Orthognathic surgery and orthodontic treatment are required for patients with dentofacial deformities to obtain an ideal facial esthetic with good functioning. Recently, characterized by the surgery-first approach, an integrated orthodontic−surgical treatment has been introduced as an emerging solution to dentofacial deformity treatment. The surgery-first approach is regarded to have less treatment time and quicker enhancement of a facial profile than the conventional orthodontic−surgical treatment. Moreover, the recent advances in computing and imaging have allowed the adoption of 3-dimensional (3D) virtual planning protocols in orthognathic surgery as well as digital orthodontic treatment, which enables a paradigm shift when realizing virtual planning properly. These techniques then allow the surgeon and orthodontist to collaborate, plan, and simulate the dentofacial deformity treatment before performing the whole procedure. Along this line, in this research article, we present an in... [more]

Hot-melt pressure-sensitive adhesive (HMPSA) is an environmentally benign adhesive which is typically processed without solvent in industries. However, casting solution method is commonly used for experimental purposes in the lab for convenience. Therefore, seven types of solvent with different polarities, including toluene as the most commonly used solvent, were investigated in this work to study the feasibilities. Quick bond strength and holding power were tested with different types of solvents and different adhesive weight percent in the prepared solutions. Through viscosity measurement, thermal analysis, and compositional analysis, the correlation between the chosen solvents and adhesive performance was further explored. It was found that the differences in the obtained bond strength of HMPSA treated with a variety of solvents were due to physical reasons instead of chemical reactions, and a solvent with similar polarity to toluene (e.g., tetrachloride, octane) should be considere... [more]

A Computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model was developed considering three geometries for primary parallel fan stations that have already been developed, implemented, and are currently in operation within Chilean mines. To standardize the comparison, the same primary fan was used in all the simulations with a unique set of settings (speed, blade angle, and density). The CFD representation was used to determine the operating point per configuration and compare the performances in terms of airflow and pressure delivered. This approach allowed ranking primary fan station geometry based on resistance curve and energy consumption of the fan. This paper presents the results obtained through the CFD simulations and the corresponding primary fans operating points of each configuration: symmetrical branches (SB), overlap branches (OB), and run around (RA) bypass. The RA configuration was identified as the best-performing station geometry on the lowest frictional and shock pressure losses, highes... [more]

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are reportedly toxic, ubiquitous and organic compounds that can persist in the environment and are released largely due to the incomplete combustion of fossil fuel. There is a range of microorganisms that are capable of degrading low molecular weight PAHs, such as naphthalene; however, fewer were reported to degrade higher molecular weight PAHs. Bacillus spp. has shown to be effective in neutralizing polluted streams containing hydrocarbons. Following the growing regulatory requirement to meet the PAH specification upon disposal of contaminated soil, the following study aimed to identify potential Bacillus strains that could effectively remediate low and high molecular weight PAHs from the soil. Six potential hydrocarbon-degrading strains were formulated into two prototypes and tested for the ability to remove PAHs from industry-contaminated soil. Following the dosing of each respective soil system with prototypes 1 and 2, the samples were analyz... [more]

There is an unmet clinical need to identify potential predictive biomarkers for immunotherapy efficacy in mismatch repair proficient (pMMR) metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). Heparanase (HPSE) is a multifunctional molecule mediating tumor−host crosstalk. However, the function of HPSE in the tumor immune microenvironment of CRC remains unclear. Data of CRC patients from public datasets (TCGA and GSE39582) and Zhongshan Hospital (ZS cohort) were collected to perform integrative bioinformatic analyses. In total, 1036 samples from TCGA (N = 457), GSE39582 (N = 510) and ZS cohort (N = 69) were included. Samples of deficient MMR (dMMR) and consensus molecular subtypes 1 (CMS1) showed significantly higher HPSE expression. The expression of HPSE also exhibited a significantly positive association with PD-L1 expression, tumor mutation burden and the infiltration of macrophages. Immune pathways were remarkably enriched in the HPSE high-expression group, which also showed higher expressions of... [more]

The pollutants emission during the process of municipal solid waste management (MSWM) is of great concern due to its hazardous effect on the environment and living organisms. An assessment of the air quality of MSWM sites was made after having 16 repetitive visits at solid waste disposal sites and transfer stations of Lahore during wet and dry seasons. Pollution parameters such as fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and greenhouse gases (GHG) were measured along with meteorological parameters. PM2.5 measurement was made by using particle counter Dylos and TSI’s Dust Trak. Both of these instruments were positioned simultaneously at the source site and downwind (50 m). CH4 and meteorological parameters were measured by Aeroqual 500 series, while the Extech CO220 monitor was used to measure CO2 concentration. An assessment of air quality showed the levels of their mean values as CH4 and CO2 ranged between 1.5−13.7 ppm and 443.4−515.7 ppm, respectively. The PM2.5 ranged between 127.1 and 307.1... [more]

The main contribution of the paper is the simplification of the computational process of fuzzy control of a mobile robot controlled by a microcontroller. We present a way to implement this control method with a reduced computation time of control actions and memory demand. Our way to accomplish this, was to replace the fuzzy controller with the approximation of its resulting control surfaces. In the paper, we use the previously presented approximation by the table and describe other methods of approximation of the control area through polynomial and exponential function. We tested all approximation methods in simulations and with a real mobile robot. Based on the measured trajectory of the EN20 mobile robot, we found that approximation through the table is the most accurate in terms of the fuzzy surface but delivers noticeable oscillations of mobile robot control in real conditions. Polynomial and exponential functions fuzzy surface approximations were less accurate than the table, but... [more]

Passengers carrying the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in a commercial aircraft cabin may infect other passengers and the cabin crew. In this study, a cabin model of the seven-row Airbus A320 aircraft is constructed and meshed for simulating the SARS-CoV-2 spread in the cabin with a virus carrier using the Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modeling tool. The passengers’ infection risk is also quantified with the susceptible exposure index (SEI) method. The results show that the virus spreads to the ceiling of the cabin within 50 s of the virus carrier’s normal breathing. Coughing makes the virus spread to the front three rows with a higher mass fraction. While the high mass fraction areas always stay on the same side of the aisle as the virus carrier, the adjacent passengers and the passengers in the back two rows are affected more than the others when the virus carrier breathes normally. Spread patterns under the carrier’s two breath conditions, normal b... [more]

Lyophilization is widely used in the preservation of thermolabile products. The main shortcoming is the long processing time. Lyophilization processes are mostly based on a recipe that is not changed, but, with the Quality by Design (QbD) approach and use of Process Analytical Technology (PAT), the process duration can be optimized for maximum productivity while ensuring product safety. In this work, an advanced PAT approach is used for the endpoint determination of primary drying. Manometric temperature measurement (MTM) and comparative pressure measurement are used to determine the endpoint of the batch while a modeling approach is outlined that is able to calculate the endpoint of every vial in the batch. This approach can be used for process development, control and optimization.

Wafer direct bonding is an attractive approach to manufacture future micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) and microelectronic and optoelectronic devices. In this paper, a combined hydrophilic activated Si/Si wafer direct bonding process based on wet chemical activation and O2 plasma activation is explored. Additionally, the effect on bonding interface characteristics is comprehensively investigated. The mechanism is proposed to better understand the nature of hydrophilic bonding. The water molecule management is controlled by O2 plasma activation process. According to the contact angle measurement and FTIR spectrum analysis, it can be concluded that water molecules play an important role in the type and density of chemical bonds at the bonding interface, which influence both bonding strength and voids’ characteristics. When annealed at 350 °C, a high bonding strength of more than 18.58 MPa is obtained by tensile pulling test. Cross sectional SEM and TEM images show a defect-free and... [more]

In order to utilize woody biomass effectively for bioenergy and chemical feedstocks, the comparative thermal degradation behaviors and kinetic mechanisms of typical hardwood (beech wood) and softwood (camphorwood) were studied at various heating rates in air. The Kissinger-Akahira-Sunose approach combined with the Coats-Redfern approach was employed to estimate the kinetic triplet. Softwood degradation began and ended at lower temperatures than hardwood. Compared with softwood, the maximal reaction rate of hardwood was greater and occurred in the higher temperature region. Two decomposition regions were determined by the variation of activation energy, and the dividing point was α = 0.6 and α = 0.65 for hardwood and softwood, respectively. Moreover, the average activation energy of hardwood was larger than that of softwood during the whole decomposition process. The thermal degradation process occurring in region 1 was dominated by the Avrami-Erofeev and 3D diffusion models for hardwoo... [more]

The runaway condition is a damage condition for pumps and turbines which can induce the wake vortex, reverse flow, and severe pressure pulsation. This study aimed to research the characteristics of pressure pulsation of axial flow pumps under different runaway conditions, and the runaway model test was performed with different blade angles and heads. Moreover, four pressure sensors were uniformly arranged at the impeller inlet section to eliminate the random error. The time domain and frequency domain analysis were the main methods to obtain the change regulations. Results showed that the pressure pulsation under the runaway condition are mainly influenced by the rotation frequency, blade passing frequency, and wake vortex frequency. The dimensionless pressure pulsation coefficient of rotation frequency and wake vortex frequency increased obviously with the runaway head increasing, but changed little with different blade angles. In addition, the dimensionless pressure coefficient of wa... [more]

Reduction of fluid resistance using the rheological characteristics of a polymer-surfactant solvent is research that contains many aspects, such as the theory of the drag reduction process, historical journey, and ongoing current research development. Many studies have been conducted, but it is challenging to know all existing and new research threads. The present investigation was conducted using literature studies regarding drag reducing agents. This research will also discuss the characteristics of flowing fluids and their effects on the velocity profile with friction factor of flowing fluids in smooth circular straight pipe geometries based on experimental, theoretical approaches. It concludes with aspects of research conducted around reducing drag using drag reducing agents, ideas about innovations, structuring overlook in testing, and modification of the fluid flow state.

This study was based on a numerical effort to use the motor support (prop) as a guide vane when the motor of a wall-mounted axial fan was located at the fan outlet while maintaining the structural and spatial advantage. The design for the guide vane followed two- and three-dimensional methods. The inlet vane angle, meridional length (total), and meridional length with a vane angle of zero (0) degrees (linear) were considered as design variables. At the design and some low flow rate points, the 2D design offered the most favorable performance when the meridional length with a vane angle of zero (0) degrees (linear) was 30% based on total length, and was the worst for 70%. The 3D design method applied in this study did not outperform the 2D design. In the 2D design concept, averaging the flow angle for the entire span at the design flow rate could ensure a better pressure rise over a more comprehensive flow rate range than weighting the flow angle for a specific span. In addition, the nu... [more]

The isolation of nanocellulose from different agricultural residues is becoming an important research field due to its versatile applications. This work collects different production processes, including conditioning steps, pretreatments, bleaching processes and finally purification for the production of nanocellulose in its main types of morphologies: cellulose nanofiber (CNF) and cellulose nanocrystal (CNC). This review highlights the importance of agricultural wastes in the production of nanocellulose in order to reduce environmental impact, use of fossil resources, guarantee sustainable economic growth and close the circle of resource use. Finally, the possible applications of the nanocellulose obtained as a new source of raw material in various industrial fields are discussed.

The development of information and communication technology in terms of sensor technologies cause the Internet of Things (IoT) step toward smart homes for prevalent sensing and management of resources. The gateway connections contain various IoT devices in smart homes representing the security based on the centralized structure. To address the security purposes in this system, the blockchain framework is considered a smart home gateway to overcome the possible attacks and apply Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL). The proposed blockchain-based smart home approach carefully evaluated the reliability and security in terms of accessibility, privacy, and integrity. To overcome traditional centralized architecture, blockchain is employed in the data store and exchange blocks. The data integrity inside and outside of the smart home cause the ability of network members to authenticate. The presented network implemented in the Ethereum blockchain, and the measurements are in terms of security, r... [more]

The use of metal oxides as supports for palladium and copper (Pd−Cu) nanoalloys constitutes a new horizon for improving new active catalysts in very important reactions. From the literatures, Pd-based bimetallic nanostructures have great properties and active catalytic performance. In this work, nanostructures of titanium dioxide (TiO2) were used as supports for Pd−Cu nanoparticles catalysts. Palladium and copper were deposited on these supports using the sol-immobilisation method. The composite nanoalloys were characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The catalyst was evaluated for the oxidation of benzyl alcohol. The effect of the Cu−Pd ratio using sol-immobilization methods supported on TiO2 was investigated. The results show that monometallic Cu/TiO2 was observed to have a low activity. However, as soon as the catalyst contained any palladium, the activity increased with a significant increase in the selectivity towards i... [more]

Due to CO2 mass transfer limitation as well as the competition of hydrogen evolution reaction in electroreduction of CO2 in the aqueous electrolyte, Zn-based electrodes normally exhibit unsatisfying selectivity for CO production, especially at high potentials. In this work, we introduced a zinc myristate (Zn [CH3(CH2)12COO]2) hydrophobic layer on the surface of zinc foam electrode by an electrodeposition method. The obtained hydrophobic zinc foam electrode showed a high Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 91.8% for CO at −1.9 V (vs. saturated calomel electrode, SCE), which was a remarkable improvement over zinc foam (FECO = 81.87%) at the same potentials. The high roughness of the hydrophobic layer has greatly increased the active surface area and CO2 mass transfer performance by providing abundant gas-liquid-solid contacting area. This work shows adding a hydrophobic layer on the surface of the catalyst is an effective way to improve the electrochemical CO2 reduction performance.

Biochar can be derived from a wide variety of organic materials including agricultural wastes and residues, animal wastes, municipal solid wastes, pulp and paper mill wastes, and sewage sludge. Its productivity relies on feedstock type and thermochemical conditions of production. Biochar has many application advantages in several fields and has been widely studied in recent years. However, most of these studies are mainly on the powder form of biochar, while its pelleted form is sparsely reported. Even with the reported studies on biochar pellets, there is still lack of knowledge and awareness of the effects of different feedstock on the densification behavior of biochar. The mechanisms of biochar densification, which appear to be sensitive to the conditions predominating during its thermochemical production, are affected by the material from which the biochar is derived. This partly accounts for why biochar pellets have not been widely adopted in various application fields. Therefore,... [more]

In its prominent experimental studies salvianolic acid B (Sal B) is novel because of its well-defined, common physiological effects, which include anti-inflammatory, anti-depressant, cardioprotective, DNA protective, neuroprotective and hepatoprotective activity in experimental animals. Initially, Sal B was studied for its anti-inflammatory properties, used as a remedy for a wide range of disease conditions, but its specific efficacy on inflammatory bowel disease is still unclear. The aim of this current study was to understand the therapeutic potential of Sal B in an acetic acid (AA)—triggered experimental mouse colitis model. Colitis was triggered by intrarectal injection of 5% AA, and then laboratory animals were given Sal B (10, 20 and 40 μg/kg) for seven days. The ulcerated colonic mucosa was assessed by clinical experiment, macroscopical, biological and histopathological analysis. The results showed depleted SOD, CAT, GSH levels and consequential elevated MPO and MDA levels and a... [more]

This paper would like to compare two extraction procedures for analyzing phthalates (PAEs) in hot drinks collected at vending machines, usually coffee and tea. The two analytical procedures are based on Solid Phase Extraction (SPE) using C18 cartridge and on dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) assisted by ultrasound and vortex for improving the dispersion mechanically, with each followed by a routinary analytical method such as GC-FID. Seven phthalates (DMP, DEP, DiBP, DBP, DEHP, DOP, DDP) have been analyzed and determined. All the analytical parameters (i.e., recovery, limit of detection, limit of quantification, enrichment factors, repeatability, reproducibility) have been investigated and discussed, as has the matrix effect. The entire procedure has been applied to hot drink matrices, e.g., coffee, decaffeinated coffee, barley coffee, ginseng coffee and tea.

In the study of block copolymers, many parameters need to be adjusted to obtain good phase separation results. Based on block copolymer polystyrene-b-polycarbonate and homopolymer polystyrene, the effects of the annealing atmosphere, blending ratio, and molecular weight on phase separation were studied. The results show that annealing in air can inhibit the occurrence of phase separation. In addition, snowflake patterns are formed during phase separation. The blending ratio affects the quality of the pattern. The molecular weight affects the size of the pattern, and the size increases as the molecular weight increases. In this article, the influence of process conditions and materials on phase separation was discussed, which has laid a solid foundation for the development of block copolymer self-assembly in the future.

Vapor pressure deficit (VPD) can be used as an indicator to schedule greenhouse irrigation. VPD can be estimated as a function of relative humidity (RH) and temperature (T). The objective of this work was to analyze spatial variation in VPD as an indicator of water stress influenced by concentration of water vapor and intensity of near infrared (NIR). The study was carried out in an empty three-span sawtooth greenhouse with natural ventilation under the local climate in Montecillo, Mexico; these findings established a base value to analyze greenhouse field conditions prior to the influence from a crop. The experimental phase consisted of recording data (3 February 2019−24 February 2019) on temperature, humidity, solar radiation, and wind speed, which were used for developing a model in computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Then, this model was used to estimate VPD, considering changes in mass fraction of water vapor and the intensity of NIR. Scenarios with 50, 70, and 90% external RH wer... [more]

The processing of large quantities of water in biorefining processes can lead to immense costs for heating, evaporation, and wastewater disposal. These costs may prohibit the exploitation of alternative products, e.g., xylooligosaccharides from straw, which are regarded as too costly. A new counter-current extractions method is proposed that aims at low solvent (water) consumption, as well as high yields and extract concentrations. This process was evaluated with suspension extraction experiments with steam pretreated wheat straw and the process window analysis based on a mass balance for a washing and a leaching scenario. The latter was conducted with two other suspension extraction processes as a comparison. The equilibration time was found to be well below 10 min. While the suspension extraction with and without recycling need to be designed to achieve a high yield or a high concentration and low solvent consumption, the proposed extraction method can reach all three simultaneously.... [more]

To mitigate the current global energy and the environmental crisis, biofuels such as bioethanol have progressively gained attention from both scientific and industrial perspectives. However, at present, commercialized bioethanol is mainly derived from edible crops, thus raising serious concerns given its competition with feed production. For this reason, lignocellulosic biomasses (LCBs) have been recognized as important alternatives for bioethanol production. Because LCBs supply is sustainable, abundant, widespread, and cheap, LCBs-derived bioethanol currently represents one of the most viable solutions to meet the global demand for liquid fuel. However, the cost-effective conversion of LCBs into ethanol remains a challenge and its implementation has been hampered by several bottlenecks that must still be tackled. Among other factors related to the challenging and variable nature of LCBs, we highlight: (i) energy-demanding pretreatments, (ii) expensive hydrolytic enzyme blends, and (ii... [more]