A new species of the genus Kurixalus(Anura:Rhacophoridae)from Sichuan Province,southwestern China

Combining morphological and molecular data,we describe a new amphibian species of the genus Kurixalus Ye,Fei,&Dubois,1999 from the Qionglai Mountain within the western margin of the Sichuan Basin in China.Kurixalus qionglaiensis sp.nov.can be diagnosed based on a combination of the following morphological characters:medium-sized within genus(snout-vent length(SVL)in males 28.9−33.3 mm);tympanum distinct,subequal to half of eye diameter;snout pointed,prominence on tip;iris golden with brown spots;slight nuptial pad on first finger in males;background coloration of dorsal surface brown,lateral body and femoral yellow;white,dark brown edged triangular markings on cheek;chin shaded dark brown;pair of large symmetrical dark patches on chest;belly clouded brown and scattered black spots;toes moderately webbed,formulaⅠ2-2Ⅱ1.5-2.5Ⅲ1.5-2.5Ⅳ2.5-1.5Ⅴ;tibia length slightly shorter than half of SVL,tibiotarsal articulation reaching posterior border of eye;single external vocal sac present.Based on the 16S rRNA gene,the genetic distance between the new species and its sister taxon K.idiootocus(Kuramoto&Wang,1987)was 4%.At present,the new species is known only from a single location at an elevation of~600 m in Pingle Town,Qionglai City,Sichuan,southwestern China.This location can represent a new northernmost geographical limit of the genus Kurixalus.

Coupling effect of the conductivities of Li ions and electrons by introducing LLTO@C fibers in the LiNi0.8Co0.15Al0.05O2 cathode

To probe the coupling effect of the electron and Li ion conductivities in Ni-rich layered materials(LiNi0.8Co0.15Al0.05O2,NCA),lithium lanthanum titanate(LLTO)nanofiber and carbon-coated LLTO fiber(LLTO@C)materials were introduced to polyvinylidene difluoride in a cathode.The enhancement of the conductivity was indicated by the suppressed impedance and polarization.At 1 and 5 C,the cathodes with coupling conductive paths had a more stable cycling performance.The coupling mechanism was analyzed based on the chemical state and structure evolution of NCA after cycling for 200 cycles at 5 C.In the pristine cathode,the propagation of lattice damaged regions,which consist of high-density edge-dislocation walls,destroyed the bulk integrity of NCA.In addition,the formation of a rock-salt phase on the surface of NCA caused a capacity loss.In contrast,in the LLTO@C modified cathode,although the formation of dislocation-driven atomic lattice broken regions and cation mixing occurred,they were limited to a scale of several atoms,which retarded the generation of the rock-salt phase and resulted in a pre-eminent capacity retention.Only NiO phase“pitting”occurred.A mechanism based on the synergistic transport of Li ions and electrons was proposed.

Multidimensional amphibian diversity and community structure along a 2600 m elevational gradient on the eastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

Mountain systems harbor an evolutionarily unique and exceptionally rich biodiversity,especially for amphibians.However,the associated elevational gradients and underlying mechanisms of amphibian diversity in most mountain systems remain poorly understood.Here,we explored amphibian phylogenetic and functional diversity along a 2600 m elevational gradient on Mount Emei on the eastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau in southwestern China.We also assessed the relative importance of spatial(area)and environmental factors(temperature,precipitation,solar radiation,normalized difference vegetation index,and potential evapotranspiration)in shaping amphibian distribution and community structure.Results showed that the phylogenetic and functional diversities were unimodal with elevation,while the standardized effect size of phylogenetic and functional diversity increased linearly with elevation.Phylogenetic net relatedness,nearest taxon index,and functional net relatedness index all showed a positive to negative trend with elevation,indicating a shift from clustering to overdispersion and suggesting a potential change in key processes from environmental filtering to competitive exclusion.Overall,our results illustrate the importance of deterministic processes in structuring amphibian communities in subtropical mountains,with the dominant role potentially switching with elevation.This study provides insights into the underlying assembly mechanisms of mountain amphibians,integrating multidimensional diversity.

Pseudo-copper Ni–Zn alloy catalysts for carbon dioxide reduction to C_(2) products

Electrocatalytic CO_(2) reduction reaction(CO_(2)RR)to obtain C_(2) products has drawn widespread attentions.Copper-based materials are the most reported catalysts for CO_(2) reduction to C_(2) products.Design of high-efficiency pseudo-copper catalysts according to the key characteristics of copper(Cu)is an important strategy to understand the reaction mechanism of C_(2) products.In this work,density function theory(DFT)calculations are used to predict nickel–zinc(NiZn)alloy catalysts with the criteria similar structure and intermediate adsorption property to Cu catalyst.The calculated tops of 3d states of NiZn3(001)catalysts are the same as Cu(100),which is the key parameter affecting the adsorption of intermediate products.As a result,NiZn3(001)exhibits similar adsorption properties with Cu(100)on the crucial intermediates*CO_(2),*CO and*H.Moreover,we further studied CO formation,CO hydrogenation and C–C coupling process on Ni–Zn alloys.The free energy profile of C_(2) products formation shows that the energy barrier of C_(2) products formation on NiZn3(001)is even lower than Cu(100).These results indicate that NiZn3 alloy as pseudo-copper catalyst can exhibit a higher catalytic activity and selectivity of C_(2) products during CO_(2)RR.This work proposes a feasible pseudo-copper catalyst and provides guidance to design high-efficiency catalysts for CO_(2)RR to C_(2) or multi-carbon products.