天语计划——寻找第二个太阳系及探索动态宇宙

像木星和土星这样的冷巨行星对类地行星的形成和宜居性起到了关键作用,因此,对像太阳系这样具有多个冷巨行星的系统的搜寻具有重要意义.Kepler以及TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite)太空望远镜成功地通过凌星的方法发现了大量短周期行星,然而这些巡天项目的观测基线不足以发现更长周期的行星.为此,天语计划将部署两台1m望远镜(天语一号和天语二号),用于结合天语和其他计划的数据通过凌星法来发现冷巨行星及其他行星,并最终发现类太阳系.天语一号具有约10平方度的视场以及高速CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor)科学相机,将对超过1000万颗恒星每小时进行一次高精度测光采样,并通过天语二号的多波段测光、光谱仪以及高分辨率成像对天语一号发现的候选行星进行确认.天语望远镜将放置于海拔约4000m的中国青海冷湖,是目前中国境内最好观测台址之一.天语对亮于14等星的测光精度为0.1%,对亮于18等星的测光精度优于1%,天语预计在5yr内将在类太阳周期发现超过300颗凌星行星,其中包括约17颗冷巨行星.基于系统轨道共面以及孪生地球发生率为10%的假设,天语预计将发现1-2个类太阳系,并可被未来的地球2.0计划所证实.此外,天语还将通过多种巡天观测模式测量从亚秒到周时标的光变,探测不同时标的时域现象,包括超新星早期光变、稀有变星和双星、潮汐瓦解事件、Be星、彗星活动以及系外小行星等.这些发现不仅将深化我们对宇宙的理解,还将为公众科学和科普提供重要平台.

Alkali and Plasma-Treated Guadua angustifolia Bamboo Fibers:A Study on Reinforcement Potential for Polymeric Matrices

This study focuses on treating Guadua angustifolia bamboo fibers to enhance their properties for reinforcement applications in composite materials.Chemical(alkali)and physical(dry etching plasma)treatments were used separately to augment compatibility of Guadua angustifolia fibers with various composite matrices.The influence of these treatments on the fibers’performance,chemical composition,and surface morphology were analyzed.Statistical analysis indicated that alkali treatments reduced the tensile modulus of elasticity and strength of fibers by up to 40%and 20%,respectively,whereas plasma treatments maintain the fibers’mechanical performance.FTIR spectroscopy revealed significant alterations in chemical composition due to alkali treatments,while plasma-treated fibers showed minimal changes.Surface examination through Scanning Electron Microscopy(SEM)revealed post-treatment modifications in both cases;alkali treatments served as a cleanser,eliminating lignin and hemicellulose from the fiber surface,whereas plasma treatments also produce rough surfaces.These results validate the impact of the treatments on the fiber mechanical performance,which opens up possibilities for using Guadua angustifolia fibers as an alternative reinforcement in composite manufacturing.

Multifunctional Films Based on Wheat Gluten and Microencapsulated Thyme Essential Oil

In this work,active and edible films for food packaging were obtained by intensive mixing and compression molding of the wheat gluten(WG)glycerol-plasticized paste.Thyme essential oil(TEO,10 and 15 wt.%)was incorporated as the active component microencapsulated inβ-cyclodextrins(β-CD)and included directly into the biopolymer matrix for comparison.It was found that films incorporating microencapsulated TEO are more soluble in water(total soluble matter(dry method)of about 33%and 36.6%vs.22.4%and 18.6%,for films containing 10%and 15%TEO,respectively)but less rigid than those obtained with free oil(elastic tensile moduli of 6.9 and 3.1 vs.9.9 and 6.8 MPa,for films containing 10%and 15%TEO,respectively),although the water vapor permeability of the former is lower(4.95 10^(−9) and 6.29 10^(−9) vs.8.85 10^(−9) and 11.1310−9 g/Pa^(*)s^(*)m,for films containing 10%and 15%TEO,respectively).Active films containing both free and encapsulated TEO inhibited gram(+)as well as gram(−)bacteria and exhibited enlarged antioxidant properties,with the latter presenting slightly better performance.In addition,encapsulation slowed the release rate of TEO from the films,allowing the bioactive to remain active in the film for much longer.Therefore,the present work revealed that films prepared from TEO/β-CD microcapsules included in compression-molded wheat gluten matrices showed great potential to be used as an active food packaging.

Geochemical Characterization of Soils in the Playa Lake Environment of Laguna de Encinillas, Chihuahua, Mexico

Laguna de Encinillas, located in Chihuahua, Mexico, is an ephemeral lake situated within a playa lake sedimentary depositional environment. This region plays a significant role in the aquifer supplying water to Chihuahua City. A surficial soil sampling campaign was conducted in 2017, 2018, and 2021 to assess the potential impact of surface soil composition on groundwater quality. The collected soil samples were analyzed using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) following microwave-assisted digestion. The analytical results were employed to generate spatial distribution maps of elemental concentrations using QGIS, applying interpolation methods such as inverse distance weighting (IDW) and Kriging. The analysis revealed elevated concentrations of beryllium (Be), calcium (Ca), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), magnesium (Mg), and strontium (Sr) in the eastern part of the study area. In contrast, arsenic (As) and iron (Fe) were more prevalent in the western sector. Notably, high levels of barium (Ba), silver (Ag), cobalt (Co), potassium (K), and scandium (Sc) were identified in the northeastern region. At the same time, nickel (Ni), titanium (Ti), and vanadium (V) were concentrated in the northern portion. Manganese (Mn) was particularly prominent in the southern area. The geogenic source of these elements is likely linked to the volcanic rocks from the surrounding mountain ranges.

FAST Observations of Four Comets to Search for the Molecular Line Emissions between 1.0 and 1.5 GHz Frequencies

We used the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope(FAST)to search for the molecular emissions in the L-band between 1.0 and 1.5 GHz toward four comets,C/2020 F3(NEOWISE),C/2020 R4(ATLAS),C/2021 A1(Leonard),and 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko during or after their perihelion passages.Thousands of molecular transition lines fall in this low-frequency range,many attributed to complex organic or prebiotic molecules.We conducted a blind search for the possible molecular lines in this frequency range in those comets and could not identify clear signals of molecular emissions in the data.Although several molecules have been detected at high frequencies of greater than100 GHz in comets,our results confirm that it is challenging to detect molecular transitions in the L-band frequency ranges.The non-detection of L-band molecular lines in the cometary environment could rule out the possibility of unusually strong lines,which could be caused by the masers or non-LTE effects.Although the line strengths are predicted to be weak,for FAST,using the ultra-wide bandwidth receiver and improving the radio frequency interference environments would enhance the detectability of those molecular transitions at low frequencies in the future.

A Vision-based Robotic Navigation Method Using an Evolutionary and Fuzzy Q-Learning Approach

The paper presents a fuzzy Q-learning(FQL)and optical flow-based autonomous navigation approach.The FQL method takes decisions in an unknown environment and without mapping,using motion information and through a reinforcement signal into an evolutionary algorithm.The reinforcement signal is calculated by estimating the optical flow densities in areas of the camera to determine whether they are“dense”or“thin”which has a relationship with the proximity of objects.The results obtained show that the present approach improves the rate of learning compared with a method with a simple reward system and without the evolutionary component.The proposed system was implemented in a virtual robotics system using the CoppeliaSim software and in communication with Python.

伊朗棒小蜂科昆虫种类(膜翅目:小蜂总科)(英文)

本文记述伊朗的棒小蜂科昆虫3个属(Chartocerus Motschulsky,Thysanus Walker和Signiphora Ashmead)11种,同时,记述了每一种的异名、寄主和国内外分布情况。

Design and Manufacturing Strategies for Fused Deposition Modelling in Additive Manufacturing:A Review

Although several research works in the literature have focused on studying the capabilities of additive manufacturing(AM) systems, few works have addressed the development of Design for Additive Manufacturing(DfAM) knowledge,tools, rules, and methodologies, which has limited the penetration and impact of AM in industry. In this paper a comprehensive review of design and manufacturing strategies for Fused Deposition Modelling(FDM) is presented.Consequently, several DfAM strategies are proposed and analysed based on existing research works and the operation principles, materials, capabilities and limitations of the FDM process. These strategies have been divided into four main groups: geometry, quality, materials and sustainability. The implementation and practicality of the proposed DfAM is illustrated by three case studies. The new proposed DfAM strategies are intended to assist designers and manufacturers when making decisions to satisfy functional needs, while ensuring manufacturability in FDM systems.Moreover, many of these strategies can be applied or extended to other AM processes besides FDM.

Dispersion of niquel on the microstructure in magnesium based alloys for hydrogen storage

Mg–Xwt.%Ni(X=5 and 20)alloys have been prepared by mechanical alloying using milling times of 15 and 30 h in a planetary ball milling to know the effects of magnesium with the addition of Ni as catalyst,dispersion on the microstructure,area surface and the efficiency of hydrogen storage.SEM-EDS,XRD and ImageJ^(■)software have been used to characterize the microstructure and chemical composition of the alloys.Hydriding experiments were performed as batch-type tests at 200,250 and 300℃ under 2 MPa H2 pressure during 30 min.These experiments resulted in varying amounts of MgH2 in the hydrided powders depending on composition and hydriding conditions.The best results point to an optimum Ni dispersion,which in turn depends on Ni content and milling time.

Current status and trends of carbon-based electrodes for fully solution-processed perovskite solar cells

Perovskite solar cells(PSCs) have revolutionized photovoltaic research. As a result, a certified power conversion efficiency(PCE) of 25.5% was recorded in late 2020. Although this efficiency is comparable with silicon solar cells;some issues remain partially unsolved, such as lead toxicity, instability of perovskite materials under continuous illumination, moisture and oxygen, and degradation of the metallic counter electrodes. As an alternative to tackle this last concern, carbon materials have been recently used, due to their good electrical and thermal conductivity, and chemical stability, which makes them one of the most promising materials to replace metallic counter electrodes in the fabrication of PSCs. This review highlights the recent advances of carbon-based PSCs, where the carbon electrode(CE) is the main actor.CEs have become very promising candidates for PSCs;they are mainly fabricated using a simple combination of graphite and carbon black powders embedded in a binder matrix, giving a paste that is then solution-processable, resulting in devices with improved quality stability, when compared to metallic electrodes. In this review, CE’s composition is emphasized, since it can give both, high and lowtemperature processed electrodes, compatible with different device configurations. Finally, the tendencies and opportunities to use CE in PSCs devices are presented.

Photocatalytic performance of K2Ti6O13 whiskers to H2 evolution and CO2 photo-reduction

K2Ti6O13 whiskers were synthesized by conventional sol-gel method, sono-chemical assisted and microwave assisted sol-gel method in order to obtain catalysts with different particle sizes and to modify their optical, textural and electrochemical properties. These modifications improved their photocatalytic activity for H2 evolution and CO2 photo-reduction. Long K2Ti6O13 whiskers prepared by ultrasound assisted sol-gel method are the most active photocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction using pure water as reactant (U-SG, 10,065 μmol g^-1). In contrast, an opposite behavior was observed using a mixture of ethanol-water, where the highest activity was achieved by the shortest and less crystalline K2Ti6O13 whiskers (C-SG, 3,2871 μmol g^-1). In case of CO2 photo-reduction, long whiskers that were also prepared by the sono-chemical assisted sol-gel method were the most active to transform CO2 to formaldehyde, methane, methanol and hydrogen. The EFB value of this catalyst is located very close to the potential for formaldehyde production and favors the selectivity to this organic product.

Modeling susceptibility to deforestation of remaining ecosystems in North Central Mexico with logistic regression

Determining underlying factors that foster deforestation and delineating forest areas by levels of susceptibility are of the main challenges when defining policies for forest management and planning at regional scale. The susceptibility to deforestation of remaining forest ecosystems （shrubland, temperate forest and rainforest） was conducted in the state of San Luis Potosi, located in north central Mexico. Spatial analysis techniques were used to detect the deforested areas in the study area during 1993-2007. Logistic regression was used to relate explana- tory variables （such as social, investment, forest production, biophysical and proximity factors） with susceptibility to deforestation to construct predictive models with two focuses： general and by biogeographical zone In all models, deforestation has positive correlation with distance to rainfed agriculture, and negative correlation with slope, distance to roads and distance to towns. Other variables were significant in some cases, but in others they had dual relationships, which varied in each biogeographi- cal zone. The results show that the remaining rainforest of Huasteca region is highly susceptible to deforestation. Both approaches show that more than 70% of the current rainforest area has high and very high levels of susceptibility to deforestation. The values represent a serious concern with global warming whether tree carbon is released to atmos- phere. However, after some considerations, encouraging forest environ- mental services appears to be the best alternative to achieve sustainableforest management.

Effect of the initial ECAP passes on crystal texture and residual stresses of 5083 aluminum alloy

To produce a highly refined microstructure,several metals or alloys have been processed via equal-channel angular pressing(ECAP).In this work,the mechanical and microstructural changes of the 5083 aluminum alloy in H11 condition after processed by two ECAP passes were investigated.An ECAP H13 steel die with an inner angle(α)of 120°and outer curvature(β)of 20°was used.The microstructural changes were associated with the loss of texture symmetry.The morphologies of the Mg2Si andα-Al(Mn,Fe)Si precipitates for the sample at the initial condition were similar to those subjected to two ECAP passes.The peak broadening measured by X-ray diffraction revealed an increment of both grain refinement and microstrain.After the second extrusion pass,the hardness increased by 62%compared with the initial condition.Moreover,the heterogeneous hardness behavior was compatible with a highly localized dislocation density.After two ECAP passes,shear parallel bands were observed to be at nearly 45°to the extrusion direction.The evaluation of first-order residual stress as a function of the depth of the analyzed sample displayed compressive or tensile values,depending on the measured face.With the plastic deformation applied,the first and second-order residual stresses exhibited significant increment.Williamson-Hall plots showed positive slopes,indicating an increment in the microstrain.

Plant Oil-Based Waterborne Polyurethanes: A Brief Review

The increasing pressure from consumers and policy makers to reduce the use of synthetic polymers,whose production contributes to the depletion of non-renewable resources and are usually non-biodegradable,has prompted the efforts to find suitable bio-based sources for the production of polymers.Vegetable oils have been a frequently spotted in this search because they are versatile,highly available and a low cost liquid biosource,which can be used in the synthesis of a wide plethora of different polymers and reactive monomers.Following the same idea of reducing the environmental stress,the traditional polyurethanes that are soluble in organic solvents have been targeted for replacement,particularly in applications such as adhesives and coatings,in which the solvent is released to the atmosphere increasing the air pollution.Instead,waterborne polyurethanes(WBPU),which are polyurethane dispersions(PUD)prepared in aqueous media,release benign water to the atmosphere during use as supported or self-standing films for different applications.In this brief review,the contributions to the development of WBPUs based on vegetable oils are discussed,focusing mainly on the contributions of the last decade.The synthesis of ionic and nonionic PUDs,their characterization and the properties of the resulting dried materials,as well as derived composite materials are considered.

Determination of the Normal Contact Stiffness and Integration Time Step for the Finite Element Modeling of Bristle-Surface Interaction

In finite element modeling of impact,it is necessary to define appropriate values of the normal contact stiffness,Kn,and the Integration Time Step(ITS).Because impacts are usually of very short duration,very small ITSs are required.Moreover,the selection of a suitable value of Kn is a critical issue,as the impact behavior depends dramatically on this parameter.In this work,a number of experimental tests and finite element analyses have been performed in order to obtain an appropriate value of Kn for the interaction between a bristle of a gutter brush for road sweeping and a concrete surface.Furthermore,a suitable ITS is determined.The experiments consist of releasing a steel bristle that is placed vertically at a certain distance from a concrete surface and tracking the impact.Similarly,in the finite element analyses,a beam is modeled in free fall and impacting a surface;contact and target elements are attached to the beam and the surface,respectively.The results of the experiments and the modeling are integrated through the principle of conservation of energy,the principle of linear impulse and momentum,and Newton’s second law.The results demonstrate that,for the case studied,Kn and the impact time tend to be independent of the velocity just before impact and that Kn has a very large variation,as concrete is a composite material with a rough surface.Also,the ratio between the largest height of the bristle after impact and the initial height tends to be constant.

Heavy Metals Removal from Swine Wastewater Using Constructed Wetlands with Horizontal Sub-Surface Flow

The removal efficiency of Cu and Zn from swine wastewater was evaluated as effected by three variables: the hydraulic retention time (HRT) (24, 48, 72 and 96 hours), two different plant species (Typha domingensis Pers. and Eleocharis cellulosa) and two different sizes of filter media (5 and 15 mm) using a horizontal sub-surface flow constructed wetland. From the results, a significant difference was observed in the removal efficiency of Cu and Zn with respect to different hydraulic retention times. The best results were obtained in the HRT of 96 hours for Zn where 96% removal of Zn with Typha domingensis Pers. specie with gravel of 15 mm (experimental unit 6) was achieved. For Cu, at 72 hours of HRT, the efficiency was nearly 100% in five of the six study units (1, 2, 3, 5 and 6). In contrast, in experimental unit 4 with gravel of 15 mm and without plants, only 86% Cu removal was achieved.

Microbial oxidation of refractory gold sulfide concentrate by a native consortium

A defined mesophilic consortium including an iron oxidizing bacterium and a sulfur oxidizing bacterium was constructed to evaluate its ability for bioleaching a flotation concentrate from Andacollo mine in Neuquén,Argentina.Experiments were performed in shake flasks with a pulp density of10%(w/v),using a basal salt medium containing ferrous iron at pH1.8.The leaching solutions were analyzed for pH,redox potential(using specifics electrodes),ferrous iron(by UV-Vis spectrophotometry)and metal concentrations(by atomic absorption spectroscopy).The results showed that the consortium was able to reduce the refractory behavior of the concentrate,allowing91.6%of gold recovery;at the same time,high dissolution of copper and zinc was reached.These dissolutions followed a shrinking core kinetic model.According to this model,the copper solubilization was controlled by diffusion through a product layer(mainly jarosite),while zinc dissolution did not show a defined control step.This designed consortium,composed of bacterial strains with specific physiological abilities,could be useful not only to optimize gold recovery but also to decrease the leachates metallic charge,which would be an environmental advantage.

Normalized residual displacement spectra for post-mains

Residual displacement,as a significant measure of structural inelasticity,is effectively used in post-earthquake seismic assessment of structures.This demand can be considered for seismic evaluation of structures under multiple earthquakes.This study introduces a simple and novel index to predict the residual displacement of mainshock-damaged structures against subsequent aftershock.The proposed index is defined as a ratio between residual displacement of damaged structures against aftershock and peak inelastic displacement of intact structures under mainshock.In this study,constantstrength spectra based on the index are developed considering the effects of important structural characteristics and also significant seismic parameters.Moreover,analytical equations are presented to predict the proposed index for bi-linear single-degree-of-freedom(SDOF)systems considering both the effects of positive and negative polarities of aftershock.Furthermore,an equation is suggested to estimate the peak inelastic displacement of intact systems under mainshock,which is required to compute the index.

Erosion problem in tool steel using cold box core-making process

This paper presents the erosion results of the AISI H13 steel impinged by resin-bonded silica sand, using a testing rig that closely simulates the real blowing conditions during industrial core-making. Steel specimens were heat treated to obtain hardness of 294, 445 and 595 HV200 (29, 45 and 55 HRC). Erosion tests were carried out at impingement angles from 20° to 90° and air drag pressures of 1.38, 2.07 and 2.76 bar (20, 30 and 40 psi). The main results are summarized as follows:(i) The harder material, the lower erosion;(ii) the maximum erosion rate is at 30°;(iii) Little difference in erosion rate at impact angle of 60° and 90° for a constant pressure tested regardless of the hardness level;(iv) As the pressure increases, so does the erosion rate, being more sensitive for low impact angles. Finally, a differential form of the general erosion equation is applied on a practical core-making case to evaluate the erosion rate of the H13 steel at 30° and 90° impingement angles.

Tropical tree community composition and diversity variation along a volcanic elevation gradient

Unraveling the factors that determine variation of diversity in tropical mountain systems is a topic for debate in plant ecology.This is especially true in areas where topography is complex due to volcano elevational gradients and where forests are vulnerable to human activity.In this study we used a set of climatic(temperature,rainfall,and radiation solar),topographic(elevation,slope aspect,and slope orientation)and human disturbance variables to determine their effect on diversity and composition patterns of a tree community,considering three slope aspects of a tropical volcano in southeastern Mexico.We sampled trees in seventy 0.1-ha plots distributed on three slope aspects of the Tacanávolcano along an elevational gradient of 1500 to 2500 m.We determined diversity patterns(general tree richness,exponential of Shannon index,and pioneer species richness)with linear regression models,and for beta diversity,we used a dissimilarity index(within and between elevational bands 100 m wide).The effect of a set of environmental and human disturbance variables on tree diversity and community composition was analyzed with general linear models and multivariate analyses,respectively.We registered 2,949 individual trees belonging to 176 species and 58families.The average species richness and alpha diversity per plot were 13(standard deviation±6)and 9(±5),respectively.General tree richness and alpha diversity increased in the middle part(unimodal patterns)of the elevational gradient,but pioneer species richness decreased linearly with elevation.The variance explained by general linear models was greater in richness(32%)than in alpha diversity(25.3%).The most important predictor variables were temperature(elevational gradient),which explained the unimodal pattern(richness and alpha diversity increase at intermediate levels of temperature),and slope orientation,which explained the increase in richness and alpha diversity toward the geographic north.Only temperature had a significant effect on pioneer species diversity(22%).For community composition,all the predictor variables evaluated had a significant effect,but the most important were slope aspect and temperature.Assemblages were almost completely different in plots that were farther apart along the elevation gradient and had different slope aspects.Finally,the forests at lower elevations(1500–1900 m)were those that had the most human disturbance.Our study reveals the importance of considering a set of environmental variables related to climate,topography(e.g.,slope aspect),and human disturbance to understand variation in diversity and composition of a tree community on a tropical volcano.With this information,we believe that it is important to implement conservation and restoration measures in the forests of the lower parts of the Tacanávolcano,complemented by studies that contribute to designing better conservation strategies.