Design and development of a low-cost glazing measurement system.

Knowledge of the properties and performance level of a glazing or translucent component system is necessary for assessing the operational energy use of building or greenhouse structures and proposing potential strategies for saving energy. The study of in situ measurements of the thermal and optical performance of glazing systems has not yet been thoroughly examined. To accomplish this task, a portable and easy-to-use in situ measurement system for key glazing properties that uses the inexpensive Arduino platform and compatible sensors was designed, 3D-printed, and fabricated. The glazing properties that can now be measured include the center-of-glass U-factor, solar transmittance, and visible transmittance. In this method-focused paper, we present the step-by-step development procedure in detail, as well as describe the necessary hardware and codes. One can use the shared files to 3D-print the sensor cases and follow the described procedure to achieve the measuring system hardware. Subsequently, the shared codes, including the calibration functions for the associated hardware and the "self-examination" procedure can be applied to achieve a working system for measurement. In brief, this new method is:•Based on thermodynamic equations and easy-to-use.•Open source, low cost, and simple to assemble.•Able to automatically determine the effectiveness of the output via the developed diagnostic algorithms.

Monitoring tetracycline through a solid-state nanopore sensor.

Antibiotics as emerging environmental contaminants, are widely used in both human and veterinary medicines. A solid-state nanopore sensing method is reported in this article to detect Tetracycline, which is based on Tet-off and Tet-on systems. rtTA (reverse tetracycline-controlled trans-activator) and TRE (Tetracycline Responsive Element) could bind each other under the action of Tetracycline to form one complex. When the complex passes through nanopores with 8 ~ 9 nanometers in diameter, we could detect the concentrations of Tet from 2 ng/mL to 2000 ng/mL. According to the Logistic model, we could define three growth zones of Tetracycline for rtTA and TRE. The slow growth zone is 0-39.5 ng/mL. The rapid growth zone is 39.5-529.7 ng/mL. The saturated zone is > 529.7 ng/mL. Compared to the previous methods, the nanopore sensor could detect and quantify these different kinds of molecule at the single-molecule level.

Nanopore-based fourth-generation DNA sequencing technology.

Nanopore-based sequencers, as the fourth-generation DNA sequencing technology, have the potential to quickly and reliably sequence the entire human genome for less than $1000, and possibly for even less than $100. The single-molecule techniques used by this technology allow us to further study the interaction between DNA and protein, as well as between protein and protein. Nanopore analysis opens a new door to molecular biology investigation at the single-molecule scale. In this article, we have reviewed academic achievements in nanopore technology from the past as well as the latest advances, including both biological and solid-state nanopores, and discussed their recent and potential applications.

Corrigendum to 'Nanopore-based Fourth-generation DNA Sequencing Technology' [GPB 144 (2015) - GPB 13/1 (4-16)].

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.gpb.2015.01.009.].