Recent Progress in Improving Rate Performance of Cellulose-Derived Carbon Materials for Sodium-Ion Batteries

Cellulose-derived carbon is regarded as one of the most promising candidates for high-performance anode materials in sodium-ion batteries;however,its poor rate performance at higher current density remains a challenge to achieve high power density sodium-ion batteries.The present review comprehensively elucidates the structural characteristics of cellulose-based materials and cellulose-derived carbon materials,explores the limitations in enhancing rate performance arising from ion diffusion and electronic transfer at the level of cellulose-derived carbon materials,and proposes corresponding strategies to improve rate performance targeted at various precursors of cellulose-based materials.This review also presents an update on recent progress in cellulose-based materials and cellulose-derived carbon materials,with particular focuses on their molecular,crystalline,and aggregation structures.Furthermore,the relationship between storage sodium and rate performance the carbon materials is elucidated through theoretical calculations and characterization analyses.Finally,future perspectives regarding challenges and opportunities in the research field of cellulose-derived carbon anodes are briefly highlighted.

Improving Cyclic Stability and Rate Performance of Lithium Ion Batteries Using La^(3+)Modified LiNi_(0.6)Co_(0.2)Mn_(0.2)O_(2)Cathode Materials

La_(4)NiLiO_(8)-coated NCM622 samples were prepared through a sol-gel method,and the electrochemical performance as cathode materials was investigated.It is revealed that part of the introduced La^(3+)ions produce a coating layer on the surface of NCM622 particles,while the rest occupy the 3b position of the lattice.The optimized sample exhibits a capacity retention of 96.54%after 100 cycles under 1C rate with a discharge specific capacity of 117.54 mAh·g^(-1)under 5C rate,much higher than those of the unmodified sample.The results show that the addition of La^(3+)ion can greatly improve the cyclic stability and the rate performance of NCM622.

Research Progress in Improving the Rate Performance of LiFePO_4 Cathode Materials

Olivine lithium iron phosphate(Li Fe PO4) is considered as a promising cathode material for high power density lithium ion battery due to its high capacity, long cycle life, environmental friendly, low cost, and safety consideration. The theoretical capacity of Li Fe PO4 based on one electron reaction is 170 m Ah g-1at the stable voltage plateau of 3.5 V vs. Li/Li+. However, the instinct drawbacks of olivine structure induce a poor rate performance, resulting from the low lithium ion diffusion rate and low electronic conductivity.In this review, we summarize the methods for enhancing the rate performance of Li Fe PO4 cathode materials,including carbon coating, elements doping, preparation of nanosized materials, porous materials and composites,etc. Meanwhile, the advantages and disadvantages of above methods are also discussed.

BER Performance of FSO Communication System with Differential Signaling over Correlated Atmospheric Turbulence Fading

Free space optical(FSO) communication system with differential signaling possesses the advantage of requiring no channel state information and avoiding computational load or link throughput reduction compared to the systems with conventional receivers. In this work, we investigate bit error rate(BER) performance of this system over partially and fully correlated atmospheric turbulence fading. In order to conduct the above analysis, we obtain a probability density functions(PDF) of the channel fading on the differential signals and derive our instantaneous BER using differential signaling scheme. Based on these results, we develop two closed-form mathematical expressions for the average BER under fully correlated and partially correlated fading in the convergent infinite series confirmed by Cauchy’s ratio test. The accuracy of the derived BER expressions is demonstrated by the Monte Carlo simulations, and the analyses for the effects of the system parameters on the BER performance are provided.

Understanding De-protonation Induced Formation of Spinel Phase in Li-rich Layered Oxides for Improved Rate Performance

Constructing layered-spinel composites is important to improve the rate performance of lithium-rich layered oxides.However,up to now,the effect of microstructure of composites on the rate performance has not been well investigated.In this study,a series of samples were prepared by a simple protonation and de-protonation for the pristine layered material(LiMnNiCoO)obtained by sol-gel method.The characterizations of XRD,Raman and oxidation-reduction potentials of charge-discharge curves demonstrated that these samples after de-protonation are layered-spinel composites.When these composites were tested as a cathode of lithium-ion batteries,the sample treated with 0.1 M of nitric acid exhibited higher discharge capacities at each current density than that of other composites.The outstanding rate performance is attributed to the high concentration of conduction electron resulting from the low average valence state(44.2%of Ni)as confirmed by its high conductivity(1.124×10??mat39800Hz)and ambient temperature magnetic susceptibility(8.40×10emu/Oe?mol).This work has a guiding significance for the synthesis of high rate performance of lithium battery cathode materials.

Yield performance and optimal nitrogen and phosphorus application rates in wheat and faba bean intercropping

Yield performance in cereal and legume intercropping is related to nutrient management,however,the yield response of companion crops to nitrogen(N)input is inconclusive and only limited efforts have focused on rationed phosphorous(P)fertilization.In this study,two multi-year field experiments were implemented from 2014-2019 under identical conditions.Two factors in a randomized complete block design were adopted in both experiments.In field experiment 1,the two factors included three planting patterns(mono-cropped wheat(MW),mono-cropped faba bean(MF),and wheat and faba bean intercropping(W//F))and four N application rates(N0,0 kg N ha^(-1);N1,90 and 45 kg N ha^(-1) for wheat and faba beans,respectively;N2,180 and 90 kg N ha^(-1) for wheat and faba beans,respectively;and N3,270 and 135 kg N ha^(-1) for wheat and faba beans,respectively).In field experiment 2,the two factors included three P application rates(P0,0 kg P_(2)O_(5) ha^(-1);P1,45 kg P_(2)O_(5) ha^(-1);and P2,90 kg P_(2)O_(5) ha^(-1))and the same three planting patterns(MW,MF,and W//F).The yield performances of inter-and mono-cropped wheat and faba beans under different N and P application rates were analyzed and the optimal N and P rates for intercropped wheat(IW)and MW were estimated.The results revealed that intercropping favored wheat yield and was adverse to faba bean yield.Wheat yield increased by 18-26%,but faba bean yield decreased by 5-21% in W//F compared to MW and MF,respectively.The stimulated IW yield drove the yield advantage in W//F with an average land equivalent ratio(LER)of 1.12.N and P fertilization benefited IW yield,but reduced intercropped faba bean(IF)yield.Nevertheless,the partial LER of wheat(pLER_(wheat))decreased with increasing N application rates,and the partial LER of faba bean(pLER_(faba bean))decreased with increasing P application rates.Thus,LER decreased as N input increased and tended to decline as P rates increased.IW maintained a similar yield as MW,even under reduced 40-50% N fertilizer and 30-40% P fertilizer conditions.The estimated optimum N application rates for IW and MW were 150 and 168 kg ha^(-1),respectively,and 63 and 62 kg ha^(-1) for P_(2)O_(5),respectively.In conclusion,W//F exhibited yield advantages due to stimulated IW yield,but the intercropping yield benefit decreased as N and P inputs increased.Thus,it was concluded that modulated N and P rates could maximize the economic and ecological functions of intercropping.Based on the results,rates of 150 kg N ha^(-1) and 60 kg P_(2)O_(5) ha^(-1) are recommended for IW production in southwestern China and places with similar conditions.

Hierarchically Micro/Nanostructured Current Collectors Induced by Ultrafast Femtosecond Laser Strategy for High-Performance Lithium-ion Batteries

Commercial Cu and Al current collectors for lithium-ion batteries(LIBs)possess high electrical conductivity,suitable chemical and electrochemical stability.However,the relatively flat surface of traditional current collectors causes weak bonding strength and poor electrochemical contact between current collectors and electrode materials,resulting in potential detachment of active materials and rapid capacity degradation during extended cycling.Here,we report an ultrafast femtosecond laser strategy to manufacture hierarchical micro/nanostructures on commercial Al and Cu foils as current collectors for high-performance LIBs.The hierarchically micro/nanostructured current collectors(HMNCCs)with high surface area and roughness offer strong adhesion to active materials,fast electronic delivery of entire electrodes,significantly improving reversible capacities and cyclic stability of HMNCCs based LIBs.Consequently,LiNi_(0.5)Co_(0.2)Mn_(0.3)O_(2)(NCM523)cathode with Al HMNCC generated a high reversible capacity after 200 cycles(25%higher than that of cathode with Al CC).Besides,graphite anode with Cu HMNCC also maintained prominent reversible capacity even after 600 cycles.Moreover,the full cell assembled by graphite anode with Cu HMNCC and NCM523 cathode with Al HMNCC achieved high reversible capacity and remarkable cycling stability under industrial-grade mass loading.This study provides promising candidate for achieving high-performance LIBs current collectors.

BER Performance of Finite in Time Optimal FTN Signals for the Viterbi Algorithm

In this article, we consider the faster than Nyquist(FTN) technology in aspects of the application of the Viterbi algorithm(VA). Finite in time optimal FTN signals are used to provide a symbol rate higher than the "Nyquist barrier" without any encoding. These signals are obtained as the solutions of the corresponding optimization problem. Optimal signals are characterized by intersymbol interference(ISI). This fact leads to significant bit error rate(BER) performance degradation for "classical" forms of signals. However, ISI can be controlled by the restriction of the optimization problem. So we can use optimal signals in conditions of increased duration and an increased symbol rate without significant energy losses. The additional symbol rate increase leads to the increase of the reception algorithm complexity. We consider the application of VA for optimal FTN signals reception. The application of VA for receiving optimal FTN signals with increased duration provides close to the potential performance of BER,while the symbol rate is twice above the Nyquist limit.

Effects of Diet with"Lianhuang"Additive of Chinese Herb Medicine on Growth Performance and Metabolic Rates of Dietary Nutrients in Donglan Black Chicken

[Objectives]The study was conducted to evaluate the effects of diet with"Lianhuang"additive of Chinese herbal medicine(LACHM)on growth performance and metabolic rates of dietary nutrients in Donglan black chickens(DBCs).[Methods]80 DBCs aged 1 d were blocked into 4 groups randomly and assigned to 6 replicates in each group with 20 chicks in each replicate.Group A as control group fed basal diet.Groups B,C and D as treatment groups consumed the basal diet added with 0.25%,0.50%and 1.00%of LACHM,respectively during the test period of 70 d.In the end of feeding test,24 DBCs with similar body weight from each group were chosen out and used for a metabolism test to determine the metabolic rates of dietary nutrients from each treatment.The metabolism test was conducted as the same design as the feeding test and the DBCs from each group were fed the same diet as previous test.[Results]The ADG of chickens in the test increased by 5.00%-9.15%(P<0.05)except the stage of 50-70 d,and the individual average body weight(IABW)at 70 d in group B also increased by 4.86%(P<0.05).Compared with group A,the ADG of group C in the stages of 36-49,1-49 and 1-70 d and the IABW in the end of 70 d increased by 5.90%,2.66%,2.68%and 2.57%(P>0.05),respectively.The ADFI in the stage of 36-49 d from group A was 6.04%more than that from group B(P<0.01),and 5.12%and 4.13%more than those from groups C and D(P<0.05),respectively,and the ADFI of group A in the stage of 1-49 d was still 2.86%more than that from group C(P<0.05).However,no differences in ADFI were found in other stages in the test among the 4 groups(P>0.05).The F/G in the stages of 22-35 and 1-70 d from group B was 6.32%and 3.41%lower than those from group A(P<0.05),respectively,and even 11.43%and 7.31%lower in the stages of 36-49 and 1-49 d from group B than those from group A(P<0.01),respectively.The F/G of group C in the stage of 36-49 d was also 10.15%lower than that of group A(P<0.05),and still 5.29%lower than that from group A in 1-49 d(P<0.01),but no differences were found in other stages between the two groups(P>0.05).The metabolic rates of MD,CP,CF,NFE,CA,TE,Ca and P in the 3 treatment diets for group B,C and D all increased to some extent.Among them,the increasing extents of diets with 0.25%and 0.50%of LACHM for groups B and C were much greater.Therefore,the diet with 0.25%of LACHM could improve the growth performance and metabolic rates of dietary nutrients in DBCs significantly.[Conclusions]This study provides a theoretical reference for the effects of traditional Chinese medicine additives on the growth and metabolic rates of DBCs.

Improving the BER performance of turbo codes with short frame size based on union bound

In order to improve the bit error rate(BER) performance of turbo codes with short frame size at a wide range of signal to noise ratio(SNR),a new method by optimizing the bit energy is proposed.At first,a formula derived from the Union Bound is introduced.It describes the relations between the bit error rate distribution and the minimum weight distribution.And then,by mathematically optimizing the formula,the energy for every bit of the codeword is optimized to achieve the minimum BER at high SNR region.At last,an adjustable parameter is employed to compensate the degradations of BER at low and moderate SNR regions.Case studies indicate that the improvements of BER for turbo codes with short frame size are significant at a wide range of SNR.

Performance of a 270 MW Gas Power Plant Using Exergy and Heat Rate

The performance of a 270 MW (9 × 30 MW) AES Corporation barge mounted gas turbine power plant in Nigeria is evaluated using the heat rate and entropy generation by the components of the plant to characterize the irreversibility in each component when operating at different loads between 90% and 25%. The power plants have the peculiarity that three of the plants were supplied by three (3) different Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM);A, B and C. This study is sequel to the fact that the gas turbines were the first independent power plants in the country and after more than fifteen years of operation, it is reasonable to evaluate the performance of the major components. By analyzing the thermodynamic performance of these components, the study demonstrates the utility value of exergy efficiency as an important parameter in the evaluation of major components in a gas power plant. Exergy efficiency is shown to be an important parameter in ranking the power plant components, identifying and quantifying the possible areas of reduction in thermodynamic losses and improvement in efficiencies. A new relationship is derived to demonstrate the correlation between the exergy efficiency and the heat rate of a 30 MW gas power plant. The prediction of the derived relationship correlates well with the observed operational performance of the 30 MW power plants. The combustion chamber in each of the plants provides the maximum exergy destruction during operation. Its exergy efficiency is shown to exhibit good correlation with its energy efficiency and the plant rational exergy. The implication is that from an operational and component selection viewpoint in the specifications of a gas power plant, knowledge of the Heat Rate which is usually provided by the OEM is adequate to make a reasonable inference on the performance of some critical components of the plant.

Layered manganese phosphorus trisulfides for high-performance lithium-ion batteries and the storage mechanism

Although advanced anode materials for the lithium-ion battery have been investigated for decades,a reliable,high-capacity,and durable material that can enable a fast charge remains elusive.Herein,we report that a metal phosphorous trichalcogenide of MnPS_(3)(manganese phosphorus trisulfide),endowed with a unique and layered van der Waals structure,is highly beneficial for the fast insertion/extraction of alkali metal ions and can facilitate changes in the buffer volume during cycles with robust structural stability.The few-layered MnPS_(3)anodes displayed the desirable specific capacity and excellent rate chargeability owing to their good electronic and ionic conductivities.When assembled as a half-cell lithium-ion battery,a high reversible capacity of 380 mA h g^(−1)was maintained by the MnPS_(3)after 3000 cycles at a high current density of 4 A g^(−1),with a capacity retention of close to or above 100%.In full-cell testing,a reversible capacity of 450 mA h g^(−1)after 200 cycles was maintained as well.The results of in-situ TEM revealed that MnPS_(3)nanoflakes maintained a high structural integrity without exhibiting any pulverization after undergoing large volumetric expansion for the insertion of a large number of lithium ions.Their kinetics of lithium-ion diffusion,stable structure,and high pseudocapacitance contributed to their comprehensive performance,for example,a high specific capacity,rapid charge-discharge,and long cyclability.MnPS_(3)is thus an efficient anode for the next generation of batteries with a fast charge/discharge capability.

Market Concentration Rate and Market Performance of China's Swine Industry

Empirical study on market concentration rate and market performance of China's Swine Industry indicates that higher market concentration rate brings higher overall performance of swine industry. There exists no obvious causal relation between market concentration rate and market performance,but market performance is highly correlated with market concentration rate. The improvement in performance of swine industry is dependent on further optimization of market concentration rate and other factors.

Performance analysis of a class of networked control systems under data rate constraints

In networked control system (NCS) where control loop is closed over communication network, limited data rate may deteriorate control performance even destabilize the control system. In this paper, performance analysis of a typical second-order control system with data rate constraints is conducted, and the concept of critical data rate (CDR) is presented. In order to find the CDR in NCS, an approximate searching method is proposed to guarantee acceptable control performance.

Effect of Poly-β-hydroxybutyrate on Reproductive Performance and Larval Development of Fenneropenaeus chinensis

In the present study, Fenneropenaeus chinensis individuals were assigned into six groups, and fed with a diet supplemented with 0 （Control）, 0.5% （Group Eos）, 1.0% （Group E1.0）, 2.0% （Group E2.0）, 3.0% （Group E3.0） or 5.0% （Group E5.0） of poly-13-hydroxybutyrate （PHB） during their growth and spawning periods, to explore the effect of PHB on the reproductive performance of parents and the development of larvae. The experi- ment was lasted for 192 d to measure the mortality rate, relative percentage of survival（RPS）, weight gain rate（WGR）, specific growth rate （SGR） and cycle of gonadal development of parental shrimps, number of eggs, number of nauplii, stages of larval development and metamorphosis. The results indicated that PHB had an obvious effect on the fecundity of parental shrimps and growth performance of larva. Compared with control group, the mortality rate of broodstock in experimental groups decreased initially and increased subsequently with the increase of PHB concentration, while RPS showed an opposite pattern. The mortality rate of group E2.0 was the lowest among all groups, showing significant difference from that of other groups（P 〈 0.05） except group E1.0 （P 〉 0.05）. WGR of all experimental groups was higher than that of the control group, among which, group E2.0 and group E5.0 had significantly higher WGR than the control （P〈0.05）. However, there was no significant difference in the cycle of gonadal development between the experimental groups and the control group （P 〉 0.05）. The numbers of eggs and nauplii in the experimental groups were higher than those of the control group. And the numbers of eggs and nauplii in group E2.0 were significantly higher than those of the control （P 〈 0.05）, bud showed no significant difference from those of other groups （P 〉 0.05）. However, there was no significant difference in the duration of larval development and metamorphosis among all the groups. In summary, PHB is capable of improving the reproductive performance of parents and the survival and development of larva in F. chinensis, and 2.0% is the optimal concentration of PHB supplemented to the diet.

BER Performance of Space-Time Coded MMSE DFE for Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA)

In recent times, there has been growing interests in integration of voice, data and video traffic in wireless communication networks. With these growing interests, WCDMA has immerged as an attractive access technique. The performance of WCDMA system is deteriorated in presence of multipath fading environment. The paper presents space-time coded minimum mean square error (MMSE) Decision Feedback Equalizer (DFE) for wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) in a frequency selective channel. The filter coefficients in MMSE DFE are optimized to suppress noise, intersymbol interference (ISI), and multiple access interference (MAI) with reasonable system complexity. For the above structure, we have presented the estimation of BER for a MMSE DFE using computer simulation experiments. The simulation includes the effects of additive white Gaussian noise, multipath fading and multiple access interference (MAI). Furthermore, the performance is compared with standard linear equalizer (LE) and RAKE receiver. Numerical and simulation results show that the MMSE DFE exhibits significant performance improvement over the standard linear equalizer (LE) and RAKE receiver.

Performance Evaluation of Flows with Diverse Traffic and Transmission Rates in IEEE 802.11 WLAN

IEEE 802.11 WLAN cannot guarantee the QoS of applications, thus admission control has been proposed as an essen-tial solution to enhance the QoS. Packet delay and throughput are commonly employed as assessment criterions to determine whether a new connection can be admitted into the WLAN. Considering the real network condition, the analytical model is presented in this paper, which is aimed to evaluate the packet delay and throughput performance of IEEE 802.11 WLAN in nonsaturated conditions, taking into account diverse transmission rates and diverse traffic flows (i.e. flows with different packet sizes and arrival rates) simultaneously. This model is based on Markov chain and the theoretical predictions are verified by simulation in OPNET 14.5. We also analyze the influences of transmission rate diversity and traffic flow diversity on throughput performance. It is observed that, the presence of even one station with lower transmission rate can cause a considerable degradation in throughput performance of all the stations when they have the same packet size and arrival rate. Higher system throughput can be achieved if lower transmission rate stations transmit packets with smaller size or arrival rate.

Factors affecting specific capacity and rate performance of aqueous Li4Ti5O12 battery

The use of an aqueous slurry in the manufacture of lithium ion batteries has the advantages of being environmentally friendly,harmless to the human body,and low in production cost.In this study,the factors affecting the specific capacity and rate performance of the aqueous Li4Ti5O12 battery were studied,including the Li4Ti5O12 structure,aqueous binder,conductive agent,and surface density.The results show that a spherical secondary particle structure of Li4Ti5O12 is beneficial to its discharge rate performance.In addition,an aqueous binder with high conductivity improves the specific capacity and high rate charge/discharge performance of the battery,and when the amount of binder is 3%,the Li4Ti5O12 battery performs better.A chain structure in the conductive agent also improves the specific capacity and discharge rate performance of the Li4Ti5O12 battery,and increases the degree to which the discharge rate performance of the conductive agent can be further improved.Lastly,the lower the surface density,the better the rate performance of the Li4Ti5O12 battery.

Effect of interest rate on economic performance: evidence from Islamic and non-Islamic economies

Background:Saving and investment are two of the most important tools for economic growth.The interest rate has always been considered an important determinant of saving and investment.However,according to Islamic teachings,riba or earning interest on saving or investment is forbidden,and thus,many Muslims try to avoid earning income from the interest rate.Therefore,the aim of this study is to assess the effects of this religious guideline on the financial decisions of an Islamic country’s population and its impact on saving and investment.Methods:We applied the random effect and system generalized method of moments(GMM)model separately to data of 17 non-Islamic and 17 Islamic countries from 2005 to 2013.Results:The results suggest that people in Islamic countries are not concerned about the interest rate on saving,but in non-Islamic countries,the interest rate,per capita income,and inflation have significant positive impacts,and national expenditure has a significant negative impact on saving.However,in Islamic countries,remittances received and national expenditure have negative significant impacts,and per capita income has a positive significant impact on saving.In the case of investment,interest rate and inflation show a negative effect on investment while trade affects investment positively in both Islamic and non-Islamic countries.Furthermore,domestic credit provided by banks has a negative significant effect on investment in non-Islamic countries,while in Islamic countries,remittances show a positive significant impact on investment.Conclusions:The governments and policy makers of Islamic countries should not imitate the economic policies of non-Islamic countries because religious factors play an important role in the interest rate-saving relationship.Instead,they should increase per capita income by improving employment conditions and by reducing remittances received and national expenditure.Policies on saving should not allow earning interest.Furthermore,in order to increase investment,efforts should be made to lower the interest rate and inflation,and to enhance remittances received and trade.These policies will increase saving and investment in Islamic countries,ultimately resulting in improved economic growth.