Review on Connections for Original Bamboo Structures

Bamboo is a green construction material in line with sustainable development strategies.The use of raw bamboo in architecture has existed since ancient times.In the long development years of original bamboo buildings,many areas in the world gradually formed unique bamboo buildings,which have become an important local cultural feature.For building structures,joints are the key to ensure structural load transfer.Because of hollow and thin-walled material property of bamboo,the connection in raw bamboo buildings has always been a major difficulty and problem in the application of bamboo,which seriously hinders the development of original bamboo structures.In order to promote the use of raw bamboo,two traditional connection methods in raw bamboo structures are described in this paper firstly,with the advantages and disadvantages of the two methods pointed out.Also,research progress on four categories of raw bamboo building joints is described namely,bolt joints,steel member joints,filler reinforced joints and other types of joints.This work can provide a reference for future research and engineering applications.

Structural Origin of the Red-Ribbon Style Iron Ores in the Xinyu Iron Deposit,Central Jiangxi Province

The Xinyu iron deposit, located in central Jiangxi Province, is one of the most important BIF-type deposits in China. It is hosted in the Late Proterozoic volcanic- sedimentary rocks, which are composed of sericite- chlorite pyhllite, magnetite-bearing chlorite phyllite or schist, magnetite quartzite, and schist （Yu et al., 1989; Zeng et al., 2011）.

Origin and shallow-layer structure of the sediments in the Yellow Sea trough

On the basis of the analysis and study of the records of shallow-layer profiles and information from systematic analyses of some cores and their 14C datings, the sediments of Yellow Sea trough since the final slage the Late Pleistocene are found to have the following features. On the south slope of the trough, it is probably composed of island-shelf de posits. On the mouth of the trough, it is made up of eolian dunes and its deposits. In the centra! bottom region of the trough where intense desertization occurred in the early stage of the regression, there are parallel oblique beddings in the strata known as the 'angle of repose' texture, which demonstrates that the deposits there are composed of eolian sands. And in the late stage, thin derivative deposits developed in the northern part of the trough. On the north slope of the trough, thick-layer derivative deposits developed. This primary sedimentary pattern still remains unchanged since the occurrence of the Holocene transgression.

Mixed-Alkali Effect on Thermal Property and Elastic Behavior in Borosilicate Glasses

We investigated the mixed alkali effect on the thermal properties and elastic response to temperature in the borosilicate glasses system with the composition of 70.65Si O_(2)·21.09B_(2)O_(3)·1.88Al_(2)O_(3)·(6.38-x)Li_(2)O·x Na_(2)O glasses,where x=0.00,1.595,3.19,4.785,and 6.38.Except for the expected positive and negative deviations from linearity for the coefficients of thermal expansion,room temperature E and G,we observed a new mixed alkali efiect on the response of elastic moduli to temperature.Fourier transform infrared spectra were obtained to elucidate the possible structural origin of the mixed alkali efiects.This work provides a valuable insight into the structural and mechanical properties of mixed-alkali borosilicate glasses.

A brief review on 7 papers from the special issue of “The environmental significance of soft-sediment deformation” of the Sedimentary Geology 344(2016)

From the viewpoint of origins of soft-sediment deformation structures（SSDS）, 7 papers（Ito et al.,2016; Jiang et al., 2016; Lunina and Gladkov, 2016; Moretti et al., 2016; Rana et al., 2016; Rodríguez-Pascua et al., 2016; Wheatley et al., 2016） selected from the special issue of ＂The environmental significance of softsediment deformation＂ of the Sedimentary Geology 344（2016） were reviewed.（1） The first paper（according to the published order） by Moretti et al. is a general review and introduction of this special issue. This special issue has made an important contribution to the study of sedimentary environments.（2） The fourth paper by Rodríguez-Pascua et al. is an excellent case study. All evidence of earthquake in this paper is reliable. The old Roman City（adjacent to Madrid, the capital of Spain） was definitely destroyed by an earthquake. This paper solved the problem that the archaeologists have not solved yet.（3） The 19 thpaper by Rana et al. is another excellent case study. It demonstrated that SSDS in the youngest modern sediments in the seismically active area, i.e., the Alaknanda Valley, Garhwal Himalaya, India, are of non-seismic origin, but with typically sedimentary origin. All evidence of sedimentary origin of SSDS in the study area is reliable.（4） The second paper by Lunina and Gladkov stated that SSDS（mainly clastic dikes） in epicentral areas of the recent earthquakes in southern Siberia were originated by earthquakes and that the clastic dikes are the most reliable indicators in the epicentral areas of earthquakes. This conclusion is right. However, it is not accurate to consider all clastic injections as ＂in-situ earthquake structures＂ in anywhere, because the clastic injections are with multiple origins.（5） The third paper by Wheatley et al. comprehensively stated the clastic pipes of the Jurassic in the Colorado Plateau, USA. However, the principal origin of the clastic pipes（columns） was possibly not originated by ＂palaeoseismic controls＂, but by ＂tectonic controls＂ or ＂tectonic uplifts＂.（6） The 10^（th） paper by Jiang et al.proposed that 6 types of SSDS of the Lixian Section in eastern Tibetan Plateau, i.e., in a tectonically and seismically active area, were originated by earthquakes. However, the evidence of seismic origin is not sufficient. Therefore, the origins of SSDS in the Lixian Section are worthy to be further discussed.（7） The＂injectites＂ and ＂extrudites＂ in a Late Pliocene basin on the Boso Peninsula, Japan, from the 24^（th） paper by Ito et al., are non-SSDS and their origin is unreliable.The above viewpoints may be inappropriate. Criticisms and corrections are welcome.This paper is not only the author＇s brief review on 7 papers selected from the special issue of the Sedimentary Geology 344（2016）, but also an invitation to geologists worldwide to write papers for a new special issue of ＂The origins of SSDS＂ of the Journal of Palaeogeography which is planned to be published in 2018.

Perspective on antiferroelectrics for energy storage and conversion applications

As a close relative of ferroelectricity,antiferroelectricity has received a recent resurgence of interest driven by technological aspirations in energy-efficient applications,such as energy storage capacitors,solid-state cooling devices,explosive energy conversion,and displacement transducers.Though prolonged efforts in this area have led to certain progress and the discovery of more than 100 antiferroelectric materials over the last 70 years,some scientific and technological issues remain unresolved.Herein,we provide perspectives on the development of antiferroelectrics for energy storage and conversion applications,as well as a comprehensive understanding of the structural origin of antiferroelectricity and field-induced phase transitions,followed by design strategies for new lead-free antiferroelectrics.We also envision unprecedented challenges in the development of promising antiferroelectric materials that bridge materials design and real applications.Future research in these directions will open up new possibilities in resolving the mystery of antiferroelectricity,provide opportunities for comprehending structure-property correlation and developing antiferroelectric/ferroelectric theories,and suggest an approach to the manipulation of phase transitions for real-world applications.