Robust structured light 3D measurement method based on polarization-encoded projection patterns.

Fringe projection profilometry (FPP) is widely used in 3D vision measurement because of its high robustness and measurement accuracy. In the case of HDR objects, due to the problem of surface reflectivity, the obtained image will be overexposed. This will cause the sinusoidality of the fringes projected on the surface of the object in the acquired image to be interfered, resulting in a phase error in the calculated wrapped phase. Therefore, a polarization-encoded sinusoidal structured light is proposed to enhance the sinusoidality of the fringe. The phase information contained in the polarized sinusoidal structured light fringe is only related to the polarization state, not to the light intensity. A polarization coding assisted structured light measurement strategy (PASM) is proposed. This method uses polarization coding assisted polarization phase-shifting fringes for phase unwrapping. The angle of the linear polarizer is set to zero in this method, and it does not require rotating the polarizer. It only needs a single exposure to improve the fringe quality and obtain a more stable unwrapping phase. The experimental results show that the obtained polarization fringes have better sinusoidality, and the phase unwrapping can be more accurate. The reconstructed 3D point cloud also does not appear missing and has better accuracy. It is a reliable method for vision measurement of HDR objects.

POU6F1 promotes ferroptosis by increasing lncRNA-CASC2 transcription to regulate SOCS2/SLC7A11 signaling in gastric cancer.

OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the effect and mechanism of POU6F1 and lncRNA-CASC2 on ferroptosis of gastric cancer (GC) cells. METHODS: GC cells treated with erastin and RSL3 were detected for ferroptosis, reactive oxygen species (ROS) level, and cell viability. The expression levels of POU6F1, lncRNA-CASC2, SOCS2, and ferroptosis-related molecules (GPX4 and SLC7A11) were also measured. The regulations among POU6F1, lncRNA-CASC2, FMR1, SOCS2, and SLC7A11 were determined. Subcutaneous tumor models were established, in which the expressions of Ki-67, SOCS2, and GPX4 were detected by immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: GC patients with decreased expressions of POU6F1 and lncRNA-CASC2 had lower survival rate. Overexpression of POU6F1 or lncRNA-CASC2 decreased cell proliferation and GSH levels in GC cells, in addition to increasing total iron, Fe2+, MDA, and ROS levels. POU6F1 directly binds to the lncRNA-CASC2 promoter to promote its transcription. LncRNA-CASC2 can target FMR1 and increase SOCS2 mRNA stability to promote SLC7A11 ubiquitination degradation and activate ferroptosis signaling. Knockdown of SOCS2 inhibited the ferroptosis sensitivity of GC cells and reversed the effects of POU6F1 and lncRNA-CASC2 overexpression on ferroptosis in GC cells. CONCLUSION: Transcription factor POU6F1 binds directly to the lncRNA-CASC2 promoter to promote its expression, while upregulated lncRNA-CASC2 increases SOCS2 stability and expression by targeting FMR1, thereby inhibiting SLC7A11 signaling to promote ferroptosis in GC cells and inhibit GC progression.

Critical Contribution of Imbalanced Charge Loss to Performance Deterioration of Si-Based Lithium-Ion Cells during Calendar Aging.

Increasing the energy density of lithium-ion batteries, and thereby reducing costs, is a major target for industry and academic research. One of the best opportunities is to replace the traditional graphite anode with a high-capacity anode material, such as silicon. However, Si-based lithium-ion batteries have been widely reported to suffer from a limited calendar life for automobile applications. Heretofore, there lacks a fundamental understanding of calendar aging for rationally developing mitigation strategies. Both open-circuit voltage and voltage-hold aging protocols were utilized to characterize the aging behavior of Si-based cells. Particularly, a high-precision leakage current measurement was applied to quantitatively measure the rate of parasitic reactions at the electrode/electrolyte interface. The rate of parasitic reactions at the Si anode was found 5 times and 15 times faster than those of LiNi0.8Mn0.1Co0.1O2 and LiFePO4 cathodes, respectively. The imbalanced charge loss from parasitic reactions plays a critical role in exacerbating performance deterioration. In addition, a linear relationship between capacity loss and charge consumption from parasitic reactions provides fundamental support to assess calendar life through voltage-hold tests. These new findings imply that longer calendar life can be achieved by suppressing parasitic reactions at the Si anode to balance charge consumption during calendar aging.

Reversible Iron Oxyfluoride (FeOF)-Graphene Composites as Sustainable Cathodes for High Energy Density Lithium Batteries.

Two large barriers are impeding the wide implementation of electric vehicles, namely driving-range and cost, primarily due to the low specific energy and high cost of mono-valence cathodes used in lithium-ion batteries. Iron is the ideal element for cathode materials considering its abundance, low cost and toxicity. However, the poor reversibility of (de)lithiation and low electronic conductivity prevent iron-based high specific energy multi-valence conversion cathodes from practical applications. In this work, a sustainable FeOF nanocomposite is developed with extraordinary performance. The specific capacity and energy reach 621 mAh g-1 and 1124 Wh kg-1 with more than 100 cycles, which triples the specific capacity, and doubles the specific energy of current mono-valence intercalation LiCoO2 . This is the result of an effective approach, combing the nanostructured FeOF with graphene, realized by making the (de)lithiation reversible by immobilizing FeOF nanoparticles and the discharge products over the graphene surface and providing the interparticle electric conduction. Importantly, it demonstrates that introducing small amount of graphene can create new materials with desired properties, opening a new avenue for altering the (de)lithiation process. Such extraordinary performance represents a significant breakthrough in developing sustainable conversion materials, eventually overcoming the driving range and cost barriers.

Optimal Microstructure of Silicon Monoxide as the Anode for Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Because of its metastable nature, silicon monoxide (SiO) consists of Si nanodomains in an amorphous matrix of SiO2. The microstructure of SiO, including SiO2, Si domains, and interphase (SiOx) between domains, was modified via an annealing treatment in argon gas and thoroughly characterized by in-situ and ex-situ X-ray diffraction, pair distribution function, and electron energy loss spectroscopy. Two microstructure transformation routes were observed during the annealing process: (1) at a temperature of <800 °C, the annealing treatment was found to affect mainly the structural conformation of the amorphous SiO2 matrix and the interphase, while (2) an annealing temperature of >800 °C led to significant Si nanodomain growth. We found that the microstructure has a great impact on the electrochemical performance of SiO. The optimized microstructure of SiO appears to be achieved through annealing treatment at 800 °C or less, which results in interphase (SiOx) reduction without causing significant Si domain growth. This work provides a deep insight into the domain and interphase transformation of SiO upon heat treatment. The improved understanding of the relationship between SiO microstructure and its electrochemical behavior will enable proper design and development of high-energy SiO for lithium-ion batteries.

Long-Cycling Sulfide-Based All-Solid-State Batteries Enabled by Electrochemo-Mechanically Stable Electrodes.

The anode plays a critical role relating to the energy density in all-solid-state lithium batteries (ASLBs). Silicon (Si) and lithium (Li) metal are two of the most attractive anodes because of their ultrahigh theoretical capacities. However, most investigations focus on Li metal, leaving the great potential of Si underrated. This work investigates the stability, processability, and cost of Si anodes in ASLBs and compares them with Li metal. Moreover, single-crystal LiNi0.8 Mn0.1 Co0.1 O2 is stabilized with lithium silicate (Li2 SiOx ) through a scalable sol-gel method. ASLBs with a cell-level energy density of 285 Wh kg-1 are obtained by sandwiching the Si anode, the thin sulfide solid-state electrolyte membrane, and the interface stabilized LiNi0.8 Mn0.1 Co0.1 O2 . The full cell delivers a high capacity of 145 mAh g-1 at C/3 and maintains stability for 1000 cycles. This work inspires commercialization of ASLBs on a large scale with exciting manufacturing lines for large-scale, safe, and economical energy storage.

Editorial for focus on nanophase materials for next-generation lithium-ion batteries and beyond.

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have revolutionized our society in many respects, and we are expecting even more favorable changes in our lifestyles with newer battery technologies. In pursuing such eligible batteries, nanophase materials play some important roles in LIBs and beyond technologies. Stimulated by their beneficial effects of nanophase materials, we initiated this Focus. Excitingly, this Focus collects 13 excellent original research and review articles related to the applications of nanophase materials in various rechargeable batteries, ranging from nanostructured electrode materials, nanoscale interface tailoring, novel separators, computational calculations, and advanced characterizations.

Insights into the Li Diffusion Mechanism in Si/C Composite Anodes for Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Recently, Si/C composite materials have attracted enormous research interest as the most promising candidates for the anodes of next-generation lithium-ion batteries, owing to their high energy density and mechanical buffering property. However, the fundamental mechanism of Li diffusion behavior in various Si/C composite materials remains unclear, with our understanding limited by experimental techniques and continuum modeling methodologies. Herein, the atomic behavior of Li diffusion in the Si/C composite material is studied within the framework of density functional theory. Two representative structural mixing formats, that is, simple mixture mode and core-shell mode, are modeled and compared. We discover that the carbon material increases Li diffusion in silicon from 7.75 × 10-5 to 2.097 × 10-4 cm2/s. The boost is about 50% more obvious in the mixture mode, while the core-shell structure shows more dependence on the atomic structures of the carbon layer. These results offer new insights into Li diffusion behavior in Si/C composites and unlock the enhancing mechanism for Li diffusion in Si/C. This understanding facilitates the modeling of batteries with composite anodes and will guide the corresponding structure designs for robust and high-energy-density batteries.

Analysis of the HNF4A isoform-regulated transcriptome identifies CCL15 as a downstream target in gastric carcinogenesis.

OBJECTIVE: Hepatocyte nuclear factor 4α (HNF4A) has been demonstrated to be an oncogene in gastric cancer (GC). However, the roles of different HNF4A isoforms derived from the 2 different promoters (P1 and P2) and the underlying mechanisms remain obscure. METHODS: The expression and prognostic values of P1- and P2-HNF4A were evaluated in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) databases and GC tissues. Then, functional assays of P1- and P2-HNF4A were conducted both in vivo and in vitro. High-throughput RNA-seq was employed to profile downstream pathways in P1- and P2-HNF4A-overexpressing GC cells. The expression and gene regulation network of the candidate target genes identified by RNA-seq were characterized based on data mining and functional assays. RESULTS: HNF4A amplification was a key characteristic of GC in TCGA databases, especially for the intestinal type and early stage. Moreover, P1-HNF4A expression was significantly higher in tumor tissues than in adjacent non-tumor tissues (P < 0.05), but no significant differences were found in P2-HNF4A expression (P > 0.05). High P1-HNF4A expression indicated poor prognoses in GC patients (P < 0.01). Furthermore, P1-HNF4A overexpression significantly promoted SGC7901 and BGC823 cell proliferation, invasion and migration in vitro (P < 0.01). Murine xenograft experiments showed that P1-HNF4A overexpression promoted tumor growth (P < 0.05). Mechanistically, RNA-seq showed that the cytokine-cytokine receptor interactions pathway was mostly enriched in P1-HNF4A-overexpressing GC cells. Finally, chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 15 was identified as a direct target of P1-HNF4A in GC tissues. CONCLUSIONS: P1-HNF4A was the main oncogene during GC progression. The cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction pathway played a pivotal role and may be a promising therapeutic target.

Niobium Modification of Au/CeO2 for Enhanced Catalytic Performance over Benzene Combustion.

A novel Au/Nb-CeO2 was obtained by loading Au to Nb-modified CeO2 adopting a thermal decomposition method. The modification effect of Nb on the physicochemical properties and performance of Au/CeO2 for benzene combustion was systematically clarified. The incorporated Nb species are found to be present in the two forms of highly-dispersed state and bulk NbO x into CeO2 lattice in the obtained Au/Nb-CeO2 catalyst. They greatly enlarged the BET surface area, improved the redox property, and strengthened the Au-support interaction. The addition of Nb also promotes catalytic performance of Au/CeO2, especially high-temperature performance: T 90% decreases by ca. 40 °C and Au/Nb-CeO2 exhibits superior stability to Au/CeO2 at 230 °C. The slightly improved Au dispersion and redox properties resulted in the small increase on initial activity of Au/Nb-CeO2, but the large BET surface area and the strong Au-support interaction greatly promoted the high-temperature performance improvement of Au/Nb-CeO2 for benzene combustion reaction.