Utilizing sediment grain size characteristics to assess the effectiveness of clay–sand barriers in reducing aeolian erosion in Minqin desert area,China

The clay–sand barriers in Minqin desert area,China,represent a pioneering windbreak and sand fixation project with a venerable history of 60 a.However,studies on evaluating the long-term effectiveness of clay–sand barriers against aeolian erosion,particularly from the perspective of surface sediment grain size,are limited and thus insufficient to ascertain the protective impact of these barriers on regional aeolian activities.This study focused on the surface sediments(topsoil of 0–3 cm depth)of clay–sand barriers in Minqin desert area to explain their erosion resistance from the perspective of surface sediment grain size.In March 2023,six clay–sand barrier sampling plots with clay–sand barriers of different deployment durations(1,5,10,20,40,and 60 a)were selected as experimental plots,and one control sampling plot was set in an adjacent mobile sandy area without sand barriers.Surface sediment samples were collected from the topsoil of each sampling plot in the study area in April 2023 and sediment grain size characteristics were analyzed.Results indicated a predominance of fine and medium sands in the surface sediments of the study area.The deployment of clay–sand barriers cultivated a fine quality in grain size composition of the regional surface sediments,increasing the average contents of very fine sand,silt,and clay by 30.82%,417.38%,and 381.52%,respectively.This trend became markedly pronounced a decade after the deployment of clay–sand barriers.The effectiveness of clay–sand barriers in erosion resistance was manifested through reduced wind velocity,the interception of sand flow,and the promotion of fine surface sediment particles.Coarser particles such as medium,coarse,and very coarse sands predominantly accumulated on the external side of the barriers,while finer particles such as fine and very fine sands concentrated in the upwind(northwest)region of the barriers.By contrast,the contents of finest particles such as silt and clay were higher in the downwind(southeast)region of the sampling plots.For the study area,the deployment of clay–sand barriers remains one of the most cost-effective engineering solutions for aeolian erosion control,with sediment grain size parameters serving as quantitative indicators for the assessment of these barriers in combating desertification.The results of this study provide a theoretical foundation for the construction of windbreak and sand fixation systems and the optimization of artificial sand control projects in arid desert areas.

A novel dynamic step size LMS optimization scheme for interference reducing in FBMC-QAM

Filter bank multicarrier quadrature amplitude modulation(FBMC-QAM)will encounter inter-ference and noise during the process of channel transmission.In order to suppress the interference in the communication system,channel equalization is carried out at the receiver.Given that the con-ventional least mean square(LMS)equilibrium algorithm usually suffer from drawbacks such as the inability to converge quickly in large step sizes and poor stability in small step sizes when searching for optimal weights,in this paper,a design scheme for adaptive equalization with dynamic step size LMS optimization is proposed,which can further improve the convergence and error stability of the algorithm by calling the Sigmoid function and introducing three new parameters to control the range of step size values,adjust the steepness of step size,and reduce steady-state errors in small step sta-ges.Theoretical analysis and simulation results demonstrate that compared with the conventional LMS algorithm and the neural network-based residual deep neural network(Res-DNN)algorithm,the adopted dynamic step size LMS optimization scheme can not only obtain faster convergence speed,but also get smaller error values in the signal recovery process,thereby achieving better bit error rate(BER)performance.

Capping effect of reducing agents and surfactants in synthesizing silver nanoplates

The effect of reducing agents and surfactants on controlling the silver nanoplates was studied. Two reducing agents, trisodium citrate dehydrate (TSC) and potassium tartrate, were used to reduce the AgNO3 solution. In this redox system, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and arabic gum were served as surfactants. The results showed that reducing agents and surfactants both act as the capping agent adhering to the certain facets of silver seeds to block this surface to grow. The relative intensity of reducing agents also takes an active part in influencing the growth rate and direction of silver seeds. It was also found that halides can accelerate the speed of Ostwald ripening by adding Cl?, Br? and I?into the aqueous and have some effects on the morphology of the nanoplates.

Observation of Resistive Switching Memory by Reducing Device Size in a New Cr/CrO_x/TiO_x/TiN Structure

The resistive switching memory characteristics of 100 randomly measured devices were observed by reducing device size in a Cr/Cr Ox/Ti Ox/Ti N structure for the first time.Transmission electron microscope image confirmed a viahole size of 0.4 lm.A 3-nm-thick amorphous Ti Oxwith 4-nm-thick polycrystalline Cr Oxlayer was observed.A small 0.4-lm device shows reversible resistive switching at a current compliance of 300 l A as compared to other larger size devices(1–8 lm)owing to reduction of leakage current through the Ti Oxlayer.Good device-to-device uniformity with a yield of[85%has been clarified by weibull distribution owing to higher slope/shape factor.The switching mechanism is based on oxygen vacancy migration from the Cr Oxlayer and filament formation/rupture in the Ti Oxlayer.Long read pulse endurance of[105cycles,good data retention of 6 h,and a program/erase speed of 1 ls pulse width have been obtained.

Pelleting and particle size reduction of corn increase net energy and digestibility of fiber,protein,and fat in corn-soybean meal diets fed to group-housed pigs

Background Reduction of the particle size of corn increases energy digestibility and concentrations of digestible and metabolizable energy.Pelleting may also reduce particle size of grain,but it is not known if there are interactions between particle size reduction and pelleting.The objective of this experiment was to test the hypothesis that particle size reduction and pelleting,separately or in combination,increase N balance,apparent total tract digestibility(ATTD)of fiber and fat,and net energy(NE)in corn-soybean meal diets fed to group-housed pigs.Methods Six corn-soybean meal-based diets were used in a 3×2 factorial design with 3 particle sizes of corn(i.e.,700,500,or 300μm)and 2 diet forms(i.e.,meal or pelleted).Pigs were allowed ad libitum access to feed and water.Twenty-four castrated male pigs(initial weight:29.52 kg;standard diviation:1.40)were allotted to the 6 diets using a 6×6 Latin square design with 6 calorimeter chambers(i.e.,4 pigs/chamber)and 6 periods.Oxygen consumption and CO_(2)and CH_(4)productions were measured during fed and fasting states and fecal and urine samples were collected.Results Regardless of particle size of corn,the ATTD of gross energy(GE),N,and acid-hydrolyzed ether extract(AEE),and the concentration of NE were greater(P<0.05)in pelleted diets than in meal diets.Regardless of diet form,the ATTD of GE,N,and AEE,and the concentration of NE were increased(linear;P<0.05)by reducing the particle size of corn,but the increase was greater in meal diets than in pelleted diets(interaction;P<0.05).Conclusions Both pelleting and reduction of corn particle size increased nutrient digestibility and NE,but increases were greater in meal diets than in pelleted diets.

A novel semi-dominant allele of the transmembrane NAC transcription factor ZmNTL2 reduces the size of multiple maize organs

Maize plant architecture influences planting density and,in turn,grain yield.Most of the plant architecture-related traits can be described as organ size.We describe a miniature maize mutant,Tiny plant 4(Tip4),which exhibits reduced size of multiple organs and exhibits a semi-dominant monofactorial inheritance characteristic.Positional cloning confirmed that a 4-bp deletion in the NAC TF with transmembrane motif 1-Like(NTL)gene ZmNTL2,denoted as ZmNTL2^(Δ),confers the Tip4 mutation.qRT-PCR showed that ZmNTL2 was expressed in all tested tissues.ZmNTL2 functions as a transcriptional activator and is located in both the nucleus and biomembranes.The mutation does not affect the mRNA abundance of ZmNTL2 locus,but it does result in the loss of transmembrane domain and confines the ZmNTL2^(Δ)protein to the nucleus.Knocking out ZmNTL2 has no effect on maize organ size development,indicating that the 4-bp deletion might be a gain-of-function mutation in organ size regulation.Combining transcriptome sequencing with cytokinin and auxin content determination suggests that the decreased organ size may be possibly mediated by changes in hormone homeostasis.

Preparation and performance evaluation of the slickwater using novel polymeric drag reducing agent with high temperature and shear resistance ability

Slickwater fracturing fluids are widely used in the development of unconventional oil and gas resources due to the advantages of low cost,low formation damage and high drag reduction performance.However,their performance is severely affected at high temperatures.Drag reducing agent is the key to determine the drag reducing performance of slickwater.In this work,in order to further improve the temperature resistance of slickwater,a temperature-resistant polymeric drag reducing agent(PDRA)was synthesized and used as the basis for preparing the temperature-resistant slickwater.The slickwater system was prepared with the compositions of 0.2 wt%PDRA,0.05 wt%drainage aid nonylphenol polyoxyethylene ether phosphate(NPEP)and 0.5 wt%anti-expansion agent polyepichlorohydrindimethylamine(PDM).The drag reduction ability,rheology properties,temperature and shear resistance ability,and core damage property of slickwater were systematically studied and evaluated.In contrast to on-site drag reducing agent(DRA)and HPAM,the temperature-resistant slickwater demonstrates enhanced drag reduction efficacy at 90℃,exhibiting superior temperature and shear resistance ability.Notably,the drag reduction retention rate for the slickwater achieved an impressive 90.52%after a 30-min shearing period.Additionally,the core damage is only 5.53%.We expect that this study can broaden the application of slickwater in high-temperature reservoirs and provide a theoretical basis for field applications.

Effect of Shrinkage Reducing Agent and Steel Fiber on the Fluidity and Cracking Performance of Ultra-High Performance Concrete

Due to the low water-cement ratio of ultra-high-performance concrete(UHPC),fluidity and shrinkage cracking are key aspects determining the performance and durability of this type of concrete.In this study,the effects of different types of cementitious materials,chemical shrinkage-reducing agents(SRA)and steel fiber(SF)were assessed.Compared with M2-UHPC and M3-UHPC,M1-UHPC was found to have better fluidity and shrinkage cracking performance.Moreover,different SRA incorporation methods,dosage and different SF types and aspect ratios were implemented.The incorporation of SRA and SF led to a decrease in the fluidity of UHPC.SRA internal content of 1%(NSRA-1%),SRA external content of 1%(WSRA-1%),STS-0.22 and STE-0.7 decreased the fluidity of UHPC by 3.3%,8.3%,9.2%and 25%,respectively.However,SRA and SF improved the UHPC shrinkage cracking performance.NSRA-1%and STE-0.7 reduced the shrinkage value of UHPC by 40%and 60%,respectively,and increased the crack resistance by 338%and 175%,respectively.In addition,the addition of SF was observed to make the microstructure of UHPC more compact,and the compressive strength and flexural strength of 28 d were increased by 26.9%and 19.9%,respectively.

Combining prognostic value of serum carbohydrate antigen 19-9 and tumor size reduction ratio in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

BACKGROUND Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma(PDAC)is a common cancer with increasing morbidity and mortality due to changes of social environment.AIM To evaluate the significance of serum carbohydrate antigen 19-9(CA19-9)and tumor size changes pre-and post-neoadjuvant therapy(NAT).METHODS This retrospective study was conducted at the Chongqing Key Laboratory of Translational Research for Cancer Metastasis and Individualized Treatment,Chongqing University Cancer Hospital.This study specifically assessed CA19-9 levels and tumor size before and after NAT.RESULTS A total of 156 patients who completed NAT and subsequently underwent tumor resection were included in this study.The average age was 65.4±10.6 years and 72(46.2%)patients were female.Before survival analysis,we defined the post-NAT serum CA19-9 level/pre-NAT serum CA19-9 level as the CA19-9 ratio(CR).The patients were divided into three groups:CR<0.5,CR>0.5 and<1 and CR>1.With regard to tumor size measured by both computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging,we defined the post-NAT tumor size/pre-NAT tumor size as the tumor size ratio(TR).The patients were then divided into three groups:TR<0.5,TR>0.5 and<1 and TR>1.Based on these groups divided according to CR and TR,we performed both overall survival(OS)and disease-free survival(DFS)analyses.Log-rank tests showed that both OS and DFS were significantly different among the groups according to CR and TR(P<0.05).CR and TR after NAT were associated with increased odds of achieving a complete or near-complete pathologic response.Moreover,CR(hazard ratio:1.721,95%CI:1.373-3.762;P=0.006),and TR(hazard ratio:1.435,95%CI:1.275-4.363;P=0.014)were identified as independent factors associated with OS.CONCLUSION This study demonstrated that post-NAT serum CA19-9 level/pre-NAT serum CA19-9 level and post-NAT tumor size/pre-NAT tumor size were independent factors associated with OS in patients with PDAC who received NAT and subsequent surgical resection.

Reducing a Lot Sizing Problem with Set up, Production, Shortage and Inventory Costs to Lot Sizing Problem with Set up, Production and Inventory Costs

We reduce lot sizing problem with (a) Set Up, Production, Shortage and Inventory Costs to lot sizing problem with (b) Set Up, Production, and Inventory Costs. For lot sizing problem (as in (b)), Pochet and Wolsey [1] have given already integral polyhedral with polynomial separation where a linear program yield “integer” solutions. Thus problem (b) which we have created can be more easily solved by methods available in literature. Also with the removal of shortage variables is an additional computational advantage.

Effect of Slow Cooling in Reducing Pore Size in a Sintered Powder Metallurgical 6061Aluminium Alloy

The usage of powder metallurgy aluminium compacts in lieu of ferrous components in automotives helps to lower vehicle weight. The major drawback in the commercially available press sintered aluminium alloy is porosity which is mainly dependent on the powder metallurgical process parameters such as compaction pressure, sintering temperature and cooling rate after sintering. In this paper the effect of particle size and furnace controlled cooling after sintering on porosity level and micro hardness of an elemental 6061 aluminium alloy has been investigated. Aluminium particle sizes of 20 μm and 150 μm were used. The elemental 6061 aluminium alloy powders are warm compacted at 175 MPa. After sintering for about one hour at 600°C, the aluminium compacts were furnace cooled at the rate of 1°C /min to different temperatures of 500°C, 400°C, 300°C and 200?C. When the cooling temperature after sintering inside the furnace is effected at various temperatures from 600°C to 200°C, for a precipitate hardened aluminium compacts with aluminium particle size of 20 μm, the porosity level reduced by 26% and that for aluminium particle size of 150μm, the porosity level reduced by 23%. Marked improvement in micro hardness value is also observed correspondingly.

Effects of Plant Growth Regulators on the Contents of Reducing Sugar and Starch in Potato(Solanum tuberosum L.)

[Objective] The aim was to investigate the effects of plant growth regulators on contents of reducing sugar and starch in potato（Solanum tuberosum L.）.[Method]A potato cultivar named ＇Holand-212＇ with three treatments by spraying Diethyl aminoethyl hexanoate（DTA-6）,Uniconazole（S3307）and SOD mimics（SODM）were employed to compare differences of the contents of reducing sugar and starch in potato leaves,stolons and tubers in a field experiment.[Result]DTA-6 treatment could significantly reduce the contents of starch and reducing sugar in potato stolons in the period of 100-110 d after seeding,and it could also reduce the content of reducing sugar in tubers,but there is an opposite result in leaves in the same period,significantly.S3307 could extremely significantly increase the content of starch,and can promote the transfer of starch in stolons,in addition,it also could reduce the content of reducing sugar in tubers,and extremely significantly increase the content of starch in leaves at the 110 d after sowing.Moreover,there is a similar effect between SODM and S3307.[Conclusion]The research results are significant for understanding mechanisms of plant growth regulators and promoting application of plant growth regulator in potato.

Challenging and Reducing Cultural Stereotypes

Anyplace where differences are found leaves room for stereotypes.Each of us hears or makes stereotypical comments every day,and although sometimes it is necessary to make stereotypes in foreign language teaching and learning,we should always be aware of the negative effects of stereotyping people from other cultures when we use them to interpret behavior.This paper defines stereotypes,discusses how they impede communication and then focuses on some ways to challenge and reduce stereotypes in cross-cultural communication.

基于REDUCE理论的高校图书馆服务营销高质量发展研究

在高校图书馆高质量发展的背景下,服务营销高质量发展是提升图书馆服务利用效率,助力图书馆整体内涵式变革的重要举措。面向高校图书馆服务营销效能的提升需要,结合REDUCE理论创新高校图书馆服务营销理念,从心理抗拒、禀赋效应、距离、不确定性和补强证据五个维度分析高校用户利用图书馆服务的决策障碍,提出相对应的用户决策障碍化解路径指南,旨在为图书馆服务营销行动的高质量开展提供方法指引,有效促进用户利用图书馆服务,提升图书馆用户服务的核心价值。

Effects of emodin and double blood supplies on liver regeneration of reduced size graft liver in rat model

AIM: To study the influences of emodin and reconstruction of double blood supplies on liver regeneration of reduced size graft liver in rat model.METHODS: A total of 45 SD-SD rat reduced size liver transplantation models were randomly divided into three groups (A-C). The conventional reduced size liver transplantation was performed on rats in group A, while the hepatic artery blood supply was restored in groups B and C. The emodin (1.5 mg/kg/d) was given by intraperitoneal route in group C only. The recipients were killed on the seventh day after the operation. The proliferative cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), TBil and ALT of serum were detected, and the pathological changes of liver cell were observed. RESULTS: The numbers of the rats that survived in A, B, and C group on the seventh day after operation were 14, 13, 13, respectively. The levels of TBil (31.5±5.2 μmol/L,23.2±3.1 μmol/L vs38.6±6.8 μmol/L), and ALT (5 351±1 050 nKat, 1300±900 nKat vs5779±1202 nKat) in serum in groups B and C were lower than those in group A(P＜0.05), while the expression of PCNA in groups B or C was higher than that in group A (22.0±3.5%, 28.2±4.2%vs18.6±3.2%, P＜0.05). The deeper staining nuclei, double nuclei, multi-nuclei and much glycogen were observed in liver cells of groups B and C, especially in group C, while fewer were found in liver cells of group A. CONCLUSION: The reconstruction of arterial blood supply is very important for rat liver regeneration after reduced size liver transplantation. Emodin has the effect of promoting liver regeneration and improving liver function in rats after reduced size transplantation. The possible mechanism is improving proliferation of liver cell and protecting liver cells from injury.

Review on the applications and developments of drag reducing polymer in turbulent pipe flow

Drag reduction phenomenon in pipelines has received lots of attention during the past decades due to its potential engineering applications, especially in fluid transporting industries. Various methods to enhance drag reduction have been developed throughout the years and divided into two categories;non-additives method and additives method. Both categories have different types of methods, with different formulations and applications which will generally be discussed in this review. Among all the methods discussed, drag reduction using polymer additive is as one of the most enticing and desirable methods. It has been the subject of research in this field and has been studied extensively for quite some time. It is due to its ability to reduce drag up to 80% when added in minute concentrations. Reducing drag in the pipe will require less pumping power thus offering economic relieves to the industries. So, this paper will be focusing more on the use of polymer additives as drag reducing agent, the general formulations of the additives, major issues involving the use of drag reducing polymers, and the potential applications of it. However, despite the extensive works of drag reduction polymer, there are still no models that accurately explain the mechanism of drag reduction. More studies needed to be done to have a better understanding of the phenomenon. Therefore, future research areas and potential approaches are proposed for future work.

SURFACE ANALYSIS OF ALUMINUM ALLOYS INFLUENCED BY SULFATE- REDUCING BACTERIA

The morphology and chemical compositions of surface and corrosion phases for two aluminum alloys(7075 and 2024 ) in the aqueous mediums containing sulfate reducing bacteria(SRB) were studied by the methods of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive x ray analysis (EDXA). The results showed that serious pitting corrosion took place when aluminum alloys were exposed in the mediums containing SRB, whereas no pitting corrosion were found on the surfaces of aluminum alloys only exposed in blank mediums non containing SRB. It was demonstrated with EDXA that corrosion of aluminum alloys exposed in the solutions containing SRB, whereas the corrosion in the solution non containing microorganisms was attributed to the presence of chloride ions(Cl ).

Study on evaluation of cities' ability reducing earthquake disasters

Cities ability reducing earthquake disasters is a complex system involving numerous factors, moreover the re-search on evaluating cities ability reducing earthquake disasters relates to multi-subject, such as earthquake sci-ence, social science, economical science and so on. In this paper, firstly, the conception of cities ability reducing earthquake disasters is presented, and the ability could be evaluated with three basic elements the possible seis-mic casualty and economic loss during the future earthquakes that are likely to occur in the city and its surround-ings and time required for recovery after earthquake; based upon these three basic elements, a framework, which consists of six main components, for evaluating citys ability reducing earthquake disasters is proposed; then the statistical relations between the index system and the ratio of seismic casualty, the ratio of economic loss and re-covery time are gained utilizing the cities prediction results of earthquake disasters which were made during the ninth five-year plan; at last, the method defining the comprehensive index of cities ability reducing earthquake disasters is presented. Thus the relatively comprehensive theory frame is set up. The frame can evaluate cities ability reducing earthquake disasters absolutely and quantitatively and consequently instruct the decision-making on reducing cities earthquake disasters loss.

Isolation of Cr(Ⅵ) reducing bacteria from industrial effuents and their potential use in bioremediation of chromium containing wastewater

The present study was aimed to assess the ability of Bacillus sp.JDM-2-1 and Staphylococcus capitis to reduce hexavalent chromium into its trivalent form.Bacillus sp.JDM-2-1 could tolerate Cr（Ⅵ）（4800 μg/mL） and S.capitis could tolerate Cr（Ⅵ）（2800 μg/mL）.Both organisms were able to resist Cd^2＋（50 μg/mL）,Cu^2＋（200 μg/mL）,Pb^2＋（800 μg/mL）,Hg^2＋（50 μg/mL） and Ni2＋（4000 μg/mL）.S.capitis resisted Zn^2＋ at 700 μg/mL while Bacillus sp.JDM-2-1 only showed resistance up to 50 μg/mL.Bacillus sp.JDM-2-1 and S.capitis showed optimum growth at pH 6 and 7,respectively,while both bacteria showed optimum growth at 37°C.Bacillus sp.JDM-2-1 and S.capitis could reduce 85% and 81% of hexavalent chromium from the medium after 96 h and were also capable of reducing hexavalent chromium 86% and 89%,respectively,from the industrial effuents after 144 h.Cell free extracts of Bacillus sp.JDM-2-1 and S.capitis showed reduction of 83% and 70% at concentration of 10 μg Cr（Ⅵ）/mL,respectively.The presence of an induced protein having molecular weight around 25 kDa in the presence of chromium points out a possible role of this protein in chromium reduction.The bacterial isolates can be exploited for the bioremediation of hexavalent chromium containing wastes,since they seem to have a potential to reduce the toxic hexavalent form to its nontoxic trivalent form.

Aromatic compound degradation by iron reducing bacteria isolated from irrigated tropical paddy soils

Forty-six candidate phenol/benzoate degrading-iron reducing bacteria were isolated from long term irrigated tropical paddy soils by enrichment procedures.Pure cultures and some prepared mixed cultures were examined for ferric oxide reduction and phenol/benzoate degradation.All the isolates were iron reducers,but only 56.5%could couple iron reduction to phenol and/or benzoate degradation,as evidenced by depletion of phenol and benzoate after one week incubation.Analysis of degradative capability using Biolog...