Ash formation characteristics of two Indonesian coals and the change of ash properties with particle size

Ke, Xiwei,Li, Dongfang,Zhang, Man,Jeon, Chung-hwan,Cai, Runxia,Cai, Jin,Lyu, Junfu,Yang, Hairui Elsevier Scientific Pub. Co. 2019 Fuel processing technology Vol.186 No.-

<P><B>Abstract</B></P> <P>It is difficult to maintain enough high circulating ash rate in circulating fluidized bed (CFB) boilers if they burn the Indonesian coals due to their low ash content. Hence, the ash formation data for these coals is of significance to assessing mass balance in CFB boilers. Two kinds of Indonesian coal that were burned in the 550 MW supercritical CFB boilers in Korea, Kideco and KCH, were tested with static combustion and cold sieving method to study their ash formation characteristics. Results showed that the average primary ash particle size of these two coals is quite fine overall and nearly no gangue exists. Besides, their attrition rate constant <I>K</I> <SUB>af</SUB> is much higher than that of some other bituminous or lean coals, and with the increase of particle size, the <I>K</I> <SUB>af</SUB> decays exponentially for Kideco, while it initially increases and then decreases for KCH. In addition, the physical and chemical properties of these two Indonesian coals' ash obviously change in particle size, including density, pore structure, chemical composition, etc. The larger ash particles are composed of some hard materials, such as quartz (SiO<SUB>2</SUB>) and mullite (Al<SUB>6</SUB>Si<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>13</SUB>). While some other materials with lower hardness value, like hematite (Fe<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>3</SUB>) and gehlenite (Ca<SUB>2</SUB>Al<SUB>2</SUB>SiO<SUB>7</SUB>), become major mineral components of smaller and softer ash particles. These results indicate that the difference of chemical compositions results in the discrepancy of attrition capability for different size ash particles.</P> <P><B>Highlights</B></P> <P> <UL> <LI> Two kinds of Indonesian coal were tested to obtain their ash formation data. </LI> <LI> The ash properties obviously change in particle size. </LI> <LI> The difference of chemical compositions may result in the discrepancy of attrition rate for different size ash particles. </LI> </UL> </P> <P><B>Graphical abstract</B></P> <P>The ash attrition rate of low-rank coals including these two Indonesian coals is much higher than that of some other bituminous or lean coals, and larger ash particles are more difficult to be worn.</P> <P>[DISPLAY OMISSION]</P>

Recombinant-attenuated Salmonella Pullorum strain expressing the hemagglutinin-neuraminidase protein of Newcastle disease virus (NDV) protects chickens against NDV and Salmonella Pullorum challenge

Ke Ding,Ke Shang,Zu-Hua Yu,Chuan Yu,Yan-Yan Jia,Lei He,Cheng-Shui Liao,Jing Li,Chun-Jie Zhang,Yin-Ju Li,Ting-Cai Wu,Xiang-chao Cheng 대한수의학회 2018 Journal of Veterinary Science Vol.19 No.2

Newcastle disease virus (NDV) and Salmonella Pullorum have significant damaging effects on the poultry industry, but no previous vaccinecan protect poultry effectively. In this study, a recombinant-attenuated S. Pullorum strain secreting the NDV hemagglutinin-neuraminidase(HN) protein, C79-13ΔcrpΔasd (pYA-HN), was constructed by using the suicide plasmid pREasd-mediated bacteria homologousrecombination method to form a new bivalent vaccine candidate against Newcastle disease (ND) and S. Pullorum disease (PD). The effectof this vaccine candidate was compared with those of the NDV LaSota and C79-13ΔcrpΔasd (pYA) strains. The serum hemagglutinationinhibition antibody titers, serum immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies, secretory IgA, and stimulation index in lymphocyte proliferation wereincreased significantly more (p < 0.01) in chickens inoculated with C79-13ΔcrpΔasd (pYA-HN) than with C79-13ΔcrpΔasd (pYA) but werenot significantly increased compared with the chickens immunized with the LaSota live vaccine (p > 0.05). Moreover, the novel strain provides60% and 80% protective efficacy against the NDV virulent strain F48E9 and the S. Pullorum virulent strain C79-13. In summary, in this study,a recombinant-attenuated S. Pullorum strain secreting NDV HN protein was constructed. The generation of the S. Pullorum C79-13ΔcrpΔasd(pYA-HN) strain provides a foundation for the development of an effective living-vector double vaccine against ND and PD.

Inflammatory Endotypes and Tissue Remodeling Features in Antrochoanal Polyps

Chen Cai-Ling,Wang Yu-Ting,Yao Yin,Pan Li,Guo Bei,Zhu Ke-Zhang,Ma Jin,Wang Nan,Li Xue-Li,Deng Yi-Ke,Liu Zheng 대한천식알레르기학회 2021 Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Research Vol.13 No.6

Purpose: The pathogenic mechanisms of antrochoanal polyps (ACPs) remain largely unknown. This study aimed to characterize inflammatory patterns and tissue remodeling features in ACPs. Methods: Inflammatory cell infiltration and tissue edema severity as well as fibrin deposition in ACPs and bilateral eosinophilic and noneosinophilic nasal polyps (NPs) were studied with immunohistochemical and immunofluorescence staining. Cytokine levels in sinonasal tissues were detected with the Bio-Plex assay. The expression of coagulation and fibrinolytic markers was measured using reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Results: Compared to control tissues and bilateral eosinophilic and noneosinophilic NPs, ACPs had higher levels of neutrophil infiltration and expression of myeloperoxidase (MPO), interleukin (IL)-8 and interferon (IFN)-γ. In total, 94.4% of ACPs demonstrated an eosinophil cationic protein/MPO ratio of < 1, compared to 79.0% of noneosinophilic and 26% of eosinophilic NPs. Principle component and multiple correspondence analyses revealed a neutrophilic and type 1 inflammation pattern in ACPs. Compared to control tissues, edema scores and fibrin deposition were increased, whereas d-dimer and tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) levels were decreased in ACPs and bilateral NPs, with more prominent changes in ACPs even than in eosinophilic NPs. The tPA levels were negatively correlated with IFN-γ, IL-8, and MPO levels in ACPs. Neutrophils were the major cellular source of IFN-γ in ACPs, and the number of IFN-γ+ neutrophils was elevated in ACPs than in control tissues and bilateral eosinophilic and noneosinophilic NPs. Conclusions: ACPs are characterized by the neutrophilic and type 1 inflammation endotype. Neutrophil-derived IFN-γ is associated with reduced tPA production in ACPs.

Internal force monitoring design of long span bridges based on ultimate bearing capacity ratios of structural components

Hu, Ke,Xie, Zheng,Wang, Zuo-Cai,Ren, Wei-Xin,Chen, Lei-Ke Techno-Press 2018 Structural monitoring and maintenance Vol.5 No.1

In order to provide a novel strategy for long-span bridge health monitoring system design, this paper proposes a novel ultimate bearing capacity ratios based bridge internal force monitoring design method. The bridge ultimate bearing capacity analysis theories are briefly described. Then, based on the ultimate bearing capacity of the structural component, the component ultimate bearing capacity ratio, the uniformity of ultimate bearing capacity ratio, and the reference of component ultimate bearing capacity ratio are defined. Based on the defined indices, the high bearing components can then be found, and the internal force monitoring system can be designed. Finally, the proposed method is applied to the bridge health monitoring system design of the second highway bridge of Wuhu Yangtze river. Through the ultimate bearing capacity analysis of the bridge in eight load conditions, the high bearing components are found based on the proposed method. The bridge internal force monitoring system is then preliminary designed. The results show that the proposed method can provide quantitative criteria for sensors layout. The monitoring components based on the proposed method are consistent with the actual failure process of the bridge, and can reduce the monitoring of low bearing components. For the second highway bridge of Wuhu Yangtze river, only 59 components are designed to be monitored their internal forces. Therefore, the bridge internal force monitoring system based on the ultimate bearing capacity ratio can decrease the number of monitored components and the cost of the whole monitoring system.

Investigation of Capacitor Voltage Regulation in Modular Multilevel Converters with Staircase Modulation

Ke Shen,Jianze Wang,Dan Zhao,Mingfei Ban,Yanchao Ji,Xingguo Cai 전력전자학회 2014 JOURNAL OF POWER ELECTRONICS Vol.14 No.2

This paper presents a detailed theoretical analysis and performance assessment of the capacitor voltage balancing strategies for staircase modulated modular multilevel converters (MMC) in terms of the algorithm structures, voltage balancing effect, and switching frequency. A constant-frequency redundancy selection (CFRS) method with minimal switching loss is proposed and the function realization of specific modules of the algorithm is given. This method is simple and efficient in both switching frequency and regulation capacity. Laboratory results show very good agreement with the theoretical analysis and numerical simulations.

Serum miR-21 Expression in Human Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinomas

Cai, Er-Hui,Gao, Yong-Xin,Wei, Zhong-Zhi,Chen, Wei-Ying,Yu, Ping,Li, Ke Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.4

To investigate the relationship between serum miRNA-21 (miR-21) expression in esophageal squamous cell carcinomas (ESCCs) and its clinicopathologic features, a 1:1 matched case-control study including 21 patients with ESCC and 21 age- and gender-matched healthy controls was carried out. Serum specimens were taken from all subjects. Total RNA was extracted and the stem-loop real time polymerase chain reaction was used to measure serum miR-21 in both groups. Clinical parameters were assessed to determine associations with serum miR-21 concentrations. Serum miR-21 expression in ESCC samples was significantly higher than in paired cancer-free samples (P<0.05). Metastasis was associated with mir-21 expression in serum (P<0.05), ESCC patients with metastasis having 8.4-fold higher serum miR-21 concentrations than healthy controls. There were no statistically significant associations between miR-21 expression and clinicopathologic parameters, such as gender (P>0.05), age (P>0.05), tumor location (P>0.05), cell differentiation (P>0.05), TNM staging (P>0.05), whether chemo/radiotherapy had been administered (P>0.05), or whether surgery had been performed (P>0.05). These findings suggest that the detection of microRNA-21 in serum might serve as a new tumor biomarker in diagnosis and assessment of prognosis of ESCCs.

An association study between IL1RAPL2 gene and non-specific mental retardation in Chinese children

Ke-Jin Zhang,Bo He,Ping-Yuan Gong,Xiao-Cai Gao,Zi-Jian Zheng,Shao-Ping Huang,Fu-Chang Zhang 한국유전학회 2010 Genes & Genomics Vol.32 No.2

Non-specific mental retardation (NSMR) is one of common children psychiatric diseases with a high prevalence (1−3%). Here we investigated the association between the genetic variants of IL1RAPL2 gene and NSMR in the children of QinBa region of China. We chose five common SNPs of IL1RAPL2,examined their individual genotype frequencies using the conventional polymerase chain reaction single strand conformation polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) method, and evaluated the association between these genetic polymorphisms and NSMR with the suitable biostatistic software. The allele and genotype distributions of two SNPs (rs5962298 and rs9887672) showed significant differences between the control and NSMR groups (allele: p = 0.020 and 0.017; genotype: p =0.025 for rs9887672 respectively). The distribution differences became more significant in girls, but disappeared in boys, suggesting a gender effect. Taken together, we provide substantial evidence that IL1RAPL2 conferred a NSMR susceptibility to children of Qinba region in China. In future, further work should be carried out to scan mutations and to investigate the specific-gender effect in this gene.

Open source board based acoustofluidic transwells for reversible disruption of the blood–brain barrier for therapeutic delivery

Ke Wang,Chao Sun,Povilas Dumčius,Hongxin Zhang,Hanlin Liao,Zhenlin Wu,Liangfei Tian,Wang Peng,Yongqing Fu,Jun Wei,Meng Cai,Yi Zhong,Xiaoyu Li,Xin Yang,Min Cui 한국생체재료학회 2023 생체재료학회지 Vol.27 No.00

Background Blood–brain barrier (BBB) is a crucial but dynamic structure that functions as a gatekeeper for the central nervous system (CNS). Managing sufficient substances across the BBB is a major challenge, especially in the development of therapeutics for CNS disorders. Methods To achieve an efficient, fast and safe strategy for BBB opening, an acoustofluidic transwell (AFT) was developed for reversible disruption of the BBB. The proposed AFT was consisted of a transwell insert where the BBB model was established, and a surface acoustic wave (SAW) transducer realized using open-source electronics based on printed circuit board techniques. Results In the AFT device, the SAW produced acousto-mechanical stimulations to the BBB model resulting in decreased transendothelial electrical resistance in a dose dependent manner, indicating the disruption of the BBB. Moreover, SAW stimulation enhanced transendothelial permeability to sodium fluorescein and FITC-dextran with various molecular weight in the AFT device. Further study indicated BBB opening was mainly attributed to the apparent stretching of intercellular spaces. An in vivo study using a zebrafish model demonstrated SAW exposure promoted penetration of sodium fluorescein to the CNS. Conclusions In summary, AFT effectively disrupts the BBB under the SAW stimulation, which is promising as a new drug delivery methodology for neurodegenerative diseases.

Investigation of Capacitor Voltage Regulation in Modular Multilevel Converters with Staircase Modulation

Shen, Ke,Wang, Jianze,Zhao, Dan,Ban, Mingfei,Ji, Yanchao,Cai, Xingguo The Korean Institute of Power Electronics 2014 JOURNAL OF POWER ELECTRONICS Vol.14 No.2

This paper presents a detailed theoretical analysis and performance assessment of the capacitor voltage balancing strategies for staircase modulated modular multilevel converters (MMC) in terms of the algorithm structures, voltage balancing effect, and switching frequency. A constant-frequency redundancy selection (CFRS) method with minimal switching loss is proposed and the function realization of specific modules of the algorithm is given. This method is simple and efficient in both switching frequency and regulation capacity. Laboratory results show very good agreement with the theoretical analysis and numerical simulations.

Polymorphisms in DNA Repair Genes and Risk of Glioma and Meningioma

Luo, Ke-Qin,Mu, Shi-Qing,Wu, Zhong-Xue,Shi, Yi-Ni,Peng, Ji-Cai Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.1

Polymorphisms in DNA repair genes have been shown to influence DNA repair processes and to modify cancer susceptibility. Here we conducted a case-control study to assess the role of potential SNPs of DNA repair genes on the risk of glioma and meningioma. We included 297 cases and 458 cancer-free controls. Genotyping of XRCC1 Gln399Arg, XRCC1 Arg194Trp, XRCC2 Arg188His, XRCC3 Thr241Met, XRCC4 Ala247Ser, ERCC1 Asn118Asp, ERCC2 Lys751Gln and ERCC5 Asp1558His were performed in a 384-well plate format on the Sequenom MassARRAY platform. XRCC1 Arg194Trp (rs1799782) and ERCC2 Asp312Asn rs1799793 did not follow the HWE in control group, and genotype distributions of XRCC1 Gln399Arg rs25487, XRCC2 Arg188His rs3218536 and ERCC2 Asp312Asn rs1799793 were significantly different between cases and controls (P<0.05). We found XRCC1 399G/G, XRCC1 194 T/T and XRCC3 241T/T were associated with a higher risk when compared with the wild-type genotype. For ERCC5 Asp1558His, we found G/G genotype was associated with elevated susceptibility. In conclusion, our study has shown that XRCC1 Gln399Arg, XRCC1 Arg194Trp, XRCC3 Thr241Met and ERCC5 Asp1558His are associated with risk of gliomas and meningiomas. This finding could be useful in identifying the susceptibility genes for these cancers.