Role of bitter contributors and bitter taste receptors:a comprehensive review of their sources,functions and future development

Bitterness,one of the 5“basic tastes”,is usually undesired by humans.However,abundant literature reported that bitter fruits and vegetables have beneficial health effects due to their bitter contributors.This review provided an updated overview of the main bitter contributors of typical bitter fruits and vegetables and their health benefits.The main bitter contributors,including phenolics,terpenoids,alkaloids,amino acids,nucleosides and purines,were summarized.The bioactivities and wide range of beneficial effects of them on anti-cancers,anti-inflammations,anti-microbes,neuroprotection,inhibiting chronic and acute injury in organs,as well as regulating behavior performance and metabolism were reported.Furthermore,not only did the bitter taste receptors(taste receptor type 2 family,T2Rs)show taste effects,but extra-oral T2Rs could also be activated by binding with bitter components,regulating physiological activities via modulating hormone secretion,immunity,metabolism,and cell proliferation.This review provided a new perspective on exploring and explaining the nutrition of bitter foods,revealing the relationship between the functions of bitter contributors from food and T2Rs.Future trends may focus on revealing the possibility of T2Rs being targets for the treatment of diseases,exploring the mechanism of T2Rs mediating the bioactivities,and making bitter foods more acceptable without getting rid of bitter contributors.

Research on the Method of Heat Preservation and Heating for the Drilling System of Polar Offshore Drilling Platform

This study investigates the heat dissipation mechanism of the insulation layer and other plane insulation layers in the polar drilling rig system.Combining the basic theory of heat transfer with the environmental requirements of polar drilling operations and the characteristics of polar drilling processes,we analyze the factors that affect the insulation effect of the drilling rig system.These factors include the thermal conductivity of the insulation material,the thickness of the insulation layer,ambient temperature,and wind speed.We optimize the thermal insulation material of the polar drilling rig system using a steady-state method to measure solid thermal conductivity.By analyzing the distribution of temperature in space after heating,we optimize the distribution and air outlet angle of the heater using Fluent hydrodynamics software.The results demonstrate that under polar conditions,polyisocyanurate with stable thermodynamic properties is selected as the thermal insulation material.The selection of thermal insulation material and thickness significantly affects the thermal insulation effect of the system but has little effect on its heating effect.Moreover,when the air outlet angle of the heater is set to 32.5°,the heating efficiency of the system can be effectively improved.According to heat transfer equations and heat balance theory,we determine that the heating power required for the system to reach 5°C is close to numerical simulation.

Bionic lightweight design of limb leg units for hydraulic quadruped robots by additive manufacturing and topology optimization

Galloping cheetahs,climbing mountain goats,and load hauling horses all show desirable locomotion capability,which motivates the development of quadruped robots.Among various quadruped robots,hydraulically driven quadruped robots show great potential in unstructured environments due to their discrete landing positions and large payloads.As the most critical movement unit of a quadruped robot,the limb leg unit(LLU)directly affects movement speed and reliability,and requires a compact and lightweight design.Inspired by the dexterous skeleton–muscle systems of cheetahs and humans,this paper proposes a highly integrated bionic actuator system for a better dynamic performance of an LLU.We propose that a cylinder barrel with multiple element interfaces and internal smooth channels is realized using metal additive manufacturing,and hybrid lattice structures are introduced into the lightweight design of the piston rod.In addition,additive manufacturing and topology optimization are incorporated to reduce the redundant material of the structural parts of the LLU.The mechanical properties of the actuator system are verified by numerical simulation and experiments,and the power density of the actuators is far greater than that of cheetah muscle.The mass of the optimized LLU is reduced by 24.5%,and the optimized LLU shows better response time performance when given a step signal,and presents a good trajectory tracking ability with the increase in motion frequency.

Production traits and fertility of reciprocal hybrids between Argopecten irradians irradians and A.i.concentricus

The two bay scallop subspecies,Argopecten irradians irradians(NN)and A.i.concentricus(SS),are fast growing and major cultured bivalves in China.However,their relatively small sizes and decreasing production traits caused by long-term inbreeding have been major concerns to the industry in the last two decades.Hybridization between the two bay scallop subspecies may provide a new approach to breed a new variety with superior production traits for the industry.For this end,in this study,we hybridized the two bay scallop subspecies in order to obtain a new strain that incorporates the genes of both subspecies.No significant difference was found in fertilization rate,hatching rate and metamorphosis rate between the purebred and crossbred cohorts(NN♀×SS♂,denoted as NS;SS♀×NN♂,denoted as SN).Both mating strategy(intra-vs.inter-population crosses)and egg origin had significant effects on growth and survival at the larval stage.Heterosis was observed in the crossbred and was more pronounced in older stages.Genetic diversity of the reciprocal hybrids,especially that of SN,was increased compared with the purebred cohorts.Almost all hybrids were completely fertile and able to reproduce by selffertilization or by backcrossing with either parent.Apparently,male sterile individuals whose gonads were fully occupied by the ovary part at mature stage were found in the hybrids for the first time.The hybrids,especially SN,may provide precious germplasm resources for the production of ternary hybrids with the Peruvian scallop,A.purpuratus.

Quantitative analysis of the morphing wing mechanism of raptors:IMMU-based motion capture system and its application on gestures of a Falco peregrinus

This paper presented a novel tinny motion capture system for measuring bird posture based on inertial and magnetic measurement units that are made up of micromachined gyroscopes, accelerometers, and magnetometers. Multiple quaternion-based extended Kalman filters were implemented to estimate the absolute orientations to achieve high accuracy.Under the guidance of ornithology experts, the extending/contracting motions and flapping cycles were recorded using the developed motion capture system, and the orientation of each bone was also analyzed. The captured flapping gesture of the Falco peregrinus is crucial to the motion database of raptors as well as the bionic design.

Microstructures,corrosion behavior and mechanical properties of as-cast Mg-6Zn-2X(Fe/Cu/Ni)alloys for plugging tool applications

Mg-6Zn-2X(Fe/Cu/Ni)alloys were prepared through semi-continuous casting,with the aim of identifying a degradable magnesium(Mg)alloy suitable for use in fracturing balls.A comparative analysis was conducted to assess the impacts of adding Cu and Ni,which result in finer grains and the formation of galvanic corrosion sites.Scanner electronic microscopy examination revealed that precipitated phases concentrated at grain boundaries,forming a semi-continuous network structure that facilitated corrosion penetration in Mg-6Zn-2Cu and Mg-6Zn-2Ni alloys.Pitting corrosion was observed in Mg-6Zn-2Fe,while galvanic corrosion was identified as the primary mechanism in Mg-6Zn-2Cu and Mg-6Zn-2Ni alloys.Among the tests,the Mg-6Zn-2Ni alloy exhibited the highest corrosion rate(approximately 932.9 mm/a)due to its significant potential difference.Mechanical testing showed that Mg-6Zn-2Ni alloy possessed suitable ultimate compressive strength,making it a potential candidate material for degradable fracturing balls,effectively addressing the challenges of balancing strength and degradation rate in fracturing applications.

Research on the evolution law of dynamic performance of CR400BF EMU train based on stochastic dynamics simulation

Purpose–This paper aims to obtain the evolution law of dynamic performance of CR400BF electric multiple unit(EMU).Design/methodology/approach–Using the dynamic simulation based on field test,stiffness of rotary arm nodes and damping coefficient of anti-hunting dampers were tested.Stiffness,damping coefficient,friction coefficient,track gauge were taken as random variables,the stochastic dynamics simulation method was constructed and applied to research the evolution law with running mileage of dynamic index of CR400BF EMU.Findings–The results showed that stiffness and damping coefficient subjected to normal distribution,the mean and variance were computed and the evolution law of stiffness and damping coefficient with running mileage was obtained.Originality/value–Firstly,based on the field test we found that stiffness of rotary arm nodes and damping coefficient of anti-hunting dampers subjected to normal distribution,and the evolution law of stiffness and damping coefficient with running mileage was proposed.Secondly stiffness,damping coefficient,friction coefficient,track gauge were taken as random variables,the stochastic dynamics simulation method was constructed and applied to the research to the evolution law with running mileage of dynamic index of CR400BF EMU.

The Effects of Thickness and Location of PCMon the Building’s Passive Temperature-Control–A Numerical Study

Building energy consumption and building carbon emissions both account for more than 20%of their total national values in China.Building employing phase change material(PCM)for passive temperature control shows a promising prospect in meeting the comfort demand and reducing energy consumption simultaneously.However,there is a lack of more detailed research on the interaction between the location and thickness of PCM and indoor natural convection,as well as indoor temperature distribution.In this study,the numerical model of a passive temperature-controlled building integrating the developed PCM module is established with the help of ANSYS.In which,the actual weather condition of Beijing city is set as the boundary conditions and the indoor natural convection is simulated with the consideration of radiation model.The effects of PCM’s thickness and location on the internal temperature field are analyzed and discussed.The results show that the room could maintain within the human comfort temperature range with the longest ratio of 94.10%and the shortest ratio of 51.04%as integrating PCM.In comparison,the value is only 26.70%without PCM.The room’s maximum temperature fluctuation can also be improved;it could be lowered by 64.4%compared to the normal condition.When the quantity of PCM is sufficient,further increasing the PCM amount results in a temperature fluctuation reduction of less than 0.1°C and does not increase the comfort time.Placing PCM on the wall induces an apparent variation in indoor temperature along the vertical direction.Conversely,placing PCM on the roof can lead to a heat transfer rate difference of up to seven times.The optimal placement of PCM depends on the difference between the environmental and phase change temperatures.If the difference is positive,placing PCM on the roof is more effective;conversely,the opposite holds.According to the results over the entire cycle,PCM application on vertical walls yields better performance.The significant difference in natural convection caused by the same thickness of PCM but different application positions,coupled with the influence of air movement on the melting and solidification of PCM,further impacts indoor temperature fluctuations and comfort.This study can provide guidance for the application location and thickness of PCM,especially for scenarios where temperature regulation is required at a specific time.

Current status and reflection on the development of high-speed maglev transportation

Purpose–High-speed maglev technology can address the issues of adhesion,friction,vibration and highspeed current collection in traditional wheel-rail systems,making it an important direction for the future development of high-speed rail technology.Design/methodology/approach–This paper elaborates on the demand and significance of developing high-speed maglev technology worldwide and examines the current status and technological maturity of several major high-speed maglev systems globally.Findings–This paper summarizes the challenges in the development of high-speed maglev railways in China.Based on this analysis,it puts forward considerations for future research on high-speed maglev railways.Originality/value–This paper describes the development status and technical maturity of several major high-speed maglev systems in the world for the first time,summarizes the existing problems in the development of China’s high-speed maglev railway and on this basis,puts forward the thinking of the next research of China’s high-speed maglev railway.

Research Status and Development Direction of Piezoelectric Wind Energy Harvesting Technology

In recent years, with the rapid development of large-scale distributed wireless sensor systems and micro-power devices, the disadvantages of traditional chemical battery power supply mode are becoming more and more obvious. Piezoelectric energy collector has attracted wide attention because of its simple structure, no heating, no electromagnetic interference, environmental protection and easy miniaturization. Wind energy is a reproducible resource. Wind energy harvester based on piezoelectric intelligent material can be named piezoelectric wind energy harvesting which converts wind energy into electric power and will have great application prospect. To promote the development of piezoelectric wind energy harvesting technology, research statuses on piezoelectric wind energy harvesting technology are reviewed. The existing problem and development direction about piezoelectric wind energy harvester in the future are discussed. The study will be helpful for researchers engaged in piezoelectric wind energy harvesting.

Research and development of Cordyceps in Taiwan

Cordyceps is treasured entomopathogenic fungi that have been used as antitumor,immunomodulating,antioxidant,and pro-sexual agent.Cordyceps,also called DongChongXiaCao in Chinese,Yartsa Gunbu(Tibetan),means winter worm-summer grass.Natural Cordyceps sinensis with parasitic hosts is difficult to be collected and the recent findings on its potential pharmacological functions,resulted in skyrocketing prices.Therefore,finding a mass-production method or an alternative for C.sinensis products is a top-priority task.In this review,we describe current status of Cordyceps research and its recent developments in Taiwan.The content and pharmacological activities of four major industrial species of Cordyceps(C.sinensis,Cordyceps militaris,Cordyceps cicadae and Cordyceps sobolifera)used in Taiwan,were reviewed.Moreover,we highlighted the effect of using different methods of fermentation and production on the morphology and chemical content of Cordyceps sp.Finally,we summarized the bottle-necks and challenges facing Cordyceps research as well as we proposed future road map for Cordyceps industry in Taiwan.

Refined Aerodynamic Test of Wide-Bodied Aircraft and Its Application

The large dual-channel wide-bodied aircraft has a long range and a high cruise Mach number.Therefore,its aerodynamic design requires a high level ofwind tunnel test refinement.Based on the requirements of aerodynamic design for the future wide-bodied aircraft and the characteristics of high-speed wind tunnel tests,the error theory is introduced to analyze the factors affecting the accuracy of the test data.This study carries out a series of research on the improvement of refined aerodynamic test technology in an FL-26 wind tunnel,including design and optimization of the support system of wide-bodied aircraft,model attitude angle measurement,Mach number control accuracy,measurement and control system stability,test data correction and perfection,high-precision force balance and standard model development.In addition,the effect of the standard specification of the refined aerodynamic test is investigated to improve the data quality.The research findings have been applied in the standard model test and subsequent models of wide-bodied aircraft.The results show that whenMach numbers are less than 0.9,the control accuracy of Mach numbers in the FL-26 wind tunnel is smaller than 0.001 and the measurement error of attack angle is smaller than 0.01°.Therefore,it has the ability to correct the data influenced by factors,such as support/wall interference,model deformation,floating resistance and airflow deflection angle.The repeatability accuracy of the standard model’s comparison test shows that the lift coefficient is less than or equal to 0.0012,the drag coefficient is less than or equal to 0.00004,pitching moment coefficient is less than or equal to 0.0004.The bending resolution of the model’s deformation measurement is less than 0.2 mm,and the tensional deformation is smaller than 0.04°.The revised aerodynamic data and model deformation measurement results have good agreement with that of the ETW wind tunnel.The results demonstrate that the improved technology presented in this paper can significantly enhance the refined aerodynamic test of wide-bodied aircraft.

Recovery of Li_(2)CO_(3)and FePO_(4)from spent LiFePO_(4)by coupling technics of isomorphic substitution leaching and solvent extraction

Efficient and low-cost recycling of spent lithium iron phosphate(LiFePO_(4),LFP)batteries has become an inevitable trend.In this study,an integrated closed-loop recycling strategy including isomorphic substitution leaching and solvent extraction process for spent LFP was proposed.An inexpensive FeCl_(3)was used as leaching agent to directly substitute Fe^(2+)from LFP.99%of Li can be rapidly leached in just 30 min,accompanied by 98%of FePO_(4)precipitated in lixivium.The tri-n-butyl phosphate(TBP)-sulfonated kerosene(SK)system was applied to extract Li from lixivium through a twelve-stage countercurrent process containing synchronous extraction and stepwise stripping of Li^(+)and Fe^(3+).80.81%of Li can be selectively enriched in stripping liquor containing 3.059 mol·L^(-1)of Li^(+)under optimal conditions.And the Fe stripping liquor was recovered for LFP re-leaching,of which,Fe^(2+)was oxidized to Fe^(3+)by appropriate H_(2)O_(2).Raffinate and lixivium were concentrated and entered into extraction process to accomplished closeloop recycling process.Overall,the results suggest that more than 99%of Li was recovered.FeCl_(3)holding in solution was directly regenerated without any pollutant emission.The sustainable mothed would be an alternative candidate for total element recycling of spent LFP batteries with industrial potential.

Development of feeding systems and strategies of supplementation to enhance rumen fermentation and ruminant production in the tropics

The availability of local feed resources in various seasons can contribute as essential sources of carbohydrate and protein which significantly impact rumen fermentation and the subsequent productivity of the ruminant.Recent developments,based on enriching protein in cassava chips,have yielded yeast fermented cassava chip protein（YEFECAP） providing up to 47.5% crude protein（CP）,which can be used to replace soybean meal.The use of fodder trees has been developed through the process of pelleting;Leucaena leucocephala leaf pellets（LLP）,mulberry leaf pellets（MUP） and mangosteen peel and/or garlic pellets,can be used as good sources of protein to supplement ruminant feeding.Apart from producing volatile fatty acids and microbial proteins,greenhouse gases such as methane are also produced in the rumen.Several methods have been used to reduce rumen methane.However,among many approaches,nutritional manipulation using feed formulation and feeding management,especially the use of plant extracts or plants containing secondary compounds（condensed tannins and saponins） and plant oils,has been reported.This approach could help todecrease rumen protozoa and methanogens and thus mitigate the production of methane.At present,more research concerning this burning issue-the role of livestock in global warming-warrants undertaking further research with regard to economic viability and practical feasibility.

Development and Extension of Seawater Desalination by Reverse Osmosis

Seawater desalination has been peoples fond dream since ancient times, the dream is now becoming a reality. This paper presents a brief development history of reverse osmosis. Much attention was paid to innovative development in membranes, modules, equipments and applied technology, including asymmetric and composite membranes, spiral-wound element and hollow fiber module, energy recovery equipments and different technological processes. The extension of reverse osmosis, such as desalination, pre-concentration, integrated processes and nanofiltration, is also briefly mentioned.

Adaptive Leader-Follower Consensus Control of Multiple Flexible Manipulators With Actuator Failures and Parameter Uncertainties

In this paper,the leader-follower consensus problem for a multiple flexible manipulator network with actuator failures,parameter uncertainties,and unknown time-varying boundary disturbances is addressed.The purpose of this study is to develop distributed controllers utilizing local interactive protocols that not only suppress the vibration of each flexible manipulator but also achieve consensus on joint angle position between actual followers and the virtual leader.Following the accomplishment of the reconstruction of the fault terms and parameter uncertainties,the adaptive neural network method and parameter estimation technique are employed to compensate for unknown items and bounded disturbances.Furthermore,the Lyapunov stability theory is used to demonstrate that followers’angle consensus errors and vibration deflections in closed-loop systems are uniformly ultimately bounded.Finally,the numerical simulation results confirm the efficacy of the proposed controllers.

Influences of regeneration atmospheres on structural transformation and renderability of fluidized catalytic cracking catalyst

The regeneration of fluidized catalytic cracking(FCC)catalysts is an essential process in petroleum processing.The current study focused the regeneration reaction characteristics of spent fluidized catalytic cracking catalyst(SFCC)at different atmospheres with influences on pore evolution and activity,for a potential way to reduce emission,produce moderate chemical product(CO),and maintain catalyst activity.The results show that regeneration in air indicates a satisfaction on removing coke on the catalyst surface while giving a poor effect on eliminating the coke inside micropores.This is attributed that the combustion in air led to a higher temperature and further transformed kaolinite phase to silicaaluminum spinel crystals,which tended to collapse and block small pores or expand large pores,with similar results observed in pure O_(2)atmosphere.Nevertheless,catalysts regenerated in O_(2)/CO_(2)diminished the combustion damage to the pore structure,of which the micro porosity after regeneration increased by 32.4% and the total acid volume rose to 27.1%.The regeneration in pure CO_(2)displayed low conversion rate due to the endothermic reaction and low reactivity.The coexistence of gasification and partial oxidation can promote regeneration and maintain the original structure and good reactivity.Finally,a mechanism of the regeneration reaction at different atmospheres was revealed.

Coupled Dynamics and Integrated Control for Position and Attitude Motions of Spacecraft:A Survey

Inspired by the integrated guidance and control design for endo-atmospheric aircraft,the integrated position and attitude control of spacecraft has attracted increasing attention and gradually induced a wide variety of study results in last over two decades,fully incorporating control requirements and actuator characteristics of space missions.This paper presents a novel and comprehensive survey to the coupled position and attitude motions of spacecraft from the perspective of dynamics and control.To this end,a systematic analysis is firstly conducted in details to show the position and attitude mutual couplings of spacecraft.Particularly,in terms of the time discrepancy between spacecraft position and attitude motions,space missions can be categorized into two types:space proximity operation and space orbital maneuver.Based on this classification,the studies on the coupled dynamic modeling and the integrated control design for position and attitude motions of spacecraft are sequentially summarized and analyzed.On the one hand,various coupled position and dynamic formulations of spacecraft based on various mathematical tools are reviewed and compared from five aspects,including mission applicability,modeling simplicity,physical clearance,information matching and expansibility.On the other hand,the development of the integrated position and attitude control of spacecraft is analyzed for two space missions,and especially,five distinctive development trends are captured for space operation missions.Finally,insightful prospects on future development of the integrated position and attitude control technology of spacecraft are proposed,pointing out current primary technical issues and possible feasible solutions.

Substrate,Hormone,Winnowing,and Stratification Influence the Seed Germination of Ilex asprella(Hook.et Arn.)Champ.ex Benth

Ilex asprella(Hook.et Arn.)Champ.ex Benth is one of the most important traditional Chinese medicines in southern China.The seeds of Ilex asprella usually have extremely low germination due to their dormancy characteristics,which severely impacts the efficiency of seedling raising and increases labor costs.In this study,to improve the seed germination of I.asprella,the effects of germination substrate,hormone,winnowing,and stratification treatments on the seed germination of I.asprella were investigated.The results of the germination matrix showed that the highest germination percentage of 45.2%was achieved under the 20℃/10℃day/night temperature and vermiculite germination medium conditions.The results of hormone treatments revealed that 100–400 mg/L of gibberellin(GA)and 50–100 mg/L of salicylic acid(SA)were found to be effective in releasing the dormancy of I.asprella seeds.Moreover,winnowing could effectively eliminate unsaturated seeds and impurities,thus improving the seed germination of I.asprella.Furthermore,warm temperature(15℃)stratification could expand the temperature range of I.asprella’s seed germination,which was beneficial for seed germination of I.asprella and for seed nursery at room temperature in production practice.The present study obtained a method to break dormancy and increase seed germination in I.asprella,thereby forming a groundwork for improving the efficiency of large-scale planting of I.asprella.

Effects of Dropsonde Data in Field Campaigns on Forecasts of Tropical Cyclones over the Western North Pacific in 2020 and the Role of CNOP Sensitivity

Valuable dropsonde data were obtained from multiple field campaigns targeting tropical cyclones,namely Higos,Nangka,Saudel,and Atsani,over the western North Pacific by the Hong Kong Observatory and Taiwan Central Weather Bureau in 2020.The conditional nonlinear optimal perturbation(CNOP)method has been utilized in real-time to identify the sensitive regions for targeting observations adhering to the procedure of real-time field campaigns for the first time.The observing system experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of dropsonde data and CNOP sensitivity on TC forecasts in terms of track and intensity,using the Weather Research and Forecasting model.It is shown that the impact of assimilating all dropsonde data on both track and intensity forecasts is case-dependent.However,assimilation using only the dropsonde data inside the sensitive regions displays unanimously positive effects on both the track and intensity forecast,either of which obtains comparable benefits to or greatly reduces deterioration of the skill when assimilating all dropsonde data.Therefore,these results encourage us to further carry out targeting observations for the forecast of tropical cyclones according to CNOP sensitivity.