Opportunities to Improve the Quality of Environmental Reports and the Effectiveness of Environmental Impact Assessment: A Case of Electric Power Transmission Systems in Brazil

A good quality Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is key for the effectiveness of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) processes and consequently to the acceptability of projects subject to EIA. The international literature has contributed to the understanding of the essential aspects to be verified regarding the quality of EIS, offering a wide spectrum of good practice examples related to the content of the studies. Even so, there is a need for empirical studies that allow the identification of specific aspects related to the context of application of the EIS, which could lead to the identification of opportunities to improve both the quality of the reports and also the effectiveness of EIA. Therefore, the present paper is focused on the quality review of a number of EIS submitted to the Brazilian Federal Environmental Agency (Ibama) to instruct the assessment of electric power transmission systems. Based on the application of the EIS quality review package as proposed by Lee and Colley (1992), the outcomes reveal opportunities for improving the scope of EIA, analysis of alternatives, prediction of magnitude and the assessment of impact significance. Finally, the development and/or adaptation of a similar tool for the systematic review of the quality of EIA reports is recommended.

Effects of octreotide on gallbladder pressure and myoelectric activity of Oddi sphincter in rabbits

AIM To observe the effect of octreotide (OT) and somatostatin (SS) on gallbladder pressure and myoelectric activity of SO in rabbits. METHODS Male rabbits fasted for 15h - 18h and anesthetized with urethane. The mean gallbladder pressure (GP) and myoelectric activity of SO were simultaneously measured with a frog bladder connected to a transducer and a pair of copper electrodes. RESULTS After injection of OT (10μg/kg, iv), the GP decreased in 2min and reached the lowest value in about 60min ( P <0 01, n =19), and completely or partially returned to the normal level in 120min. The frequency of myoelectric activity of SO was reduced, even disappeared in 2min ( P <0 01, n =19) and returned to normal in about 20min . Injection of SS (10μg/kg, iv) also decreased GP and myoelectric activity of SO ( P <0 01, n =7); Before and after injection of OT or SS, injection of CCK 8 ( 100ng or 200ng ) caused similar increase in myoelectric activity of SO and GP ( P >0 05). Before and after injection of OT, there were no significant differences in increases of myoelectric activity of SO and GP caused by electric stimulation of dorsal motor nucleus of vagus ( P >0 05). CONCLUSION OT and SS decreased GP and myoelectric activity of SO, demonstrating that effects of OT were similar to those of SS. Intravenous injection of OT did not affect the increase of myoelectric activity of SO and GP caused by CCK 8 or electric stimulation of dorsal motor nucleus of vagus.

INTERACTION MODELS FOR EFFECTIVE THERMAL AND ELECTRIC CONDUCTIVITIES OF CARBON NANOTUBE COMPOSITES

The present article provides supplementary information of previous works of analytic models for predicting conductivity enhancements of carbon nanotube composites. The models, though fairly simple, are able to take account of the effects of conductivity anisotropy, nonstraightness, and aspect ratio of the CNT additives on the conductivity enhancement of the composite and to give predictions agreeing well with existing experimental data. The omitted detailed derivation of this model is demonstrated in the present article with a more systematical analysis, which may help with further development in this direction. Furthermore, the effects of various orientation distributions of CNTs are reported here for the first time. The information may be useful in design or fabrication technology of CNT composites for better or specified conductivities.

Effect of electric field on the electronic spectrum and the persistent current of a quantum ring with two electrons

The effect of an electric field E on a narrow quantum ring that contains two electrons and is threaded by a magnetic flux B has been investigated. Localization of the electronic distribution and suppression of the AharonovBohm oscillation （ABO） are found in the two-electron ring, which are similar to those found in a one-electron ring. However, the period of ABO in a two-electron ring is reduced by half compared with that in a one-electron ring. Furthermore, during the variation of B, the persistent current of the ground state may undergo a sudden change in sign. This change is associated with a singlet-triplet transition and has no counterpart in one-electron rings. For a given E, there exists a threshold of energy. When the energy of the excited state exceeds the threshold, the localization would disappear and the ABO would recover. The value of the threshold is proportional to the magnitude of E. Once the threshold is exceeded, the persistent current is much stronger than the current of the ground state at E=0.

ELECTRIC FIELD EFFECTS ON YOUNG'S MOLULUS OF NANOWIRES

As an important component of nanodevices and nanomachine constructions, the mechanical performance of nanowires （NWs） has been a subject of intense research efforts due to gaining relevance in controlling functionality of nanoelectromechanical systems （NEMS）; meanwhile, one of the characteristics of the NEMS is the dependence of the functionality of the systems upon the applied electric field. The study of the electric effects on the Young＇s modulus of nanostructures is of certain usefulness in the design of NEMS and the precise measurement of mechanical properties of one-dimensional nanostructures. This paper reviews the origin of the size-dependence of the elastic property of NWs and the factors influencing the discrepancies and inconsistencies in the measured values of the Young＇s modulus for the NW, besides the surface effects, nonlinear effects, the electromechanical coupling effects as a possible effect responsible for the differences in quantitative and qualitative performance of the measured Young＇s modulus for the NWs versus the diameter are clarified.

Lattice Effect on Magnetic and Electrical Properties of Ln_(2/3)Pb_(1/3)MnO_3(Ln=La,Pr,Nd)Films

Lattice effect on magnetic and electrical transport properties of Ln2/3Pb1/3MnO3 （Ln=La, Pr, Nd） films prepared by RF magnetron sputtering technique were investigated. With the decrease of the average ions radius 〈rA〉, the structure of Ln2/3Pb1/3MnO3 （Ln=La, Pr, Nd） targets transit from the rhombohedral phase to the orthorhombic phase, and the Curie temperature reduces rapidly with the decrease of 〈rA〉. The electrical properties show that films are the metallic state which can be fitted to the formula： ρ（T）=ρ0 ＋ ρ1T^2 ＋ ρ2T^4.5 at low temperatures. The temperature range of the ferromagnetic metallic state becomes narrow with the decrease of 〈rA〉. The phenomenon can be explained by the lattice effect.

Nonvolatile ferroelectric control of electronic properties of Bi2Te3

Nonvolatile electric-field control of the unique physical characteristics of topological insulators (TIs) is essential forthe fundamental research and development of practical electronic devices. Electrically tunable transport properties throughgating materials have been extensively investigated. However, the relatively weak and volatile tunability limits its practicalapplications in spintronics. Here, we demonstrate the nonvolatile electric-field control of Bi2Te3 transport properties viaconstructing ferroelectric Rashba architectures, i.e., 2D Bi2Te3/a-In2Se3 ferroelectric field-effect transistors. By switchingthe polarization states of a-In2Se3, the Fermi level, resistance, Fermi wave vector, carrier mobility, carrier density andmagnetoresistance (MR) of the Bi2Te3 film can be effectively modulated. Importantly, a shift of the Fermi level towards aband gap with a surface state occurs as switching to a negative polarization state, the contribution of the surface state to theconductivity then increases, thereby increasing the carrier mobility and electron coherence length significantly, resulting inthe enhanced weak anti-localization (WAL) effect. These results provide a nonvolatile electric-field control method to tunethe electronic properties of TI and can further extend to quantum transport properties.

Three-dimensional forward modeling and response characteristics analysis of foundation pit leakage electric-field considering electrokinetic effect

The traditional ground direct current method is not suitable for leakage detection of underground diaphragm walls in foundation pits because of its low accuracy and poor anti-noise ability.Here,we propose a joint surface-borehole observation device for leakage electric fi eld detection to achieve rapid measurement of the electric fi eld distribution characteristics at ground level in the foundation pit,thus enabling rapid localization of leakage points.We first establish the mechanism and basic equation of the leakage electric field response by combining the electric field formed by electrokinetic effect(EK)and the stable electric fi eld formed by conduction current in a combined leakage channel.Then,the fi nite–infi nite element coupling method is used to solve the electric fi eld equation to simulate the responses of a three-dimensional foundation pit leakage model.Furthermore,we conduct numerical simulations of diff erent pit models to investigate the infl uencing factors of the detection device and response characteristics of the change in the properties of the leakage channel.The results demonstrate that the proposed joint surface-borehole observation device can effi ciently reveal anomalous potential caused by leakage,and the amplitude of the electric fi eld generated by EK can eff ectively strengthen the leakage electric fi eld signal at the leakage,thus improving detection accuracy and effi ciency.

Oscillation of Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction driven by weak electric fields

Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction(DMI) is under extensive investigation considering its crucial status in chiral magnetic orders, such as Néel-type domain wall(DW) and skyrmions. It has been reported that the interfacial DMI originating from Rashba spin–orbit coupling(SOC) can be linearly tuned with strong external electric fields. In this work, we experimentally demonstrate that the strength of DMI exhibits rapid fluctuations, ranging from 10% to 30% of its original value, as a function of applied electric fields in Pt/Co/MgO heterostructures within the small field regime(< 10-2V/nm). Brillouin light scattering(BLS) experiments have been performed to measure DMI, and first-principles calculations show agreement with this observation, which can be explained by the variation in orbital hybridization at the Co/MgO interface in response to the weak electric fields. Our results on voltage control of DMI(VCDMI) suggest that research related to the voltage control of magnetic anisotropy for spin–orbit torque or the motion control of skyrmions might also have to consider the role of the external electric field on DMI as small voltages are generally used for the magnetoresistance detection.

The action mechanism of the work done by the electric field force on moving charges to stimulate the emergence of carrier generation/recombination in a PN junction

It is discovered that the product of the current and the electric field in a PN junction should be regarded as the rate of work(power)done by the electric field force on moving charges(hole current and electron current),which was previously misinterpreted as solely a Joule heating effect.We clarify that it is exactly the work done by the electric field force on the moving charges to stimulate the emergence of non-equilibrium carriers,which triggers the novel physical phenomena.As regards to Joule heat,we point out that it should be calculated from Ohm’s law,rather than simply from the product of the current and the electric field.Based on this understanding,we conduct thorough discussion on the role of the electric field force in the process of carrier recombination and carrier generation.The thermal effects of carrier recombination and carrier generation followed are incorporated into the thermal equation of energy.The present study shows that the exothermic effect of carrier recombination leads to a temperature rise at the PN interface,while the endothermic effect of carrier generation causes a temperature reduction at the interface.These two opposite effects cause opposite heat flow directions in the PN junction under forward and backward bias voltages,highlighting the significance of managing device heating phenomena in design considerations.Therefore,this study possesses referential significance for the design and tuning on the performance of piezotronic devices.

Scale Effects and a Method for Similarity Evaluation in Micro Electrical Discharge Machining

Electrical discharge machining（EDM） is a promising non-traditional micro machining technology that offers a vast array of applications in the manufacturing industry. However, scale effects occur when machining at the micro-scale, which can make it difficult to predict and optimize the machining performances of micro EDM. A new concept of ＂scale effects＂ in micro EDM is proposed, the scale effects can reveal the difference in machining performances between micro EDM and conventional macro EDM. Similarity theory is presented to evaluate the scale effects in micro EDM. Single factor experiments are conducted and the experimental results are analyzed by discussing the similarity difference and similarity precision. The results show that the output results of scale effects in micro EDM do not change linearly with discharge parameters. The values of similarity precision of machining time significantly increase when scaling-down the capacitance or open-circuit voltage. It is indicated that the lower the scale of the discharge parameter, the greater the deviation of non-geometrical similarity degree over geometrical similarity degree, which means that the micro EDM system with lower discharge energy experiences more scale effects. The largest similarity difference is 5.34 while the largest similarity precision can be as high as 114.03. It is suggested that the similarity precision is more effective in reflecting the scale effects and their fluctuation than similarity difference. Consequently, similarity theory is suitable for evaluating the scale effects in micro EDM. This proposed research offers engineering values for optimizing the machining parameters and improving the machining performances of micro EDM.

Unraveling the effect of uniaxial strain on thermoelectric properties of Mg2Si:A density functional theory study

In this work, the effect of uniaxial strain on electronic and thermoelectric properties of magnesium silicide using density functional theory（DFT） and Boltzmann transport equations has been studied. We have found that the value of band gap increases with tensile strain and decreases with compressive strain. The variations of electrical conductivity,Seebeck coefficient, electronic thermal conductivity, and power factor with temperatures have been calculated. The Seebeck coefficient and power factor are observed to be modified strongly with strain. The value of power factor is found to be higher in comparison with the unstrained structure at 2% tensile strain. We have also calculated phonon dispersion, phonon density of states, specific heat at constant volume, and lattice thermal conductivity of material under uniaxial strain. The phonon properties and lattice thermal conductivity of Mg2Si under uniaxial strain have been explored first time in this report.

The First-Principle Calculation of La-doping Effect on Piezoelectricity in Tetragonal KNN Crystal

The La-dopping effect on the piezoelectricity in the K0.5Na0.5NbO3 （KNN） crystal with a tetragonal phase is investigated for the first time using the first-principle calculation based on density functional theory. The full potentiallinearized augumented plane wave plus local orbitals （APW-LO） method and the supercell method are used in the calculation for the KNN crystal with and without the La doping. The results show that the piezoelectricity originates from the strong hybridization between the Nb atom and the O atom, and the substitution of the K or Na atom by the La impurity atom introduces the anisotropic relaxation and enhances the piezoelectricity at first and then restrains the hybridization of the Nb-O atoms when the La doping content further increases.

VSe_(2)/V_(2)C heterocatalyst with built-in electric field for efficient lithium-sulfur batteries:Remedies polysulfide shuttle and conversion kinetics

Lithium sulfur(Li-S)battery is a kind of burgeoning energy storage system with high energy density.However,the electrolyte-soluble intermediate lithium polysulfides(Li PSs)undergo notorious shuttle effect,which seriously hinders the commercialization of Li-S batteries.Herein,a unique VSe_(2)/V_(2)C heterostructure with local built-in electric field was rationally engineered from V_(2)C parent via a facile thermal selenization process.It exquisitely synergizes the strong affinity of V_(2)C with the effective electrocatalytic activity of VSe_(2).More importantly,the local built-in electric field at the heterointerface can sufficiently promote the electron/ion transport ability and eventually boost the conversion kinetics of sulfur species.The Li-S battery equipped with VSe_(2)/V_(2)C-CNTs-PP separator achieved an outstanding initial specific capacity of 1439.1 m A h g^(-1)with a high capacity retention of 73%after 100 cycles at0.1 C.More impressively,a wonderful capacity of 571.6 mA h g^(-1)was effectively maintained after 600cycles at 2 C with a capacity decay rate of 0.07%.Even under a sulfur loading of 4.8 mg cm^(-2),areal capacity still can be up to 5.6 m A h cm^(-2).In-situ Raman tests explicitly illustrate the effectiveness of VSe_(2)/V_(2)C-CNTs modifier in restricting Li PSs shuttle.Combined with density functional theory calculations,the underlying mechanism of VSe_(2)/V_(2)C heterostructure for remedying Li PSs shuttling and conversion kinetics was deciphered.The strategy of constructing VSe_(2)/V_(2)C heterocatalyst in this work proposes a universal protocol to design metal selenide-based separator modifier for Li-S battery.Besides,it opens an efficient avenue for the separator engineering of Li-S batteries.

Two-dimensional investigation of characteristic parameters and their gradients for the self-generated electric and magnetic fields of laser-induced zirconium plasma

Two-dimensional diagnosis of laser-induced zirconium(Zr)plasma has been experimentally performed using the time-of-flight method by employing Faraday cups in addition to electric and magnetic probes.The characteristic parameters of laser-induced Zr plasma have been evaluated as a function of different laser irradiances ranging from 4.5 to 11.7 GW cm-2 at different axial positions of 1–4 cm with a fixed radial distance of 2 cm.A well-supporting correlation between the plume parameters and the laser-plasma-produced spontaneous electric and magnetic(E and B)fields was established.The measurements of the characteristic parameters and spontaneously induced fields were observed to have an increasing trend with the increasing laser irradiance.However,when increasing the spatial distance in both the axial and radial directions,the plasma parameters(electron/ion number density,temperature and kinetic energy)did not show either continuously increasing or decreasing trends due to various kinetic and dynamic processes during the spatial evolution of the plume.However,the E and B fields were observed to be always diffusing away from the target.The radial component of electron number densities remained higher than the axial number density component,whereas the axial ion number density at all laser irradiances and axial distances remained higher than the radial ion number density.The higher axial self-generated electric field(SGEF)values than radial SGEF values are correlated with the effective charge-separation mechanism of electrons and ions.The generation of a self-generated magnetic field is observed dominantly in the radial direction at increasing laser irradiance as compared to the axial one due to the deflection of fast-moving electrons and the persistence of two-electron temperature on the radial axis.

Research on Total Electric Field Prediction Method of Ultra-High Voltage Direct Current Transmission Line Based on Stacking Algorithm

Ultra-high voltage(UHV)transmission lines are an important part of China’s power grid and are often surrounded by a complex electromagnetic environment.The ground total electric field is considered a main electromagnetic environment indicator of UHV transmission lines and is currently employed for reliable long-term operation of the power grid.Yet,the accurate prediction of the ground total electric field remains a technical challenge.In this work,we collected the total electric field data from the Ningdong-Zhejiang±800 kV UHVDC transmission project,as of the Ling Shao line,and perform an outlier analysis of the total electric field data.We show that the Local Outlier Factor(LOF)elimination algorithm has a small average difference and overcomes the performance of Density-Based Spatial Clustering of Applications with Noise(DBSCAN)and Isolated Forest elimination algorithms.Moreover,the Stacking algorithm has been found to have superior prediction accuracy than a variety of similar prediction algorithms,including the traditional finite element.The low prediction error of the Stacking algorithm highlights the superior ability to accurately forecast the ground total electric field of UHVDC transmission lines.

Electric field distribution and effective nonlinear AC and DC responses of graded cylindrical composites

The perturbation method is used to study the localization of electric field distribution and the effective nonlinear response of graded composites under an external alternating-current（AC） and direct-current（DC） electric field E app = E 0（1 ＋ sin ωt）.The dielectric profile of the cylindrical inclusions is modeled by function ε i（r） = C k r k（r ≤ a）,where r is the radius of the cylindrical inclusion,and C k,k,a are parameters.In the dilute limit,the local potentials and the effective nonlinear responses at all harmonics are derived.Meanwhile,the general effective nonlinear responses are also derived and compared with the effective nonlinear responses at harmonics under the AC and DC external field.It is found that the effective nonlinear AC and DC responses at harmonics can be calculated by those of the general effective nonlinear of the graded composites under the external DC electric field.Moreover,the obtained local electrical fields show that the electrical field distribution in the cylindrical inclusions is controllable,and the maximum of the electric field inside the cylinder is at its center.

Understanding the effect of propofol and electrical cardioversion on the systolic blood pressure of emergency department patients with atrial fibrillation

Dear editor, We read with pleasure the well-designed study by Butler et al of electrical cardioversion of emergency department patients with atrial fibrillation. We appreciate their analysis of the distinctives of procedural sedation when employed for this indication. Understanding the dosing adjustments to propofol undertaken by their sedationists will help us more carefully evaluate our own approach to sedating patients undergoing electrical cardioversion of atrial fibrillation.

Effective Response of Nonlinear Spherical Coated Composites Under External AC and DC Electric Field

Under the external AC and DC electric field, the effective response of nonlinear spherical coated composites, which obey the constitutive relation of electric displaeement and electric field, is investigated in the dilute limit by using the perturbation method. The local potentials in inclusion and host regions are derived at all harmonics. Moreover, the formulae of the effective linear and nonlinear responses are given in the dilute limit.

Electron beam modeling and analyses of the electric field distribution and space charge effect

In electron beam technology, one of the critical focuses of research and development efforts is on improving the measurement of electron beam parameters. The parameters are closely related to the generation, emission, operation environment, and role of the electron beam and the corresponding medium. In this study, a field calculation method is proposed, and the electric field intensity distribution on the electron beam’s cross-section is analyzed. The characteristics of beam diffusion caused by the space charge effect are investigated in simulation, and the obtained data are compared with the experiment. The simulation demonstrated that the cross-sectional electric field distribution is primarily affected by the electron beam current, current density distribution, and electron beam propagation speed.