Evaluation of Air-Kerma and Absorbed Dose to Water for External Radiotherapy Beam Using Ionization Chamber

Radiotherapy is the most widely applied oncologic treatment modality utilizing ionizing radiation. A high degree of accuracy, reliability and reproducibility is required for a successful treatment outcome. Measurement using ionization chamber is a prerequisite for absorbed dose determination for external beam radiotherapy. Calibration coefficient is expressed in terms of air kerma and absorbed dose to water traceable to Secondary Standards Dosimetry Laboratory. The objective of this work was to evaluate the level of accuracy of ionization chamber used for clinical radiotherapy beam determination. Measurement and accuracy determination were carried out according to IAEA TRS 398 protocol. Clinical farmers type ionization chamber measurement and National Reference standard from Secondary Standards Dosimetry Laboratory were both exposed to cobalt-60 beam and measurement results compared under the same environmental conditions. The accuracy level between National Reference Standard and clinical radiotherapy standard was found to be −1.92% and −2.02% for air kerma and absorbed dose to water respectively. To minimize the effect of error and maximize therapeutic dose during treatment in order to achieve required clinical outcome, calibration factor was determined for air kerma (Nk) as 49.7 mGy/nC and absorbed dose to water ND, as 52.9 mGy/nC. The study established that radiotherapy beam measurement chain is prone to errors. Hence there is a need to independently verify the accuracy of radiation dose to ensure precision of dose delivery. The errors must be accounted for during clinical planning by factoring in calibration factor to minimize the systematic errors during treatment, and thereby providing enough room to achieve ±5% dose delivery to tumor target as recommended by ICRU.

Linkage between precipitation isotopes and water vapor sources in the monsoon margin:Evidence from arid areas of Northwest China

The isotope composition in precipitation has been widely considered as a tracer of monsoon activity.Compared with the coastal region,the monsoon margin usually has limited precipitation with large fluctuation and is usually sensitive to climate change.The water resource management in the monsoon margin should be better planned by understanding the composition of precipitation isotope and its influencing factors.In this study,the precipitation samples were collected at five sampling sites(Baiyin City,Kongtong District,Maqu County,Wudu District,and Yinchuan City)of the monsoon margin in the northwest of China in 2022 to analyze the characteristics of stable hydrogen(δD)and oxygen(δ18O)isotopes.We analyzed the impact of meteorological factors(temperature,precipitation,and relative humidity)on the composition of precipitation isotope at daily level by regression analysis,utilized the Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory(HYSPLIT)-based backward trajectory model to simulate the air mass trajectory of precipitation events,and adopted the potential source contribution function(PSCF)and concentration weighted trajectory(CWT)to analyze the water vapor sources.The results showed that compared with the global meteoric water line(GMWL),the slope of the local meteoric water line(LMWL;δD=7.34δ^(18)O-1.16)was lower,indicating the existence of strong regional evaporation in the study area.Temperature significantly contributed toδ18O value,while relative humidity had a significant negative effect onδ18O value.Through the backward trajectory analysis,we found eight primary locations that were responsible for the water vapor sources of precipitation in the study area,of which moisture from the Indian Ocean to South China Sea(ITSC)and the western continental(CW)had the greatest influence on precipitation in the study area.The hydrogen and oxygen isotopes in precipitation are significantly influenced by the sources and transportation paths of air mass.In addition,the results of PSCF and CWT analysis showed that the water vapor source areas were primarily distributed in the south and northwest direction of the study area.

Effects of Groundwater with Various Salinities on Evaporation and Redistribution of Water and Salt in Saline-sodic Soils in Songnen Plain,Northeast China

Groundwater mineralization is one of the main factors affecting the transport of soil water and salt in saline-sodic areas.To investigate the effects of groundwater with different levels of salinity on evaporation and distributions of soil water and salt in Songnen Plain,Northeast China,five levels of groundwater sodium adsorption ration of water(SARw)and total salt content(TSC mmol/L)were conducted in an oil column lysimeters.The five treated groundwater labeled as ST0:0,ST0:10,ST5:40,ST10:70 and ST20:100,were prepared with NaCl and CaCl2 in proportion,respectively.The results showed the groundwater evaporation(GWE)and soil evaporation(SE)increased firstly and then decreased with the increase of groundwater salinity.The values of GWE and SE in ST10:70 treatment were the highest,which were 2.09 and 1.84 times the values in the ST0:0 treatment with the lowest GWE and SE.There was a positive linear correlation between GWE and the Ca^(2+)content in groundwater,with R^(2)=0.998.The soil water content(SWC)of ST0:0 treatment was significantly(P<0.05)less than those of other treatments during the test.The SWC of the ST0:0 and ST0:10 treatments increased with the increase of soil depth,while the other treatments showed the opposite trend.Statistical analysis indicated the SWC in the 0–60 cm soil layer was positively correlated with the groundwater TSC and its ion contents during the test.Salt accumulation occurred in the topsoil and the salt accumulation in the 0–20 cm soil layer was significantly(P<0.05)greater than that in the subsoil.This study revealed the effects of the salinity level of groundwater,especially the Ca^(2+)content and TSC of groundwater,on the GWE and distributions of soil water and salt,which provided important support for the prevention and reclamation of soil salinization and sodificaton in shallow groundwater regions.

Different bactericidal abilities of plasma-activated saline with various reactive species prepared by surface plasma-activated air and plasma jet combinations

Plasma-activated water(PAW),as an extended form of cold atmospheric-pressure plasma,greatly expands the application of plasma-based technology.The biological effects of PAW are closely related to the aqueous reactive species,which can be regulated by the activation process.In this study,surface plasma-activated air(SAA)and a He+O_(2)plasma jet(Jet)were parallelly combined(the SAA+Jet combination)or sequentially combined(the SAA→Jet combination and the Jet→SAA combination)to prepare plasma-activated saline(PAS).The PAS activated by the combinations exhibited stronger bactericidal effects than that activated by the SAA or the Jet alone.The concentrations of H_(2)O_(2)and NO_(2)^(-)were higher in the PAS activated by the Jet→SAA combination,while ONOO^(-)concentrations were close in the three kinds of PAS and^(1)O_(2)concentrations were higher in the PAS activated by the SAA+Jet combination.The analysis of scavengers also demonstrated that H_(2)O_(2),^(1)O_(2),and ONOO^(-)in the PAS activated by the SAA+Jet combination,and^(1)O_(2)in the PAS activated by the Jet→SAA combination played critical roles in bactericidal effects.Further,the effective placement time of the three PAS varied,and the PAS activated by the Jet→SAA combination could also inactivate 2.6-log_(10)of MRSA cells after placement for more than 60 min.The regulation of reactive species in plasma-activated water via different combinations of plasma devices could improve the directional application of plasma-activated water in the biomedical field.

Yields,growth and water use under chemical topping in relations to row configuration and plant density in drip-irrigated cotton

Background Water deficit is an important problem in agricultural production in arid regions.With the advent of wholly mechanized technology for cotton planting in Xinjiang,it is important to determine which planting mode could achieve high yield,fiber quality and water use efficiency(WUE).This study aimed to explore if chemical topping affected cotton yield,quality and water use in relation to row configuration and plant densities.Results Experiments were carried out in Xinjiang China,in 2020 and 2021 with two topping method,manual topping and chemical topping,two plant densities,low and high,and two row configurations,i.e.,76 cm equal rows and 10+66 cm narrow-wide rows,which were commonly applied in matching harvest machine.Chemical topping increased seed cotton yield,but did not affect cotton fiber quality comparing to traditional manual topping.Under equal row spacing,the WUE in higher density was 62.4%higher than in the lower one.However,under narrow-wide row spacing,the WUE in lower density was 53.3%higher than in higher one(farmers’practice).For machine-harvest cotton in Xinjiang,the optimal row configuration and plant density for chemical topping was narrow-wide rows with 15 plants m-2 or equal rows with 18 plants m-2.Conclusion The plant density recommended in narrow-wide rows was less than farmers’practice and the density in equal rows was moderate with local practice.Our results provide new knowledge on optimizing agronomic managements of machine-harvested cotton for both high yield and water efficient.

Identified the hydrochemical and the sulfur cycle process in subsidence area of Pingyu mining area using multi-isotopes combined with hydrochemistry methods

Groundwater serves as an important water source for residents in and around mining areas.To achieve scientific planning and efficient utilization of water resources in mining areas,it is essential to figure out the chemical formation process and the ground water sulfur cycle that transpire after the coal mining activities.Based on studies of hydrochemistry and D,^(18)O-H_(2)O,^(34)S-SO_(4)isotopes,this study applied principal component analysis,ion ratio and other methods in its attempts to reveal the hydrogeochemical action and sulfur cycle in the subsidence area of Pingyu mining area.The study discovered that,in the studied area,precipitation provides the major supply of groundwater and the main water chemistry effects are dominated by oxidation dissolution of sulfide minerals as well as the dissolution of carbonate and silicate rocks.The sulfate in groundwater primarily originates from oxidation and dissolution of sulfide minerals in coal-bearing strata and human activities.The mixed sulfate formed by the oxidation of sulfide minerals and by human activities continuously recharges the groundwater,promoting the dissolution of carbonate rock and silicate rock in the process.

Relationship between Formation Water Rate,Equivalent Penetration Rate and Volume Flow Rate of Air in Air Drilling

Formation water invasion is the most troublesome problem associated with air drilling. However, it is not economical to apply mist drilling when only a small amount of water flows into wellbore from formation during air drilling. Formation water could be circulated out of the wellbore through increasing the gas injection rate. In this paper, the Angel model was modified by introducing Nikurade friction factor for the flow in coarse open holes and translating formation water rate into equivalent penetration rate. Thus the distribution of annular pressure and the relationship between minimum air injection rate and formation water rate were obtained. Real data verification indicated that the modified model is more accurate than the Angel model and can provide useful information for air drilling.

Physical and Microbiological Properties of Alfalfa-Established Soil in the Semiarid Horqin Sandy Land in Northern China

In a previous article, we reported that a local variety of alfalfa (Medicago sativa L. cv. Aohan) had high potential to be a pioneer plant for ecological restoration in the Horqin Sandy Land, China. The plantation of Aohan significantly improved the organic matter, clay, total carbon and nitrogen contents of the soils. In this study, we investigated the physical properties such as dispersion ratio, water-stable aggregates content, and the soil microbiomes, five years after alfalfa establishment in the same study site. We found no significant difference in the dispersion ratios between the soils before and after alfalfa establishment, and all the soils at the study site were erosive. Water stable aggregates mainly distributed in 96%, suggesting that it would take longer time for improving soil structure. However, large-size aggregates (2 - 5 mm) content was slightly higher in the alfalfa planting plots. This slight increase is presumed to have long-term importance for soil and ecosystem recovery in semi-arid areas like Horqin Sandy Land. Moreover, we also found that Actinomycetes dominated the microbial community in both bulk and rhizosphere soils, and two kinds of rhizobia, Bradyrhizobium and Sinorhizobium fredii, were identified in the rhizosphere soil.

Vacancies and interfaces engineering of core-shell heterostuctured NiCoP/NiO as trifunctional electrocatalysts for overall water splitting and zinc-air batteries

The electronic structures and properties of electrocatalysts,which depend on the physicochemical structure and metallic element components,could significantly affect their electrocatalytic performance and their future applications in Zn-air battery(ZAB)and overall water splitting(OWS).Here,by combining vacancies and heterogeneous interfacial engineering,three-dimensional(3D)core-shell NiCoP/NiO heterostructures with dominated oxygen vacancies have been controllably in-situ grown on carbon cloth for using as highly efficient electrocatalysts toward hydrogen and oxygen electrochemical reactions.Theoretical calculation and electrochemical results manifest that the hybridization of NiCoP core with NiO shell produces a strong synergistic electronic coupling effect.The oxygen vacancy can enable the emergence of new electronic states within the band gap,crossing the Fermi levels of the two spin components and optimizing the local electronic structure.Besides,the hierarchical core-shell NiCoP/NiO nanoarrays also endow the catalysts with multiple exposed active sites,faster mass transfer behavior,optimized electronic strutures and improved electrochemical performance during ZAB and OWS applications.

Controlled drainage in the Nile River delta of Egypt:a promising approach for decreasing drainage off-site effects and enhancing yield and water use efficiency of wheat

North Africa is one of the most regions impacted by water shortage.The implementation of controlled drainage(CD)in the northern Nile River delta of Egypt is one strategy to decrease irrigation,thus alleviating the negative impact of water shortage.This study investigated the impacts of CD at different levels on drainage outflow,water table level,nitrate loss,grain yield,and water use efficiency(WUE)of various wheat cultivars.Two levels of CD,i.e.,0.4 m below the soil surface(CD-0.4)and 0.8 m below the soil surface(CD-0.8),were compared with subsurface free drainage(SFD)at 1.2 m below the soil surface(SFD-1.2).Under each drainage treatment,four wheat cultivars were grown for two growing seasons(November 2018–April 2019 and November 2019–April 2020).Compared with SFD-1.2,CD-0.4 and CD-0.8 decreased irrigation water by 42.0%and 19.9%,drainage outflow by 40.3%and 27.3%,and nitrate loss by 35.3%and 20.8%,respectively.Under CD treatments,plants absorbed a significant portion of their evapotranspiration from shallow groundwater(22.0%and 8.0%for CD-0.4 and CD-0.8,respectively).All wheat cultivars positively responded to CD treatments,and the highest grain yield and straw yield were obtained under CD-0.4 treatment.Using the initial soil salinity as a reference,the soil salinity under CD-0.4 treatment increased two-fold by the end of the second growing season without negative impacts on wheat yield.Modifying the drainage system by raising the outlet elevation and considering shallow groundwater contribution to crop evapotranspiration promoted water-saving and WUE.Different responses could be obtained based on the different plant tolerance to salinity and water stress,crop characteristics,and growth stage.Site-specific soil salinity management practices will be required to avoid soil salinization due to the adoption of long-term shallow groundwater in Egypt and other similar agroecosystems.

PREPARATION OF PERFLUOROOCTANOYL-MODIFIED POLY(VINYL-ALCOHOL)S AND THEIR ADSORPTION AT AN AIR-WATER INTERFACE

Perfluorooctanoyl modified poly(vinyl alcohol)s (FPVA) were prepared by means of substituting a small amount of hydroxyl groups on the backbone of poly(vinyl alcohol), for which the initial degree of polymerization is equal to 1750. The substitution extent, defined by the number of substituting units in a chain, for the four FPVA samples was in the range of 0.5-5 perfluorooctanoyl groups per chain. The FPVA samples with the highest substitution extent still had good solubility in water. It was shown by experimental measurement at 30.0 +/- 0.1 degreesC that the surface tension of the aqueous solution of the highest substituted FPVA decreased to 16.6 mN/m at a higher concentration, e.g. about 0.1 g/mL. Obviously, macromolecules of FPVA exhibit a very strong tendency to adsorb at the air-water interface, because the hydrophobic perfluorooctanoyl groups in FPVA have a very high surface activity as they are in small molecular fluorinated surfactants. The chain conformation of such a model polymer adsorbed on the air-water interface was also discussed.

Effects of Volume Ratios of Water Phase to Oily Phase on Morphology and Releasing Performance of Emulsion Electrospun Fibers

Emulsion electrospinning as a novel process in spinning core-sheath fibers shows a promising potential in drug release control. The volume ratio of water phase to oily phase is one of the critical parameters in forming core-sheath fibers. In this study, water phase was presented by hydrophilic tetracycline hydrochloride and oily phase by hydrophobic poly （E-caprolactone） （PCL）. The effects of volume ratios of water phase to oily phase on fiber morphology and in vitro drug release were investigated. Scanning electron microscopy （ SEM ）, transmission electron microscopy （ TEM）, and eonfoeal laser scanning microscopy（CLSM） were used to observe the morphology, core.sheath structure of the fibers and drug loading in the fibers, respectively. Samples of three different volume ratios of water phase to oily phase, 1： 25, 1：15, and 1：10, were prepared with the same concentration of drug solution. Experiment results showed that, with an increase in the volume ratios of water phase to oily phase, the fiber diameter increased and diameter distribution scattered. The drug entrapment efficiency of the fibers reduces with the increase in volume ratios, L e. , from 73.48 % in the ratio of 1 ： 25, 62.23 % in 1 ： 15, down to 45.63 % in 1：10. In vitro release tests showed that a higher volume ratio of water phase to oily phase would lead to a lower release rate resulted from thicker fiber sheath.

THE ROLE OF COLD AIR AND CHARACTERISTICS OF WATER VAPOR IN BOTH TCS NANMADOL (0428) AND IRMA (7427) MAKING LANDFALL ON CHINA IN WINTERTIME

The NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data are used to investigate the role of cold air and moisture characteristics during the evolution of two cases of tropical cyclones (Nanmadol and Irma) which made landfall on China in wintertime. The results are shown as follows. (1) The East Asia trough steered the cold air into the tropical ocean in early winter. The tropical cyclones moved in opposite directions with a high moving out to sea and the enhancement of the pressure gradient at the periphery played a role in maintaining and strengthening the intensity of the storms. The intrusion of weak cold air into the low levels of the tropical cyclones strengthened them by improving the cyclonic disturbance when they were still over the warm sea surface. When the cold air was strong enough and intruded into the eyes, the warm cores were damaged and stuffed before dissipation. (2) The tropical cyclones were formed in a convergence zone of moisture flux and their development could enhance the disturbance of water vapor convergence, thus strengthening the moisture convergence zone. However, when they were outside the moisture zone, the storms could not gain sufficient water vapor and became weak. There were no belts of strong moisture transportation during the wintertime tropical cyclone processes.

DISCREPANCY OF THE GLOBAL AIR MASS AND WATER BUDGETS AMONG 20 CMIP5 CLIMATE MODELS

The consistency of global atmospheric mass and water budget performance in 20 state-of-the-art ocean-atmosphere Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5(CMIP5) coupled models has been assessed in a historical experiment. All the models realistically reproduce a climatological annual mean of global air mass(AM) close to the ERA-Interim AM during 1989-2005. Surprisingly, the global AM in half of the models shows nearly no seasonal variation,which does not agree with the seasonal processes of global precipitable water or water vapor, given the mass conservation constraint. To better understand the inconsistencies, we evaluated the seasonal cycles of global AM tendency and water vapor source(evaporation minus precipitation). The results suggest that the inconsistencies result from the poor balance between global AM tendency and water vapor source based on the global AM budget equation. Moreover, the cross-equatorial dry air mass flux, or hemispheric dry mass divergence, is not well represented in any of the 20 CMIP5 models, which show a poorly matched seasonal cycle and notably larger amplitude, compared with the hemispheric tendencies of dry AM in both the Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere. Pronounced erroneous estimations of tropical precipitation also occur in these models. We speculate that the large inaccuracy of precipitation and possibly evaporation in the tropics is one of the key factors for the inconsistent cross-equatorial mass flux. A reasonable cross-equatorial mass flux in well-balanced hemispheric air mass and moisture budgets remains a challenge for both reanalysis assimilation systems and climate modeling.

Development and experimental validation of a one-dimensional dynamic hygrothermal modeling based on air humidity ratio

A modified one-dimensional transient hygrothermal model for multilayer wall was proposed using air humidity ratio and temperature as the driving potentials.The solution for the governing equations was obtained numerically by implementing the finite-difference scheme.To evaluate the accuracy of the model,a test system was built up to measure relative humidity and temperature within a porous wall and compare with the prediction of the model.The prediction results have good agreement with the experimental results.For the interface close to indoor side,the maximum deviation of temperature between calculated and test data is 1.87 K,and the average deviation is 0.95 K;the maximum deviation of relative humidity is 11.4%,and the average deviation is 5.7%.For the interface close to outdoor side,the maximum deviation of temperature between prediction and measurement is 1.78 K,and the average deviation is 1.1 K;the maximum deviation of relative humidity is 9.9%,and the average deviation is 4.2%.

The Effect of Mass Ratio and Air Damper Characteristics on the Resonant Response of an Air Damped Dynamic Vibration Absorber

In this paper, it is shown that, a road vehicle 2DOF air damped quartercar suspension system can conveniently be transformed into a 2DOF air damped vibrating system representing an air damped dynamic vibration absorber (DVA) with an appropriate change in the ratio μ of the main mass and the absorber mass i.e. when mass ratio μ >> 1. Also the effect of variation of the mass ratio, air damping ratio and air spring rate ratio, on the motion transmissibility at the resonant frequency of the main mass of the DVA has been dis- cussed. It is shown that, as the air damping ratio in the absorber system increases, there is a substantial decrease in the motion transmissibility of the main mass system where the air damper has been modeled as a Maxwell type. Optimal value of the air damping ratio for the minimum motion transmissibility of the main mass of the system has been determined. An experimental setup has been designed and developed with a control system to vary air pressure in the damper in the absorber system. The motion transmissibility characteristics of the main mass system have been obtained, and the optimal value of the air damping ratio has been determined for minimum motion transmissibility of the main mass of the

A Simple Cement Hydration Model Considering the Influences ofWater-to-Cement Ratio and Mineral Composition

A simple hydration model is used here by taking the composition of the cement and the initial water: cementratio (w/c) into account explicitly. Its conceptual basis is a combination of the Avrami equation and Bentz’s modelbased on simple spatial considerations. In this model, the Avrami equation determines the initial reaction, andBentz’s model describes the following hydration stage. The model favors engineers for it relies on one experimentalparameter and has a reliable approximation in the practice.

Energy, Exergy and Thermoeconomics Analysis of Water Chiller Cooler for Gas Turbines Intake Air Cooling

Gas turbine (GT) power plants operating in arid climates suffer a decrease in output power during the hot summer months because of the high specific volume of air drawn by the compressor. Cooling the air intake to the compressor has been widely used to mitigate this shortcoming. Energy and exergy analysis of a GT Brayton cycle coupled to a refrigeration air cooling unit shows a promise for increasing the output power with a little decrease in thermal efficiency. A thermo-economics algorithm is developed to estimate the economic feasibility of the cooling system. The analysis is applied to an open cycle, HITACHI-FS7001B GT plant at the industrial city of Yanbu (Latitude 24o 05” N and longitude 38o E) by the Red Sea in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Result show that the enhancement in output power depends on the degree of chilling the air intake to the compressor (a 12 - 22 K decrease is achieved). For this case study, maximum power gain ratio (PGR) is 15.46% (average of 12.25%), at an insignificant decrease in thermal efficiency. The second law analysis show that the exergetic power gain ratio drops to an average 8.5%. The cost of adding the air cooling system is also investigated and a cost function is derived that incorporates time-dependent meteorological data, operation characteristics of the GT and the air intake cooling system and other relevant parameters such as interest rate, lifetime, and operation and maintenance costs. The profit of adding the air cooling system is calculated for different electricity tariff.

Research on characteristics of water motion and influencing factors for the flexible air chamber jig body

The air bag deformation data were obtained by high-speed dynamic videos experiments. Based on gas–liquid flow VOF model, dynamic mesh technique and deformation data, numerical simulations for different structure models were achieved, and the law of water motion and influencing factors were analyzed.The results show that the flow in the length direction of the jig is smooth, and second pulsation appears in the separation time and forms the secondary separation. The installation position of screen and the number of air bags have a great influence on the uniformity of flow and velocity. The screen height cannot be too low to avoid forming the unstable flow. At the same time, the screen height cannot be too high, otherwise water velocity will be too small and was unable to provide enough power. At the height of 1.4m,velocity unevenness is minimum and the best uniform flow can be obtained. Compared with double air bags, there are the following features of single air bag: water flow is not smooth, the time achieving the maximum velocity is too long, maximum velocity is smaller, and overall effect is worse than double air bags.

STUDY OF THE HEAT AND HUMIDITY TRANSFER PROCESSES BETWEEN AIR AND WATER IN THE AIR WASHER

The processes of heat and humidity transfer between air and water are what to be studied mainly in the paper, we put forward some main factors which influence the processes of heat and humidity transfer in the air washer. We come to the conclusion that we can change these main factors to achieve different heat and humidity transfer processes and decide processes of heat and humidity transfer of air and water with the initial temperature of spraying water in the air washer. All these results can make things convenient for the air conditioning management.