A new isolated out-of-phase filtering power divider/combiner with high selectivity is presented. Based on a single-layer microstrip, required coupling strength and phase difference are achieved by two pairs of three-line coupled feeding structures. To realize desired bandpass responses, a specific resonator is located between the input and output coupled structures. By connecting a half-wavelength transmission line which is centrally loaded with a grounded resistor between two output ports, high port-to-port isolation is attained. Based on the impedance matrix of coupled three-line structure, theoretical filtering responses are predicted with the specified bandwidth and return loss. For demonstration, a prototype is designed, fabricated, and tested. Both simulated and measured results are displayed to verify the design mechanism.

A clear understanding of the solid-state reaction of kaolinite (Kln), quartz (Qtz), and sodium carbonate (Na2CO3) is of great significance for the process optimization of coal gangue calcined with Na2CO3. In this work, a comparative study of the isothermal solid-state reaction systems of Kln–Na2CO3 and Kln–Qtz–Na2CO3 was performed by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope, and energy dispersion spectroscopy (SEM-EDS). The results showed that the calcined products both for these reaction systems mainly contain different kinds of sodium aluminum silicates (e.g., NaAlSiO4, Na1.55Al1.55Si0.45O4, and Na1.95Al1.95Si0.05O4) and various kinds of sodium silicates (e.g., Na2Si3O7, Na2SiO3, and Na6Si2O7). The mass percentage of Na2CO3 played a key role in the phase transformation, determining the Na/Al/Si molar ratio of the formed sodium aluminum silicates. Compared with the reaction system of Kln–Na2CO3, the existence of Qtz inhibited the formation of sodium aluminum silicates in the reaction system of Kln–Qtz–Na2CO3. It should be noted that the formed phases both for these reaction systems were slightly different from that of the thermodynamical calculated results of Na2O–SiO2–Al2O3 using FactSage™ software. According to both the experimental and calculated results, a reasonable batching area for coal gangue activation was proposed that the addition of Na2CO3 should be in the range of 20–50% of the total mass of Kln, Qtz, and Na2CO3.

An Exact Affine Stone Index demand model is estimated to analyze the household-level demand for nine nut products (peanuts, pecans, almonds, cashews, walnuts, pistachios, mixed nuts, macadamia nuts, and other nuts) in the United States using Nielsen Homescan panel data from 2009 through 2015. The demands for all nuts are elastic. All nut products are necessities and substitutes for each other. Household sociodemographic characteristics are statistically significant drivers of the demand for nut products. Finally, the effects of changes in the magnitude of selected promotion expenditure elasticities for nuts are simulated to determine their impacts on prices and quantities demanded.

Due to the lack of research between the inner layers in the structure of colonic mucous and the metabolism of fatty acid in the constipation model, we aim to determine the changes in the mucous phenotype of the colonic glycocalyx and the microbial community structure following treatment with Rhubarb extract in our research. The constipation and treatment models are generated using adult male C57BL/6N mice. We perform light microscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to detect a Muc2-rich inner mucus layer attached to mice colon under different conditions. In addition, 16S rDNA sequencing is performed to examine the intestinal flora. According to TEM images, we demonstrate that Rhubarb can promote mucin secretion and find direct evidence of dendritic structure-linked mucus structures with its assembly into a lamellar network in a pore size distribution in the isolated colon section. Moreover, the diversity of intestinal flora has noticeable changes in constipated mice. The present study characterizes a dendritic structure and persistent cross-links have significant changes accompanied by the alteration of intestinal flora in feces in models of constipation and pretreatment with Rhubarb extract.

Mounting evidence suggests that the first few months of life are critical for the development of obesity. The relationships between the timing of solid food introduction and the risk of childhood obesity have been examined previously; however, evidence for the association of timing of infant formula introduction remains scarce. This study aimed to examine whether the timing of infant formula introduction is associated with growth z-scores and overweight at ages 1 and 3 years. This study included 5733 full-term (≥ 37 gestational weeks) and normal birth weight (≥ 2500 and < 4000 g) children in the Born in Guangzhou Cohort Study, a prospective cohort study with data collected at 6 weeks, 6, 12 and 36 months. Compared with infant formula introduction at 0–3 months, introduction at 4–6 months was associated with the lower BMI, weight-for-age and weight-for-length z-scores at 1 and 3 years old. Also, introduction at 4–6 months was associated with the lower odds of at-risk of overweight at age 1 (adjusted OR 0·72, 95 % CI 0·55, 0·94) and 3 years (adjusted OR 0·50, 95 % CI 0·30, 0·85). Introduction at 4–6 months also decreased the odds of overweight at age 1 year (adjusted OR 0·42, 95 % CI 0·21, 0·84) but not at age 3 years. Based on our findings, compared with introduction within the first 3 months, introduction at 4–6 months has a reduction on later high BMI risk and at-risk of overweight. However, these results need to be replicated in other well-designed studies before more firm recommendations can be made.

This study examined the influences of coated folic acid (CFA) and coated riboflavin (CRF) on bull performance, nutrients digestion and ruminal fermentation. Forty-eight Angus bulls based on a randomised block and 2 × 2 factorial design were assigned to four treatments. The CFA of 0 or 6 mg of folic acid/kg DM was supplemented in diets with CRF 0 or 60 mg riboflavin (RF)/kg DM. Supplementation of CRF in diets with CFA had greater increase in daily weight gain and feed efficiency than in diets without CFA. Supplementation with CFA or CRF enhanced digestibility of DM, organic matter, crude protein, neutral-detergent fibre and non-fibre carbohydrate. Ruminal pH and ammonia N content decreased and total volatile fatty acids concentration and acetate to propionate ratio elevated for CFA or CRF addition. Supplement of CFA or CRF increased the activities of fibrolytic enzymes and the numbers of total bacteria, protozoa, fungi, dominant fibrolytic bacteria and Prevotella ruminicola. The activities of α-amylase, protease and pectinase and the numbers of Butyrivibrio fibrisolvens and Ruminobacter amylophilus were increased by CFA but were unaffected by CRF. Blood concentration of folate elevated and homocysteine decreased for CFA addition. The CRF supplementation elevated blood concentrations of folate and RF. These findings suggested that CFA or CRF inclusion had facilitating effects on performance and ruminal fermentation, and combined addition of CFA and CRF had greater increase in performance than CFA or CRF addition alone in bulls.

We performed U–Pb dating of detrital zircons and conducted petrological and whole-rock geochemical analyses to assess the provenance of the Upper Triassic – Lower Jurassic clastic rocks in the southeastern margin of the South China Block. Detrital zircon U–Pb ages are mainly classified into age groups of 2000–1700, 900–700, 490–390 and 280–210 Ma, consistent with derivation from the Jiangnan orogenic belt, Nanling Belt, as well as Wuyi and Yunkai domains. Lower Jurassic samples yield a special main age population of 200–190 Ma, and these detrital zircon grains have low Th/U and Nb/Hf ratios and high Th/Nb and Hf/Th ratios, showing they are derived from a continental magmatic arc. However, the cross-correlation and likeness coefficients of kernel density estimates of Upper Triassic and Lower Jurassic sandstones are 0.8608 and 0.8403, indicating that their populations are highly similar. Since the tectonic setting is the key factor in controlling the relationship between source and sink, the stable supply of identical provenance suggests that the tectonic setting did not significantly change during Late Triassic – Early Jurassic time. Sandstone petrography, regional facies distribution and the detrital zircon age patterns all reflect a consistent tectonic setting for the South China Block during Late Triassic – Early Jurassic time. The Palaeo-Pacific subduction therefore did not control the tectonic evolution of the South China Block until after the Early Jurassic Epoch.

A high-frequency short-pulsed stroboscopic micro-visual system was employed to capture the transient image sequences of a periodically in-plane working micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) devices. To demodulate the motion parameters of the devices from the images, we developed the feature point matching (FPM) algorithm based on Speeded-Up Robust Features (SURF). A MEMS gyroscope, vibrating at a frequency of 8.189 kHz, was used as a testing sample to evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm. Within the same processing time, the SURF-based FPM method demodulated the velocity of the in-plane motion with a precision of 10−5 pixels of the image, which was two orders of magnitude higher than the template-matching and frame-difference algorithms.

Considering the polishing requirements for high-precision aspherical optical mirrors, a hybrid polishing robot composed of a serial–parallel manipulator and a dual rotor grinding system is proposed. Firstly, based on the kinematics of serial components, the equivalent load model for the parallel manipulator is established. Then, the elastodynamic model of kinematic branched-chains of the parallel manipulator is established by using the spatial beam element, and the rigid–flexible coupling dynamic model of the polishing robot is obtained with Kineto-elasto dynamics theory. Further, considering the dynamic properties of the joint clearance, the rigid–flexible coupling dynamic model with the joint clearance for the polishing robot is established. Finally, the equivalent load distribution of the parallel manipulator is analyzed, and the effect of the branched-chain elasticity and joint clearance on the motion error of the polishing robot is studied. This article provides a theoretical basis for improving the motion accuracy and dynamic performance of the hybrid polishing robot.

The current study reports the identification of previously undiscovered single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the bovine AGPAT3 gene and further investigates their associations with milk production traits. Our results demonstrate that the major allele C of the SNP g.12264 C > T is positively correlated with test-day milk yield, protein percentage and 305-day milk yield. Importantly, in silico analysis showed that the C/T transition at this locus gives rise to two new transcription factor binding sites (TFBS), E2F1 and Nkx3-2. Polymorphism g.18658 G > A was the only SNP associated with milk urea nitrogen (MUN) with the G allele related to an increase in milk urea nitrogen as well as fat percentage. The GG genotype of SNP g.28731 A > G was associated with the highest fat and protein percentage and lowest 305-day milk yield and somatic cell score (SCS). The association between AGPAT3 locus and milk production traits could be utilized in marker-assisted selection for the genetic improvement of milk production traits and, probably in conjunction with other traits, for selection to improve fitness of dairy cattle.

Aiming at 3SPS+1PS parallel hip joint simulator, the maximum stress of branched chains under the suggested trajectory is obtained by elastodynamic analysis. Based on Corten-Dolan fatigue damage theory and Rain-flow counting method, the dynamic stress of each branched chain is statistically analyzed. The fatigue life prediction shows that branched-chain A2P2C2 is the weakest component for the simulator. Finally, the fatigue reliability is analyzed and the fatigue life and reliability under different structural parameters are discussed. The study shows that the fatigue life of each branched chain can be increased or balanced by increasing structural parameters or exchanging initial motion parameters.

The soft actuator is made of superelastic material and embedded flexible material. In this paper, a kind of soft tube was designed and used to assemble two kinds of pneumatic soft actuators. The experiment and finite element analysis are used to comprehensively analyze and describe the bending, elongation, and torsion deformation of the soft actuator. The results show that the two soft actuators have the best actuation performance when the inner diameter of the soft tube is 4 mm. In addition, when the twisting pitch of the torsional actuator is 24 mm, its torsional performance is optimized. Finally, a device that can be used in the production line was assembled by utilizing those soft actuators, and some operation tasks were completed. This experiment provides some insights for the development of soft actuators with more complex motions in the future.

Sepiolite powder was hydrothermally solidified into a cemented, designed to function both in humidity regulation and volatile organic compound (VOC) removal. The solidification process mimicked the cementation of sedimentary rocks. The formation of the calcium aluminium silicate hydrate (C-A-S-H) or Al-tobermorite enhanced the strength (maximum flexural strength >17 MPa) and improved the porosity of the solidified materials. Due to the low temperature of hydrothermal solidification (≤473.15 K), most sepiolite remained in the matrix of the solidified specimens. The cemented sepiolite aggregate shows outstanding humidity-regulating performance (moisture adsorption of 430 g m–2), and the synergistic effects of the residual sepiolite and neoformed Al-tobermorite exerted a positive influence on the humidity regulation performance of the material. Similarly to the behaviour of sepiolite, the solidified material also displayed good formaldehyde-removal capacity (60–68%). The pore dimensions controlled the humidity regulation and formaldehyde removal. The humidity regulation depends on the mesopores, which originate mainly from both the original sepiolite and the neoformed C-A-S-H phases and Al-tobermorite, while the formaldehyde removal depends on the micropores from the original sepiolite in the matrix. As such, the cemented sepiolite aggregate might be hydrothermally synthesized and might be used to improve the comfort and safety of indoor environments for human beings.

The present study aimed to investigate the association of the Chinese visceral adiposity index (CVAI) and its 6-year change with hypertension risk and compare the ability of CVAI and other obesity indices to predict hypertension based on the Rural Chinese Cohort Study. Study participants were randomly recruited by a cluster sampling procedure, and 10 304 participants ≥18 years were included. Modified Poisson regression was used to derive adjusted relative risks (RR) and 95 % CI. We identified 2072 hypertension cases during a median of 6·03 years of follow-up. The RR for the highest v. lowest CVAI quartile were 1·29 (95 % CI 1·05, 1·59) for men and 1·53 (95 % CI 1·22, 1·91) for women. Per-sd increase in CVAI was associated with hypertension for both men (RR 1·09, 95 % CI 1·02, 1·16) and women (RR 1·14, 95 % CI 1·06, 1·22). Also, the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve value for hypertension was higher for CVAI than the four other obesity indices for both sexes (all P < 0·05). Finally, per-sd increase in CVAI change was associated with hypertension for both men (RR 1·26, 95 % CI 1·16, 1·36) and women (RR 1·23, 95 % CI 1·15, 1·30). Similar results were observed in sensitivity analyses. CVAI and its 6-year change are positively associated with hypertension risk. CVAI has better performance in predicting hypertension than other visceral obesity indices for both sexes. The current findings suggest CVAI as a reliable and applicable predictor of hypertension in rural Chinese adults.