.These will give significant insights to enable the advancement of next-generation artificial flexible mechanical sensing.

Analysis and design for the comprehensive ballistic and blast resistance of polyurea-coated steel plate

Fragments and blast waves generated by explosions pose a serious threat to protective structures.In this paper,the impact resistance of polyurea-coated steel plate under complex dynamic loading is analyzed and designed for improving comprehensive ballistic and blast resistance using the newly established computational evaluating model.Firstly,according to the thickness and placement effects of the coating on the impact resistance,the steel-core sandwich plates are designed,which are proved to own outstanding comprehensive ballistic and blast resistance.Besides,the distribution diagram of ballistic and blast resistance for different polyurea-coated steel plates is given to guide the design of protective structures applying in different explosion scenarios.Furthermore,the dynamic response of designed plates under two scenarios with combined fragments and blast loading is studied.The results show that the synergistic effect of the combined loading reduces both the ballistic and blast resistance of the polyurea-coated steel plate.Besides,the acting sequence of the fragments and blast affects the structural protective performance heavily.It is found that the first loading inducing structural large deformation or damage is dominant.When fragments impact first,the excellent unit-thickness ballistic performance of the structural front part is strongly needed for improving the comprehensive ballistic and blast resistance.

Statistical learning prediction of fatigue crack growth via path slicing and re-weighting

Predicting potential risks associated with the fatigue of key structural components is crucial in engineering design.However,fatigue often involves entangled complexities of material microstructures and service conditions,making diagnosis and prognosis of fatigue damage challenging.We report a statistical learning framework to predict the growth of fatigue cracks and the life-to-failure of the components under loading conditions with uncertainties.Digital libraries of fatigue crack patterns and the remaining life are constructed by high-fidelity physical simulations.Dimensionality reduction and neural network architectures are then used to learn the history dependence and nonlinearity of fatigue crack growth.Path-slicing and re-weighting techniques are introduced to handle the statistical noises and rare events.The predicted fatigue crack patterns are self-updated and self-corrected by the evolving crack patterns.The end-to-end approach is validated by representative examples with fatigue cracks in plates,which showcase the digital-twin scenario in real-time structural health monitoring and fatigue life prediction for maintenance management decision-making.

Incidence, casualties and risk characteristics of civilian explosion blast injury in China: 2000-2017 data from the State Administration of Work Safety

Background: Civilian explosion blast injury is more frequent in developing countries, including China. However, the incidence, casualties, and characteristics of such incidents in China are unknown.Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of the State Administration of Work Safety database. Incidents during a period from January 1, 2000 to April 30, 2017 were included in the analysis. The explosions were classified based on the number of deaths into extraordinarily major, major, serious and ordinary type. Descriptive statistics was used to analyze the incidence and characteristics of the explosions. Correlation analysis was performed to examine the potential correlations among various variables.Results: Data base search identified a total of 2098 explosions from 2000 to 2017, with 29,579 casualties: 15,788 deaths(53.4%), 12,637 injured(42.7%) and 1154 missing(3.9%). Majority of the explosions were serious type(65.4%). The number of deaths(39.5%) was also highest with the serious type(P=0.006). The highest incidence was observed in the fourth quarter of the year(October to December), and at 9:00–11:00 am and 4:00–6:00 pm of the day. The explosions were most frequent in coal-producing provinces(Guizhou and Shanxi Province). Coal mine gas explosions resulted majority of the deaths(9620, 60.9%). The number of explosion accidents closely correlated with economic output(regional economy and national GDP growth rate)(r=–0.372, P=0.040;r=0.629, P=0.028).Conclusions: The incidence and civilian casualties due to explosions remain unacceptable in developing China. Measures that mitigate the risk factors are of urgently required.

Multistable Mechanical Metamaterials:A Brief Review

Over the past decade,multistable mechanical metamaterials have been widely investigated because of their novel shape reconfigurability and programmable energy landscape.The ability to reversibly reshape among diverse stable states with different energy levels represents the most important feature of the multistable mechanical metamaterials.We summarize main design strategies of multistable mechanical metamaterials,including those based on self-assembly scheme,snap-through instability,structured mechanism and geometrical frustration,with a focus on the number and controllability of accessible stable states.Then we concentrate on unusual mechanical properties of these multistable mechanical metamaterials,and present their applications in a wide range of areas,including tunable electromagnetic devices,actuators,robotics,and mechanical logic gates.Finally,we discuss remaining challenges and open opportunities of designs and applications of multistable mechanical metamaterials.

Enriched goal-oriented error estimation for fracture problems solved by continuum-based shell extended finite element method

An enriched goal-oriented error estimation method with extended degrees of freedom is developed to estimate the error in the continuum-based shell extended finite element method. It leads to high quality local error bounds in three-dimensional fracture mechanics simulation which involves enrichments to solve the singularity in crack tip. This enriched goal-oriented error estimation gives a chance to evaluate this continuum- based shell extended finite element method simulation. With comparisons of reliability to the stress intensity factor calculation in stretching and bending, the accuracy of the continuum-based shell extended finite element method simulation is evaluated, and the reason of error is discussed.

Relationship between wall shear stresses and streamwise vortices in turbulent flows over wavy boundaries

The relationship between wall shear stresses and near-wall streamwise vortices is investigated via a direct numerical simulation(DNS) of turbulent flows over a wavy boundary with traveling-wave motion. The results indicate that the wall shear stresses are still closely related to the near-wall streamwise vortices in the presence of a wave. The wave age and wave phase significantly affect the distribution of a two-point correlation coefficient between the wall shear stresses and streamwise vorticity. For the slow wave case of c/Um = 0.14, the correlation is attenuated above the leeward side while the distribution of correlation function is more elongated and also exhibits a larger vertical extent above the crest. With respect to the fast wave case of c/U_m=1.4, the distribution of the correlation function is recovered in a manner similar to that in the flat-wall case. In this case, the maximum correlation coefficient exhibits only slight differences at different wave phases while the vertical distribution of the correlation function depends on the wave phase.

Inhomogenous Dislocation Nucleation Based on Atom Potential in Hexagonal Noncentrosymmetric Crystal Sheet

By introducing internal degree, the deformation of hexagonal noncentrosymmetric crystal sheet can be described by the revised Cauchy-Born rule based on atomic potential. The instability criterion is deduced to investigate the inhomogeneous dislocation nucleation behavior of the crystal sheet under simple loading. The anisotropic characters of dislocation nucleation under uniaxial tension are studied by using the continuum method associated with the instability criterion. The results show a strong relationship between yield stress and crystal sheet chirality. The results also indicate that the instability criterion has sufficient ability to capture the dislocation nucleation site and expansion. To observe the internal dislocation phenomenon, the prediction of the dislocation nucleation site and expansion domain is illustrated by MD simulations. The developed method is another way to explain the dislocation nucleation phenomenon.

Assessment of force models on finite-sized particles at finite Reynolds numbers

Finite-sized inertial spherical particles are fully-resolved with the immersed boundary projection method(IBPM)in the turbulent open-channel flow by direct numerical simulation(DNS).The accuracy of the particle surface force models is investigated in comparison with the total force obtained via the fully-resolved method.The results show that the steady-state resistance only performs well in the streamwise direction,while the fluid acceleration force,the added-mass force,and the shear-induced Saffman lift can effectively compensate for the large-amplitude and high-frequency characteristics of the particle surface forces,especially for the wall-normal and spanwise components.The modified steady-state resistance with the correction effects of the acceleration and the fluid shear can better represent the overall forces imposed on the particles,and it is a preferable choice of the surface force model in the Lagrangian point-particle method.

Design of a Hybrid System for Rural Area Electricity Supply in Comoros

Comoros Islands suffering from energy stress due to rolling power cuts in the country mainly due to problems with failures heat engines fuelled with diesel. These blackouts induce shortages of energy while demand for energy does not cease to grow with the population. An alternative way for the Comoros Islands to get out of this energy crisis is to exploit the existing energy renewable sources, in particular to invest in the hybrid energy, a promising technology in terms of economic efficiency. The north of Ngazidja Island, in the region of Mitsamiouli, is considered among the economic lungs of this Island. It is spread in the field of tourism but also an area developed in agriculture and fishing. The Village of Koua Mitsamiouli located in rural area of this region is well known for its efficient yield in agricultural production, although the latter suffers from an energy stress in its last years. This lack of energy and water permanently to farmers has caused its production capacity to fall. In order to increase its agricultural profitability, and to satisfy the needs of the population for their activities such as trade, health, education, banking transactions, product preserving in retail stores, the energy autonomy of this village is more than necessary. It is important to notice that, the use of renewable energies in Comoros is very limited by photovoltaic (PV) solar panels. Hybrid technology and other renewable energy sources are not yet developed in Comoros Island. The main objective of this work is to propose the best possible sizing of a hybrid system for the production of electricity from renewable and non-renewable energy resources in order to satisfy the electrical needs in a reliable manner of the remote of village, Koua Mitsamiouli, for energetic autonomy. Indeed, two energy resources, composed by solar photovoltaic (PV) system and diesel generator are considered in the hybrid system. This study estimates the community demand with HOMER analysis. In order to check the performance of the overall system combination photovoltaic (PV)/generator, several numerical simulations were performed with the HOMER software using data from the national meteorological agency in Comoros and the results obtained by authors are satisfactory in terms of cost and reliability of the system.

Mechanical responses of the bio-nano interface: A molecular dynamics study of graphene-coated lipid membrane

Bio-nano interfaces between biological materials and functional nanodevices are of vital importance in relevant energy and information exchange processes, which thus demand an in-depth understanding. One of the critical issues from the application viewpoint is the stability of the bio-nano hybrid under mechanical perturbations. In this work we explore mechanical responses of the interface between lipid bilayer and graphene under hydrostatic coating provides remarkable resistance to the pressure or indentation loads, We find that graphene loads, and the intercalated water layer offers additional protection. These findings are discussed based on molecular dynamics simulation results that elucidate the molecular level mechanisms, which provide a basis for the rational design of bionanotechnology- enabled aoolications such as biomedical devices and nanotheraoeutics.

Heat transport in low-dimensional materials: A review and perspective

Heat transport is a key energetic process in materials and devices. The reduced sample size, low dimension of the problem and the rich spectrum of material imperfections introduce fruitful phenomena at nanoscale. In this review, we summarize recent progresses in the understanding of heat transport process in low-dimensional materials, with focus on the roles of defects, disorder, interfaces, and the quantum- mechanical effect. New physics uncovered from computational simulations, experimental studies, and predictable models will be reviewed, followed by a perspective on open challenges.

Characteristic Sizes for Exhaustion-Hardening Mechanism of Compressed Cu Single-Crystal Micropillars

The stress-strain response of Cu single-crystal compression micropillar containing initial dislocation network is investigated by three-dimensional discrete dislocation dynamics simulations. The results demonstrate that the stress-strain curves can be divided into three distinct types with increasing the sizes of micropillars： the three- stage exhaustion hardening, the multi-stage mixed hardening and the two-stage conventioned forest hardening. The characteristic sizes of the micropillars is determined for the second type of the curves to be 500-700 nm.

Multi-objective optimization design of radar absorbing sandwich structure

By introducing a dimensionless parameter to couple the two objectives, weight and radar absorbing performance, into a single objective function, a multi-objective optimization procedure for the radar absorbing sandwich structure （RASS） with a cellular core is proposed. The optimization models considered are one-side clamped sandwich panels with four kinds of cores subject to uniformly distributed loads. The average specular reflectivity calculated with the transfer matrix method and the periodic moment method is utilized to characterize the radar absorbing performance, while the mechanical constraints include the facesheet yielding, core shearing, and facesheet wrinkling. The optimization analysis indicates that the sandwich structure with a two-dimensional （2D） composite lattice core filled with ultra-lightweight sponge may be a better candidate of lightweight RASS than those with cellular foam or hexagonal honeycomb cores. The 2D Kagome lattice is found to outperform the square lattice with respect to radar absorbing.