Calculation of microscopic nuclear level densities based on covariant density functional theory

In this study,a microscopic method for calculating the nuclear level density(NLD)based on the covariant density functional theory(CDFT)is developed.The particle-hole state density is calculated by a combinatorial method using single-particle level schemes obtained from the CDFT,and the level densities are then obtained by considering collective effects such as vibration and rotation.Our results are compared with those of other NLD models,including phenomenological,microstatisti-cal and nonrelativistic Hartree–Fock–Bogoliubov combinatorial models.This comparison suggests that the general trends among these models are essentially the same,except for some deviations among the different NLD models.In addition,the NLDs obtained using the CDFT combinatorial method with normalization are compared with experimental data,including the observed cumulative number of levels at low excitation energies and the measured NLDs.The CDFT combinatorial method yields results that are in reasonable agreement with the existing experimental data.

Adaptive Density-Based Spatial Clustering of Applications with Noise(ADBSCAN)for Clusters of Different Densities

Finding clusters based on density represents a significant class of clustering algorithms.These methods can discover clusters of various shapes and sizes.The most studied algorithm in this class is theDensity-Based Spatial Clustering of Applications with Noise(DBSCAN).It identifies clusters by grouping the densely connected objects into one group and discarding the noise objects.It requires two input parameters:epsilon(fixed neighborhood radius)and MinPts(the lowest number of objects in epsilon).However,it can’t handle clusters of various densities since it uses a global value for epsilon.This article proposes an adaptation of the DBSCAN method so it can discover clusters of varied densities besides reducing the required number of input parameters to only one.Only user input in the proposed method is the MinPts.Epsilon on the other hand,is computed automatically based on statistical information of the dataset.The proposed method finds the core distance for each object in the dataset,takes the average of these distances as the first value of epsilon,and finds the clusters satisfying this density level.The remaining unclustered objects will be clustered using a new value of epsilon that equals the average core distances of unclustered objects.This process continues until all objects have been clustered or the remaining unclustered objects are less than 0.006 of the dataset’s size.The proposed method requires MinPts only as an input parameter because epsilon is computed from data.Benchmark datasets were used to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed method that produced promising results.Practical experiments demonstrate that the outstanding ability of the proposed method to detect clusters of different densities even if there is no separation between them.The accuracy of the method ranges from 92%to 100%for the experimented datasets.

The Probability Density Function Related to Shallow Cumulus Entrainment Rate and Its Influencing Factors in a Large-Eddy Simulation

The process of entrainment-mixing between cumulus clouds and the ambient air is important for the development of cumulus clouds.Accurately obtaining the entrainment rate(λ)is particularly important for its parameterization within the overall cumulus parameterization scheme.In this study,an improved bulk-plume method is proposed by solving the equations of two conserved variables simultaneously to calculateλof cumulus clouds in a large-eddy simulation.The results demonstrate that the improved bulk-plume method is more reliable than the traditional bulk-plume method,becauseλ,as calculated from the improved method,falls within the range ofλvalues obtained from the traditional method using different conserved variables.The probability density functions ofλfor all data,different times,and different heights can be well-fitted by a log-normal distribution,which supports the assumed stochastic entrainment process in previous studies.Further analysis demonstrate that the relationship betweenλand the vertical velocity is better than other thermodynamic/dynamical properties;thus,the vertical velocity is recommended as the primary influencing factor for the parameterization ofλin the future.The results of this study enhance the theoretical understanding ofλand its influencing factors and shed new light on the development ofλparameterization.

A facile strategy for tuning the density of surface-grafted biomolecules for melt extrusion-based additive manufacturing applications

Melt extrusion-based additive manufacturing(ME-AM)is a promising technique to fabricate porous scaffolds for tissue engi-neering applications.However,most synthetic semicrystalline polymers do not possess the intrinsic biological activity required to control cell fate.Grafting of biomolecules on polymeric surfaces of AM scaffolds enhances the bioactivity of a construct;however,there are limited strategies available to control the surface density.Here,we report a strategy to tune the surface density of bioactive groups by blending a low molecular weight poly(ε-caprolactone)5k(PCL5k)containing orthogonally reactive azide groups with an unfunctionalized high molecular weight PCL75k at different ratios.Stable porous three-dimensional(3D)scaf-folds were then fabricated using a high weight percentage(75 wt.%)of the low molecular weight PCL 5k.As a proof-of-concept test,we prepared films of three different mass ratios of low and high molecular weight polymers with a thermopress and reacted with an alkynated fluorescent model compound on the surface,yielding a density of 201-561 pmol/cm^(2).Subsequently,a bone morphogenetic protein 2(BMP-2)-derived peptide was grafted onto the films comprising different blend compositions,and the effect of peptide surface density on the osteogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal stromal cells(hMSCs)was assessed.After two weeks of culturing in a basic medium,cells expressed higher levels of BMP receptor II(BMPRII)on films with the conjugated peptide.In addition,we found that alkaline phosphatase activity was only significantly enhanced on films contain-ing the highest peptide density(i.e.,561 pmol/cm^(2)),indicating the importance of the surface density.Taken together,these results emphasize that the density of surface peptides on cell differentiation must be considered at the cell-material interface.Moreover,we have presented a viable strategy for ME-AM community that desires to tune the bulk and surface functionality via blending of(modified)polymers.Furthermore,the use of alkyne-azide“click”chemistry enables spatial control over bioconjugation of many tissue-specific moieties,making this approach a versatile strategy for tissue engineering applications.

Grain yield and N uptake of maize in response to increased plant density under reduced water and nitrogen supply conditions

The development of modern agriculture requires the reduction of water and chemical N fertilizer inputs.Increasing the planting density can maintain higher yields,but also consumes more of these restrictive resources.However,whether an increased maize density can compensate for the negative effects of reduced water and N supply on grain yield and N uptake in the arid irrigated areas remains unknown.This study is part of a long-term positioning trial that started in 2016.A split-split plot field experiment of maize was implemented in the arid irrigated area of northwestern China in 2020 to 2021.The treatments included two irrigation levels:local conventional irrigation reduced by 20%(W1,3,240 m^(3)ha^(-1))and local conventional irrigation(W2,4,050 m^(3)ha^(-1));two N application rates:local conventional N reduced by 25%(N1,270 kg ha^(-1))and local conventional N(360 kg ha^(-1));and three planting densities:local conventional density(D1,75,000 plants ha^(-1)),density increased by 30%(D2,97,500 plants ha-1),and density increased by 60%(D3,120,000 plants ha^(-1)).Our results showed that the grain yield and aboveground N accumulation of maize were lower under the reduced water and N inputs,but increasing the maize density by 30% can compensate for the reductions of grain yield and aboveground N accumulation caused by the reduced water and N supply.When water was reduced while the N application rate remained unchanged,increasing the planting density by 30% enhanced grain yield by 13.9% and aboveground N accumulation by 15.3%.Under reduced water and N inputs,increasing the maize density by 30% enhanced N uptake efficiency and N partial factor productivity,and it also compensated for the N harvest index and N metabolic related enzyme activities.Compared with W2N2D1,the N uptake efficiency and N partial factor productivity increased by 28.6 and 17.6%under W1N1D2.W1N2D2 had 8.4% higher N uptake efficiency and 13.9% higher N partial factor productivity than W2N2D1.W1N2D2 improved urease activity and nitrate reductase activity by 5.4% at the R2(blister)stage and 19.6% at the V6(6th leaf)stage,and increased net income and the benefit:cost ratio by 22.1 and 16.7%,respectively.W1N1D2 and W1N2D2 reduced the nitrate nitrogen and ammoniacal nitrogen contents at the R6 stage in the 40-100 cm soil layer,compared with W2N2D1.In summary,increasing the planting density by 30% can compensate for the loss of grain yield and aboveground N accumulation under reduced water and N inputs.Meanwhile,increasing the maize density by 30% improved grain yield and aboveground N accumulation when water was reduced by 20% while the N application rate remained constant in arid irrigation areas.

Flexible,high-density,laminated ECoG electrode array for high spatiotemporal resolution foci diagnostic localization of refractory epilepsy

High spatiotemporal resolution brain electrical signals are critical for basic neuroscience research and high-precision focus diagnostic localization,as the spatial scale of some pathologic signals is at the submillimeter or micrometer level.This entails connecting hundreds or thousands of electrode wires on a limited surface.This study reported a class of flexible,ultrathin,highdensity electrocorticogram(ECoG)electrode arrays.The challenge of a large number of wiring arrangements was overcome by a laminated structure design and processing technology improvement.The flexible,ultrathin,high-density ECoG electrode array was conformably attached to the cortex for reliable,high spatial resolution electrophysiologic recordings.The minimum spacing between electrodes was 15μm,comparable to the diameter of a single neuron.Eight hundred electrodes were prepared with an electrode density of 4444 mm^(-2).In focal epilepsy surgery,the flexible,high-density,laminated ECoG electrode array with 36 electrodes was applied to collect epileptic spike waves inrabbits,improving the positioning accuracy of epilepsy lesions from the centimeter to the submillimeter level.The flexible,high-density,laminated ECoG electrode array has potential clinical applications in intractable epilepsy and other neurologic diseases requiring high-precision electroencephalogram acquisition.

Method to measure tree-ring width,density,elemental composition,and stable carbon and oxygen isotopes using one sample

Tree-ring width(RW),density,elemental com-position,and stable carbon and oxygen isotope(δ^(13)C,δ^(18)O)are widely used as proxies to assess climate change,ecology,and environmental pollution;however,a specific pretreat-ment has been needed for each proxy.Here,we developed a method by which each proxy can be measured in the same sample.First,the sample is polished for ring width meas-urement.After obtaining the ring width data,the sample is cut to form a 1-mm-thick wood plate.The sample is then mounted in a vertical sample holder,and gradually scanned by an X-ray beam.Simultaneously,the count rates of the fluorescent photons of elements(for chemical characteriza-tion)and a radiographic grayscale image(for wood density)are obtained,i.e.the density and the element content are obtained.Then,cellulose is isolated from the 1-mm wood plate by removal of lignin,and hemicellulose.After producing this cellulose plate,cellulose subsamples are separated by knife under the microscope for inter-annual and intra-annual stable carbon and oxygen isotope(δ^(13)C,δ^(18)O)analysis.Based on this method,RW,density,elemental composition,δ^(13)C,and δ^(18)O can be measured from the same sample,which reduces sample amount and treatment time,and is helpful for multi-proxy comparison and combination research.

11.2 W/mm power density AlGaN/GaN high electron-mobility transistors on a GaN substrate

In this letter,high power density AlGaN/GaN high electron-mobility transistors(HEMTs)on a freestanding GaN substrate are reported.An asymmetricΓ-shaped 500-nm gate with a field plate of 650 nm is introduced to improve microwave power performance.The breakdown voltage(BV)is increased to more than 200 V for the fabricated device with gate-to-source and gate-to-drain distances of 1.08 and 2.92μm.A record continuous-wave power density of 11.2 W/mm@10 GHz is realized with a drain bias of 70 V.The maximum oscillation frequency(f_(max))and unity current gain cut-off frequency(f_(t))of the AlGaN/GaN HEMTs exceed 30 and 20 GHz,respectively.The results demonstrate the potential of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs on freestanding GaN substrates for microwave power applications.

Optimum Profiles of Endwall Contouring for Enhanced Net Heat Flux Reduction and Aerodynamic Performance

Successfully utilized non-axisymmetric endwalls to enhance turbine efficiencies(aerodynamic and turbine inlet temperatures)by controlling the characteristics of the secondary flow in a blade passage.This is accomplished by steady-state numerical hydrodynamics and deep knowledge of the field of flow.Because of the interaction between mainstream and purge flow contributing supplementary losses in the stage,non-axisymmetric endwalls are highly susceptible to the inception of purge flow exit compared to the flat and any advantage rapidly vanishes.The conclusions reveal that the supreme endwall pattern could yield a lowering of the gross pressure loss at the design stage and is related to the size of the top-loss location being productively lowered.This has led to diminished global thermal exchange lowered in the passage of the vane alone.The reverse flow adjacent to the suction side corner of the endwall is migrated farther from the vane surface,as the deviated pressure spread on the endwall accelerates the flow and progresses the reverse flow core still downstream.The depleted association between the tornado-like vortex and the corner vortex adjacent to the suction side corner of the endwall is the dominant mechanism of control in the contoured end wall.In this publication,we show that the non-axisymmetric endwall contouring by selective numerical shape change method at most prominent locations is advantageous in lowering the thermal load in turbines to augment the net heat flux reduction as well as the aerodynamic performance using multi-objective optimization.

基于FLUXNET站点数据的中纬度森林对地表通量的影响

利用最新FLUXNET数据集,采用森林站和非森林站(开阔地)的对比分析用以表征毁林的作用,探讨中纬度地区毁林对地表通量和波文比的季节和日内影响。结果表明,毁林使得地表通量和波文比降低,其中以感热通量的减少为主。通过对比不同森林类型毁林发现,在日尺度上,地表通量变化在正午达到最强值,混合林地表通量变化相比于常绿针叶林较强,而弱于落叶阔叶林。在季节尺度上,感热通量在常绿针叶林和混合林中减少,潜热通量则在常绿针叶林和落叶阔叶林中减少。通过对不同气候区下地表通量变化发现,毁林使得常湿冷温气候地表通量以潜热通量减少为主,而常湿温暖气候以感热通量减少为主。夏干温暖气候下冬季感热通量减少,潜热通量增加,夏季则感热通量增加,潜热通量减少。整体而言,不同森林类型毁林影响地表通量变化的符号存在差异,而背景气候也决定了地表通量变化是以感热还是潜热通量变化为主。研究揭示了中纬度毁林对地表通量的影响,可以为中纬度地区植被恢复/造林政策的制定和实施提供观测依据,也可以为模式检验提供一定参考价值。

基于Ameriflux通量观测数据的Hi-GLASS潜热通量产品验证

潜热通量产品的验证与分析对于研究气候变化及能量循环具有重要意义。全球陆表高分辨率蒸散产品(high resolution global lAnd surface evapotranspiration product,Hi-GLASS ET)融合了5种传统蒸散算法,能够生产出较高精度的陆表潜热通量产品,但目前没有针对此产品的验证研究。利用Ameriflux通量观测站点的潜热通量观测值与相应的Hi-GLASS陆表潜热通量产品估算值进行对比,获取多组有效验证数据。验证结果显示,所选站点实际观测值与产品估算值的决定系数(R 2)为0.6,均方根误差(RMSE)为34.4 W/m^(2),平均偏差(Bias)为-13.4 W/m^(2),克林-古普塔效率(Kling-Gupta efficiency,KGE)为0.49,Hi-GLASS潜热通量产品具有较高的精度,算法的拟合结果较好;此外,空间分布也表明Hi-GLASS陆表潜热通量产品符合正常的自然规律。由于数据获取的局限性,仅采用了美国地区18个站点数据对产品进行验证,在其他地区仍需进一步验证。

Comparison of ERA5 turbulent fluxes at the air-sea interface with measurements from a wave-following platform

Turbulent fluxes at the air-sea interface were estimated with data collected in 2011-2020 with a low-profile platform named OCARINA during eight experiments in five regions:2011,2015,and 2016 in the Iroise Sea;2012 in the tropical Atlantic;2014 in the Chilie-Peru upwelling;2017 and 2018 in the Mediterranean Sea,and 2018 and 2020 in Barbados.The observations were carried out with moderate winds(2-10 m s^(-1))and average wave heights of 1.5 m.In this study,the authors used the fluxes calculated by the bulk method using OCARINA-sampled data as the input.These data can validate the fluxes estimated from ERAS reanalysis data.The OCARINA and ERA5 data were taken concomitantly.To do this,the authors established an algorithm to extract the OCARINA data as closely as possible to the reanalysis data in time and position.The measurements of the OCARINA platform can conclude on the relevance of the widely used reanalysis data.

Diffusion and reaction mechanism of limestone and quartz in fluxed iron ore pellet roasting process

The increase to the proportion of fluxed pellets in the blast furnace burden is a useful way to reduce the carbon emissions in the ironmaking process.In this study,the interaction between calcium carbonate and iron ore powder and the mineralization mechanism of fluxed iron ore pellet in the roasting process were investigated through diffusion couple experiments.Scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy was used to study the elements’diffusion and phase transformation during the roasting process.The results indicated that limestone decomposed into calcium oxide,and magnetite was oxidized to hematite at the early stage of preheating.With the increase in roasting temperature,the diffusion rate of Fe and Ca was obviously accelerated,while the diffusion rate of Si was relatively slow.The order of magnitude of interdiffusion coefficient of Fe_(2)O_(3)-CaO diffusion couple was 10^(−10) m^(2)·s^(−1) at a roasting temperature of 1200℃for 9 h.Ca_(2)Fe_(2)O_(5) was the initial product in the Fe_(2)O_(3)-CaO-SiO_(2) diffusion interface,and then Ca_(2)Fe_(2)O_(5) continued to react with Fe_(2)O_(3) to form CaFe_(2)O_(4).With the expansion of the diffusion region,the sillico-ferrite of calcium liquid phase was produced due to the melting of SiO_(2) into CaFe_(2)O_(4),which can strengthen the consolidation of fluxed pellets.Furthermore,andradite would be formed around a small part of quartz particles,which is also conducive to the consolidation of fluxed pellets.In addition,the principle diagram of limestone and quartz diffusion reaction in the process of fluxed pellet roasting was discussed.

Study of the pressure transient behavior of directional wells considering the effect of non-uniform flux distribution

During the production,the fluid in the vicinity of the directional well enters the wellbore with different rates,leading to non-uniform flux distribution along the directional well.However,in all existing studies,it is oversimplified to a uniform flux distribution,which can result in inaccurate results for field applications.Therefore,this paper proposes a semi-analytical model of a directional well based on the assumption of non-uniform flux distribution.Specifically,the direction well is discretized into a carefully chosen series of linear sources,such that the complex well trajectory can be captured and the nonuniform flux distribution along the wellbore can be considered to model the three-dimensional flow behavior.By using the finite difference method,we can obtain the numerical solutions of the transient flow within the wellbore.With the aid of Green's function method,we can obtain the analytical solutions of the transient flow from the matrix to the wellbore.The complete flow behavior of a directional well is perfectly represented by coupling the above two types of transient flow.Subsequently,on the basis of the proposed model,we conduct a comprehensive analysis of the pressure transient behavior of a directional well.The computation results show that the flux variation along the direction well has a significant effect on pressure responses.In addition,the directional well in an infinite reservoir may exhibit the following flow regimes:wellbore afterflow,transition flow,inclined radial flow,elliptical flow,horizontal linear flow,and horizontal radial flow.The horizontal linear flow can be observed only if the formation thickness is much smaller than the well length.Furthermore,a dip region that appears on the pressure derivative curve indicates the three-dimensional flow behavior near the wellbore.

FPGA-based position reconstruction method for neutron beam flux spatial distribution measurement in BNCT

A new measurement method for the spatial distribution of neutron beam flux in boron neutron capture therapy(BNCT)is being developed based on the two-dimensional Micromegas detector.To address the issue of long processing times in traditional offline position reconstruction methods,this paper proposes a field programmable gate array based online position reconstruction method utilizing the micro-time projection chamber principle.This method encapsulates key technical aspects:a self-adaptive serial link technique built upon the dynamical adjustment of the delay chain length,fast sorting,a coordinate-matching technique based on the mapping between signal timestamps and random access memory(RAM)addresses,and a precise start point-merging technique utilizing a circular combined RAM.The performance test of the selfadaptive serial link shows that the bit error rate of the link is better than 10-12 at a confidence level of 99%,ensuring reliable data transmission.The experiment utilizing the readout electronics and Micromegas detector shows a spatial resolution of approximately 1.4 mm,surpassing the current method’s resolution level of 5 mm.The beam experiment confirms that the readout electronics system can obtain the flux spatial distribution of neutron beams online,thus validating the feasibility of the position reconstruction method.The online position reconstruction method avoids traditional methods,such as bubble sorting and traversal searching,simplifies the design of the logic firmware,and reduces the time complexity from O(n2)to O(n).This study contributes to the advancement in measuring neutron beam flux for BNCT.

Electron density measurement by the three boundary channels of HCOOH laser interferometer on the HL-3 tokamak

Far-infrared(FIR)interferometer is widely used to measure the electron density in the magnetically confined fusion plasma devices.A new FIR laser interferometer with a total of 13 channels(8 horizontal channels and 5 oblique channels)is under development on the HL-3tokamak by using the formic-acid laser(HCOOH,f=694 GHz).In order to investigate the boundary electron density activity during the divertor discharge,three horizontal interferometry channels located at Z=-97,-76,76.5 cm have been successfully developed on HL-3 in 2023,and put into operation in recent experimental campaign,with a time resolution of<1.0μs and lineintegrated electron density resolution of~7.0×10^(16) m^(-2).This paper mainly focuses on the optical design of the three-channel interferometry system,as well as optical elements and recent experimental result on HL-3.

The effect of topographic density variations on the geoid and orthometric heights in Hong Kong

Utilizing the adopted average topographic density of 2670 kg/m^(3)in the reduction of gravity anomalies introduces errors attributed to topographic density variations,which consequently affect geoid modeling accuracy.Furthermore,the mean gravity along the plumbline within the topography in the definition of Helmert orthometric heights is computed approximately by applying the Poincar e-Prey gravity reduction where the topographic density variations are disregarded.The Helmert orthometric heights of benchmarks are then affected by errors.These errors could be random or systematic depending on the specific geological setting of the region where the leveling network is physically established and/or the geoid model is determined.An example of systematic errors in orthometric heights can be given for large regions characterized by sediment or volcanic deposits,the density of which is substantially lower than the adopted topographic density used in Helmert's definition of heights.The same applies to geoid modeling errors.In this study,we investigate these errors in the Hong Kong territory,where topographic density is about 20%lower than the density of 2670 kg/m^(3).We use the digital rock density model to estimate the effect of topographic density variations on the geoid and orthometric heights.Our results show that this effect on the geoid and Helmert orthometric heights reach maxima of about 2.1 and 0.5 cm,respectively.Both results provide clear evidence that rock density models are essential in physical geodesy applications involving gravimetric geoid modeling and orthometric height determination despite some criticism that could be raised regarding the reliability of these density models.However,in regions dominated by sedimentary and igneous rocks,the geological information is essential in these applications because topographic densities are substantially lower than the average density of 2670 kg/m^(3),thus introducing large systematic errors in geoid and orthometric heights.

Hydrographic Characteristics and Oceanic Heat Flux in the Upper Arctic Ocean over the Alpha Ridge Observed by the DTOP Platform in 2018 and 2021

In 2018 and 2021,the Drift-Towing Ocean Profilers(DTOP)provided extensive temperature and salinity data on the upper 120m ocean through their drifts over the Alpha Ridge north of the Canada Basin.The thickness and temperature maximum of Alaska Coastal Water(ACW)ranged from 20m to 40m and-1.5℃to-0.8℃,respectively,and the salinity generally maintained from 30.2 to 32.5.Comparison with World Ocean Atlas 2018’s climatology manifested a 40m-thick and warm ACW roughly ex-ceeding the temperature maximum by 0.4–0.5℃in June–August 2021.This anomalously warm ACW was highly related to the ex-pansion of the Beaufort Gyre in the negative Arctic Oscillation phase.During summer,the under-ice oceanic heat flux F_(w)^(OHF)was elevated,with a maximum value of above 25Wm^(-2).F_(w)^(OHF)was typically low in the freezing season,with an average value of 1.2Wm^(-2).The estimates of upward heat flux contributed by ACW to the sea ice bottom F_(w)^(OHF)were in the range of 3–4Wm^(-2)in June–August 2021,when ACW contained a heat content of more than 80MJm^(-2).The heat loss over this period was driven by a weak stratification upon the ACW layer associated with a surface mixed layer(SML)approaching the ACW core.After autumn,F_(w)^(OHF)was reduced(<2 Wm^(-2))except during rare events when it elevated F_(w)^(OHF)slightly.In addition,the intensive and widespread Ekman suction,which created a violent upwelling north of the Canada Basin,was largely responsible for the substantial cooling and thinning of the ACW layer in the summer of 2021.

Tanshinone IIA ameliorates energy metabolism dysfunction of pulmonary fibrosis using 13C metabolic flux analysis

Evidence indicates that metabolic reprogramming characterized by the changes in cellular metabolic patterns contributes to the pathogenesis of pulmonary fibrosis (PF). It is considered as a promising therapeutic target anti-PF. The well-documented against PF properties of Tanshinone IIA (Tan IIA) have been primarily attributed to its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory potency. Emerging evidence suggests that Tan IIA may target energy metabolism pathways, including glycolysis and tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. However, the detailed and advanced mechanisms underlying the anti-PF activities remain obscure. In this study, we applied [U-13C]-glucose metabolic flux analysis (MFA) to examine metabolism flux disruption and modulation nodes of Tan IIA in PF. We identified that Tan IIA inhibited the glycolysis and TCA flux, thereby suppressing the production of transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1)-dependent extracellular matrix and the differentiation and proliferation of myofibroblasts in vitro. We further revealed that Tan IIA inhibited the expression of key metabolic enzyme hexokinase 2 (HK2) by inhibiting phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt)/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR)/hypoxia-inducible factor 1α (HIF-1α) pathway activities, which decreased the accumulation of abnormal metabolites. Notably, we demonstrated that Tan IIA inhibited ATP citrate lyase (ACLY) activity, which reduced the collagen synthesis pathway caused by cytosol citrate consumption. Further, these results were validated in a mouse model of bleomycin-induced PF. This study was novel in exploring the mechanism of the occurrence and development of Tan IIA in treating PF using 13C-MFA technology. It provided a novel understanding of the mechanism of Tan IIA against PF from the perspective of metabolic reprogramming.

High-chromium vanadium-titanium magnetite all-pellet integrated burden optimization and softening-melting behavior based on flux pellets

High-chromium vanadium-titanium magnetite(HVTM)is a crucial polymetallic-associated resource to be developed.The allpellet operation is a blast furnace trend that aims to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the future.By referencing the production data of vanadium-titanium magnetite blast furnaces,this study explored the softening-melting behavior of high-chromium vanadium-titanium magnetite and obtained the optimal integrated burden based on flux pellets.The results show that the burden with a composition of 70wt%flux pellets and 30wt%acid pellets exhibits the best softening-melting properties.In comparison to that of the single burden,the softening-melting characteristic temperature of this burden composition was higher.The melting interval first increased from 307 to 362℃and then decreased to 282℃.The maximum pressure drop(ΔPmax)decreased from 26.76 to 19.01 kPa.The permeability index(S)dropped from 4643.5 to 2446.8 kPa·℃.The softening-melting properties of the integrated burden were apparently improved.The acid pellets played a role in withstanding load during the softening process.The flux pellets in the integrated burden exhibited a higher slag melting point,which increased the melting temperature during the melting process.The slag homogeneity and the TiC produced by over-reduction led to the gas permeability deterioration of the single burden.The segregation of the flux and acid pellets in the HVTM proportion and basicity mainly led to the better softening-melting properties of the integrated burden.