Review of Simultaneous Localization and Mapping Technology in the Agricultural Environment

Simultaneous localization and mapping(SLAM)is one of the most attractive research hotspots in the field of robotics,and it is also a prerequisite for the autonomous navigation of robots.It can significantly improve the autonomous navigation ability of mobile robots and their adaptability to different application environments and contribute to the realization of real-time obstacle avoidance and dynamic path planning.Moreover,the application of SLAM technology has expanded from industrial production,intelligent transportation,special operations and other fields to agricultural environments,such as autonomous navigation,independent weeding,three-dimen-sional(3D)mapping,and independent harvesting.This paper mainly introduces the principle,sys-tem framework,latest development and application of SLAM technology,especially in agricultural environments.Firstly,the system framework and theory of the SLAM algorithm are introduced,and the SLAM algorithm is described in detail according to different sensor types.Then,the devel-opment and application of SLAM in the agricultural environment are summarized from two aspects:environment map construction,and localization and navigation of agricultural robots.Finally,the challenges and future research directions of SLAM in the agricultural environment are discussed.

Technology for Elderly with Memory Impairment and Wandering Risk

Objective:The main objective of this project was to studyhow to secure the wandering of elderly persons diagnosed with dementia caused by Alzheimer’s disease by using healthcare technologies. Methods:The study was carried out during a three-year period (2008-2011) in the region of South Ostrobothnia, Finland. Thirty-two elderly persons living at home and diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease participated in the study. The ages of the intervention group ranged from 66 to 90 years;the average age was 81 years. A total of 63 different home care devices including 24 location based technologies were tested during the intervention.The choice of technology used was based on the individual needs of the elderly person. Results:Participants with mild stage memory impairment were able to use and benefit from the technology installed during the intervention to live more independently.The most useful devices were those that operated within the home. Nine of ten users of door alarm systems, five of nine users of GPS systems and all users of GSM systems were satisfied with the technologies. Conclusions:Location based alarm and access control technology can have a positive impact on the lives of elderly persons suffering from dementia. When chosen appropriately, technology can help to reduce or eliminate the wandering often associated with dementia.Regardless of the technology used, it should be installed when the elderly person is at the early stages of dementia;at later stages of the disease it is usually impossible for the elderly to adequately adopt the device.

Fluidization and Transport of Vibrated Granular Matter:A Review of Landmark and Recent Contributions

We present a short retrospective review of the existing literature about the dynamics of(dry)granular matter under the effect of vibrations.The main objective is the development of an integrated resource where vital information about past findings and recent discoveries is provided in a single treatment.Special attention is paid to those works where successful synthetic routes to as-yet unknown phenomena were identified.Such landmark results are analyzed,while smoothly blending them with a history of the field and introducing possible categorizations of the prevalent dynamics.Although no classification is perfect,and it is hard to distillate general properties out of specific observations or realizations,two possible ways to interpret the existing results are defined according to the type of forcing or the emerging(ensuing)regime of motion.In particular,first results concerning the case where vibrations and gravity are concurrent(vertical shaking)are examined,then the companion situation with vibrations perpendicular to gravity(horizontal shaking)is described.Universality classes are introduced as follows:(1)Regimes where sand self-organizes leading to highly regular geometrical“pulsating”patterns(thin layer case);(2)Regimes where the material undergoes“fluidization”and develops an internal multicellular convective state(tick layers case);(3)Regimes where the free interface separating the sand from the overlying gas changes inclination or develops a kind a patterned configuration consisting of stable valleys and mountains or travelling waves;(4)Regimes where segregation is produced,i.e.,particles of a given size tend to be separated from the other grains(deep containers).Where possible,an analogy or parallelism is drawn with respect to the companion field of fluid-dynamics for which the assumption of“continuum”can be applied.

Natural sources,refined extraction,biosynthesis,metabolism,and bioactivities of dietary polymethoxyflavones(PMFs)

Polymethoxyflavones(PMFs)are a type of uncommon dietary flavonoids,characterized by more than one methoxy group,which exist in limited plant species,like Citrus species and Kaempferia parviflora.In addition,different PMFs,such as nobiletin,sinensetin,tangeretin,and casticin,have been isolated from these natural sources.PMFs have received increasing attention due to their multiple bioactivities,such as antioxidant,anti-inflammatory,anti-cancer,metabolic regulatory,immunoregulatory,neuroprotective,and skin protective effects.These bioactivities of PMFs should be associated with the regulation of critical molecular targets and the interaction with gut microbiota.In order to provide a comprehensive and updated review of PMFs,their natural sources,refined extraction,biosynthesis,metabolism,and bioactivities are summarised and discussed,with the emphasis on the molecular mechanisms of PMFs on regulating different chronic diseases.Overall,PMFs may be promising flavonoids to the forefront of nutraceuticals for the prevention and/or treatment of certain human chronic diseases.

Experimental investigation of the effects of oil asphaltene content on CO_(2) foam stability in the presence of nanoparticles and sodium dodecyl sulfate

Foam stability tests were performed using sodium dodecyl sulfate(SDS)surfactant and SiO2 nanoparticles as foaming system at different asphaltene concentrations,and the half-life of CO_(2) foam was measured.The mechanism of foam stability reduction in the presence of asphaltene was analyzed by scanning electron microscope(SEM),UV adsorption spectrophotometric concentration measurement and Zeta potential measurement.When the mass ratio of synthetic oil to foam-formation suspension was 1:9 and the asphaltene mass fraction increased from 0 to 15%,the half-life of SDS-stabilized foams decreased from 751 s to 239 s,and the half-life of SDS/silica-stabilized foams decreased from 912 s to 298 s.When the mass ratio of synthetic oil to foam-formation suspension was 2:8 and the asphaltene mass fraction increased from 0 to 15%,the half-life of SDS-stabilized foams decreased from 526 s to 171 s,and the half-life of SDS/silica-stabilized foams decreased from 660 s to 205 s.In addition,due to asphaltene-SDS/silica interaction in the aqueous phase,the absolute value of Zeta potential decreases,and the surface charges of particles reduce,leading to the reduction of repulsive forces between two interfaces of thin liquid film,which in turn,damages the foam stability.

Clinical validation of the early embryo viability assessment system: Analysis for the blastocyst morphology and pregnancy outcomes

Objective:To determine the relationship between the early embryo viability assessment(EEVA)and blastocyst morphological parameters and pregnancy outcomes.Methods:This retrospective cohort study was conducted on 291 intracytoplasmic sperm injection cycles including 2522 embryos with indications of prolonging embryo culture to the blastocyst stage in the Genea embryo review incubator,and 511 single vitrified-warmed blastocyst transfer cycles from January 2020 to June 2023.The EEVA system produced an EEVA score from E1(best)to E5(worse)for the potential of blastocyst formation.Blastocyst morphology was evaluated.The association between the EEVA score and each type of blastocyst morphology,implantation rate,clinical pregnancy,and ongoing pregnancy were assessed using generalized estimating equations.Results:The inner cell mass A(ICM A),trophectoderm A(TE A),blastocoele expansion degree of 3,4,5,6,7 rates were higher with lower the EEVA score.The adjusted odd ratio(aOR)(E5 vs E1)was 0.3 for ICM A,0.174 for TE A and 0.210 for BL3,4,5,6,7(all P<0.001),suggesting a significant association between lower EEVA scores and improved embryo quality.The implantation,clinical pregnancy,and ongoing pregnancy rate were also higher with lower the EEVA score.The aOR of E5 vs E1 was 0.245 for implantation,0.185 for clinical pregnancy and 0.200 for ongoing pregnancy rate(P<0.001).Conclusions:There were associations between blastocyst morphology,pregnancy outcome and EEVA scores.The good blastocyst morphology and pregnancy outcomes are higher with lower the EEVA score.

Developing kNN forest data imputation for Catalonia

The combined use of LiDAR(Light Detection And Ranging)scanning and field inventories can provide spatially continuous wall-to-wall information on forest characteristics.This information can be used in many ways in forest mapping,scenario analyses,and forest manage-ment planning.This study aimed to find the optimal way to obtain continuous forest data for Catalonia when using kNN imputation(kNN stands for“k nearest neighbors”).In this method,data are imputed to a certain location from k field-measured sample plots,which are the most similar to the location in terms of LiDAR metrics and topographic variables.Weighted multidimensional Euclidean distance was used as the similarity measure.The study tested two different methods to optimize the distance measure.The first method optimized,in the first step,the set of LiDAR and topographic variables used in the measure,as well as the transformations of these variables.The weights of the selected variables were optimized in the second step.The other method optimized the variable set as well as their transformations and weights in one single step.The two-step method that first finds the variables and their transfor-mations and subsequently optimizes their weights resulted in the best imputation results.In the study area,the use of three to five nearest neighbors was recommended.Altitude and latitude turned out to be the most important variables when assessing the similarity of two locations of Catalan forests in the context of kNN data imputation.The optimal distance measure always included both LiDAR metrics and topographic variables.The study showed that the optimal similarity measure may be different for different regions.Therefore,it was suggested that kNN data imputation should always be started with the optimization of the measure that is used to select the k nearest neighbors.

Optimization of chemistry and process parameters for control of intermetallic formation in Mg sludges

Intermetallic formation in sludge during magnesium(Mg)melting,holding and high pressure die casting practices is a very important issue.But,very often it is overlooked by academia,original equipment manufacturers(OEM),metal ingot producers and even die casters.The aim of this study was to minimize the intermetallic formation in Mg sludge via the optimization of the chemistry and process parameters.The Al8Mn5 intermetallic particles were identified by the microstructure analysis based on the Al and Mn ratio.The design of experiment(DOE)technique,Taguchi method,was employed to minimize the intermetallic formation in the sludge of Mg alloys with various chemical compositions of Al,Mn,Fe,and different process parameters,holding temperature and holding time.The sludge yield(SY)and intermetallic size(IS)was selected as two responses.The optimum combination of the levels in terms of minimizing the intermetallic formation were 9 wt.%Al,0.15 wt.%Mn,0.001 wt.%(10 ppm)Fe,690℃ for the holding temperature and holding at 30 mins for the holding time,respectively.The best combination for smallest intermetallic size were 9 wt.%Al,0.15 wt.%Mn,0.001 wt.%(10 ppm)Fe,630℃ for the holding temperature and holding at 60 mins for the holding time,respectively.Three groups of sludge factors,Chemical Sludge(CSF),Physical Sludge(PSF)and Comprehensive Sludge Factors(and CPSF)were established for prediction of sludge yields and intermetallic sizes in Al-containing Mg alloys.The CPSF with five independent variables including both chemical elements and process parameters gave high accuracy in prediction,as the prediction of the PSF with only the two processing parameters of the melt holding temperature and time showed a relatively large deviation from the experimental data.The Chemical Sludge Factor was primarily designed for small ingot producers and die casters with a limited melting and holding capacity,of which process parameters could be fixed easily.The Physical Sludge Factor could be used for mass production with a single type of Mg alloy,in which the chemistry fluctuation might be negligible.In large Mg casting suppliers with multiple melting and holding furnaces and a number of Mg alloys in production,the Comprehensive Sludge Factor should be implemented to diminish the sludge formation.

Recent Progress of the Solar Wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer (SMILE) Mission

The SMILE(Solar wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer)mission is a joint space science mission between the Chinese Academy of Sciences(CAS)and the European Space Agency(ESA),aiming to understand the interaction of the solar wind with the Earth’s magnetosphere in a global manner.As of May 2024,the SMILE mission is in phase-D with an expected launch date of September 2025.This report summarizes developments in the mission during the past two years.

Correlative spatter and vapour depression dynamics during laser powder bed fusion of an Al-Fe-Zr alloy

Spatter during laser powder bed fusion(LPBF)can induce surface defects,impacting the fatigue performance of the fabricated components.Here,we reveal and explain the links between vapour depression shape and spatter dynamics during LPBF of an Al-Fe-Zr aluminium alloy using high-speed synchrotron x-ray imaging.We quantify the number,trajectory angle,velocity,and kinetic energy of the spatter as a function of vapour depression zone/keyhole morphology under industry-relevant processing conditions.The depression zone/keyhole morphology was found to influence the spatter ejection angle in keyhole versus conduction melting modes:(i)the vapour-pressure driven plume in conduction mode with a quasi-semi-circular depression zone leads to backward spatter whereas;and(ii)the keyhole rear wall redirects the gas/vapour flow to cause vertical spatter ejection and rear rim droplet spatter.Increasing the opening of the keyhole or vapour depression zone can reduce entrainment of solid spatter.We discover a spatter-induced cavity mechanism in which small spatter particles are accelerated towards the powder bed after laser-spatter interaction,inducing powder denudation and cavities on the printed surface.By quantifying these laser-spatter interactions,we suggest a printing strategy for minimising defects and improving the surface quality of LPBF parts.

Establishment of Fluorescence Quantitative RT-PCR Assay for Detection of Equine Arteritis Virus

[Objective]The paper was to establish a fluorescence quantitative RT-PCR method for detection of equine arteritis virus(EAV).[Method]Primers and probes were developed for the EAV ORF7 gene sequence,and the reaction system was optimized.Standard curves were established,leading to the initial development of the EAV fluorescence quantitative RT-PCR assay.The accuracy,specificity,and sensitivity of this method were subsequently evaluated.[Result]The EAV fluorescence quantitative RT-PCR assay demonstrated optimal performance at an annealing temperature of 61 C,with a final concentration of primer and probe set at 0.6μmol/L.The plasmid standard demonstrated a strong linear correlation with Ct values within the range of 1.6×10^(7)-1.6×10^(2)copies/μL.The equation of the standard curve was determined to be y=-2.68x+32.88,with an R^(2) value of 0.9927.Consequently,the EAV fluorescence quantitative RT-PCR assay was successfully established.The methodology employed was effective in detecting EAV,Theileria equi,equine herpesvirus-1(EHV-1),equine herpesvirus-4(EHV-4),and equine influenza virus(EIV).The findings indicated that the method was specifically capable of detecting EAV,while the other pathogens tested yielded negative results.The method demonstrated a high degree of specificity.It was employed to detect the standard plasmid cRNA synthesized through in vitro transcription following a 10-fold dilution.The results indicated that the minimum detection limit of the method was 1.6×10^(2) copies/μL,and it exhibited high sensitivity.The coefficient of variation,both within and between groups,was maintained at 1.8%,indicating good reproducibility.In this study,the fluorescence quantitative RT-PCR assay developed was utilized alongside the EAV fluorescence quantitative RT-PCR assay established by previous researchers to analyze a total of 234 clinical samples.Both methods yielded a positive detection rate of 14.1%,and the coincidence rate between the two techniques was found to be 100%.[Conclusion]The fluorescence quantitative RT-PCR assay developed in this study offers a novel approach and concept for the prevention and control of equine viral arteritis(EVA).

Intelligent Fractional-Order Controller for SMES Systems in Renewable Energy-Based Microgrid

An autonomous microgrid that runs on renewable energy sources is presented in this article.It has a supercon-ducting magnetic energy storage(SMES)device,wind energy-producing devices,and an energy storage battery.However,because such microgrids are nonlinear and the energy they create varies with time,controlling and managing the energy inside them is a difficult issue.Fractional-order proportional integral(FOPI)controller is recommended for the current research to enhance a standalone microgrid’s energy management and performance.The suggested dedicated control for the SMES comprises two loops:the outer loop,which uses the FOPI to regulate the DC-link voltage,and the inner loop,responsible for regulating the SMES current,is constructed using the intelligent FOPI(iFOPI).The FOPI+iFOPI parameters are best developed using the dandelion optimizer(DO)approach to achieve the optimum performance.The suggested FOPI+iFOPI controller’s performance is contrasted with a conventional PI controller for variations in wind speed and microgrid load.The optimal FOPI+iFOPI controller manages the voltage and frequency of the load.The behavior of the microgrid as a reaction to step changes in load and wind speed was measured using the proposed controller.MATLAB simulations were used to evaluate the recommended system’s performance.The results of the simulations showed that throughout all interruptions,the recommended microgrid provided the load with AC power with a constant amplitude and frequency.In addition,the required load demand was accurately reduced.Furthermore,the microgrid functioned incredibly well despite SMES and varying wind speeds.Results obtained under identical conditions were compared with and without the best FOPI+iFOPI controller.When utilizing the optimal FOPI+iFOPI controller with SMES,it was found that the microgrid performed better than the microgrid without SMES.

Geographical origin identification of winter jujube(Ziziphus jujuba Dongzao')by using multi-element fingerprinting with chemometrics

Winter jujube(Ziziphus jujuba'Dongzao')is greatly appreciated by consumers for its excellent quality,but brand infringement frequently occurs in the market.Here,we first determined a total of 38 elements in 167 winter jujube samples from the main winter jujube producing areas of China by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer(ICP-MS).As a result,16 elements(Mg,K,Mn,Cu,Zn,Mo,Ba,Be,As,Se,Cd,Sb,Ce,Er,Tl,and Pb)exhibited significant differences in samples from different producing areas.Supervised linear discriminant analysis(LDA)and orthogonal projection to latent structures discriminant analysis(OPLS-DA)showed better performance in identifying the origin of samples than unsupervised principal component analysis(PCA).LDA and OPLS-DA had a mean identification accuracy of 87.84 and 94.64%in the testing set,respectively.By using the multilayer perceptron(MLP)and C5.0,the prediction accuracy of the models could reach 96.36 and 91.06%,respectively.Based on the above four chemometric methods,Cd,Tl,Mo and Se were selected as the main variables and principal markers for the origin identification of winter jujube.Overall,this study demonstrates that it is practical and precise to identify the origin of winter jujube through multi-element fingerprint analysis with chemometrics,and may also provide reference for establishing the origin traceability system of other fruits.

Preparation of an adsorptive membrane of polyvinylidene fluoride incorporated functionalized boron nitride nanosheets for arsenic removal

Incorporating nanomaterials into membranes will enhance wastewater treatment efficiency with their unique characteristics,such as higher permeability,thermal stability,surface roughness,hydrophilicity,and fouling control.In this study,the surface-modified boron nitride with phosphoric acid 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate ester(PA/BN)was grafted with polyethylene glycol(PEG)via conventional grafting.The PEG grafted PA/BN(PEG-g-PA/BN)melt blended with polyvinylidene fluoride(PVDF)resin by using an internal mixer at different mass percentages 100%PVDF(PVDF),3%PEG-g-PA/BN+97%PVDF(97:3 BN),5%PEG-g-PA/BN+95%PVDF(95:5 BN),7%PEG-g-PA/BN+93%PVDF(93:7 BN),and 7%PEG-g-PA/BNNS+93%PVDF(93:7 BNNS).Phase inversion technique was used to cast the blended mixture into a thin membrane.The prepared membranes were analyzed with different characterization techniques to determine chemical composition,crystallinity,morphology,and thermal properties.The prepared composite membrane was evaluated in terms of water permeability,anti-fouling resistance,and solute rejection efficiency with deionized water,bovine serum albumin,and arsenic solution as well.PVDF membranes show high water flux and porosity.The water flux and porosity of the blends decrease as the percentage of PEG-g-PA/BN increases.However,the highest removal capacity for arsenic was observed at 93:7 BN.The adsorption of arsenic ions takes place via complexation with PA/BN in the PVDF matrix.This was confirmed with field emission scanning electron microscopyeenergy-dispersive X-ray analysis and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses.

Process and performance of DAAF microspheres prepared by continuous integration from synthesis to spherical coating based on microfluidic system

In order to improve the energy output consistency of 3, 3’-diamino-4, 4’-azoxyfurazan(DAAF) in the new insensitive booster and the safety and efficiency in the preparation process, a continuous preparation system of DAAF from synthesis to spherical coating was designed and established in this paper, which combined ultrasonic micromixing reaction with microdroplet globular template. In the rapid micromixing stage, the microfluidic mixing technology with ultrasonic was used to synergistically strengthen the uniform and rapid mass transfer mixing reaction between raw materials to ensure the uniformity of DAAF particle nucleation-growth, and to prepare high-quality DAAF crystals with uniform structure and morphology and concentrated particle size distribution. In the microdroplet globular template stage, the microfluidic droplet technology was used to form a droplet globular template with uniform size under the shear action of the continuous phase of the dispersed phase solution containing DAAF particles and binder. The size of the droplet template was controlled by adjusting the flow rate ratio between the continuous phase and the dispersed phase. In the droplet globular template, with the diffusion of the solvent in the dispersed phase droplets, the binder precipitates to coat the DAAF into a ball, forming a DAAF microsphere with high sphericity, narrow particle size distribution and good monodispersity. The problem of discontinuity and DAAF particle suspension in the process was solved, and the coating theory under this process was studied. DAAF was coated with different binder formulations of fluororubber(F2604), nitrocellulose(NC) and NC/glycidyl azide polymer(GAP), and the process verification and evaluation of the system were carried out. The balling effects of large, medium and small droplet templates under different binder formulations were studied. The scanning electron microscope(SEM) results show that the three droplet templates under the three binder formulations exhibit good balling effect and narrow particle size distribution. The DAAF microspheres were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction(XRD), differential scanning calorimetry(DSC), thermo-gravimetric(TG) and sensitivity analyzer. The results showed that the crystal structure of DAAF did not change during the process, and the prepared DAAF microspheres had lower decomposition temperature and lower mechanical sensitivity than raw DAAF. The results of detonation parameters show that the coating of DAAF by using the above three binder formulations will not greatly reduce the energy output of DAAF, and has comparable detonation performance to raw DAAF. This study proves an efficient and safe continuous system from synthesis to spherical coating modification of explosives, which provides a new way for the continuous, safe and efficient preparation of spherical explosives.

Untethered Micro/Nanorobots for Remote Sensing:Toward Intelligent Platform

Untethered micro/nanorobots that can wirelessly control their motion and deformation state have gained enormous interest in remote sensing applications due to their unique motion characteristics in various media and diverse functionalities.Researchers are developing micro/nanorobots as innovative tools to improve sensing performance and miniaturize sensing systems,enabling in situ detection of substances that traditional sensing methods struggle to achieve.Over the past decade of development,significant research progress has been made in designing sensing strategies based on micro/nanorobots,employing various coordinated control and sensing approaches.This review summarizes the latest developments on micro/nanorobots for remote sensing applications by utilizing the self-generated signals of the robots,robot behavior,microrobotic manipulation,and robot-environment interactions.Providing recent studies and relevant applications in remote sensing,we also discuss the challenges and future perspectives facing micro/nanorobots-based intelligent sensing platforms to achieve sensing in complex environments,translating lab research achievements into widespread real applications.

A survey of data-centric technologies supporting decision-making before deploying military assets

In a time characterized by the availability of vast amounts of data,the effective utilization of information is critical for timely decision-making in military operations.However,processing large amounts of data requires computational resources and time.Therefore,decision makers have used data-centric technologies to take advantage of public and private data sources to support military operations.This survey explores the integration and application of data-centric technologies,such as data analytics,data science,and machine learning,to optimize decision-making workflows within military contexts supporting the deployment of military assets and resources.To address the information gap,this article presents a literature review,specifically a survey.Our survey examines the use of the mentioned technologies to process and analyze information that contributes to the phases of situational awareness,and planning in military environments.We then introduce a taxonomy of the approaches associated with implementing these technologies in military scenarios.Furthermore,we discuss relevant factors for the seamless integration of data-centric technologies into military decision-making processes,and reveal the importance of specialized personnel,architectures,and cybersecurity issues in the task of developing prototypes and models.The findings of this paper aim to provide valuable insights for military institutions,offering a deeper understanding of the use of data-centric technologies as innovative practices to enhance the effectiveness of military decision-making.

Separation of halogens and recovery of heavy metals from secondary copper smelting dust

The separation of halogens and recovery of heavy metals from secondary copper smelting(SCS)dust using a sulfating roasting−water leaching process were investigated.The thermodynamic analysis results confirm the feasibility of the phase transformation to metal sulfates and to gaseous HF and HCl.Under the sulfating roasting conditions of the roasting temperature of 250℃ and the sulfuric acid excess coefficient of 1.8,over 74 wt.%of F and 98 wt.%of Cl were volatilized into flue gas.Approximately 98.6 wt.%of Zn and 96.5 wt.%of Cu in the roasting product were dissolved into the leaching solution after the water leaching process,while the leaching efficiencies of Pb and Sn were only 0.12%and 0.22%,respectively.The mechanism studies indicate the pivotal effect of roasting temperature on the sulphation reactions from various metal species to metal sulfates and the salting out reactions from various metal halides to gaseous hydrogen halides.

Analysis of Calcined Red Mud Properties and Related Mortar Performances

Red mud(RM)is a low-activity industrial solid waste,and its utilization as a resource is currently a hot topic.In this study,the micro characteristics of red mud at different calcination temperatures were analyzed using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy.The performance of calcined red mud was determined through mortar strength tests.Results indicate that high-temperature calcination can change the mineral composition and microstructure of red mud,and increase the surface roughness and specific surface area.At the optimal temperature of 700°C,the addition of calcined red mud still leads to a decrease in mortar strength,but its activity index and flexural coefficient increase by 16.2%and 11.9%with respect to uncalcined red mud,reaching values of 0.826 and 0.974,respectively.Compared with the control group,the synergistic activation of calcined red mud with slag can increase the compressive and flexural strength of the mortar by 12.9%and 1.5%,reaching 8.7 and 62.4 MPa,respectively.Correspondingly,the activity index and flexural coefficient of the calcined RM and GGBS(Ground Granulated Blast furnace Slag)mixtures also increase to 1.015 and 1.130,respectively.

Smart Farming for Sustainable Rice Production:An Insight into Application,Challenge,and Future Prospect

Rice has a huge impact on socio-economic growth,and ensuring its sustainability and optimal utilization is vital.This review provides an insight into the role of smart farming in enhancing rice productivity.The applications of smart farming in rice production including yield estimation,smart irrigation systems,monitoring disease and growth,and predicting rice quality and classifications are highlighted.The challenges of smart farming in sustainable rice production to enhance the understanding of researchers,policymakers,and stakeholders are discussed.Numerous efforts have been exerted to combat the issues in rice production in order to promote rice sector development.The effective implementation of smart farming in rice production has been facilitated by various technical advancements,particularly the integration of the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence.The future prospects of smart farming in transforming existing rice production practices are also elucidated.Through the utilization of smart farming,the rice industry can attain sustainable and resilient production systems that could mitigate environmental impact and safeguard food security.Thus,the rice industry holds a bright future in transforming current rice production practices into a new outlook in rice smart farming development.