Strigolactones modulate cotton fiber elongation and secondary cell wall thickening

Cotton is one of the most important economic crops in the world,and it is a major source of fiber in the textile industry.Strigolactones(SLs)are a class of carotenoid-derived plant hormones involved in many processes of plant growth and development,although the functions of SL in fiber development remain largely unknown.Here,we found that the endogenous SLs were significantly higher in fibers at 20 days post-anthesis(DPA).Exogenous SLs significantly increased fiber length and cell wall thickness.Furthermore,we cloned three key SL biosynthetic genes,namely GhD27,GhMAX3,and GhMAX4,which were highly expressed in fibers,and subcellular localization analyses revealed that GhD27,GhMAX3,and GhMAX4 were localized in the chloroplast.The exogenous expression of GhD27,GhMAX3,and GhMAX4 complemented the physiological phenotypes of d27,max3,and max4 mutations in Arabidopsis,respectively.Knockdown of GhD27,GhMAX3,and GhMAX4 in cotton resulted in increased numbers of axillary buds and leaves,reduced fiber length,and significantly reduced fiber thickness.These findings revealed that SLs participate in plant growth,fiber elongation,and secondary cell wall formation in cotton.These results provide new and effective genetic resources for improving cotton fiber yield and plant architecture.

Thickening progression mechanism of silica fume-oil well cement composite system at high temperatures

This work studied the thickening progression mechanism of the silica fume-oil well cement composite system at high temperatures(110-180.C)in order to provide a theoretical guidance for the rational application of silica fume in the cementing engineering.Results showed that silica fume seldom affected the thickening progression of oil well cement slurry at 110-120.C,but when temperature reached above130.C,it would aggravate the bulging degree of thickening curves and significantly extend the thickening time,meanwhile causing the abnormal“temperature-based thickening time reversal”and“dosage-based thickening time reversal”phenomena in the range of 130-160.C and 170-180.C respectively.At 130-160.C,the thickening time of oil well cement slurry was mainly associated with the generation rate of calcium hydroxide(CH)crystal.The introduced silica fume would be attracted to the cement minerals'surface that were hydrating to produce CH and agglomerate together to form an“adsorptive barrier”to hinder further hydration of the inner cement minerals.This“adsorptive barrier”effect strengthened with the rising temperature which extended the thickening time and caused the occurrence of the“temperature-based thickening time reversal”phenomenon.At 170-180.C,the pozzolanic activity of silica fume significantly enhanced and considerable amount of C-S-H was generated,thus the“temperature-based thickening time reversal”vanished and the“dosage-based thickening time reversal”was presented.

Analysis of thermal management and anti-mechanical abuse of multi-functional battery modules based on magneto-sensitive shear thickening fluid

Electric vehicles(EVs)have garnered significant attention as a vital driver of economic growth and environmental sustainability.Nevertheless,ensuring the safety of high-energy batteries is now a top priority that cannot be overlooked during large-scale applications.This paper proposes an innovative active protection and cooling integrated battery module using smart materials,magneto-sensitive shear thickening fluid(MSTF),which is specifically designed to address safety threats posed by lithium-ion batteries(LIBs)exposed to harsh mechanical and environmental conditions.The theoretical framework introduces a novel approach for harnessing the smoothed-particle hydrodynamics(SPH)methodology that incorporates the intricate interplay of non-Newtonian fluid behavior,capturing the fluid-structure coupling inherent to the MSTF.This approach is further advanced by adopting an enhanced Herschel-Bulkley(H-B)model to encapsulate the intricate rheology of the MSTF under the influence of the magnetorheological effect(MRE)and shear thickening(ST)behavior.Numerical simulation results show that in the case of cooling,the MSTF is an effective cooling medium for rapidly reducing the temperature.In terms of mechanical abuse,the MSTF solidifies through actively applying the magnetic field during mechanical compression and impact within the battery module,resulting in 66%and 61.7%reductions in the maximum stress within the battery jellyroll,and 31.1%and 23%reductions in the reaction force,respectively.This mechanism effectively lowers the risk of short-circuit failure.The groundbreaking concepts unveiled in this paper for active protection battery modules are anticipated to be a valuable technological breakthrough in the areas of EV safety and lightweight/integrated design.

Microscale mechanism of tailing thickening in metal mines

Water-locking flocs formed by ultrafine tailings particles will damage the thickener underflow concentration in the thickening process during paste preparation.The relationship between the mesostructure and seepage characteristics of tail mortar is typically ignored when investigating the deep dehydration stage.A shearing seepage test of an unclassified tailing-sedimentation bed was performed with copper tailings,and the morphology and geometric distribution of micropores were analyzed via X-ray computed tomography.Moreover,the shearing evolution of the micropore structure and seepage channel was investigated to evaluate the dewatering performance of underflow slurry using a three-dimensional reconstruction approach.The results show that porosity decreases considerably under shearing.The connected-pore ratio and the average radius of the throat channel reach peak values of 0.79 and 31.38μm,respectively,when shearing is applied for 10 min.However,the reverse seepage velocity and absolute permeability in the bed decrease to various extents after shearing.Meanwhile,the maximum flow rate reaches 1.537μm/s and the absolute permeability increases by 14.16%.Shearing alters the formation process and the pore structure of the seepage channel.Isolated pores connect to the surrounding flocs to form branch channels,which then become the main seepage channel and create the dominant water-seepage flow channel.

Rheological properties and concentration evolution of thickened tailings under the coupling effect of compression and shear

Cemented paste backfill(CPB)is a key technology for green mining in metal mines,in which tailings thickening comprises the primary link of CPB technology.However,difficult flocculation and substandard concentrations of thickened tailings often occur.The rheological properties and concentration evolution in the thickened tailings remain unclear.Moreover,traditional indoor thickening experiments have yet to quantitatively characterize their rheological properties.An experiment of flocculation condition optimization based on the Box-Behnken design(BBD)was performed in the study,and the two response values were investigated:concentration and the mean weighted chord length(MWCL)of flocs.Thus,optimal flocculation conditions were obtained.In addition,the rheological properties and concentration evolution of different flocculant dosages and ultrafine tailing contents under shear,compression,and compression-shear coupling experimental conditions were tested and compared.The results show that the shear yield stress under compression and compression-shear coupling increases with the growth of compressive yield stress,while the shear yield stress increases slightly under shear.The order of shear yield stress from low to high under different thickening conditions is shear,compression,and compression-shear coupling.Under compression and compression-shear coupling,the concentration first rapidly increases with the growth of compressive yield stress and then slowly increases,while concentration increases slightly under shear.The order of concentration from low to high under different thickening conditions is shear,compression,and compression-shear coupling.Finally,the evolution mechanism of the flocs and drainage channels during the thickening of the thickened tailings under different experimental conditions was revealed.

Systematic review and meta-analysis of endometrial thickening during endocrine therapy combined with Chinese herbal medicine intervention after breast cancer surgery

Objective:To systematically evaluate the endometrial thickening and Chinese herbal medicine intervention effects during endocrine therapy following breast cancer surgery.Methods:Computerized searches were performed on CNKI,CBM,Wanfang,VIP,Pub Med,Embase,and Cochrane to gather randomized controlled trials(RCTs)of endometrial thickening combined with Chinese herbal medicine intervention during endocrine therapy after breast cancer surgery.The meta analysis is done using Rev Man 5.4,and the retrieval range is from the database's creation to January 2023.Results:There were 710 patients enrolled in a total of 12 RCTs.The results of Meta-analysis were as follows:combined with Chinese herbal medicine treatment for 3 months of endometrial thickness(MD=-1.12,95%CI[-1.47,0.77],P<0.00001);6 months endometrial thickness(MD=-1.90,95%CI[-2.38,-1.42],P<0.00001);endometrial thickness at 12 months(MD=-2.24,95%CI[-2.96,-1.52],P<0.00001);modified Kupperman score(MD=-10.45,95%CI[-19.10,-1.80],P=0.02);TCM syndrome score(SMD=-1.53,95%CI[-1.84,-1.22],P<0.00001);KPS score(MD=3.75,95%CI[2.81,4.68],P<0.00001);there was no significant difference in CA153,CEA,FSH and E2 between the two groups.Conclusion:After breast cancer surgery,endocrine therapy combined with Chinese herbal medicine can significantly lessen endometrial thickening and enhance patient quality of life.

Experimental study on workability and permeability of sandy soils conditioned with thickened foam

Water spewing and muck plugging often occur during earth pressure balance(EPB)shield machines tunnelling in water-rich sandy strata,even though the conventional foam has been employed to condition sandy soils.In this study,a novel thickened foaming agent suitable for EPB shield tunnelling in water-rich sandy strata is developed.In contrast to conventional foam-conditioned sands,the thickened foam-conditioned sand has a low permeability due to the consistent filling of soil pores with the thickened foam,and the initial permeability coefficient decreases by approximately two orders of magnitude.It also exhibits a suitable workability,which is attributed to the enhanced capability of the thickened foam to condition sandy soils.In addition,the effect of concentration on the stability of the foam is explained by the Gibbs-Marangoni effect,and conditioning mechanisms for the thickened foam on sands are discussed from the evolution of foam bubbles.

Shear Thickening Fluids Based on Additives with Different Concentrations and Molecular Chain Lengths

Shear thickening fluids （STFs） based on additives with different concentrations and molecular chain lengths were investigated. STF samples were prepared with silica and additive dispersed in polyethylene glycol （PEG） 400, where three types of additives with different molecular chain lengths of PEG4000, PEG6000, and PEG10000 were used. For PEG10000, different concentrations, including 0, 1%, 3%, and 5%, were selected to study the influences of additive concentrations. Rheological properties of the samples were measured with a rheometer. The results show that the shear thickening effect was significantly enhanced with the increase of the concentration and the molecular chain length of additives. The mechanism of enhancement was quantitatively explained with the formation of large particles clusters.

An experimental study on shock wave mitigation capability of polyurea and shear thickening fluid based suspension pads

The present experimental study investigates shock wave mitigation capability of potentially new personal protective equipment(PPE) suspension pads made from polyurea and shear thickening fluid(STF).The shock tube test results show that when placed behind Twaron fabric systems with thickness ranging from 2 mm to 18 mm, the replacement of conventional flexible foam pad with STF and STF-infused foam pads with the same thickness of 20 mm greatly reduces the normalized peak pressure(by about 72% for each pad). However, this benefit is partially offset by a large increase in the normalized impulse(by about78% for the STF pad and 131% for the STF-infused foam pad) which may cause the shock wave mitigation performance of these two pads to become less effective. Interestingly, the use of 4 mm thick polyurea pad can greatly reduce the normalized peak pressure and impulse as well(by about 74% and 49%, respectively). These results reveal that among the potentially new suspension pads tested, the polyurea pad displays the best shock wave mitigation performance. Therefore, polyurea has potential for use as a suspension pad in personal protective equipment requiring shock wave mitigation capability such as fabric ballistic vests, bomb suits and combat helmets.

Modeling the effects of ore properties on water recovery in the thickening process

A better understanding of solid-liquid separation would assist in improving the thickening performance and perhaps water recovery as well. The present work aimed to develop an empirical model to study the effects of ore properties on the thickening process based on pilot tests using a column. A hydro-cyclone was used to prepare the required samples for the experiments. The model significantly predicted the experimental underflow solid content using a regression equation at a given solid flux and bed level for different samples, indicating that ore properties are the effective parameters in the thickening process. This work confirned that the water recovery would be increased about 5% by separating the feed into two parts, overflow and underflow, and introducing two different thickeners into them separately. This is duo to the fact that thickeners are limited by permeability and compressibility in operating conditions.

Numerical study of flocculation settling and thickening of whole-tailings in deep cone thickener using CFD approach

Deep cone thickener (DCT) is the key equipment in cemented paste backfill (CPB), so it is essential to study the flocculation settling and thickening characteristics of the whole-tailings in DCT. Coupled with population balance model (PBM), computational fluid dynamics (CFD) was used to study the characteristics, namely particle size distribution (PSD) and underflow concentration in DCT. Based on actual production, the effects of rake rotational speed, feed rate and tailings slurry concentration were simulated and analyzed in a certain range. The PSD varied with rake rational speed, feed rate and tailings slurry concentration almost in the same trend, but the influence of feed rate was less than that of rake rational speed and tailings slurry concentration. The underflow concentration increased at first and then declined with rake rational speed and feed rate, but it rose and fell with the tailings slurry concentration. Finally, the optimal key parameters on the flocculation settling and thickening of the whole-tailings in DCT were obtained: rake rotational speed of 17 r/min, feed rate of 3.25 m^3/h and tailings slurry concentration of 20%, giving the reference values to the industrial production in Baishitamu Copper Mine.

Individualized nomogram improves diagnostic accuracy of stage Ⅰ-Ⅱ gallbladder cancer in chronic cholecystitis patients with gallbladder wall thickening

BACKGROUND： Early diagnosis of gallbladder cancer（GBC） can remarkably improve the prognosis of patients. This study aimed to develop a nomogram for individualized diagnosis of stage Ⅰ-Ⅱ GBC in chronic cholecystitis patients with gallbladder wall thickening.METHODS： The nomogram was developed using logistic regression analyses based on a retrospective cohort consisting of 89 consecutive patients with stage Ⅰ-Ⅱ GBC and 1240 patients with gallbladder wall thickening treated at one biliary surgery center in Shanghai between January 2009 and December 2011. The accuracy of the nomogram was validated by discrimination, calibration and a prospective cohort treated at another center between January 2012 and December 2014（n=928）.RESULTS： Factors included in the nomogram were advanced age, hazardous alcohol consumption, long-standing diagnosed gallstones, atrophic gallbladder, gallbladder wall calcification, intraluminal polypoid lesion, higher wall thickness ratio and mucosal line disruption. The nomogram had concordance indices of 0.889 and 0.856 for the two cohorts, respectively. Internal and external calibration curves fitted well. The area under the receiver-operating characteristic curves of the nomogram was higher than that of multidetector row computed tomography in diagnosis of stage Ⅰ-Ⅱ GBC（P〈0.001）.CONCLUSION： The proposed nomogram improves individualized diagnosis of stage Ⅰ-Ⅱ GBC in chronic cholecystitis patients with gallbladder wall thickening, especially for those the imaging features alone do not allow to confirm the diagnosis.

THICKENING DYNAMICS OF TIN PARTICLES IN HAZ OF LOW CARBON STEEL

AKinetic modelofthickening of TiNparticlesin heat- affected - zone( HAZ) of low car bonsteelhasbeen proposedinthispaper.Itisalsofoundthatthesolutionofsome TiNparti clesisrapid, andthethickening of TiNparticlesis mainlycontrolled by diffusion of Tiatomforwardinterfaceofinsoluble TiNparticles.

Investigation of plateau basin crustal structures and thickening mechanisms in the northeastern margin of the Tibetan plateau

This paper uses deep seismic sounding （DSS） data to contrast and analyze the crustal structures of three plateau basins （Songpan-Garze, Qaidam, Longzhong） in the northeastern margin of the Qinghai-Xizang （Tibetan） plateau, as well as two stable cratonic basins （Ordos, Sichuan） in its peripheral areas. Plateau basin crustal structures, lithological variations and crustal thickening mechanisms were investigated. The results show that, compared to the peripheral stable cratonic basins, the crystalline crusts of plateau basins in the northeastern margin are up to 10 15 km thicker, and the relative medium velocity difference is about 5% less. The medium velocity change in crustal layers of plateau basin indicates that the upper crust undergoes brittle deformation, whereas the lower crust deforms plastically with low velocity. The middle crust shows a brittle-to-plastic transition zone in this region. Thickening in the lower crust （about 5 10 km）, and rheological characteristics that show low- medium velocity （relatively reduced by 7%）, suggest that crustal thickening mainly takes place in lower crust in the northeastern margin of the Tibetan plateau. The crust along the northeastern margin shows evidence of wholesale block movement, and crustal shortening and thickening seem to be the main deformation features of this region. The GPS data show that the block motion modes and crustal thickening in the Tibetan plateau is closely related to the peripheral tectonic stress field and motion direction of the Indian plate. The Mani-Yushu- Xianshuihe fold belt along the boundary between the Qiangtang block and the Bayan Har block divides the different plateau thickening tectonic environments into the middle-western plateau, the northeastern margin and the southeastern plateau.

An experimental study on ballistic impact response of jute reinforced polyethylene glycol and nano silica based shear thickening fluid composite

The present study aims at assessing the ballistic impact behaviour of jute reinforced polyethylene glycol(PEG)and nano silica based shear thickening fluid(STF).Preparation of STF is achieved by dispersing the nano silica particles at different weight percentage loadings of 10%,20%,30%and 40%in PEG and the effect of various weight percentages loading of nano silica particles on ballistic performance of the proposed composites is studied experimentally.Rheological studies of the prepared STF’s showed that at all nanosilica loading shear thickening occurred and also the shear thickening was highest at higher loading of nano silica at lower rate of shear.The study reveals that the ballistic performance of the jute fabric is enhanced with impregnation of STF.The ballistic results indicate that energy absorption of the proposed composites is enhanced with increased loading of nano silica particles and at the same time,the effect of STF was reduced.Specific energy absorption(SEA)of the neat fabric and the proposed composites was made use of for the purpose of comparing the energy absorption capabilities.It is found that the SEA of proposed composites with 10%nano silica loading is lesser than the neat fabric both in case of 3 layers and 6 layers.It was also found that proposed composite with 40%nano silica loading exhibits highest SEA compared to neat fabric and its counterparts with its SEA being 3.21 and 3.76 times highest compared to three and six layers of neat fabrics respectively.

Analysis of Water Transport inside a Plant Xylem Vessel with Pitted Thickening

In this article,computational fluid dynamics(CFD)are used to explore the dynamics of water transport inside the pitted thickening of a plant xylem vessel.A pitted thickening model combined with the Bernoulli equation is used to analyze the influence of various factors(namely,the inner diameter,thickening width,thickening height,thickening spacing,number of laps and adjacent pit axial rotation).The pressure drop and the flow resistance coefficient are the variable parameters for our analysis.The results show that these two parameters are proportional to the thickening height and thickening width,and inversely proportional to the inner diameter,thickening spacing and number of laps.Three different wall thickening structures of the vessel are compared and the pitted thickening vessel is shown to provide the largest structural flow resistance,the annular thickening vessel has the second largest resistance and the helical thickening vessel corresponds to the smallest resistance of the three structures.

The Micro-Scale Mechanism of Metal Mine Tailings Thickening Concentration Improved by Shearing in Gravity Thickener

Higher concentration is beneficial for the Paste and Thickened Tailings(PTT)operation in metal mine.Partial paste thickeners are produced lower density underflow.Flocculated tailings are intended to form a water entrapped network structure in thickener,which is detrimental to underflow concentration.In this study,the continuous thickening experiment was carried out for ultra-fine tungsten tailings to study the influence of rake shearing on underflow.The micro pores structure and seepage flow in tailings bed before and after shearing are studied by CT and simulation approach to reveal the shearing enhancement mechanism of thickening process.The results shown that,the underflow concentration is increased from 61.4 wt%to 69.6 wt%by rake shearing in a pilot scale thickener,the porosity decreased from 46.48%to 37.46%.The entrapped water discharged from sticks structure more than sphere spaces.In items of seepage,after shearing,the seepage flow channel of tailings underflow is becoming longer,which caused the decreasing average flow rate decreases and absolute permeability.The absolute permeability is negatively correlated with tortuosity.The rake shearing can destroy the flocs structure;change the effective stress to increase the concentration.Higher underflow concentration improves the waste recycling and water recovery rate,especially for arid areas.

Synthesis of PEG-MAH Crystalline Polymer and Its Thickening Traits to LPMC

A kind of PEG-MAH（maleic anhydride to modify polyethylene glycol） crystalline polymer whose melting point was approximately 64 ℃ was synthesized, and its thickening traits to LPMC were also investigated. The analysis of rheological properties indicates that the dosage and adding methods of crystalline polymer have a direct effect on the viscosity of LPMC, and that the thickening method of using melting dispersal and freezing is propitious to the thickening process of SMC. Additionally, it is also shown that SMC＇ s viscosity decreases along with the elevation of temperature, and that it reduces rapidly at the medium range of temperature, which is propitious to the dispersal of SMC in mould, and to its low pressure molding as well.

THICKENING TECHNIQUE OF CYCLONEFLOCCULATED SEDIMENTATION

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Thickening and Rheological Properties of Crystalline Polyester Used in Low Pressure Sheet Molding Compounds

Low pressure sheet molding compound （LPMC,1.0-3.0 MPa,95-103 ℃） is a new kind of thermosetting material with crystalline polyester as a physical thickenner.LPMC is different from conventional SMC using an earth oxide thickening agent （e.g.MgO） as chemical thickenner,it relies on the physical thickening of crystalline polyester.Crystalline polyester resin is the key material to mold LPMC parts.Currently there was no report about the thickening mechanism of crystalline polyester in LPMC.In this article,crystalline polyester resins,whose melting points were between 45 ℃ and 89 ℃,were synthesized by a two-step esterification.The melt points of crystalline polyesters are controlled by regulating the mol ratio of the two glycols and the two acids.And by means of varying the content of crystalline polyester resin,the thickening effect on resin paste is investigated.In addition,the thickening mechanism of crystalline polyester in LPMC was investigated by FTIR and DSC analysis.The effects of the diameters and viscosity of crystalline polyester on the rheological property and fiber distribution of LPMC sheets were studied,too.Results show that the thickening effect is excellent when the weight content of crystalline polyester resin is 3%.And there exists three kinds of functions acting in the process of thickening：swelling,hydrogen bonds and induction crystallization.During the preparing process of resin paste in LPMC,the temperature of resin paste must be kept at 90 ℃.In addition,crystalline polyester make LPMC have a perfect fluid property.When the viscosity of LPMC sheet is beyond 1 kPa s,the fiber orientation is not obvious.But when the viscosity of LPMC sheet is about 500 Pa s,the fiber shows a certain degree of orientation.Moreover the study of physical and chemical thickening mechanism of crystalline polyester and the rheological discipline of LPMC sheets in the hot mould will provide the researchers and enterprises with theory guidance.