Preparation of Sb2O3/Sb2S3/FeOOH composite photoanodes for enhanced photoelectrochemical water oxidation

A novel Sb2O3/Sb2S3/FeOOH photoanode was fabricated via a simple solution impregnation method along with chemical bath deposition and post-sulfidation.The X-ray diffractometry,Raman measurement,and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy show that the Sb2O3/Sb2S3/FeOOH thin films are successfully prepared.SEM−EDS analyses reveal that the surface of Sb2O3/Sb2S3 thin films becomes rough after the immersion in the FeCl3 solution.The optimized impregnation time is found to be 8 h.The FeOOH co-catalyst loaded Sb2O3/Sb2S3 electrode exhibits an enhanced photocurrent density of 0.45 mA/cm2 at 1.23 V versus RHE under simulated 1 sun,which is approximately 1.41 times compared to the photocurrent density of the unloaded one.Through the further tests of UV−Vis spectroscopy,the electrochemical impedance spectra,and the PEC measurements,the enhancement can result from the increased light-harvesting ability,the decreased interface transmission impedance,and the remarkably enhanced carrier injection efficiency.

Thoracoscopic resection of a large lower esophageal schwannoma:A case report and review of the literature

BACKGROUND Esophageal schwannomas originating from Schwann cells are extremely rare esophageal tumors.They commonly occur in the upper and middle esophagus but less frequently in the lower esophagus.Herein,we report a rare case of a large lower esophageal schwannoma misdiagnosed as a leiomyoma.We also present a brief literature review on lower esophageal schwannomas.CASE SUMMARY A 62-year-old man presented with severe dysphagia lasting 6 mo.A barium esophagogram showed that the lower esophagus was compressed within approximately 5.5 cm.Endoscopy revealed the presence of a large submucosal protuberant lesion in the esophagus at a distance of 32-38 cm from the incisors.Endoscopic ultrasound findings demonstrated a 4.5 cm×5.0 cm hypoechoic lesion.Chest computed tomography revealed a mass of size approximately 53 mm×39 mm×50 mm.Initial tests revealed features indicative of leiomyoma.After multidisciplinary discussions,the patient underwent a video-assisted thoracoscopic partial esophagectomy.Further investigation involving immunohistochemical examination confirming palisading spindle cells as positive for S100 and Sox10 led to the final diagnosis of a lower esophageal schwannoma.There was no tumor recurrence or metastasis during follow-up.CONCLUSION The final diagnosis of esophageal schwannoma requires histopathological and immunohistochemical examination.The early appropriate surgery favors a remarkable prognosis.

Soliton fusion and fission for the high-order coupled nonlinear Schr?dinger system in fiber lasers

With the rapid development of communication technology,optical fiber communication has become a key research area in communications.When there are two signals in the optical fiber,the transmission of them can be abstracted as a high-order coupled nonlinear Schr¨odinger system.In this paper,by using the Hirota’s method,we construct the bilinear forms,and study the analytical solution of three solitons in the case of focusing interactions.In addition,by adjusting different wave numbers for phase control,we further discuss the influence of wave numbers on soliton transmissions.It is verified that wave numbers k_(11),k_(21),k_(31),k_(22),and k_(32)can control the fusion and fission of solitons.The results are beneficial to the study of all-optical switches and fiber lasers in nonlinear optics.

Influence of particle size on the breaking of aluminum particle shells

Rupturing the alumina shell(shell-breaking)is a prerequisite for releasing energy from aluminum powder.Thermal stress overload in a high-temperature environment is an important factor in the rupture of the alumina shell.COMSOL Multiphysics was used to simulate and analyze the shell-breaking response of micron-scale aluminum particles with different particle sizes at 650℃in vacuum.The simulation results show that the thermal stability time and shell-breaking response time of 10μm–100μm aluminum particles are 0.15μs–11.44μs and 0.08μs–3.94μs,respectively.They also reveal the direct causes of shell breaking for aluminum particles with different particle sizes.When the particle size is less than 80μm,the shell-breaking response is a direct result of compressive stress overload.When the particle size is between80μm and 100μm,the shell-breaking response is a direct result of tensile stress overload.This article provides useful guidance for research into the energy release of aluminum powder.

On Subsonic and Subsonic-Sonic Flows with General Conservatives Force in Exterior Domains

In this paper, we study the irrotational subsonic and subsonic-sonic fows with general conservative forces in the exterior domains. The conservative forces indicate the new Bernoulli law naturally. For the subsonic case, we introduce a modified cut-off system depending on the conservative forces which needs the varied Bers skill, and construct the solution by the new variational formula. Moreover, comparing with previous results, our result extends the pressure-density relation to the general case. Afterwards we obtain the subsonic-sonic limit solution by taking the extract subsonic solutions as the approximate sequences.

Single-cell Transcriptomic Analysis Reveals the Cellular Heterogeneity of Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Ex vivo-expanded mesenchymal stem cells(MSCs)have been demonstrated to be a heterogeneous mixture of cells exhibiting varying proliferative,multipotential,and immunomodulatory capacities.However,the exact characteristics of MSCs remain largely unknown.By singlecell RNA sequencing of 61,296 MSCs derived from bone marrow and Wharton’s jelly,we revealed five distinct subpopulations.The developmental trajectory of these five MSC subpopulations was mapped,revealing a differentiation path from stem-like active proliferative cells(APCs)to multipotent progenitor cells,followed by branching into two paths:1)unipotent preadipocytes or 2)bipotent prechondro-osteoblasts that were subsequently differentiated into unipotent prechondrocytes.The stem-like APCs,expressing the perivascular mesodermal progenitor markers CSPG4/MCAM/NES,uniquely exhibited strong proliferation and stemness signatures.Remarkably,the prechondrocyte subpopulation specifically expressed immunomodulatory genes and was able to suppress activated CD3^(+T) cell proliferation in vitro,supporting the role of this population in immunoregulation.In summary,our analysis mapped the heterogeneous subpopulations of MSCs and identified two subpopulations with potential functions in self-renewal and immunoregulation.Our findings advance the definition of MSCs by identifying the specific functions of their heterogeneous cellular composition,allowing for more specific and effective MSC application through the purification of their functional subpopulations.

Computational analysis of apatite-type compounds for band gap engineering: DFT calculations and structure prediction using tetrahedral substitution

Mineral apatite compounds have attracted significant interest due to their chemical stability and adjustable hexagonal structure,which makes them suitable as new photovoltaic functional materials.The band gap of natural apatite is ~5.45 eV,and such a large value limits their applications in the field of catalysis and energy devices.In this research,we designed a method to narrow the band gap via the tetrahedral substitution effect in apatite-based compounds.The density functional theory(DFT) and experimental investigation of the electronic and optical properties revealed that the continuous incorporation of [MO_(4)]^(4-) tetrahedrons(M=Si,Ge,Sn,and Mn) into the crystal lattice can significantly reduce the band gap.In particular,this phenomenon was observed when the[MnO_(4)]^(4-) tetrahedron replaces the [PO_(4)]^(4-) tetrahedron because of the formation of a Mn 3 d-derived conduction band minimum(CBM) and interacts with other elements,leading to band broadening and obvious reduction of the band gap.This approach allowed us to propose a novel scheme in the band gap engineering of apatite-based compounds toward an entire spectral range modification.