Application of Zinc, Iron and Boron Enhances Productivity and Grain Biofortification of Mungbean

Deficiencies of essential vitamins,iron(Fe),and zinc(Zn)affect over one-half of the world’s population.A significant progress has been made to control micronutrient deficiencies through supplementation,but new approaches are needed,especially to reach the rural poor.Agronomic biofortification of pulses with Zn,Fe,and boron(B)offers a pragmatic solution to combat hidden hunger instead of food fortification and supplementation.Moreover,it also has positive effects on crop production as well.Therefore,we conducted three separate field experiments for two consecutive years to evaluate the impact of soil and foliar application of the aforementioned nutrients on the yield and seed biofortification of mungbean.Soil application of Zn at 0,4.125,8.25,Fe at 0,2.5,5.0 and B at 0,0.55,1.1 kg ha−1 was done in the first,second and third experiment,respectively.Foliar application in these experiments was done at 0.3%Zn,0.2%Fe and 0.1%B respectively one week after flowering initiation.Data revealed that soil-applied Zn,Fe and B at 8.25,5.0 and 1.1 kg ha−1,respectively,enhanced the grain yield of mungbean;however,this increase in yield was statistically similar to that recorded with Zn,Fe and B at 4.125,2.5 and 0.55 kg ha−1,respectively.Foliar application of these nutrients at flower initiation significantly enhanced the Zn contents by 28%and 31%,Fe contents by 80%and 78%,while B contents by 98%and 116%over control during 2019 and 2020,respectively.It was concluded from the results that soil application of Zn,Fe,and B enhanced the yield performance of mungbean;while significant improvements in seed Zn,Fe,and B contents were recorded with foliar application of these nutrients.

Improvement of (Eruca sativa Mill) yield, oil, chemical constituents and antioxidant activity utilizing a by-product of yeast production (CMS) with zinc and boron under salinity stress conditions

The impact of low-quality irrigation water on plant development has garnered significant attention from researchers. In light of this, two field experiments were conducted to evaluate the performance, yield, oil production and composition, as well as active constituents of Rocket(Eruca sativa Mill) cultivated in calcareous soil under saline water irrigation. Foliar sprays containing condensed molasses soluble(CMS), zinc(Zn), and boron(B) alone or in combination were used for irrigation. The data obtained from measuring various parameters of Rocket following foliar spraying with CMS, Zn, B or their combinations demonstrated that most treatments resulted in a significant increase in these parameters. The highest values for most measurements were observed when foliar application included all three components(CMS + Zn + B), resulting in a seed yield of 184.6 g/m2and an oil content of 675.3 kg/ha. Compared to the control group, the macronutrient content of N, P, K, Mg, and Ca increased by 34.4%, 56%, 42%, 45%, and 39% respectively in the seeds treated with these components.Furthermore, carbohydrates, proteins, phenolics flavonoids, and antioxidants showed increases of 24%, 34%,21%, 43%, and 28% respectively compared to the control group. Gas-liquid chromatography analysis identified ten components present in the seed oil characterized by higher unsaturated fatty acids ranging from 81.28% to92.28% and lower saturated fatty acids ranging from 6.72% to 8.21%. Therefore, foliar spray application including CMS, zinc, and boron can help alleviate salinity effects on Rocket plants grown under saline water irrigation conditions while improving growth, yield, oil production, and nutritional content such as total carbohydrates, proteins, and macronutrients levels.

Designing interstitial boron-doped tunnel-type vanadium dioxide cathode for enhancing zinc ion storage capability

Chemical doping is a powerful method to intrinsically tailor the electrochemical properties of electrode materials.Here,an interstitial boron-doped tunnel-type VO_(2)(B)is constructed via a facile hydrothermal method.Various analysis techniques demonstrate that boron resides in the interstitial site of VO_(2)(B)and such interstitial doping can boost the zinc storage kinetics and structural stability of VO_(2)(B)cathode during cycling.Interestingly,we found that the boron doping level has a saturation limit peculiarity as proved by the quantitative analysis.Notably,the 2 at.%boron-doped VO_(2)(B)shows enhanced zinc ion storage performance with a high storage capacity of 281.7 mAh g^(-1) at 0.1 A g^(-1),excellent rate performance of 142.2 mAh g^(-1) at 20 A g^(-1),and long cycle stability up to 1000 cycles with the capacity retention of 133.3 mAh g^(-1) at 5 A g^(-1).Additionally,the successful preparation of the boron-doped tunneltype α-MnO_(2) further indicates that the interstitial boron doping approach is a general strategy,which supplies a new chance to design other types of functional electrode materials for multivalence batteries.

Effect of Combined Application of Boron and Molybdenum Microelement Fertilizer on Cowpea Yield and Quality

Through field plot experiment,we research the influencing factors of cowpea yield and quality after applying boron and molybdenum microelement fertilizer. Results show that the application of boron and molybdenum microelement fertilizer can significantly increase the yield and improve the quality of cowpea. Compared with the control,yield per mu increases by 5. 08- 18. 86%; N content increases by 4. 27%-11. 28%; P content increases by 2. 13%- 13. 57%; K content increases by 2. 00%- 18. 48%; crude protein increases by 4. 16%-19. 94%; vitamin C increases by 2. 71%- 11. 79%; nitrate content decreases by 5%- 15%. Besides,it is better to combine boron with molybdenum than to use each of them separately.

Boron and Zinc Transport Through Intact Columns of Calcareous Soils

Leaching of boron （B） and zinc （Zn） can be significant in some pedomorphic conditions, which can cause contamination of shallow groundwater and economic losses. Boron and Zn adsorption and transport was studied using 8.4 cm diameter × 28 cm long intact columns from two calcareous soil series with differing clay contents and vadose zone structures： Lyallpur soil series, clay loam （fine-silty, mixed, hyperthermic Ustalfic Haplargid）, and Sultanpur soil series, sandy loam （coarse-silty, mixed, hyperthermic Ustollic Camborthid）. The adsorption isotherms were developed by equilibrating soil with 0.01 tool L^-1 CaCl2 aqueous solution containing varying amounts of B and Zn and were fitted to the Langmuir equation. The B and Zn breakthrough curves were fitted to the two-domain convective-dispersive equation. At the end of the leaching experiment, 0.11 L 10 g L^-1 blue dye solution was also applied to each column to mark the flow paths. The Lyallpur soil columns had a slightly greater adsorption partition coefficient both for B and Zn than the Sultanpur soil columns. In the Lyallpur soil columns, B arrival was immediate but the peak concentration ratio （the concentration in solution at equilibrium/concentration applied） was lower than that in the Sultanpur soil columns. The breakthrough of B in the Sultanpur soil columns occurred after about 10 cm of cumulative drainage in both the columns; the rise in effluent concentration was fast and the peak concentration ratio was almost 1. Zinc leaching through the soil columns was very limited as only one column from the Lyallpur soil series showed Zn breakthrough in the effluent where the peak concentration ratio was only 0.05. This study demonstrates the effect of soil structure on B transport and has implications for the nutrient management in field soils.

Effect of Copper, Zinc and Boron on Green Leaf Retention and Grain Yield of Winter and Spring Cereals

Crop nutrition has a significant effect on disease incidence, resistance or tolerance of various crops. There is currently a lack of reliable recent UK-based research about the effect of copper, zinc and boron on disease incidence, green leaf area （GLA）, green leaf retention （GLR） and grain yield of winter wheat, spring wheat and spring barley. Data analysis showed that these trace elements had positive effects on GLR. These positive effects may have been due to the role of copper, zinc and boron in the production of defence related compounds （phenolics and lignin）, which may have reduced the disease incidence resulting in prolonged GLR. Grain yield was significantly enhanced by the application of these trace elements on the crop grown on high pH calcareous soil, which can be partly attributed to enhanced GLR. Also trace elements have a positive role in reproductive growth, flowering and male fertility. On average, zinc was found to be the most consistent trace element in terms of enhancing GLR and grain yield. Across all trials, it was noted that for every 10% increase in GLA from trace elements, grain yields increased by 4.2% in 2012-2013, by 4.4% in 2013-2014 in winter wheat and by 3.9% in spring wheat in 2014. These are remarkably consistent and indicate that increasing GLA by 10% by early dough stage was associated with a yield improvement of about 4%. These trace elements also had a positive effect on grain protein content （GPC）. This research concluded that the trace elements had positive effects in enhancing GLA and yield. It can be speculated that with the use of these trace elements, there may be more scope for using less robust or reduced rates of fungicides to control foliar diseases, which may help to maximize farm profits.

Rare Earth-Boronizing and Its Applications

The thickness, brittleness, boron content and morphology of RE boronized layer were investigated. The results show that the service life of the boronized layer in molten zinc can be increased by adding RE element. The thermocouple and sink roll sleeve made of this material can be used for more than half a year.

Hydrothermal Synthesis of Zn2SnO4/Few-Layer Boron Nitride Nanosheets Hybrids as a Visible-Light-Driven Photocatalyst

Zn2SnO4/few-layer boron nitride nanosheets (FBNNS) hybrids were synthesized via a one-step hydrothermal method. The structures, morphology, optical properties, electron transformation and separation of the as-prepared products were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electrical microscopy, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, respectively. Rhodamine B was used to evaluate the photocatalytic activities of the as-prepared samples under visible light illumination. The photocatalytic mechanism was also explored. Experimental results showed that the degradation efficiency of rhodamine B was firstly increased and then decreased with increasing the usage amount of FBNNS. When it was 9 wt% based on the weight of Zn2SnO4, the degradation efficiency of the as-prepared Zn2SnO4/FBNNS-9 wt% composites reached to the maximum of 97.5 % in 180 min, which was higher than 39.2 % of pure Zn2SnO4. Moreover, the holes played mainly active roles in photocatalytic reaction process. In addition, the as-prepared hybrids could enhance the separation efficiency of photoexcited carriers compared to pure Zn2SnO4.

Structural,Transport and Optical Properties of Boron-doped Zinc Oxide Nanocrystalline

The paper has reported the structural,transport and optical properties of boron doped zinc oxide（ZnO：B） thin films grown on glass substrate by sol-gel spin coating process.It is observed from the analysis of the X-ray diffraction（XRD） results that the crystalline quality of the films is improved with increasing B concentration.A crystallite size of ～17 nm is obtained for B doped films.A minimum resistivity of 7.9×10-4 Ω.cm is obtained at 0.6 at.% of B concentration in the ZnO：B films.Ionized and intragrain cluster scattering are found to dominate the scattering mechanism in ZnO：B films.Optical interference pattern in transmittance spectra shows good homogeneity with a transparency of ～88% in the visible region.The band gap of the films is increased from 3.24 to 3.35 eV with increasing B concentration.Band gap widening is analyzed in terms of Burstein-Moss shift.The origin of the broad band photoluminescence（PL） spectra is explained in terms of the intragrain cluster scattering.

Enhancement of wear and ballistic resistance of armour grade AA7075 aluminium alloy using friction stir processing

Industrial applications of aluminium and its alloys are restricted because of their poor tribological properties. Thermal spraying, laser surfacing, electron beam welding are the most widely used techniques to alter the surface morphology of base metal. Preliminary studies reveal that the coating and layering of aluminium alloys with ceramic particles enhance the ballistic resistance. Furthermore, among aluminium alloys,7075 aluminium alloy exhibits high strength which can be compared to that of steels and has profound applications in the designing of lightweight fortification structures and integrated protection systems. Having limitations such as poor bond integrity, formation of detrimental phases and interfacial reaction between reinforcement and substrate using fusion route to deposit hard particles paves the way to adopt friction stir processing for fabricating surface composites using different sizes of boron carbide particles as reinforcement on armour grade 7075 aluminium alloy as matrix in the present investigation. Wear and ballistic tests were carried out to assess the performance of friction stir processed AA7075 alloy. Significant improvement in wear resistance of friction stir processed surface composites is attributed to the change in wear mechanism from abrasion to adhesion. It has also been observed that the surface metal matrix composites have shown better ballistic resistance compared to the substrate AA7075 alloy. Addition of solid lubricant Mo S2 has reduced the depth of penetration of the projectile to half that of base metal AA7075 alloy. For the first time, the friction stir processing technique was successfully used to improve the wear and ballistic resistances of armour grade high strength AA7075 alloy.

Effects of B, Mo, Zn, and Their Interactions on Seed Yield of Rapeseed (Brassica napus L.)

A field experiment was conducted to study the effects of boron (B), molybdenum (Mo), zinc (Zn) and their interactions on seed yield and yield formation of rapeseed (Brassica napus L. var. Huashuang 4). Application of B fertilizer to a sandy soil increased the seed yield by 46.1% compared to the control and also created a considerably higher seed yield than the two treatments solely applying Mo and Zn fertilizers, which suggested that B was a main constraint for the seed yield of Huashuang 4 in this experiment. The effect of B fertilizer on the seed yield was attributed to an increase in the number of seeds per silique and siliques per plant. The combined application of B with Mo or Zn resulted in higher seed yield than the application of B, Mo or Zn alone, and the seed yield of the B+Mo+Zn treatment was the highest in all treatments, 68.1% above the control. Dry matter accumulation of seed followed a typical S-shaped curve and it was higher in plants supplied with B than in plants without B. A small but significant increase in the seed oil content and an improvement in the oil quality were also observed in all treatments compared with the control. These results suggested that optimal micronutrient application could provide both yield and quality advantages for rapeseed in poor soil.

Mechanism of liquid zinc corrosion on metals

Two kinds of materials, soluble and insoluble in liquid zinc, such as Fe and FeB, are separately dealt with.A new theory is presented for insoluble materials. Based on the theory, the surface defects of insoluble materials are themain reason that the matcrials are correded.

Recent advances in graphene and other 2D materials

The isolation of the first two-dimensional material, graphene-a monolayer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal lattice-opened new exciting opportunities in the field of condensed matter physics and materials. Its isolation and subsequent studies demonstrated that it was possible to obtain sheets of atomically thin crystals and that these were stable, and they also began to show its outstanding properties, thus opening the door to a whole new family of materials, known as two-dimensional materials or 2D materials. The great interest in different 2D materials is motivated by the variety of properties they show, being candidates for numerous applications.Additionally, the combination of 2D crystals allows the assembly of composite, on-demand materials, known as van der Waals heterostructures, which take advantage of the properties of those materials to create functionalities that otherwise would not be accessible. For example, the combination of 2D materials, which can be done with high precision, is opening up opportunities for the study of new challenges in fundamental physics and novel applications. Here we review the latest fundamental discoveries in the area of 2D materials and offer a perspective on the future of the field.

Probing interactions at two-dimensional heterointerfaces by boron nitride-wrapped tip

Non-covalent interactions are important for two-dimensional heterointerfaces but challenged to be accurately determined,especially when the dielectric hexagonal boron nitride(BN)is involved.Here,we present a comprehensive quantitative investigation on the interactions at the interfaces of BN-BN,BN-molybdenum disulfide,and BN-graphite using a BN-wrapped atomic force microscope tip and first-principle theory.The critical adhesion forces at BN-molybdenum disulfide and BN-graphite interfaces are measured to be 1.107±0.062 and 0.999±0.053 times that at BN-BN interface,respectively,while increase to 1.195±0.076 and 1.085±0.075 a.u.after exposure of the tip to radiation in scanning electron microscopy,with data repeatability higher than 86%.The result with non-radiated tip agrees with the van der Waals interactions predicted by the state-of-the-art density functional theory-based vdW2D method,whereas the effect of radiation comes from the introduced charges in the tip,indicating the crucial roles of both dispersion and electrostatic interactions in construction,manipulation and device application of two-dimensional heterostructures.

NEWLY-DEVELOPED AND CHEAP NANOCRYSTALLINE Fe-Cu-Nb-Mo-Si-B ALLOYS FOR SWITCHING MODE POWER SUPPLY

The synthetical soft magnetic properties were reported for newly-developed nanocrystalline Fe73.5Cu1Nb0.9 Mo2.1Si13.5B9 and Fe73.5Cu1Nb0.5 Mo2.5Si13.5B9 alloys. The levels of high-frequency losses of the new alloys are P3/100k=612 and 670 kWm-3, P2/200k=880 and 973kWm-3, P2/500k=4300 and 4600 kWm-3, P0.5/1000k=860 and 920 kWm-3, respectively. They are significantly lower than those of the superior power Mn-Zn ferrite H7c4. The dependence of core loss on frequency and amplitude flux density has been analyzed. The practical applications of the new alloys to switching mode power supplies with the output power of 1 and 2kW were reported.

锌锰硼配施对雪茄烟叶光合特性、碳氮代谢及品质的影响

为探究配施不同比例锌锰硼元素对雪茄烟叶光合特性、碳氮代谢和品质的影响,以‘德雪1号’为试材,对雪茄烟生育期质体色素含量、净光合速率、碳氮代谢酶活及发酵后烟叶化学成分、锌锰硼元素含量进行分析。结果表明:(1)配施不同比例的锌锰硼元素均能提高雪茄烟烟叶质体色素含量、净光合速率以及烟叶淀粉酶、硝酸还原酶、谷氨酰胺合成酶活性和碳氮代谢产物含量,碳氮代谢更为协调;(2)处理间比较,T2处理(Zn∶Mn∶B=4∶4∶3)较CK(Zn∶Mn∶B=0∶0∶0)发酵后烟叶总糖、还原糖含量分别增加51.39%、66.67%,烟碱、总氮含量分别降低12.08%、20.22%,Zn、Mn、B含量分别提高0.17、1.98、0.65倍,钾氯比、氮碱比协调性较好,符合优质雪茄烟叶生产要求。综上可得,四川省什邡雪茄烟产区宜采用T2处理(Zn∶Mn∶B=4∶4∶3)的锌、锰、硼元素配施比例,T3处理(Zn∶Mn∶B=2∶3∶2)次之,可显著增强雪茄烟叶的光合特性、碳氮代谢强度,改善烟叶品质。

福建某锌精矿铜钼综合回收试验研究

福建某锌选矿厂的锌精矿含锌47.33%、含铜1.29%、含钼0.49%,铜、钼一直未得到有效回收。针对该锌精矿,开展再磨脱药—铜钼混合浮选—铜钼分离流程试验研究,铜钼混合浮选采用一粗两扫三精—粗精矿再磨工艺流程,铜钼分离采用一粗一扫四精工艺流程。全流程闭路试验可得到含铜20.11%、含金0.78 g/t、铜回收率65.9%的铜精矿,含钼39.49%、含铼18.28 g/t、钼回收率93.0%的钼精矿,以及含锌49.53%、锌回收率99.0%的锌精矿,有效降低了锌精矿中铜、钼杂质含量,同时得到了铜精矿和钼精矿产品,实现了锌、铜、钼的高效分离。

碳纤维织物基MoS_(2)柔性电极的制备及其电化学性能

为了扩大二硫化钼(MoS_(2))较小的层间距尺寸,提高其在水系锌离子电池正极材料的存储性能,以高导电性碳纤维织物基MoS_(2)为柔性负载基底,使用碳酸氢铵和碳酸氢钠2种物相调节剂对MoS_(2)的合成过程进行调控,获得不同层间嵌入结构的MoS_(2)材料(MoS_(2)-NH4+和MoS_(2)-Na^(+)),并探究了嵌入离子类型对层间结构及锌离子存储特性的影响。测试结果表明:在反应中碳酸氢铵释放的NH_(4)^(+)离子(扩层尺寸0.39 nm)相比于碳酸氢钠释放的Na^(+)离子(扩层尺寸0.12 nm)具有更好的扩层效果。在电流密度为500 mA·g^(-1)下,MoS_(2)-NH4+电极循环300次后容量保持率高达97.39%,并且在后续柔性纤维状电池应用中表现出良好的工作特性。提出的具有高性能的MoS_(2)基柔性电极材料的制备方法,为锌离子电池柔性电极材料的结构优化设计开拓了新的思路。

Pre-harvest Treatment of Zn ＆ B Affects the Fruit Quality and Storability of Sweet Orange

Physico-chemical composition of sweet orange （Citrus sinensis L.） cv. blood red was determined in relation to different storage conditions and micronutrients application at department of horticulture, Agricultural University Peshawar, Pakistan during 2006-2007 and 2007-2008. The post-harvest quality of sweet orange was evaluated for 60 days storage with 20 days intervals. Fruit were harvested after the foliar application of zinc and boron in two consecutive seasons. The harvested fruits were stored at an ambient temperature （ATS） of 25 ＋ 2 ℃ and at low temperature storage （LTS） of 15 ± 2 ℃ with 60%-70% relative humidity （RH） for 60 days. Sweet oranges stored at LTS maintained better fruit quality than ATS. The foliar application of zinc and boron significantly enhanced fruit juice content, total soluble solids （TSS）, ascorbic acid （AA） and non-reducing sugar （NRS） of fruit. However, fruit juice content, TSS and AA were observed significantly higher, when the fruit was treated with high zinc （1%） and low boron （0.02%）. The percent of weight loss, disease incidence, TSS and reducing sugar （RS） increased with increasing the storage durations. A reduction was noted in fruit juice, AA and NRS with increasing the storage durations.

河南卢氏地区黑色岩系沉积型褐铁矿及其伴生钼锌组分的工业价值探讨

沉积型铁矿床以赤铁矿和磁铁矿为主,罕见沉积型褐铁矿床。黑色岩系中富集Mo、Ni、V、PGE实例较多,但黑色岩系中发现有沉积型褐铁矿床的报道少见,更未见沉积型褐铁矿床中有Mo、Zn矿化的报道。河南卢氏地区震旦系东坡组黑色岩系中发育有褐铁矿化,并伴生有钼、锌元素大规模高强度异常,前人认为是“铁帽”,深部有找寻大型硫化物原生矿床的潜力。通过对铁矿床含矿建造的重新厘定和成矿环境的恢复,以及对成矿物质来源的示踪,达到了对成矿过程的精细研究,认为区内铁矿化原始成矿方式为沉积成矿,主要以褐铁矿形式沉积,赤铁矿次之,后期强烈的构造变形使矿体遭受强烈的风化淋滤改造,致使矿床成因信息受到掩盖,是“假铁帽”。钼、锌元素以离子形式被铁质胶体和有机质吸附、携载迁移,在特定部位共同卸载沉淀,无独立的钼、锌矿物产出,没有工业价值。