Silk-regulated hierarchical hollow magnetite/carbon nanocomposite spheroids for lithium-ion battery anodes.

PubMed

Sheng, Weiqin; Zhu, Guobin; Kaplan, David L; Cao, Chuanbao; Zhu, Hesun; Lu, Qiang

2015-03-20

Hierarchical olive-like structured carbon-Fe3O4 nanocomposite particles composed of a hollow interior and a carbon coated surface are prepared by a facile, silk protein-assisted hydrothermal method. Silk nanofibers as templates and carbon precursors first regulate the formation of hollow Fe2O3 microspheres and then they are converted into carbon by a reduction process into Fe3O4. This process significantly simplifies the fabrication and carbon coating processes to form complex hollow structures. When tested as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries, these hollow carbon-coated particles exhibit high capacity (900 mAh g(-1)), excellent cycle stability (180 cycles) and rate performance due to their unique hierarchical hollow structure and carbon coating.

Spine-like Nanostructured Carbon Interconnected by Graphene for High-performance Supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Sang-Hoon; Yoon, Seung-Beom; Kim, Hyun-Kyung; Han, Joong Tark; Park, Hae-Woong; Han, Joah; Yun, Seok-Min; Jeong, Han Gi; Roh, Kwang Chul; Kim, Kwang-Bum

2014-08-01

Recent studies on supercapacitors have focused on the development of hierarchical nanostructured carbons by combining two-dimensional graphene and other conductive sp2 carbons, which differ in dimensionality, to improve their electrochemical performance. Herein, we report a strategy for synthesizing a hierarchical graphene-based carbon material, which we shall refer to as spine-like nanostructured carbon, from a one-dimensional graphitic carbon nanofiber by controlling the local graphene/graphitic structure via an expanding process and a co-solvent exfoliation method. Spine-like nanostructured carbon has a unique hierarchical structure of partially exfoliated graphitic blocks interconnected by thin graphene sheets in the same manner as in the case of ligaments. Owing to the exposed graphene layers and interconnected sp2 carbon structure, this hierarchical nanostructured carbon possesses a large, electrochemically accessible surface area with high electrical conductivity and exhibits high electrochemical performance.

Spine-like nanostructured carbon interconnected by graphene for high-performance supercapacitors.

PubMed

Park, Sang-Hoon; Yoon, Seung-Beom; Kim, Hyun-Kyung; Han, Joong Tark; Park, Hae-Woong; Han, Joah; Yun, Seok-Min; Jeong, Han Gi; Roh, Kwang Chul; Kim, Kwang-Bum

2014-08-19

Recent studies on supercapacitors have focused on the development of hierarchical nanostructured carbons by combining two-dimensional graphene and other conductive sp(2) carbons, which differ in dimensionality, to improve their electrochemical performance. Herein, we report a strategy for synthesizing a hierarchical graphene-based carbon material, which we shall refer to as spine-like nanostructured carbon, from a one-dimensional graphitic carbon nanofiber by controlling the local graphene/graphitic structure via an expanding process and a co-solvent exfoliation method. Spine-like nanostructured carbon has a unique hierarchical structure of partially exfoliated graphitic blocks interconnected by thin graphene sheets in the same manner as in the case of ligaments. Owing to the exposed graphene layers and interconnected sp(2) carbon structure, this hierarchical nanostructured carbon possesses a large, electrochemically accessible surface area with high electrical conductivity and exhibits high electrochemical performance.

Spine-like Nanostructured Carbon Interconnected by Graphene for High-performance Supercapacitors

PubMed Central

Park, Sang-Hoon; Yoon, Seung-Beom; Kim, Hyun-Kyung; Han, Joong Tark; Park, Hae-Woong; Han, Joah; Yun, Seok-Min; Jeong, Han Gi; Roh, Kwang Chul; Kim, Kwang-Bum

2014-01-01

Recent studies on supercapacitors have focused on the development of hierarchical nanostructured carbons by combining two-dimensional graphene and other conductive sp2 carbons, which differ in dimensionality, to improve their electrochemical performance. Herein, we report a strategy for synthesizing a hierarchical graphene-based carbon material, which we shall refer to as spine-like nanostructured carbon, from a one-dimensional graphitic carbon nanofiber by controlling the local graphene/graphitic structure via an expanding process and a co-solvent exfoliation method. Spine-like nanostructured carbon has a unique hierarchical structure of partially exfoliated graphitic blocks interconnected by thin graphene sheets in the same manner as in the case of ligaments. Owing to the exposed graphene layers and interconnected sp2 carbon structure, this hierarchical nanostructured carbon possesses a large, electrochemically accessible surface area with high electrical conductivity and exhibits high electrochemical performance. PMID:25134517

Carbon with hierarchical pores from carbonized metal-organic frameworks for lithium sulphur batteries.

PubMed

Xi, Kai; Cao, Shuai; Peng, Xiaoyu; Ducati, Caterina; Kumar, R Vasant; Cheetham, Anthony K

2013-03-18

This paper presents a novel method and rationale for utilizing carbonized MOFs for sulphur loading to fabricate cathode structures for lithium-sulphur batteries. Unique carbon materials with differing hierarchical pore structures were synthesized from four types of zinc-containing metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). It is found that cathode materials made from MOFs-derived carbons with higher mesopore (2-50 nm) volumes exhibit increased initial discharge capacities, whereas carbons with higher micropore (<2 nm) volumes lead to cathode materials with better cycle stability.

Directed assembly of bio-inspired hierarchical materials with controlled nanofibrillar architectures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tseng, Peter; Napier, Bradley; Zhao, Siwei; Mitropoulos, Alexander N.; Applegate, Matthew B.; Marelli, Benedetto; Kaplan, David L.; Omenetto, Fiorenzo G.

2017-05-01

In natural systems, directed self-assembly of structural proteins produces complex, hierarchical materials that exhibit a unique combination of mechanical, chemical and transport properties. This controlled process covers dimensions ranging from the nano- to the macroscale. Such materials are desirable to synthesize integrated and adaptive materials and systems. We describe a bio-inspired process to generate hierarchically defined structures with multiscale morphology by using regenerated silk fibroin. The combination of protein self-assembly and microscale mechanical constraints is used to form oriented, porous nanofibrillar networks within predesigned macroscopic structures. This approach allows us to predefine the mechanical and physical properties of these materials, achieved by the definition of gradients in nano- to macroscale order. We fabricate centimetre-scale material geometries including anchors, cables, lattices and webs, as well as functional materials with structure-dependent strength and anisotropic thermal transport. Finally, multiple three-dimensional geometries and doped nanofibrillar constructs are presented to illustrate the facile integration of synthetic and natural additives to form functional, interactive, hierarchical networks.

Hierarchical core-shell structure of ZnO nanorod@NiO/MoO₂ composite nanosheet arrays for high-performance supercapacitors.

PubMed

Hou, Sucheng; Zhang, Guanhua; Zeng, Wei; Zhu, Jian; Gong, Feilong; Li, Feng; Duan, Huigao

2014-08-27

A hierarchical core-shell structure of ZnO nanorod@NiO/MoO2 composite nanosheet arrays on nickel foam substrate for high-performance supercapacitors was constructed by a two-step solution-based method involving two hydrothermal processes followed by a calcination treatment. Compared to one composed of pure NiO/MoO2 composite nanosheets, the hierarchical core-shell structure electrode displays better pseudocapacitive behaviors in 2 M KOH, including high areal specific capacitance values of 1.18 F cm(-2) at 5 mA cm(-2) and 0.6 F cm(-2) at 30 mA cm(-2) as well as relatively good rate capability at high current densities. Furthermore, it also shows remarkable cycle stability, remaining at 91.7% of the initial value even after 4000 cycles at a current density of 10 mA cm(-2). The enhanced pseudocapacitive behaviors are mainly due to the unique hierarchical core-shell structure and the synergistic effect of combining ZnO nanorod arrays and NiO/MoO2 composite nanosheets. This novel hierarchical core-shell structure shows promise for use in next-generation supercapacitors.

Insights into the hierarchical structure and digestion rate of alkali-modulated starches with different amylose contents.

PubMed

Qiao, Dongling; Yu, Long; Liu, Hongsheng; Zou, Wei; Xie, Fengwei; Simon, George; Petinakis, Eustathios; Shen, Zhiqi; Chen, Ling

2016-06-25

Combined analytical techniques were used to explore the effects of alkali treatment on the multi-scale structure and digestion behavior of starches with different amylose/amylopectin ratios. Alkali treatment disrupted the amorphous matrix, and partial lamellae and crystallites, which weakened starch molecular packing and eventually enhanced the susceptibility of starch to alkali. Stronger alkali treatment (0.5% w/w) made this effect more prominent and even transformed the dual-phase digestion of starch into a triple-phase pattern. Compared with high-amylose starch, regular maize starch, which possesses some unique structure characteristics typically as pores and crystallite weak points, showed evident changes of hierarchical structure and in digestion rate. Thus, alkali treatment has been demonstrated as a simple method to modulate starch hierarchical structure and thus to realize the rational development of starch-based food products with desired digestibility. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hierarchical layered double hydroxides with Ag nanoparticle modification for ethanol sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qin, Yuxiang; Wang, Liping; Wang, Xiaofei

2018-07-01

Layered double hydroxides (LDHs) have recently been revealed to be promising in gas sensor applications due to their compositional flexibility and unique 2D-interlayer channel for gas diffusion and adsorption. This work demonstrates highly porous hierarchical LDHs containing Mg2+ and Al3+ (MgAl-LDHs) for ethanol sensing at room temperature. These MgAl-LDHs, with unique flower-like hierarchical structure and mesoporous interlayer, were synthesized hydrothermally using sodium dodecyl sulfate as soft template as well as intercalating agent. Further modification by discrete Ag nanoparticles (NPs) was achieved via an environmentally friendly glucose-reduction method to improve the gas-sensing response of the LDH-based sensor. It is found that the hierarchical MgAl-LDHs show potential in sensing ethanol gas with rapid dynamic characteristics at room temperature; their response magnitude towards ethanol can be enhanced significantly by Ag NP modification. The gas-response value of the Ag-modified MgAl-LDH sensor is about twice that of pristine MgAl-LDH sensors, towards 5–200 ppm ethanol at room temperature. Meanwhile, rapid response-recovery characteristics are achieved, with response and recovery times shorter than 10 and 50 s, respectively. The satisfactory sensing performance and remarkable response enhancement by Ag NP modification are demonstrated in terms of the unique microstructure of the hierarchical MgAl-LDHs and a constructed conductive effect model of Ag functionalized LDHs.

Hierarchical layered double hydroxides with Ag nanoparticle modification for ethanol sensing.

PubMed

Qin, Yuxiang; Wang, Liping; Wang, Xiaofei

2018-07-06

Layered double hydroxides (LDHs) have recently been revealed to be promising in gas sensor applications due to their compositional flexibility and unique 2D-interlayer channel for gas diffusion and adsorption. This work demonstrates highly porous hierarchical LDHs containing Mg 2+ and Al 3+ (MgAl-LDHs) for ethanol sensing at room temperature. These MgAl-LDHs, with unique flower-like hierarchical structure and mesoporous interlayer, were synthesized hydrothermally using sodium dodecyl sulfate as soft template as well as intercalating agent. Further modification by discrete Ag nanoparticles (NPs) was achieved via an environmentally friendly glucose-reduction method to improve the gas-sensing response of the LDH-based sensor. It is found that the hierarchical MgAl-LDHs show potential in sensing ethanol gas with rapid dynamic characteristics at room temperature; their response magnitude towards ethanol can be enhanced significantly by Ag NP modification. The gas-response value of the Ag-modified MgAl-LDH sensor is about twice that of pristine MgAl-LDH sensors, towards 5-200 ppm ethanol at room temperature. Meanwhile, rapid response-recovery characteristics are achieved, with response and recovery times shorter than 10 and 50 s, respectively. The satisfactory sensing performance and remarkable response enhancement by Ag NP modification are demonstrated in terms of the unique microstructure of the hierarchical MgAl-LDHs and a constructed conductive effect model of Ag functionalized LDHs.

A unique patterned diamond stamp for a periodically hierarchical nanoarray structure.

PubMed

Wang, Yi; Shen, Yanting; Xu, Weiqing; Xu, Shuping; Li, Hongdong

2016-09-23

A diamond stamp with a hierarchical pattern was designed for the direct preparation of a periodic nanoarray structure, which was prepared by the reactive ion etching technique with a hierarchical ultrathin alumina membrane (HUTAM) as a mask. The optimal etching conditions for fabricating the diamond stamp were discussed in order to realize a vertical nanopore structure, avoiding structural damage from lateral etching. By using this diamond stamp, a polymer film with the desired hierarchical nanorod array structure can be obtained easily via the simple stamping process, which greatly simplifies the processing procedure. More importantly, the stamp is reusable because of its super-hardness, which ensures the reproducibility of the nanorod array pattern. Another merit is that the smooth surface of the etched diamond can avoid the use of a release agent. Our results prove that this hard stamp can be used for quick preparation of an elaborate periodic nanoarray structure. This study is significant in that it solves the problems of high cost and easy damage of stamps in nanoimprint lithography, and it might inspire more sophisticated applications of such an ordered structure in nanoplasmonics, biochemical sensing and nanophotonic devices.

Growth Mechanism of a Unique Hierarchical Vaterite Structure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ma, Guobin; Xu, Yifei; Wang, Mu

2013-03-01

Calcium carbonate is one of the most significant minerals in nature as well as in biogenic sources. Calcium carbonate occurs naturally in three crystalline polymorphs, i.e., calcite, aragonite, and vaterite. Although it has been attracted much research attention to understanding of the formation mechanisms of the material, the properties of the vaterite polymorph is not well known. Here we report synthesis and formation mechanism of a unique hierarchical structure of vaterite. The material is grown by a controlled diffusion method. The structure possesses a core and an outer part. The core is convex lens-like and is formed by vaterite nanocrystals that have small misorientations. The outer part is separated into six garlic clove-like segments. Each segment possesses piles of plate-like vaterite crystals, and the orientations of the plates continuously change from pile to pile. Based on real-time experimental results and the structural analysis, a growth mechanism is presented. Work supported by NSFC (Grant No. 51172104) and MOST of China (Grant No. 2101CB630705)

TiO2 with controlled nanoring/nanotube hierarchical structure: Multiabsorption oscillating peaks and photoelectrochemical properties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sang, Lixia; Zhao, Yangbo; Niu, Youchen; Bai, Guangmei

2018-02-01

TiO2 with Nanoring/Nanotube (R/T) hierarchical structure can be prepared by tuning the oxidation time and oxidation voltage in the second step anodization. The resulting multiabsorption oscillating peaks in the visible light region present a strong dependence on the tube length which are derived from the interference of light reflected from the top nanorings and the bottom Ti substrate, and the optical path length in TiO2 R/T hierarchical structure can be estimated as about 2 μm. The tube length of the as-prepared TiO2 photoelectrode affects greatly its saturation photocurrent density, and the different tube-wall thickness can change the photocurrent-saturation potential. Under simulated AM 1.5 irradiation (100 mW/cm2), TiO2 R/T hierarchical structure with tube diameters of 20-40 nm and tube length of about 1.5 μm shows higher photocurrent density and hydrogen production rate at the bias of 0 V (vs. Ag/AgCl). The results from the IPCE plots and I-t curves verify that TiO2 R/T hierarchical structure can exhibit the visible light activity, which is more related to the absorption induced by the defects rather than oscillating peaks. Based on the unique multiple light reflection in TiO2 R/T hierarchical structure, surface treatment will pave a way for the better utilization of oscillating peaks in the visible light region.

Biominerals- hierarchical nanocomposites: the example of bone

PubMed Central

Beniash, Elia

2010-01-01

Many organisms incorporate inorganic solids in their tissues to enhance their functional, primarily mechanical, properties. These mineralized tissues, also called biominerals, are unique organo-mineral nanocomposites, organized at several hierarchical levels, from nano- to macroscale. Unlike man made composite materials, which often are simple physical blends of their components, the organic and inorganic phases in biominerals interface at the molecular level. Although these tissues are made of relatively weak components at ambient conditions, their hierarchical structural organization and intimate interactions between different elements lead to superior mechanical properties. Understanding basic principles of formation, structure and functional properties of these tissues might lead to novel bioinspired strategies for material design and better treatments for diseases of the mineralized tissues. This review focuses on general principles of structural organization, formation and functional properties of biominerals on the example the bone tissues. PMID:20827739

Structural analysis of hierarchically organized zeolites

PubMed Central

Mitchell, Sharon; Pinar, Ana B.; Kenvin, Jeffrey; Crivelli, Paolo; Kärger, Jörg; Pérez-Ramírez, Javier

2015-01-01

Advances in materials synthesis bring about many opportunities for technological applications, but are often accompanied by unprecedented complexity. This is clearly illustrated by the case of hierarchically organized zeolite catalysts, a class of crystalline microporous solids that has been revolutionized by the engineering of multilevel pore architectures, which combine unique chemical functionality with efficient molecular transport. Three key attributes, the crystal, the pore and the active site structure, can be expected to dominate the design process. This review examines the adequacy of the palette of techniques applied to characterize these distinguishing features and their catalytic impact. PMID:26482337

Bioinspired Au/TiO2 photocatalyst derived from butterfly wing (Papilio Paris).

PubMed

Chen, Jianjun; Su, Huilan; Song, Fang; Moon, Won-Jin; Kim, Yang-Soo; Zhang, Di

2012-03-15

The reticular hierarchical structure of butterfly wings (Papilio Paris) is introduced as template for Au/TiO(2) photocatalyst by depositing the Au nanoparticles on TiO(2) matrix, which is carried out by a water-ethanol sol-gel procedure combined with subsequent calcination. The obtained Au/TiO(2) nanocomposites present the reticular hierarchical structure of butterfly wings, and Au nanoparticles with an average size of 7 nm are homogeneously dispersed in TiO(2) substrate. Benefiting from such unique reticular hierarchical structure and composition, the biomorphic Au/TiO(2) exhibits high-harvesting capability and presents superior photocatalytic activity. Especially, the biomorphic Au/TiO(2) at the nominal content of gold to titanium of 8 wt% shows the highest photocatalytic activity and can completely decompose methyl orange within 80 min, which is obviously higher than that of commercial Degussa P25 powders. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Growth of hierarchical GaN nanowires for optoelectronic device applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Raj, Rishabh; Vignesh, Veeramuthu; Ra, Yong-Ho; Nirmala, Rajkumar; Lee, Cheul-Ro; Navamathavan, Rangaswamy

2017-01-01

Gallium nitride nanostructures have been receiving considerable attention as building blocks for nanophotonic technologies due to their unique high aspect ratios, promising the realization of photonic and biological nanodevices such as blue light emitting diodes (LEDs), short-wavelength ultraviolet nanolasers, and nanofluidic biochemical sensors. We report on the growth of hierarchical GaN nanowires (NWs) by dynamically adjusting the growth parameters using the pulsed flow metal-organic chemical vapor deposition technique. We carried out two step growth processes to grow hierarchical GaN NWs. In the first step, the GaN NWs were grown at 950°C, and in the second, we suitably decreased the growth temperature to 630°C and 710°C to grow the hierarchical structures. The surface morphology and optical characterization of the grown GaN NWs were studied by field-emission scanning electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, photoluminescence, and cathodoluminescence measurements. These kinds of hierarchical GaN NWs are promising for allowing flat band quantum structures that are shown to improve the efficiency of LEDs.

Development of new smart materials and spinning systems inspired by natural silks and their applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Jie; Lee, Sang-Hoon

2015-12-01

Silks produced by spiders and silkworms are charming natural biological materials with highly optimized hierarchical structures and outstanding physicomechanical properties. The superior performance of silks relies on the integration of a unique protein sequence, a distinctive spinning process, and complex hierarchical structures. Silks have been prepared to form a variety of morphologies and are widely used in diverse applications, for example, in the textile industry, as drug delivery vehicles, and as tissue engineering scaffolds. This review presents an overview of the organization of natural silks, in which chemical and physical functions are optimized, as well as a range of new materials inspired by the desire to mimic natural silk structure and synthesis.

Fabrication of ZnO/SnO2 hierarchical structures as the composite photoanodes for efficient CdS/CdSe co-sensitized solar cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Yibing; Lin, Yu; Wu, Jihuai; Zhang, Xiaolong; Fang, Biaopeng

2017-03-01

The composite photoanodes based on the ZnO/SnO2 hierarchical structures with high photoelectricity properties have been successfully synthesized, and used in the CdS and CdSe quantum dots co-sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs). In this experiment, the ZnO/SnO2 nanoparticles (ZS-NP) and hierarchical nanosheets-based microflowers (ZS-MF) were prepared by the one-step hydrothermal route and the morphologies of the products were controlled by the solvent variation. An improved power conversion efficiency of 4.98% was achieved for the cell based on the ZS-MF composite photoanodes, which showed an increase of 21.8% compared to the ZS-NP photoanodes (4.09%). This result is mainly connected to the unique superiority of the three-dimensional hierarchical microflower nanostructures for light scattering and quantum dots loading, which is responsible for the increase of photocurrent values and eventual PCE.

Metal-Organic Frameworks-Derived Hierarchical Co3O4 Structures as Efficient Sensing Materials for Acetone Detection.

PubMed

Zhang, Rui; Zhou, Tingting; Wang, Lili; Zhang, Tong

2018-03-21

Highly sensitive and stable gas sensors have attracted much attention because they are the key to innovations in the fields of environment, health, energy savings and security, etc. Sensing materials, which influence the practical sensing performance, are the crucial parts for gas sensors. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are considered as alluring sensing materials for gas sensors because of the possession of high specific surface area, unique morphology, abundant metal sites, and functional linkers. Herein, four kinds of porous hierarchical Co 3 O 4 structures have been selectively controlled by optimizing the thermal decomposition (temperature, rate, and atmosphere) using ZIF-67 as precursor that was obtained from coprecipitation method with the co-assistance of cobalt salt and 2-methylimidazole in the solution of methanol. These hierarchical Co 3 O 4 structures, with controllable cross-linked channels, meso-/micropores, and adjustable surface area, are efficient catalytic materials for gas sensing. Benefits from structural advantages, core-shell, and porous core-shell Co 3 O 4 exhibit enhanced sensing performance compared to those of porous popcorn and nanoparticle Co 3 O 4 to acetone gas. These novel MOF-templated Co 3 O 4 hierarchical structures are so fantastic that they can be expected to be efficient sensing materials for development of low-temperature operating gas sensors.

Nanoporous platinum-cobalt alloy for electrochemical sensing for ethanol, hydrogen peroxide, and glucose.

PubMed

Xu, Caixia; Sun, Fenglei; Gao, Hua; Wang, Jinping

2013-05-30

Nanoporous platinum-cobalt (NP-PtCo) alloy with hierarchical nanostructure is straightforwardly fabricated by dealloying PtCoAl alloy in a mild alkaline solution. Selectively etching Al resulted in a hierarchical three-dimensional network nanostructure with a narrow size distribution at 3 nm. The as-prepared NP-PtCo alloy shows superior performance toward ethanol and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) with highly sensitive response due to its unique electrocatalytic activity. In addition, NP-PtCo also exhibits excellent amperometric durability and long-term stability for H2O2 as well as a good anti-interference toward ascorbic acid, uric acid, and dopamine. The hierarchical nanoporous architecture in PtCo alloy is also highly active for glucose sensing electrooxidation and sensing in a wide linear range. The NP-PtCo alloy holds great application potential for electrochemical sensing with simple preparation, unique catalytic activity, and high structure stability. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Controllable synthesis of mesoporous multi-shelled ZnO microspheres as efficient photocatalysts for NO oxidation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Xiaolang; Zhang, Huiqiang; Zhang, Dieqing; Miao, Yingchun; Li, Guisheng

2018-03-01

The successful application of hierarchically porous structure in environmental treatment has provided new insights for solving environmental problems. Hierarchically structured semiconductor materials were considered as promising photocatalysts for NO oxidation in gas phase. Multi-shelled ZnO microspheres (MMSZ) were controllably shaped with hierarchically porous structures via a facile hydrothermal route using amino acid (N-Acetyl-D-Proline) as template and post-calcination treatment. Symmetric Ostwald ripening was used to explain the morphological evolution of hierarchical nanostructure. MMSZ was proved highly efficient for oxidizing NO (400 ppb) in gas phase under UV light irradiation with a much higher photocatalytic removal rate (77.3%) than that of the as-obtained ZnO crystals with other hierachically porous structures, owing to its higher photocurrent intensity. Such greatly enhanced photocatalytic activity can be assigned to the enhanced crystallinity of ZnO, mesopores and unique multi-shelled structure. Enhanced crystallinity promotes photogenerated charges under light irradiation. Mesoporous porosity can ensure enough light scattering between the shells. Multi-shelled structure endows ZnO with higher specific surface area and high frequency of multiple light reflection, resulting in more exposed active sites, higher light utilization efficiency, and fast separation efficiency of photogenerated charge carriers. The experimental results demonstrated that the photogenerated holes (h+) are the main active species. Hierarchically structured ZnO is not only contributed to directly use solar energy to solving various problems caused by atmospheric pollution, but also has potential applications in energy converse and storage including solar cells, lithium batteries, water-splitting, etc.

Inward Lithium-Ion Breathing of Hierarchically Porous Silicon Anodes

DOE PAGES

Xiao, Qiangfeng; Gu, Meng; Yang, Hui; ...

2015-11-05

Silicon has been identified as one of the most promising candidates as anode for high performance lithium-ion batteries. The key challenge for Si anodes is the large volume change induced chemomechanical fracture and subsequent rapid capacity fading upon cyclic charge and discharge. Improving capacity retention thus critically relies on smart accommodation of the volume changes through nanoscale structural design. In this work, we report a novel fabrication method for hierarchically porous Si nanospheres (hp-SiNSs), which consist of a porous shell and a hollow core. Upon charge/discharge cycling, the hp-SiNSs accommodate the volume change through reversible inward expansion/contraction with negligible particle-levelmore » outward expansion. Our mechanics analysis revealed that such a unique volume-change accommodation mechanism is enabled by the much stiffer modulus of the lithiated layer than the unlithiated porous layer and the low flow stress of the porous structure. Such inward expansion shields the hp-SiNSs from fracture, opposite to the outward expansion in solid Si during lithiation. Lithium ion battery assembled with this new nanoporous material exhibits high capacity, high power, long cycle life and high coulombic efficiency, which is superior to the current commercial Si-based anode materials. We find the low cost synthesis approach reported here provides a new avenue for the rational design of hierarchically porous structures with unique materials properties.« less

Rational Design of Hierarchically Core-Shell Structured Ni3 S2 @NiMoO4 Nanowires for Electrochemical Energy Storage.

PubMed

Chen, Fangshuai; Ji, Shan; Liu, Quanbing; Wang, Hui; Liu, Hao; Brett, Dan J L; Wang, Guoxiu; Wang, Rongfang

2018-05-30

Rational design and controllable synthesis of nanostructured materials with unique microstructure and excellent electrochemical performance for energy storage are crucially desired. In this paper, a facile method is reported for general synthesis of hierarchically core-shell structured Ni 3 S 2 @NiMoO 4 nanowires (NWs) as a binder-free electrode for asymmetric supercapacitors. Due to the intimate contact between Ni 3 S 2 and NiMoO 4 , the hierarchical structured electrodes provide a promising unique structure for asymmetric supercapacitors. The as-prepared binder-free Ni 3 S 2 @NiMoO 4 electrode can significantly improve the electrical conductivity between Ni 3 S 2 and NiMoO 4 , and effectively avoid the aggregation of NiMoO 4 nanosheets, which provide more active space for storing charge. The Ni 3 S 2 @NiMoO 4 electrode presents a high areal capacity of 1327.3 µAh cm -2 and 67.8% retention of its initial capacity when current density increases from 2 to 40 mA cm -2 . In a two-electrode Ni 3 S 2 @NiMoO 4 //active carbon cell, the active materials deliver a high energy density of 121.5 Wh kg -1 at a power density of 2.285 kW kg -1 with excellent cycling stability. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Unveiling Surface Redox Charge Storage of Interacting Two-Dimensional Hetero-Nanosheets in Hierarchical Architectures

DOE PAGES

Mahmood, Qasim; Bak, Seong-Min; Kim, Min G.; ...

2015-03-03

Two-dimensional (2D) heteronanosheets are currently the focus of intense study due to the unique properties that emerge from the interplay between two low-dimensional nanomaterials with different properties. However, the properties and new phenomena based on the two 2D heteronanosheets interacting in a 3D hierarchical architecture have yet to be explored. Here, we unveil the surface redox charge storage mechanism of surface-exposed WS2 nanosheets assembled in a 3D hierarchical heterostructure using in situ synchrotron X-ray absorption and Raman spectroscopic methods. The surface dominating redox charge storage of WS2 is manifested in a highly reversible and ultrafast capacitive fashion due to themore » interaction of heteronanosheets and the 3D connectivity of the hierarchical structure. In contrast, compositionally identical 2D WS2 structures fail to provide a fast and high capacitance with different modes of lattice vibration. The distinctive surface capacitive behavior of 3D hierarchically structured heteronanosheets is associated with rapid proton accommodation into the in-plane W–S lattice (with the softening of the E2g bands), the reversible redox transition of the surface-exposed intralayers residing in the electrochemically active 1T phase of WS2 (with the reversible change in the interatomic distance and peak intensity of W–W bonds), and the change in the oxidation state during the proton insertion/deinsertion process. This proposed mechanism agrees with the dramatic improvement in the capacitive performance of the two heteronanosheets coupled in the hierarchical structure.« less

Oxygen-rich hierarchical porous carbon derived from artemia cyst shells with superior electrochemical performance.

PubMed

Zhao, Yufeng; Ran, Wei; He, Jing; Song, Yanfang; Zhang, Chunming; Xiong, Ding-Bang; Gao, Faming; Wu, Jinsong; Xia, Yongyao

2015-01-21

In this study, three-dimensional (3D) hierarchical porous carbon with abundant functional groups is produced through a very simple low-cost carbonization of Artemia cyst shells. The unique hierarchical porous structure of this material, combining large numbers of micropores and macropores, as well as reasonable amount of mesopores, is proven favorable to capacitive behavior. The abundant oxygen functional groups from the natural carbon precursor contribute stable pseudocapacitance. As-prepared sample exhibits high specific capacitance (369 F g(-1) in 1 M H2SO4 and 349 F g(-1) in 6 M KOH), excellent cycling stability with capacitance retention of 100% over 10 000 cycles, and promising rate performance. This work not only describes a simple way to produce high-performance carbon electrode materials for practical application, but also inspires an idea for future structure design of porous carbon.

Hierarchical NiCo2 S4 Nanotube@NiCo2 S4 Nanosheet Arrays on Ni Foam for High-Performance Supercapacitors.

PubMed

Chen, Haichao; Chen, Si; Shao, Hongyan; Li, Chao; Fan, Meiqiang; Chen, Da; Tian, Guanglei; Shu, Kangying

2016-01-01

Hierarchical NiCo2 S4 nanotube@NiCo2 S4 nanosheet arrays on Ni foam have been successfully synthesized. Owing to the unique hierarchical structure, enhanced capacitive performance can be attained. A specific capacitance up to 4.38 F cm(-2) is attained at 5 mA cm(-2) , which is much higher than the specific capacitance values of NiCo2 O4 nanosheet arrays, NiCo2 S4 nanosheet arrays and NiCo2 S4 nanotube arrays on Ni foam. The hierarchical NiCo2 S4 nanostructure shows superior cycling stability; after 5000 cycles, the specific capacitance still maintains 3.5 F cm(-2) . In addition, through the morphology and crystal structure measurement after cycling stability test, it is found that the NiCo2 S4 electroactive materials are gradually corroded; however, the NiCo2 S4 phase can still be well-maintained. Our results show that hierarchical NiCo2 S4 nanostructures are suitable electroactive materials for high performance supercapacitors. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Co3O4 based non-enzymatic glucose sensor with high sensitivity and reliable stability derived from hollow hierarchical architecture.

PubMed

Tian, Liangliang; He, Gege; Cai, Yanhua; Wu, Shenping; Su, Yongyao; Yan, Hengqing; Yang, Cong; Chen, Yanling; Li, Lu

2018-02-16

Inspired by kinetics, the design of hollow hierarchical electrocatalysts through large-scale integration of building blocks is recognized as an effective approach to the achievement of superior electrocatalytic performance. In this work, a hollow, hierarchical Co 3 O 4 architecture (Co 3 O 4 HHA) was constructed using a coordinated etching and precipitation (CEP) method followed by calcination. The resulting Co 3 O 4 HHA electrode exhibited excellent electrocatalytic activity in terms of high sensitivity (839.3 μA mM -1 cm -2 ) and reliable stability in glucose detection. The high sensitivity could be attributed to the large specific surface area (SSA), ample unimpeded penetration diffusion paths and high electron transfer rate originating from the unique two-dimensional (2D) sheet-like character and hollow porous architecture. The hollow hierarchical structure also affords sufficient interspace for accommodation of volume change and structural strain, resulting in enhanced stability. The results indicate that Co 3 O 4 HHA could have potential for application in the design of non-enzymatic glucose sensors, and that the construction of hollow hierarchical architecture provides an efficient way to design highly active, stable electrocatalysts.

Co3O4 based non-enzymatic glucose sensor with high sensitivity and reliable stability derived from hollow hierarchical architecture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tian, Liangliang; He, Gege; Cai, Yanhua; Wu, Shenping; Su, Yongyao; Yan, Hengqing; Yang, Cong; Chen, Yanling; Li, Lu

2018-02-01

Inspired by kinetics, the design of hollow hierarchical electrocatalysts through large-scale integration of building blocks is recognized as an effective approach to the achievement of superior electrocatalytic performance. In this work, a hollow, hierarchical Co3O4 architecture (Co3O4 HHA) was constructed using a coordinated etching and precipitation (CEP) method followed by calcination. The resulting Co3O4 HHA electrode exhibited excellent electrocatalytic activity in terms of high sensitivity (839.3 μA mM-1 cm-2) and reliable stability in glucose detection. The high sensitivity could be attributed to the large specific surface area (SSA), ample unimpeded penetration diffusion paths and high electron transfer rate originating from the unique two-dimensional (2D) sheet-like character and hollow porous architecture. The hollow hierarchical structure also affords sufficient interspace for accommodation of volume change and structural strain, resulting in enhanced stability. The results indicate that Co3O4 HHA could have potential for application in the design of non-enzymatic glucose sensors, and that the construction of hollow hierarchical architecture provides an efficient way to design highly active, stable electrocatalysts.

A highly efficient electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction reaction: phosphorus and nitrogen co-doped hierarchically ordered porous carbon derived from an iron-functionalized polymer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deng, Chengwei; Zhong, Hexiang; Li, Xianfeng; Yao, Lan; Zhang, Huamin

2016-01-01

Heteroatom-doped carbon materials have shown respectable activity for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in alkaline media. However, the performances of these materials are not satisfactory for energy conversion devices, such as fuel cells. Here, we demonstrate a new type of phosphorus and nitrogen co-doped hierarchically ordered porous carbon (PNHOPC) derived from an iron-functionalized mesoporous polymer through an evaporation-induced self-assembly process that simultaneously combines the carbonization and nitrogen doping processes. The soft template and the nitrogen doping process facilitate the formation of the hierarchically ordered structure for the PNHOPC. The catalyst possesses a large surface area (1118 cm2 g-1) and a pore volume of 1.14 cm3 g-1. Notably, it exhibits excellent ORR catalytic performance, superior stability and methanol tolerance in acidic electrolytes, thus making the catalyst promising for fuel cells. The correlations between the unique pore structure and the nitrogen and phosphorus configuration of the catalysts with high catalytic activity are thoroughly investigated.Heteroatom-doped carbon materials have shown respectable activity for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in alkaline media. However, the performances of these materials are not satisfactory for energy conversion devices, such as fuel cells. Here, we demonstrate a new type of phosphorus and nitrogen co-doped hierarchically ordered porous carbon (PNHOPC) derived from an iron-functionalized mesoporous polymer through an evaporation-induced self-assembly process that simultaneously combines the carbonization and nitrogen doping processes. The soft template and the nitrogen doping process facilitate the formation of the hierarchically ordered structure for the PNHOPC. The catalyst possesses a large surface area (1118 cm2 g-1) and a pore volume of 1.14 cm3 g-1. Notably, it exhibits excellent ORR catalytic performance, superior stability and methanol tolerance in acidic electrolytes, thus making the catalyst promising for fuel cells. The correlations between the unique pore structure and the nitrogen and phosphorus configuration of the catalysts with high catalytic activity are thoroughly investigated. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr06749a

Synthesis of uniform layered protonated titanate hierarchical spheres and their transformation to anatase TiO2 for lithium-ion batteries.

PubMed

Wu, Hao Bin; Lou, Xiong Wen David; Hng, Huey Hoon

2012-02-13

Layered protonated titanates (LPTs), a class of interesting inorganic layered materials, have been widely studied because of their many unique properties and their use as precursors to many important TiO(2)-based functional materials. In this work, we have developed a facile solvothermal method to synthesize hierarchical spheres (HSs) assembled from ultrathin LPT nanosheets. These LPT hierarchical spheres possess a porous structure with a large specific surface area and high stability. Importantly, the size and morphology of the LPT hierarchical spheres are easily tunable by varying the synthesis conditions. These LPT HSs can be easily converted to anatase TiO(2) HSs without significant structural alteration. Depending on the calcination atmosphere of air or N(2), pure anatase TiO(2) HSs or carbon-supported TiO(2) HSs, respectively, can be obtained. Remarkably, both types of TiO(2) HSs manifest excellent cyclability and rate capability when evaluated as anode materials for high-power lithium-ion batteries. Copyright © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Hierarchical network architectures of carbon fiber paper supported cobalt oxide nanonet for high-capacity pseudocapacitors.

PubMed

Yang, Lei; Cheng, Shuang; Ding, Yong; Zhu, Xingbao; Wang, Zhong Lin; Liu, Meilin

2012-01-11

We present a high-capacity pseudocapacitor based on a hierarchical network architecture consisting of Co(3)O(4) nanowire network (nanonet) coated on a carbon fiber paper. With this tailored architecture, the electrode shows ideal capacitive behavior (rectangular shape of cyclic voltammograms) and large specific capacitance (1124 F/g) at high charge/discharge rate (25.34 A/g), still retaining ~94% of the capacitance at a much lower rate of 0.25 A/g. The much-improved capacity, rate capability, and cycling stability may be attributed to the unique hierarchical network structures, which improves electron/ion transport, enhances the kinetics of redox reactions, and facilitates facile stress relaxation during cycling. © 2011 American Chemical Society

Modeling Hierarchical Non-Precious Metal Catalyst Cathodes for PEFCs Using Multi-Scale X-ray CT Imaging

DOE PAGES

Komini Babu, S.; Chung, H. T.; Wu, G.; ...

2014-08-18

This paper reports the development of a model for simulating polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs) with non-precious metal catalyst (NPMC) cathodes. NPMCs present an opportunity to dramatically reduce the cost of PEFC electrodes by removing the costly Pt catalyst. To address the significant transport losses in thick NPMC cathodes (ca. >60 µm), we developed a hierarchical electrode model that resolves the unique structure of the NPMCs we studied. A unique feature of the approach is the integration of the model with morphology data extracted from nano-scale resolution X-ray computed tomography (nano-CT) imaging of the electrodes. A notable finding is themore » impact of the liquid water accumulation in the electrode and the significant performance improvement possible if electrode flooding is mitigated.« less

Large-scale model of flow in heterogeneous and hierarchical porous media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chabanon, Morgan; Valdés-Parada, Francisco J.; Ochoa-Tapia, J. Alberto; Goyeau, Benoît

2017-11-01

Heterogeneous porous structures are very often encountered in natural environments, bioremediation processes among many others. Reliable models for momentum transport are crucial whenever mass transport or convective heat occurs in these systems. In this work, we derive a large-scale average model for incompressible single-phase flow in heterogeneous and hierarchical soil porous media composed of two distinct porous regions embedding a solid impermeable structure. The model, based on the local mechanical equilibrium assumption between the porous regions, results in a unique momentum transport equation where the global effective permeability naturally depends on the permeabilities at the intermediate mesoscopic scales and therefore includes the complex hierarchical structure of the soil. The associated closure problem is numerically solved for various configurations and properties of the heterogeneous medium. The results clearly show that the effective permeability increases with the volume fraction of the most permeable porous region. It is also shown that the effective permeability is sensitive to the dimensionality spatial arrangement of the porous regions and in particular depends on the contact between the impermeable solid and the two porous regions.

Constructing a novel hierarchical 3D flower-like nano/micro titanium phosphate with efficient hydrogen evolution from water splitting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Si-yao; Han, Song

2014-12-01

A novel nano/micro hierarchical structured titanium phosphate with unique 3D flower-like morphology has been prepared by a simple hydrothermal method without adding any surfactants. The shape of the titanium phosphate could be controlled by simply adjusting the concentration of phosphoric acid. The 3D flower-like titanium phosphate with diameter of 2-3 μm is characterized by the assembly of numerous porous and connected lamella structures. Interestingly, this novel hierarchical mesoporous 3D flower-like titanium exhibits enhanced hydrogen evolution from water splitting under xenon lamp irradiation in the presence of methanol as the sacrificial reagent, which is also the first example of 3D flower-like titanium phosphate with high photocatalytic activity for water splitting. Since the use of titanium phosphate as a photocatalyst has been mostly neglected up to now, this low-cost, simple procedure and large-scale yield of 3D nano/micro structure titanium phosphate could be expected to be applicable in the synthesis of controlled, reproducible and robust photocatalytic systems.

3D flower-like hierarchical Ag@nickel-cobalt hydroxide microsphere with enhanced electrochemical properties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lv, Zijian; Zhong, Qin; Bu, Yunfei; Wu, Junpeng

2016-10-01

The morphology and electrical conductivity are essential to electrochemical performance of electrode materials in renewable energy conversion and storage technologies such as fuel cells and supercapacitors. Here, we explored a facile method to grow Ag@nickel-cobalt layered double hydroxide (Ag@Ni/Co-LDHs) with 3D flower-like microsphere structure. The results show the morphology of Ni/Co-LDHs varies with the introduction of Ag species. The prepared Ag@Ni/Co-LDHs not only exhibits an open hierarchical structure with high specific capacitance but also shows good electrical conductivity to support fast electron transport. Benefiting from the unique structural features, these flower-like Ag@Ni/Co-LDHs microspheres have impressive specific capacitance as high as 1768 F g-1 at 1 A g-1. It can be concluded that engineering the structure of the electrode can increase the efficiency of the specific capacitance as a battery-type electrode for hybrid supercapacitors.

Three-dimensional hierarchical structures for fog harvesting.

PubMed

Andrews, H G; Eccles, E A; Schofield, W C E; Badyal, J P S

2011-04-05

Conventional fog-harvesting mechanisms are effectively pseudo-2D surface phenomena in terms of water droplet-plant interactions. In the case of the Cotula fallax plant, a unique hierarchical 3D arrangement formed by its leaves and the fine hairs covering them has been found to underpin the collection and retention of water droplets on the foliage for extended periods of time. The mechanisms of water capture and release as a function of the surface 3D structure and chemistry have been identified. Of particular note is that water is retained throughout the entirety of the plant and held within the foliage itself (rather than in localized regions). Individual plant hairs form matlike structures capable of supporting water droplets; these hairs wrap around water droplets in a 3D fashion to secure them via a fine nanoscale groove structure that prevents them from easily falling to the ground.

Continuous flow chemical vapour deposition of carbon nanotube sea urchins.

PubMed

de La Verpilliere, Jean; Jessl, Sarah; Saeed, Khuzaimah; Ducati, Caterina; De Volder, Michael; Boies, Adam

2018-04-26

Hybrid structures consisting of functional materials enhanced by carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have potential for a variety of high impact applications, as shown by the impressive progress in sensing and mechanical applications enabled by CNT-enhanced materials. The hierarchical organisation of CNTs with other materials is key to the design of macroscale devices benefiting from the unique properties of individual CNTs, provided CNT density, morphology and binding with other materials are optimized. In this paper, we provide an analysis of a continuous aerosol process to create a hybrid hierarchical sea urchin structure with CNTs organized around a functional metal oxide core. We propose a new mechanism for the growth of these carbon nanotube sea urchins (CNTSU) and give new insight into their chemical composition. To corroborate the new mechanism, we examine the influence of CNT growth conditions on CNTSU morphology and demonstrate a new in-line characterisation technique to continuously monitor aerosol CNT growth during synthesis, which enables industrial-scale production optimization. Based upon the new formation mechanism we describe the first substrate-based chemical vapour deposition growth of CNTSUs which increases CNT length and improves G to D ratio, which also allows for the formation of CNTSU carpets with unique structures.

Synthesis of Hierarchically Porous Sandwich-Like Carbon Materials for High-Performance Supercapacitors.

PubMed

Li, Yiju; Chen, Chaoji; Gao, Tingting; Zhang, Dongming; Huang, Xiaomei; Pan, Yue; Ye, Ke; Cheng, Kui; Cao, Dianxue; Wang, Guiling

2016-11-14

For the first time, hierarchically porous carbon materials with a sandwich-like structure are synthesized through a facile and efficient tri-template approach. The hierarchically porous microstructures consist of abundant macropores and numerous micropores embedded into the crosslinked mesoporous walls. As a result, the obtained carbon material with a unique sandwich-like structure has a relatively high specific surface (1235 m 2  g -1 ), large pore volume (1.30 cm 3  g -1 ), and appropriate pore size distribution. These merits lead to a comparably high specific capacitance of 274.8 F g -1 at 0.2 A g -1 and satisfying rate performance (87.7 % retention from 1 to 20 A g -1 ). More importantly, the symmetric supercapacitor with two identical as-prepared carbon samples shows a superior energy density of 18.47 Wh kg -1 at a power density of 179.9 W kg -1 . The asymmetric supercapacitor based on as-obtained carbon sample and its composite with manganese dioxide (MnO 2 ) can reach up to an energy density of 25.93 Wh kg -1 at a power density of 199.9 W kg -1 . Therefore, these unique carbon material open a promising prospect for future development and utilization in the field of energy storage. © 2016 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

TEOA-mediated formation of hollow core-shell structured CoNi2S4 nanospheres as a high-performance electrode material for supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liang, Jun; Li, Meng; Chai, Yao; Luo, Min; Li, Li

2017-09-01

In this study, we report for the first time a cost-effective and general approach for the high-yield synthesis of a hierarchical core-shell and hollow structure of ternary CoNi2S4 in a triethanolamine (TEOA)-assisted hydrothermal system. It is found that a continuous increase in TEOA usages facilitates the formation and transformation of hierarchical CoNi2S4 hollow nanospheres, and the formation mechanism of the unique structure is revealed to be assembly-then-inside-out evacuation and Ostwald ripening mechanism during the sulfidation process. More importantly, when used as faradaic electrode for supercapacitors, the hierarchical hollow CoNi2S4 nanospheres display not only exceptional pseudocapacitve performance with high specific capacitance (2035 Fg-1 at 1 Ag-1) and excellent rate capability (1215 Fg-1 at 20 Ag-1), but also superior cycling stability, with only about 8.7% loss over 3000 cycles at 10 Ag-1. This work can provide some guidance for us in the structural and compositional tuning of mixed binary-metal sulfides toward many desired applications.

Fabrication of hierarchical porous hollow carbon spheres with few-layer graphene framework and high electrochemical activity for supercapacitor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Jing; Hong, Min; Chen, Jiafu; Hu, Tianzhao; Xu, Qun

2018-06-01

Porous amorphous carbons with large number of defects and dangling bonds indicate great potential application in energy storage due to high specific surface area and strong adsorption properties, but poor conductivity and pore connection limit their practical application. Here few-layer graphene framework with high electrical conductivity is embedded and meanwhile hierarchical porous structure is constructed in amorphous hollow carbon spheres (HCSs) by catalysis of Fe clusters of angstrom scale, which are loaded in the interior of crosslinked polystyrene via a novel method. These unique HCSs effectively integrate the inherent properties from two-dimensional sp2-hybridized carbon, porous amorphous carbon, hierarchical pore structure and thin shell, leading to high specific capacitance up to 561 F g-1 at a current density of 0.5 A g-1 as an electrode of supercapacitor with excellent recyclability, which is much higher than those of other reported porous carbon materials up to present.

Chitin/clay microspheres with hierarchical architecture for highly efficient removal of organic dyes.

PubMed

Xu, Rui; Mao, Jie; Peng, Na; Luo, Xiaogang; Chang, Chunyu

2018-05-15

Numerous adsorbents have been reported for efficient removal of dye from water, but the high cost raw materials and complicated fabrication process limit their practical applications. Herein, novel nanocomposite microspheres were fabricated from chitin and clay by a simple thermally induced sol-gel transition. Clay nanosheets were uniformly embedded in a nanofiber weaved chitin microsphere matrix, leading to their hierarchical architecture. Benefiting from this unique structure, microspheres could efficiently remove methylene blue (MB) through a spontaneous physic-sorption process which fit well with pseudo-second-order and Langmuir isotherm models. The maximal values of adsorption capability obtained by calculation and experiment were 152.2 and 156.7 mg g -1 , respectively. Chitin/clay microspheres (CCM2) could remove 99.99% MB from its aqueous solution (10 mg g -1 ) within 20 min. These findings provide insight into a new strategy for fabrication of dye adsorbents with hierarchical structure from low cost raw materials. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Nanostructured core-shell electrode materials for electrochemical capacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jiang, Long-bo; Yuan, Xing-zhong; Liang, Jie; Zhang, Jin; Wang, Hou; Zeng, Guang-ming

2016-11-01

Core-shell nanostructure represents a unique system for applications in electrochemical energy storage devices. Owing to the unique characteristics featuring high power delivery and long-term cycling stability, electrochemical capacitors (ECs) have emerged as one of the most attractive electrochemical storage systems since they can complement or even replace batteries in the energy storage field, especially when high power delivery or uptake is needed. This review aims to summarize recent progress on core-shell nanostructures for advanced supercapacitor applications in view of their hierarchical architecture which not only create the desired hierarchical porous channels, but also possess higher electrical conductivity and better structural mechanical stability. The core-shell nanostructures include carbon/carbon, carbon/metal oxide, carbon/conducting polymer, metal oxide/metal oxide, metal oxide/conducting polymer, conducting polymer/conducting polymer, and even more complex ternary core-shell nanoparticles. The preparation strategies, electrochemical performances, and structural stabilities of core-shell materials for ECs are summarized. The relationship between core-shell nanostructure and electrochemical performance is discussed in detail. In addition, the challenges and new trends in core-shell nanomaterials development have also been proposed.

A facile bacterial assisted electrochemical self-assembly of polypyrrole micro-pillars: towards underwater low adhesive superoleophobicity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Zhe; Ding, Chunmei; Liu, Huan; Zhu, Ying; Jiang, Lei

2013-12-01

By taking advantage of bacterial extracellular electron transfer behavior, a facile method was developed to fabricate oriented polypyrrole micro-pillars (PPy-MP) with nanoscale surface roughness. Microbes acted as a living conductive template on which PPy was in situ polymerized. The as-prepared PPy-MP exhibit the distinctive underwater low adhesive superoleophobicity which is attributable to the unique hierarchical micro/nano-structures and the high surface energy by doping with inorganic small anions.By taking advantage of bacterial extracellular electron transfer behavior, a facile method was developed to fabricate oriented polypyrrole micro-pillars (PPy-MP) with nanoscale surface roughness. Microbes acted as a living conductive template on which PPy was in situ polymerized. The as-prepared PPy-MP exhibit the distinctive underwater low adhesive superoleophobicity which is attributable to the unique hierarchical micro/nano-structures and the high surface energy by doping with inorganic small anions. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: The shape of a water drop on PPy-MPA and cauliflower-like PPy film in air. See DOI: 10.1039/c3nr03788f

Hierarchical Porous Interlocked Polymeric Microcapsules: Sulfonic Acid Functionalization as Acid Catalysts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Xiaomei; Gu, Jinyan; Tian, Lei; Zhang, Xu

2017-03-01

Owing to their unique structural and surface properties, mesoporous microspheres are widely applied in the catalytic field. Generally, increasing the surface area of the specific active phase of the catalyst is a good method, which can achieve a higher catalytic activity through the fabrication of the corresponding catalytic microspheres with the smaller size and hollow structure. However, one of the major challenges in the use of hollow microspheres (microcapsules) as catalysts is their chemical and structural stability. Herein, the grape-like hypercrosslinked polystyrene hierarchical porous interlocked microcapsule (HPIM-HCL-PS) is fabricated by SiO2 colloidal crystals templates, whose structure is the combination of open mouthed structure, mesoporous nanostructure and interlocked architecture. Numerous microcapsules assembling together and forming the roughly grape-like microcapsule aggregates can enhance the structural stability and recyclability of these microcapsules. After undergoing the sulfonation, the sulfonated HPIM-HCL-PS is served as recyclable acid catalyst for condensation reaction between benzaldehyde and ethylene glycol (TOF = 793 h-1), moreover, exhibits superior activity, selectivity and recyclability.

Construction of three-dimensional graphene interfaces into carbon fiber textiles for increasing deposition of nickel nanoparticles: flexible hierarchical magnetic textile composites for strong electromagnetic shielding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bian, Xing-Ming; Liu, Lin; Li, Hai-Bing; Wang, Chan-Yuan; Xie, Qing; Zhao, Quan-Liang; Bi, Song; Hou, Zhi-Ling

2017-01-01

Since manipulating electromagnetic waves with electromagnetic active materials for environmental and electric engineering is a significant task, here a novel prototype is reported by introducing reduced graphene oxide (RGO) interfaces in carbon fiber (CF) networks for a hierarchical carbon fiber/reduced graphene oxide/nickel (CF-RGO-Ni) composite textile. Upon charaterizations of the microscopic morphologies, electrical and magnetic properties, the presence of three-dimensional RGO interfaces and bifunctional nickel nanoparticles substantially influences the related physical properties in the resulting hierarchical composite textiles. Eletromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding performance suggests that the hierarchical composite textiles hold a strong shielding effectiveness greater than 61 dB, showing greater advantages than conventional polymeric and foamy shielding composites. As a polymer-free lightweight structure, flexible CF-RGO-Ni composites of all electromagnetic active components offer unique understanding of the multi-scale and multiple mechanisms in electromagnetic energy consumption. Such a novel prototype of shielding structures along with convenient technology highlight a strategy to achieve high-performance EMI shielding, coupled with a universal approach for preparing advanced lightweight composites with graphene interfaces.

Construction of three-dimensional graphene interfaces into carbon fiber textiles for increasing deposition of nickel nanoparticles: flexible hierarchical magnetic textile composites for strong electromagnetic shielding.

PubMed

Bian, Xing-Ming; Liu, Lin; Li, Hai-Bing; Wang, Chan-Yuan; Xie, Qing; Zhao, Quan-Liang; Bi, Song; Hou, Zhi-Ling

2017-01-27

Since manipulating electromagnetic waves with electromagnetic active materials for environmental and electric engineering is a significant task, here a novel prototype is reported by introducing reduced graphene oxide (RGO) interfaces in carbon fiber (CF) networks for a hierarchical carbon fiber/reduced graphene oxide/nickel (CF-RGO-Ni) composite textile. Upon charaterizations of the microscopic morphologies, electrical and magnetic properties, the presence of three-dimensional RGO interfaces and bifunctional nickel nanoparticles substantially influences the related physical properties in the resulting hierarchical composite textiles. Eletromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding performance suggests that the hierarchical composite textiles hold a strong shielding effectiveness greater than 61 dB, showing greater advantages than conventional polymeric and foamy shielding composites. As a polymer-free lightweight structure, flexible CF-RGO-Ni composites of all electromagnetic active components offer unique understanding of the multi-scale and multiple mechanisms in electromagnetic energy consumption. Such a novel prototype of shielding structures along with convenient technology highlight a strategy to achieve high-performance EMI shielding, coupled with a universal approach for preparing advanced lightweight composites with graphene interfaces.

High-energy supercapacitors based on hierarchical porous carbon with an ultrahigh ion-accessible surface area in ionic liquid electrolytes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhong, Hui; Xu, Fei; Li, Zenghui; Fu, Ruowen; Wu, Dingcai

2013-05-01

A very important yet really challenging issue to address is how to greatly increase the energy density of supercapacitors to approach or even exceed those of batteries without sacrificing the power density. Herein we report the fabrication of a new class of ultrahigh surface area hierarchical porous carbon (UHSA-HPC) based on the pore formation and widening of polystyrene-derived HPC by KOH activation, and highlight its superior ability for energy storage in supercapacitors with ionic liquid (IL) as electrolyte. The UHSA-HPC with a surface area of more than 3000 m2 g-1 shows an extremely high energy density, i.e., 118 W h kg-1 at a power density of 100 W kg-1. This is ascribed to its unique hierarchical nanonetwork structure with a large number of small-sized nanopores for IL storage and an ideal meso-/macroporous network for IL transfer.A very important yet really challenging issue to address is how to greatly increase the energy density of supercapacitors to approach or even exceed those of batteries without sacrificing the power density. Herein we report the fabrication of a new class of ultrahigh surface area hierarchical porous carbon (UHSA-HPC) based on the pore formation and widening of polystyrene-derived HPC by KOH activation, and highlight its superior ability for energy storage in supercapacitors with ionic liquid (IL) as electrolyte. The UHSA-HPC with a surface area of more than 3000 m2 g-1 shows an extremely high energy density, i.e., 118 W h kg-1 at a power density of 100 W kg-1. This is ascribed to its unique hierarchical nanonetwork structure with a large number of small-sized nanopores for IL storage and an ideal meso-/macroporous network for IL transfer. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Sample preparation, material characterization, electrochemical characterization and specific mass capacitance and energy density. See DOI: 10.1039/c3nr00738c

Construction of Hierarchical α-MnO2 Nanowires@Ultrathin δ-MnO2 Nanosheets Core-Shell Nanostructure with Excellent Cycling Stability for High-Power Asymmetric Supercapacitor Electrodes.

PubMed

Ma, Zhipeng; Shao, Guangjie; Fan, Yuqian; Wang, Guiling; Song, Jianjun; Shen, Dejiu

2016-04-13

Poor electrical conductivity and mechanical instability are two major obstacles to realizing high performance of MnO2 as pseudocapacitor material. The construction of unique hierarchical core-shell nanostructures, therefore, plays an important role in the efficient enhancement of the rate capacity and the stability of this material. We herein report the fabrication of a hierarchical α-MnO2 nanowires@ultrathin δ-MnO2 nanosheets core-shell nanostructure by adopting a facile and practical solution-phase technique. The novel hierarchical nanostructures are composed of ultrathin δ-MnO2 nanosheets with a few atomic layers growing well on the surface of the ultralong α-MnO2 nanowires. The first specific capacitance of hierarchical core-shell nanostructure reached 153.8 F g(-1) at the discharge current density of as high as 20 A g(-1), and the cycling stability is retained at 98.1% after 10,000 charge-discharge cycles, higher than those in the literature. The excellent rate capacity and stability of the hierarchical core-shell nanostructures can be attributed to the structural features of the two MnO2 crystals, in which a 1D α-MnO2 nanowire core provides a stable structural backbone and the ultrathin 2D δ-MnO2 nanosheet shell creates more reactive active sites. The synergistic effects of different dimensions also contribute to the superior rate capability.

The electro-structural behaviour of yarn-like carbon nanotube fibres immersed in organic liquids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Terrones, Jeronimo; Windle, Alan H.; Elliott, James A.

2014-10-01

Yarn-like carbon nanotube (CNT) fibres are a hierarchically-structured material with a variety of promising applications such as high performance composites, sensors and actuators, smart textiles, and energy storage and transmission. However, in order to fully realize these possibilities, a more detailed understanding of their interactions with the environment is required. In this work, we describe a simplified representation of the hierarchical structure of the fibres from which several mathematical models are constructed to explain electro-structural interactions of fibres with organic liquids. A balance between the elastic and surface energies of the CNT bundle network in different media allows the determination of the maximum lengths that open junctions can sustain before collapsing to minimize the surface energy. This characteristic length correlates well with the increase of fibre resistance upon immersion in organic liquids. We also study the effect of charge accumulation in open interbundle junctions and derive expressions to describe experimental data on the non-ohmic electrical behaviour of fibres immersed in polar liquids. Our analyses suggest that the non-ohmic behaviour is caused by progressively shorter junctions collapsing as the voltage is increased. Since our models are not based on any property unique to carbon nanotubes, they should also be useful to describe other hierarchical structures.

Understanding the mind of a worm: hierarchical network structure underlying nervous system function in C. elegans.

PubMed

Chatterjee, Nivedita; Sinha, Sitabhra

2008-01-01

The nervous system of the nematode C. elegans provides a unique opportunity to understand how behavior ('mind') emerges from activity in the nervous system ('brain') of an organism. The hermaphrodite worm has only 302 neurons, all of whose connections (synaptic and gap junctional) are known. Recently, many of the functional circuits that make up its behavioral repertoire have begun to be identified. In this paper, we investigate the hierarchical structure of the nervous system through k-core decomposition and find it to be intimately related to the set of all known functional circuits. Our analysis also suggests a vital role for the lateral ganglion in processing information, providing an essential connection between the sensory and motor components of the C. elegans nervous system.

In-situ preparation of Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} hierarchical arrays on stainless steel substrate for high efficient catalysis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yang, Zeheng, E-mail: zehengyang@hfut.edu.cn; Wang, Kun; Shao, Zongming

Hierarchical array catalysts with micro/nano structures on substrates not only possess high reactivity from large surface area and suitable interface, but intensify mass transfer through shortening the diffusion paths of both reactants and products for high catalytic efficiency. Herein, we first demonstrate fabrication of Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} hierarchical arrays grown on stainless-steel substrates via in-situ hydrothermal chemical oxidation followed by heat treatment in N{sub 2} atmosphere. As a Fenton-like catalyst, Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} hierarchical arrays exhibit excellent catalytic activity and life cycle performance for methylene blue (MB) dye degradation in aqueous solution in the presence of H{sub 2}O{sub 2}. Themore » Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} catalyst with unique hierarchical structures and efficient transport channels, effectively activates H{sub 2}O{sub 2} to generate large quantity of • OH radicals and highly promotes reaction kinetics between MB and • OH radicals. Immobilization of hierarchical array catalysts on stainless-steel can prevent particles agglomeration, facilitate the recovery and reuse of the catalysts, which is expected promising applications in wastewater remediation. - Graphical abstract: The in-situ synthesis of Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} hierarchical arrays on stainless-steel substrates was reported for the first time, which exhibit excellent catalytic activity performance for methylene blue (MB) dye degradation in aqueous solution in the presence of H{sub 2}O{sub 2}. - Highlights: • Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} hierarchical arrays was prepared by in-situ hydrothermal chemical oxidation. • F{sup −} ions play an important role in the formation of the Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} hierarchical arrays. • Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3} hierarchical arrays show high catalytic activity to methylene blue degradation.« less

A Hierarchical Z-Scheme α-Fe2 O3 /g-C3 N4 Hybrid for Enhanced Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction.

PubMed

Jiang, Zhifeng; Wan, Weiming; Li, Huaming; Yuan, Shouqi; Zhao, Huijun; Wong, Po Keung

2018-03-01

The challenge in the artificial photosynthesis of fossil resources from CO 2 by utilizing solar energy is to achieve stable photocatalysts with effective CO 2 adsorption capacity and high charge-separation efficiency. A hierarchical direct Z-scheme system consisting of urchin-like hematite and carbon nitride provides an enhanced photocatalytic activity of reduction of CO 2 to CO, yielding a CO evolution rate of 27.2 µmol g -1 h -1 without cocatalyst and sacrifice reagent, which is >2.2 times higher than that produced by g-C 3 N 4 alone (10.3 µmol g -1 h -1 ). The enhanced photocatalytic activity of the Z-scheme hybrid material can be ascribed to its unique characteristics to accelerate the reduction process, including: (i) 3D hierarchical structure of urchin-like hematite and preferable basic sites which promotes the CO 2 adsorption, and (ii) the unique Z-scheme feature efficiently promotes the separation of the electron-hole pairs and enhances the reducibility of electrons in the conduction band of the g-C 3 N 4 . The origin of such an obvious advantage of the hierarchical Z-scheme is not only explained based on the experimental data but also investigated by modeling CO 2 adsorption and CO adsorption on the three different atomic-scale surfaces via density functional theory calculation. The study creates new opportunities for hierarchical hematite and other metal-oxide-based Z-scheme system for solar fuel generation. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Self-Healing Nanocomposite Hydrogel with Well-Controlled Dynamic Mechanics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Qiaochu; Mishra, Sumeet; Chen, Pangkuan; Tracy, Joseph; Holten-Andersen, Niels

Network dynamics is a crucial factor that determines the macroscopic self-healing rate and efficiency in polymeric hydrogel materials, yet its controllability is seldom studied in most reported self-healing hydrogel systems. Inspired by mussel's adhesion chemistry, we developed a novel approach to assemble inorganic nanoparticles and catechol-decorated PEG polymer into a hydrogel network. When utilized as reversible polymer-particle crosslinks, catechol-metal coordination bonds yield a unique gel network with dynamic mechanics controlled directly by interfacial crosslink structure. Taking advantage of this structure-property relationship at polymer-particle interfaces, we next designed a hierarchically structured hybrid gel with two distinct relaxation timescales. By tuning the relative contribution of the two hierarchical relaxation modes, we are able to finely control the gel's dynamic mechanical behavior from a viscoelastic fluid to a stiff solid, yet preserving its fast self-healing property without the need for external stimuli.

Quasi-hexagonal Cu1.5Mn1.5O4 nanoplates decorated on hollow CuO by Kirkendall effect for enhancing lithium storage performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Peng; Xia, Xifeng; Lei, Wu; Jiao, Xinyan; Lu, Lei; Ouyang, Yu; Hao, Qingli

2018-07-01

Constructing a hierarchical heterogeneous composite is deemed as an effective way to solve the current problems of metal oxides as lithium ion batteries' anodes. In this work, we simultaneously designed the heterogeneous component and structure of the novel hybrid based on Kirkendall effect. The composite was composed of quasi-hexagonal Cu1.5Mn1.5O4 nanoplates as a shell and CuO with voids as a core. The hybrids were characterized by using XRD, FTIR, TEM and SEM. It was found that the heating rate greatly influences the combination form of Cu1.5Mn1.5O4 and CuO. The quasi-hexagonal Cu1.5Mn1.5O4 nanoplates were assembled into branch-like shell decorated on the CuO surface under the low heating rate. However, the high heating rate led to a compact Cu1.5Mn1.5O4 shell, although the shell was also assembled by quasi-hexagonal nanoplates. The reasonable formation mechanism of the unique component and structure was proposed. Such a hybrid with the branch-like shell exhibited the best lithium storage performance. The improved electrochemical performance can be attributed to the unique component and structure. Typically, the inside voids can alleviate the volume change and the hierarchical shell can provide much contact and reaction sites. This work not only opens a new view in constructing heterogeneous hybrid with unique structure by Kirkendall effect, but also can be expanded for many other structure-based applications, such as energy storage, sensors, and heterogeneous catalysts.

Large-Area Direct Laser-Shock Imprinting of a 3D Biomimic Hierarchical Metal Surface for Triboelectric Nanogenerators.

PubMed

Jin, Shengyu; Wang, Yixiu; Motlag, Maithilee; Gao, Shengjie; Xu, Jin; Nian, Qiong; Wu, Wenzhuo; Cheng, Gary J

2018-03-01

Ongoing efforts in triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) focus on enhancing power generation, but obstacles concerning the economical and cost-effective production of TENGs continue to prevail. Micro-/nanostructure engineering of polymer surfaces has been dominantly utilized for boosting the contact triboelectrification, with deposited metal electrodes for collecting the scavenged energy. Nevertheless, this state-of-the-art approach is limited by the vague potential for producing 3D hierarchical surface structures with conformable coverage of high-quality metal. Laser-shock imprinting (LSI) is emerging as a potentially scalable approach for directly surface patterning of a wide range of metals with 3D nanoscale structures by design, benefiting from the ultrahigh-strain-rate forming process. Here, a TENG device is demonstrated with LSI-processed biomimetic hierarchically structured metal electrodes for efficient harvesting of water-drop energy in the environment. Mimicking and transferring hierarchical microstructures from natural templates, such as leaves, into these water-TENG devices is effective regarding repelling water drops from the device surface, since surface hydrophobicity from these biomicrostructures maximizes the TENG output. Among various leaves' microstructures, hierarchical microstructures from dried bamboo leaves are preferable regarding maximizing power output, which is attributed to their unique structures, containing both dense nanostructures and microscale features, compared with other types of leaves. Also, the triboelectric output is significantly improved by closely mimicking the hydrophobic nature of the leaves in the LSI-processed metal surface after functionalizing it with low-surface-energy self-assembled-monolayers. The approach opens doors to new manufacturable TENG technologies for economically feasible and ecologically friendly production of functional devices with directly patterned 3D biomimic metallic surfaces in energy, electronics, and sensor applications. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Epitaxial Growth of Hetero-Ln-MOF Hierarchical Single Crystals for Domain- and Orientation-Controlled Multicolor Luminescence 3D Coding Capability.

PubMed

Pan, Mei; Zhu, Yi-Xuan; Wu, Kai; Chen, Ling; Hou, Ya-Jun; Yin, Shao-Yun; Wang, Hai-Ping; Fan, Ya-Nan; Su, Cheng-Yong

2017-11-13

Core-shell or striped heteroatomic lanthanide metal-organic framework hierarchical single crystals were obtained by liquid-phase anisotropic epitaxial growth, maintaining identical periodic organization while simultaneously exhibiting spatially segregated structure. Different types of domain and orientation-controlled multicolor photophysical models are presented, which show either visually distinguishable or visible/near infrared (NIR) emissive colors. This provides a new bottom-up strategy toward the design of hierarchical molecular systems, offering high-throughput and multiplexed luminescence color tunability and readability. The unique capability of combining spectroscopic coding with 3D (three-dimensional) microscale spatial coding is established, providing potential applications in anti-counterfeiting, color barcoding, and other types of integrated and miniaturized optoelectronic materials and devices. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

3D hierarchical assembly of ultrathin MnO2 nanoflakes on silicon nanowires for high performance micro-supercapacitors in Li- doped ionic liquid

PubMed Central

Dubal, Deepak P.; Aradilla, David; Bidan, Gérard; Gentile, Pascal; Schubert, Thomas J.S.; Wimberg, Jan; Sadki, Saïd; Gomez-Romero, Pedro

2015-01-01

Building of hierarchical core-shell hetero-structures is currently the subject of intensive research in the electrochemical field owing to its potential for making improved electrodes for high-performance micro-supercapacitors. Here we report a novel architecture design of hierarchical MnO2@silicon nanowires (MnO2@SiNWs) hetero-structures directly supported onto silicon wafer coupled with Li-ion doped 1-Methyl-1-propylpyrrolidinium bis(trifluromethylsulfonyl)imide (PMPyrrBTA) ionic liquids as electrolyte for micro-supercapacitors. A unique 3D mesoporous MnO2@SiNWs in Li-ion doped IL electrolyte can be cycled reversibly across a voltage of 2.2 V and exhibits a high areal capacitance of 13 mFcm−2. The high conductivity of the SiNWs arrays combined with the large surface area of ultrathin MnO2 nanoflakes are responsible for the remarkable performance of these MnO2@SiNWs hetero-structures which exhibit high energy density and excellent cycling stability. This combination of hybrid electrode and hybrid electrolyte opens up a novel avenue to design electrode materials for high-performance micro-supercapacitors. PMID:25985388

Neural basis of hierarchical visual form processing of Japanese Kanji characters.

PubMed

Higuchi, Hiroki; Moriguchi, Yoshiya; Murakami, Hiroki; Katsunuma, Ruri; Mishima, Kazuo; Uno, Akira

2015-12-01

We investigated the neural processing of reading Japanese Kanji characters, which involves unique hierarchical visual processing, including the recognition of visual components specific to Kanji, such as "radicals." We performed functional MRI to measure brain activity in response to hierarchical visual stimuli containing (1) real Kanji characters (complete structure with semantic information), (2) pseudo Kanji characters (subcomponents without complete character structure), (3) artificial characters (character fragments), and (4) checkerboard (simple photic stimuli). As we expected, the peaks of the activation in response to different stimulus types were aligned within the left occipitotemporal visual region along the posterior-anterior axis in order of the structural complexity of the stimuli, from fragments (3) to complete characters (1). Moreover, only the real Kanji characters produced functional connectivity between the left inferotemporal area and the language area (left inferior frontal triangularis), while pseudo Kanji characters induced connectivity between the left inferotemporal area and the bilateral cerebellum and left putamen. Visual processing of Japanese Kanji takes place in the left occipitotemporal cortex, with a clear hierarchy within the region such that the neural activation differentiates the elements in Kanji characters' fragments, subcomponents, and semantics, with different patterns of connectivity to remote regions among the elements.

Origin of the Reflectin Gene and Hierarchical Assembly of Its Protein.

PubMed

Guan, Zhe; Cai, Tiantian; Liu, Zhongmin; Dou, Yunfeng; Hu, Xuesong; Zhang, Peng; Sun, Xin; Li, Hongwei; Kuang, Yao; Zhai, Qiran; Ruan, Hao; Li, Xuanxuan; Li, Zeyang; Zhu, Qihui; Mai, Jingeng; Wang, Qining; Lai, Luhua; Ji, Jianguo; Liu, Haiguang; Xia, Bin; Jiang, Taijiao; Luo, Shu-Jin; Wang, Hong-Wei; Xie, Can

2017-09-25

Cephalopods, the group of animals including octopus, squid, and cuttlefish, have remarkable ability to instantly modulate body coloration and patterns so as to blend into surrounding environments [1, 2] or send warning signals to other animals [3]. Reflectin is expressed exclusively in cephalopods, filling the lamellae of intracellular Bragg reflectors that exhibit dynamic iridescence and structural color change [4]. Here, we trace the possible origin of the reflectin gene back to a transposon from the symbiotic bioluminescent bacterium Vibrio fischeri and report the hierarchical structural architecture of reflectin protein. Intrinsic self-assembly, and higher-order assembly tightly modulated by aromatic compounds, provide insights into the formation of multilayer reflectors in iridophores and spherical microparticles in leucophores and may form the basis of structural color change in cephalopods. Self-assembly and higher-order assembly in reflectin originated from a core repeating octapeptide (here named protopeptide), which may be from the same symbiotic bacteria. The origin of the reflectin gene and assembly features of reflectin protein are of considerable biological interest. The hierarchical structural architecture of reflectin and its domain and protopeptide not only provide insights for bioinspired photonic materials but also serve as unique "assembly tags" and feasible molecular platforms in biotechnology. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A novel multifunctional NiTi/Ag hierarchical composite

PubMed Central

Hao, Shijie; Cui, Lishan; Jiang, Jiang; Guo, Fangmin; Xiao, Xianghui; Jiang, Daqiang; Yu, Cun; Chen, Zonghai; Zhou, Hua; Wang, Yandong; Liu, YuZi; Brown, Dennis E.; Ren, Yang

2014-01-01

Creating multifunctional materials is an eternal goal of mankind. As the properties of monolithic materials are necessary limited, one route to extending them is to create a composite by combining contrasting materials. The potential of this approach is neatly illustrated by the formation of nature materials where contrasting components are combined in sophisticated hierarchical designs. In this study, inspired by the hierarchical structure of the tendon, we fabricated a novel composite by subtly combining two contrasting components: NiTi shape-memory alloy and Ag. The composite exhibits simultaneously exceptional mechanical properties of high strength, good superelasticity and high mechanical damping, and remarkable functional properties of high electric conductivity, high visibility under fluoroscopy and excellent thermal-driven ability. All of these result from the effective-synergy between the NiTi and Ag components, and place the composite in a unique position in the properties chart of all known structural-functional materials providing new opportunities for innovative electrical, mechanical and biomedical applications. Furthermore, this work may open new avenues for designing and fabricating advanced multifunctional materials by subtly combining contrasting multi-components. PMID:24919945

Hierarchical flower-like C/NiO composite hollow microspheres and its excellent supercapacitor performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Tao; Jiang, Chuanjia; Cheng, Bei; You, Wei; Yu, Jiaguo

2017-08-01

Nickel (II) oxide (NiO) nanosheet grown on N-doped carbon hollow spheres (NiO/NCHS) with hierarchical pore structure are obtained via facile chemical bath deposition followed by calcination at 350 °C under nitrogen atmosphere. Phase structure measurements indicate that the material is composed of NiO and N-doped carbon. The NiO/NCHS composite exhibits a unique flower-like morphology, where ultrathin NiO nanosheets are vertically grown on the surface of NCHS. This hierarchical nanostructure is beneficial for facilitating electron and electrolyte ion transport and accelerating the reversible redox reaction. The specific capacitance of the NiO/NCHS composite (585 F g-1 at 1 A g-1) is higher than that of pure NiO particle (453 F g-1 at 1 A g-1). Meanwhile, the NiO/NCHS composite exhibits excellent rate performance and superior cycling stability over 6000 cycles. The enhanced supercapacitive performance of the NiO/NCHS nanocomposite indicates that it can be an appealing candidate electrode material for supercapacitors.

Efficient Gas-Sensing for Formaldehyde with 3D Hierarchical Co3O4 Derived from Co5-Based MOF Microcrystals.

PubMed

Zhou, Wei; Wu, Ya-Pan; Zhao, Jun; Dong, Wen-Wen; Qiao, Xiu-Qing; Hou, Dong-Fang; Bu, Xianhui; Li, Dong-Sheng

2017-11-20

Detecting formaldehyde at low operating temperature and maintaining long-term stability are of great significance. In this work, a hierarchical Co 3 O 4 nanostructure has been fabricated by calcining Co 5 -based metal-organic framework (MOF) microcrystals. Co 3 O 4 -350 particles were used for efficient gas-sensing for the detecting of formaldehyde vapor at lower working temperature (170 °C), low detection limit of 10 ppm, and long-term stability (30 days), which not only is the optimal value among all reported pure Co 3 O 4 sensing materials for the detection of formaldehyde but also is superior to that of majority of Co 3 O 4 -based composites. Such extraordinarily efficient properties might be resulted from hierarchically structures, larger surface area and unique pore structure. This strategy is further confirmed that MOFs, especially Co-clusters MOFs, could be used as precursor to synthesize 3D nanostructure metal oxide materials with high-performance, which possess high porosity and more active sites and shorter ionic diffusion lengths.

Hierarchical honeycomb-like Co3O4 pores coating on CoMoO4 nanosheets as bifunctional efficient electrocatalysts for overall water splitting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pei, Zhihao; Xu, Li; Xu, Wei

2018-03-01

Efficient electrocatalytic water splitting is one of the most effective ways to solve the global energy crisis. In this paper, we report on a novel self-assembled hierarchical structure of Co3O4/CoMoO4 grown in situ on a bare nickel foam. The unique, three-dimensional honeycomb-like Co3O4 pores were constructed from one-dimensional nanowires and coated on two-dimensional CoMoO4 nanosheets structures grown on nickel foam. The synthesis involved a step-wise solvothermal method followed by an annealing treatment. Benefiting from the synergistic effect of the hierarchical nanostructures, the materials had more reaction active sites and a smaller electron transfer impedance, and they exhibited excellent electrocatalytic performances for the HER and OER of 143 and 244 mV, respectively, at 10 mA cm-2 in an alkaline solution. Furthermore, the materials remained stable during the long electrolysis period, over 10 h, presenting promising application prospects in the field of electrocatalytic water splitting.

HiTAD: detecting the structural and functional hierarchies of topologically associating domains from chromatin interactions

PubMed Central

Wang, Xiao-Tao; Cui, Wang

2017-01-01

Abstract A current question in the high-order organization of chromatin is whether topologically associating domains (TADs) are distinct from other hierarchical chromatin domains. However, due to the unclear TAD definition in tradition, the structural and functional uniqueness of TAD is not well studied. In this work, we refined TAD definition by further constraining TADs to the optimal separation on global intra-chromosomal interactions. Inspired by this constraint, we developed a novel method, called HiTAD, to detect hierarchical TADs from Hi-C chromatin interactions. HiTAD performs well in domain sensitivity, replicate reproducibility and inter cell-type conservation. With a novel domain-based alignment proposed by us, we defined several types of hierarchical TAD changes which were not systematically studied previously, and subsequently used them to reveal that TADs and sub-TADs differed statistically in correlating chromosomal compartment, replication timing and gene transcription. Finally, our work also has the implication that the refinement of TAD definition could be achieved by only utilizing chromatin interactions, at least in part. HiTAD is freely available online. PMID:28977529

Statistical shear lag model - unraveling the size effect in hierarchical composites.

PubMed

Wei, Xiaoding; Filleter, Tobin; Espinosa, Horacio D

2015-05-01

Numerous experimental and computational studies have established that the hierarchical structures encountered in natural materials, such as the brick-and-mortar structure observed in sea shells, are essential for achieving defect tolerance. Due to this hierarchy, the mechanical properties of natural materials have a different size dependence compared to that of typical engineered materials. This study aimed to explore size effects on the strength of bio-inspired staggered hierarchical composites and to define the influence of the geometry of constituents in their outstanding defect tolerance capability. A statistical shear lag model is derived by extending the classical shear lag model to account for the statistics of the constituents' strength. A general solution emerges from rigorous mathematical derivations, unifying the various empirical formulations for the fundamental link length used in previous statistical models. The model shows that the staggered arrangement of constituents grants composites a unique size effect on mechanical strength in contrast to homogenous continuous materials. The model is applied to hierarchical yarns consisting of double-walled carbon nanotube bundles to assess its predictive capabilities for novel synthetic materials. Interestingly, the model predicts that yarn gauge length does not significantly influence the yarn strength, in close agreement with experimental observations. Copyright © 2015 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Ultra-facile fabrication of phosphorus doped egg-like hierarchic porous carbon with superior supercapacitance performance by microwave irradiation combining with self-activation strategy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Deyi; Han, Mei; Li, Yubing; He, Jingjing; Wang, Bing; Wang, Kunjie; Feng, Huixia

2017-12-01

Herein, we report an ultra-facile fabrication method for a phosphorus doped egg-like hierarchic porous carbon by microwave irradiation combining with self-activation strategy under air atmosphere. Comparing with the traditional pyrolytic carbonization method, the reported method exhibits incomparable merits, such as high energy efficiency, ultra-fast and inert atmosphere protection absent fabrication process. Similar morphology and graphitization degree with the sample fabricated by the traditional pyrolytic carbonization method under inert atmosphere protection for 2 h can be easily achieved by the reported microwave irradiation method just for 3 min under ambient atmosphere. The samples fabricated by the reported method display a unique phosphorus doped egg-like hierarchic porous structure, high specific surface area (1642 m2 g-1) and large pore volume (2.04 cm3 g-1). Specific capacitance of the samples fabricated by the reported method reaches up to 209 F g-1, and over 96.2% of initial capacitance remains as current density increasing from 0.5 to 20 A g-1, indicating the superior capacitance performance of the fabricated samples. The hierarchic porous structure, opened microporosity, additional pseudocapacitance, high electrolyte-accessible surface area and good conductivity make essential contribution to its superior capacitance performance.

Robust Hydrophobic Surfaces from Suspension HVOF Thermal Sprayed Rare-Earth Oxide Ceramics Coatings.

PubMed

Bai, M; Kazi, H; Zhang, X; Liu, J; Hussain, T

2018-05-03

This study has presented an efficient coating method, namely suspension high velocity oxy-fuel (SHVOF) thermal spraying, to produce large super-hydrophobic ceramic surfaces with a unique micro- and nano-scale hierarchical structures to mimic natural super-hydrophobic surfaces. CeO 2 was selected as coatings material, one of a group of rare-earth oxide (REO) ceramics that have recently been found to exhibit intrinsic hydrophobicity, even after exposure to high temperatures and abrasive wear. Robust hydrophobic REO ceramic surfaces were obtained from the deposition of thin CeO 2 coatings (3-5 μm) using an aqueous suspension with a solid concentration of 30 wt.% sub-micron CeO 2 particles (50-200 nm) on a selection of metallic substrates. It was found that the coatings' hydrophobicity, microstructure, surface morphology, and deposition efficiency were all determined by the metallic substrates underneath. More importantly, it was demonstrated that the near super-hydrophobicity of SHVOF sprayed CeO 2 coatings was achieved not only by the intrinsic hydrophobicity of REO but also their unique hierarchically structure. In addition, the coatings' surface hydrophobicity was sensitive to the O/Ce ratio, which could explain the 'delayed' hydrophobicity of REO coatings.

Hierarchical MoS2 tubular structures internally wired by carbon nanotubes as a highly stable anode material for lithium-ion batteries

PubMed Central

Chen, Yu Ming; Yu, Xin Yao; Li, Zhen; Paik, Ungyu; Lou, Xiong Wen (David)

2016-01-01

Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), a typical two-dimensional material, is a promising anode material for lithium-ion batteries because it has three times the theoretical capacity of graphite. The main challenges associated with MoS2 anodes are the structural degradation and the low rate capability caused by the low intrinsic electric conductivity and large strain upon cycling. Here, we design hierarchical MoS2 tubular structures internally wired by carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to tackle these problems. These porous MoS2 tubular structures are constructed from building blocks of ultrathin nanosheets, which are believed to benefit the electrochemical reactions. Benefiting from the unique structural and compositional characteristics, these CNT-wired MoS2 tubular structures deliver a very high specific capacity of ~1320 mAh g−1 at a current density of 0.1 A g−1, exceptional rate capability, and an ultralong cycle life of up to 1000 cycles. This work may inspire new ideas for constructing high-performance electrodes for electrochemical energy storage. PMID:27453938

High-energy supercapacitors based on hierarchical porous carbon with an ultrahigh ion-accessible surface area in ionic liquid electrolytes.

PubMed

Zhong, Hui; Xu, Fei; Li, Zenghui; Fu, Ruowen; Wu, Dingcai

2013-06-07

A very important yet really challenging issue to address is how to greatly increase the energy density of supercapacitors to approach or even exceed those of batteries without sacrificing the power density. Herein we report the fabrication of a new class of ultrahigh surface area hierarchical porous carbon (UHSA-HPC) based on the pore formation and widening of polystyrene-derived HPC by KOH activation, and highlight its superior ability for energy storage in supercapacitors with ionic liquid (IL) as electrolyte. The UHSA-HPC with a surface area of more than 3000 m(2) g(-1) shows an extremely high energy density, i.e., 118 W h kg(-1) at a power density of 100 W kg(-1). This is ascribed to its unique hierarchical nanonetwork structure with a large number of small-sized nanopores for IL storage and an ideal meso-/macroporous network for IL transfer.

unmarked: An R package for fitting hierarchical models of wildlife occurrence and abundance

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fiske, Ian J.; Chandler, Richard B.

2011-01-01

Ecological research uses data collection techniques that are prone to substantial and unique types of measurement error to address scientific questions about species abundance and distribution. These data collection schemes include a number of survey methods in which unmarked individuals are counted, or determined to be present, at spatially- referenced sites. Examples include site occupancy sampling, repeated counts, distance sampling, removal sampling, and double observer sampling. To appropriately analyze these data, hierarchical models have been developed to separately model explanatory variables of both a latent abundance or occurrence process and a conditional detection process. Because these models have a straightforward interpretation paralleling mechanisms under which the data arose, they have recently gained immense popularity. The common hierarchical structure of these models is well-suited for a unified modeling interface. The R package unmarked provides such a unified modeling framework, including tools for data exploration, model fitting, model criticism, post-hoc analysis, and model comparison.

Cobalt silicate hierarchical hollow spheres for lithium-ion batteries.

PubMed

Yang, Jun; Guo, Yuanyuan; Zhang, Yufei; Sun, Chencheng; Yan, Qingyu; Dong, Xiaochen

2016-09-09

In this paper, the synthesis of cobalt silicate novel hierarchical hollow spheres via a facile hydrothermal method is presented. With a unique hollow structure, the Co2SiO4 provides a large surface area, which can shorten the lithium ions diffusion length and effectively accommodate the volumetic variation during the lithiation/de-lithiation process. Serving as an anode material in lithium-ion battery application, the Co2SiO4 electrode demonstrates a high reversible specific capacity (first-cycle charge capacity of 948.6 mAh g(-1) at 100 mA g(-1)), a cycling durability (specific capacity of 791.4 mAh g(-1) after 100 cycles at 100 mA g(-1)), and a good rate capability (specific capacity of 349.4 mAh g(-1) at 10 A g(-1)). The results indicate that the cobalt silicate hierarchical hollow sphere holds the potential applications in energy storage electrodes.

Facile synthesis of uniform hierarchical composites CuO-CeO2 for enhanced dye removal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, Pan; Niu, Helin; Chen, Jingshuai; Song, Jiming; Mao, Changjie; Zhang, Shengyi; Gao, Yuanhao; Chen, Changle

2016-12-01

The hierarchically shaped CuO-CeO2 composites were prepared through a facile solvothermal method without using any template. The as-prepared products were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and N2 adsorption-desorption analysis. In the characterization, we found that CuO-CeO2 composites were showed uniform size and morphology which were consisted of the secondary nanoflakes interconnected with each other. Most interestingly, the composites showed efficient performance to remove methyl blue and Congo red dyes from water with maximum adsorption capacities of 2131.24 and 1072.09 mg g-1, respectively. In addition, because of their larger surface area and the unique hierarchical structures, the adsorption performance of the CuO-CeO2 composites is much better than the materials of CuO and CeO2.

Thermal Instability Induced Oriented 2D Pores for Enhanced Sodium Storage.

PubMed

Kong, Lingjun; Xie, Chen-Chao; Gu, Haichen; Wang, Chao-Peng; Zhou, Xianlong; Liu, Jian; Zhou, Zhen; Li, Zhao-Yang; Zhu, Jian; Bu, Xian-He

2018-04-19

Hierarchical porous structures are highly desired for various applications. However, it is still challenging to obtain such materials with tunable architectures. Here, this paper reports hierarchical nanomaterials with oriented 2D pores by taking advantages of thermally instable bonds in vanadium-based metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). High-temperature calcination of these MOFs accompanied by the loss of coordinated water molecules and other components enables the formation of orderly slit-like 2D pores in vanadium oxide/porous carbon nanorods (VO x /PCs). This unique combination leads to an increase of the reactive surface area. In addition, optimized VO x /PCs demonstrate high-rate capability and ultralong cycling life for sodium storage. The assembled full cells also show high capacity and cycling stability. This report provides an effective strategy for producing MOFs-derived composites with hierarchical porous architectures for energy storage. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Hierarchical LiMn2O4 Hollow Cubes with Exposed {111} Planes as High-Power Cathodes for Lithium-Ion Batteries.

PubMed

Wu, Yu; Cao, Chuanbao; Zhang, Junting; Wang, Lin; Ma, Xilan; Xu, Xingyan

2016-08-03

Hierarchical LiMn2O4 hollow cubes with exposed {111} planes have been synthesized using cube-shaped MnCO3 precursors, which are fabricated through a facile co-precipitation reaction. Without surface modification, the as-prepared LiMn2O4 exhibits excellent cyclability and superior rate capability. Surprisingly, even over 70% of primal discharge capacity can be maintained for up to 1000 cycles at 50 C, and with only about 72 s of discharge time the as-prepared materials can deliver initial discharge capacity of 96.5 mA h g(-1). What is more, the materials have 98.4% and 90.7% capacity retentions for up to 100 cycles at 5 C under the temperatures of 25 and 60 °C, respectively. The superior electrochemical performance can be attributed to the unique hierarchical and interior hollow structure, exposed {111} planes, and high-quality crystallinity.

Patterns of Hierarchical Structure in the Medical Lexicon

PubMed Central

Michael, Patricia A.; Cole, William G.; Stewart, James; Blois, Marsden S.

1987-01-01

Concepts in basic and clinical medical science cover a wide range of levels of description, from the subatomic level to the level of the patient as a whole. Medical language may have usage regularities consistent with this hierarchical nature of medical knowledge. Preliminary studies of word occurrence in abstracts drawn from three medical journals representing three broadly defined levels of description (chemical system, physiologic system, and patient as a whole) demonstrated a nonuniform word usage, with many words unique to one or another journal. In this present study, word occurrence was examined in an expanded pool of medical text consisting of sixteen textbooks representing ten different levels of description: atom/ion, micromolecule, macromolecule, organelle, cell, tissue, organ, physiologic system, major body part (or multiple physiologic systems) and patient as a whole. Word usage was found to be nonuniform, with many words unique to specific levels. The presence of such usage regularities may provide a basis for facilitating the automatic classification and retrieval of medical text.

Hierarchical nanostructured hollow spherical carbon with mesoporous shell as a unique cathode catalyst support in proton exchange membrane fuel cell.

PubMed

Fang, Baizeng; Kim, Jung Ho; Kim, Minsik; Kim, Minwoo; Yu, Jong-Sung

2009-03-07

Hierarchical nanostructured spherical carbon with hollow macroporous core in combination with mesoporous shell has been explored to support Pt cathode catalyst with high metal loading in proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). The hollow core-mesoporous shell carbon (HCMSC) has unique structural characteristics such as large specific surface area and mesoporous volume, ensuring uniform dispersion of the supported high loading (60 wt%) Pt nanoparticles with small particle size, and well-developed three-dimensionally interconnected hierarchical porosity network, facilitating fast mass transport. The HCMSC-supported Pt(60 wt%) cathode catalyst has demonstrated markedly enhanced catalytic activity toward oxygen reduction and greatly improved PEMFC polarization performance compared with carbon black Vulcan XC-72 (VC)-supported ones. Furthermore, the HCMSC-supported Pt(40 wt%) or Pt(60 wt%) outperforms the HCMSC-supported Pt(20 wt%) even at a low catalyst loading of 0.2 mg Pt cm(-2) in the cathode, which is completely different from the VC-supported Pt catalysts. The capability of supporting high loading Pt is supposed to accelerate the commercialization of PEMFC due to the anticipated significant reduction in the amount of catalyst support required, diffusion layer thickness and fabricating cost of the supported Pt catalyst electrode.

Rigorous Approach in Investigation of Seismic Structure and Source Characteristicsin Northeast Asia: Hierarchical and Trans-dimensional Bayesian Inversion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mustac, M.; Kim, S.; Tkalcic, H.; Rhie, J.; Chen, Y.; Ford, S. R.; Sebastian, N.

2015-12-01

Conventional approaches to inverse problems suffer from non-linearity and non-uniqueness in estimations of seismic structures and source properties. Estimated results and associated uncertainties are often biased by applied regularizations and additional constraints, which are commonly introduced to solve such problems. Bayesian methods, however, provide statistically meaningful estimations of models and their uncertainties constrained by data information. In addition, hierarchical and trans-dimensional (trans-D) techniques are inherently implemented in the Bayesian framework to account for involved error statistics and model parameterizations, and, in turn, allow more rigorous estimations of the same. Here, we apply Bayesian methods throughout the entire inference process to estimate seismic structures and source properties in Northeast Asia including east China, the Korean peninsula, and the Japanese islands. Ambient noise analysis is first performed to obtain a base three-dimensional (3-D) heterogeneity model using continuous broadband waveforms from more than 300 stations. As for the tomography of surface wave group and phase velocities in the 5-70 s band, we adopt a hierarchical and trans-D Bayesian inversion method using Voronoi partition. The 3-D heterogeneity model is further improved by joint inversions of teleseismic receiver functions and dispersion data using a newly developed high-efficiency Bayesian technique. The obtained model is subsequently used to prepare 3-D structural Green's functions for the source characterization. A hierarchical Bayesian method for point source inversion using regional complete waveform data is applied to selected events from the region. The seismic structure and source characteristics with rigorously estimated uncertainties from the novel Bayesian methods provide enhanced monitoring and discrimination of seismic events in northeast Asia.

Hierarchicality of trade flow networks reveals complexity of products.

PubMed

Shi, Peiteng; Zhang, Jiang; Yang, Bo; Luo, Jingfei

2014-01-01

With globalization, countries are more connected than before by trading flows, which amounts to at least 36 trillion dollars today. Interestingly, around 30-60 percents of exports consist of intermediate products in global. Therefore, the trade flow network of particular product with high added values can be regarded as value chains. The problem is weather we can discriminate between these products from their unique flow network structure? This paper applies the flow analysis method developed in ecology to 638 trading flow networks of different products. We claim that the allometric scaling exponent η can be used to characterize the degree of hierarchicality of a flow network, i.e., whether the trading products flow on long hierarchical chains. Then, it is pointed out that the flow networks of products with higher added values and complexity like machinary, transport equipment etc. have larger exponents, meaning that their trade flow networks are more hierarchical. As a result, without the extra data like global input-output table, we can identify the product categories with higher complexity, and the relative importance of a country in the global value chain by the trading network solely.

Hierarchicality of Trade Flow Networks Reveals Complexity of Products

PubMed Central

Shi, Peiteng; Zhang, Jiang; Yang, Bo; Luo, Jingfei

2014-01-01

With globalization, countries are more connected than before by trading flows, which amounts to at least trillion dollars today. Interestingly, around percents of exports consist of intermediate products in global. Therefore, the trade flow network of particular product with high added values can be regarded as value chains. The problem is weather we can discriminate between these products from their unique flow network structure? This paper applies the flow analysis method developed in ecology to 638 trading flow networks of different products. We claim that the allometric scaling exponent can be used to characterize the degree of hierarchicality of a flow network, i.e., whether the trading products flow on long hierarchical chains. Then, it is pointed out that the flow networks of products with higher added values and complexity like machinary, transport equipment etc. have larger exponents, meaning that their trade flow networks are more hierarchical. As a result, without the extra data like global input-output table, we can identify the product categories with higher complexity, and the relative importance of a country in the global value chain by the trading network solely. PMID:24905753

CellTree: an R/bioconductor package to infer the hierarchical structure of cell populations from single-cell RNA-seq data.

PubMed

duVerle, David A; Yotsukura, Sohiya; Nomura, Seitaro; Aburatani, Hiroyuki; Tsuda, Koji

2016-09-13

Single-cell RNA sequencing is fast becoming one the standard method for gene expression measurement, providing unique insights into cellular processes. A number of methods, based on general dimensionality reduction techniques, have been suggested to help infer and visualise the underlying structure of cell populations from single-cell expression levels, yet their models generally lack proper biological grounding and struggle at identifying complex differentiation paths. Here we introduce cellTree: an R/Bioconductor package that uses a novel statistical approach, based on document analysis techniques, to produce tree structures outlining the hierarchical relationship between single-cell samples, while identifying latent groups of genes that can provide biological insights. With cellTree, we provide experimentalists with an easy-to-use tool, based on statistically and biologically-sound algorithms, to efficiently explore and visualise single-cell RNA data. The cellTree package is publicly available in the online Bionconductor repository at: http://bioconductor.org/packages/cellTree/ .

High-performance asymmetric supercapacitors based on multilayer MnO2 /graphene oxide nanoflakes and hierarchical porous carbon with enhanced cycling stability.

PubMed

Zhao, Yufeng; Ran, Wei; He, Jing; Huang, Yizhong; Liu, Zhifeng; Liu, Wei; Tang, Yongfu; Zhang, Long; Gao, Dawei; Gao, Faming

2015-03-18

In this work, MnO(2)/GO (graphene oxide) composites with novel multilayer nanoflake structure, and a carbon material derived from Artemia cyst shell with genetic 3D hierarchical porous structure (HPC), are prepared. An asymmetric supercapacitor has been fabricated using MnO(2)/GO as positive electrode and HPC as negative electrode material. Because of their unique structures, both MnO(2)/GO composites and HPC exhibit excellent electrochemical performances. The optimized asymmetric supercapacitor could be cycled reversibly in the high voltage range of 0-2 V in aqueous electrolyte, which exhibits maximum energy density of 46.7 Wh kg(-1) at a power density of 100 W kg(-1) and remains 18.9 Wh kg(-1) at 2000 W kg(-1). Additionally, such device also shows superior long cycle life along with ∼100% capacitance retention after 1000 cycles and ∼93% after 4000 cycles. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Hierarchical Structure and Multifunctional Surface Properties of Carnivorous Pitcher Plants Nepenthes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hsu, Chiao-Peng; Lin, Yu-Min; Chen, Po-Yu

2015-04-01

Carnivorous pitcher plants of the genus Nepenthes have evolved specialized leaves fulfilling the multi-functions of attracting, capturing, retaining and digesting the prey, mostly arthropods. Different capturing mechanisms have been proposed and discussed in previous works. The most important capture mechanism is the unique super-hydrophilic surface properties of the peristome. The combination of a hierarchical surface structure and nectar secretions results in an exceptional water-lubricated trapping system. Anisotropic and unidirectional wettability is attributed to the ridge-like surface and epidermal folding. The three-dimensional plate-like wax crystals in the hydrophobic waxy zone can further prevent the prey from escaping. The captured prey are then digested in the hydrophilic digestive zone. The hybrid species Nepenthes × Miranda was investigated in this study. The surface morphology and hierarchical microstructure were characterized by scanning electron microscope. Contact angle measurement and wetting efficiency tests were performed to determine the wettability of the peristome under fresh, nectar-free and sucrose-coated conditions with controlled temperature and humidity. The results showed that sucrose-coated peristome surfaces possess the best wetting efficiency. The structure-property-function relationship and the capturing mechanism of Nepenthes were elucidated, which could further lead to the design and synthesis of novel bio-inspired surfaces and potential applications.

Snake velvet black: Hierarchical micro- and nanostructure enhances dark colouration in Bitis rhinoceros

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spinner, Marlene; Kovalev, Alexander; Gorb, Stanislav N.; Westhoff, Guido

2013-05-01

The West African Gaboon viper (Bitis rhinoceros) is a master of camouflage due to its colouration pattern. Its skin is geometrically patterned and features black spots that purport an exceptional spatial depth due to their velvety surface texture. Our study shades light on micromorphology, optical characteristics and principles behind such a velvet black appearance. We revealed a unique hierarchical pattern of leaf-like microstructures striated with nanoridges on the snake scales that coincides with the distribution of black colouration. Velvet black sites demonstrate four times lower reflectance and higher absorbance than other scales in the UV - near IR spectral range. The combination of surface structures impeding reflectance and absorbing dark pigments, deposited in the skin material, provides reflecting less than 11% of the light reflected by a polytetrafluoroethylene diffuse reflectance standard in any direction. A view-angle independent black structural colour in snakes is reported here for the first time.

Additively manufactured hierarchical stainless steels with high strength and ductility.

PubMed

Wang, Y Morris; Voisin, Thomas; McKeown, Joseph T; Ye, Jianchao; Calta, Nicholas P; Li, Zan; Zeng, Zhi; Zhang, Yin; Chen, Wen; Roehling, Tien Tran; Ott, Ryan T; Santala, Melissa K; Depond, Philip J; Matthews, Manyalibo J; Hamza, Alex V; Zhu, Ting

2018-01-01

Many traditional approaches for strengthening steels typically come at the expense of useful ductility, a dilemma known as strength-ductility trade-off. New metallurgical processing might offer the possibility of overcoming this. Here we report that austenitic 316L stainless steels additively manufactured via a laser powder-bed-fusion technique exhibit a combination of yield strength and tensile ductility that surpasses that of conventional 316L steels. High strength is attributed to solidification-enabled cellular structures, low-angle grain boundaries, and dislocations formed during manufacturing, while high uniform elongation correlates to a steady and progressive work-hardening mechanism regulated by a hierarchically heterogeneous microstructure, with length scales spanning nearly six orders of magnitude. In addition, solute segregation along cellular walls and low-angle grain boundaries can enhance dislocation pinning and promote twinning. This work demonstrates the potential of additive manufacturing to create alloys with unique microstructures and high performance for structural applications.

Additively manufactured hierarchical stainless steels with high strength and ductility

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Y. Morris; Voisin, Thomas; McKeown, Joseph T.; Ye, Jianchao; Calta, Nicholas P.; Li, Zan; Zeng, Zhi; Zhang, Yin; Chen, Wen; Roehling, Tien Tran; Ott, Ryan T.; Santala, Melissa K.; Depond, Philip J.; Matthews, Manyalibo J.; Hamza, Alex V.; Zhu, Ting

2018-01-01

Many traditional approaches for strengthening steels typically come at the expense of useful ductility, a dilemma known as strength-ductility trade-off. New metallurgical processing might offer the possibility of overcoming this. Here we report that austenitic 316L stainless steels additively manufactured via a laser powder-bed-fusion technique exhibit a combination of yield strength and tensile ductility that surpasses that of conventional 316L steels. High strength is attributed to solidification-enabled cellular structures, low-angle grain boundaries, and dislocations formed during manufacturing, while high uniform elongation correlates to a steady and progressive work-hardening mechanism regulated by a hierarchically heterogeneous microstructure, with length scales spanning nearly six orders of magnitude. In addition, solute segregation along cellular walls and low-angle grain boundaries can enhance dislocation pinning and promote twinning. This work demonstrates the potential of additive manufacturing to create alloys with unique microstructures and high performance for structural applications.

Additively manufactured hierarchical stainless steels with high strength and ductility

DOE PAGES

Wang, Y. Morris; Voisin, Thomas; McKeown, Joseph T.; ...

2017-10-30

Many traditional approaches for strengthening steels typically come at the expense of useful ductility, a dilemma known as strength–ductility trade-off. New metallurgical processing might offer the possibility of overcoming this. Here we report that austenitic 316L stainless steels additively manufactured via a laser powder-bed-fusion technique exhibit a combination of yield strength and tensile ductility that surpasses that of conventional 316L steels. High strength is attributed to solidification-enabled cellular structures, low-angle grain boundaries, and dislocations formed during manufacturing, while high uniform elongation correlates to a steady and progressive work-hardening mechanism regulated by a hierarchically heterogeneous microstructure, with length scales spanning nearlymore » six orders of magnitude. In addition, solute segregation along cellular walls and low-angle grain boundaries can enhance dislocation pinning and promote twinning. This work demonstrates the potential of additive manufacturing to create alloys with unique microstructures and high performance for structural applications.« less

Additively manufactured hierarchical stainless steels with high strength and ductility

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, Y. Morris; Voisin, Thomas; McKeown, Joseph T.

Many traditional approaches for strengthening steels typically come at the expense of useful ductility, a dilemma known as strength–ductility trade-off. New metallurgical processing might offer the possibility of overcoming this. Here we report that austenitic 316L stainless steels additively manufactured via a laser powder-bed-fusion technique exhibit a combination of yield strength and tensile ductility that surpasses that of conventional 316L steels. High strength is attributed to solidification-enabled cellular structures, low-angle grain boundaries, and dislocations formed during manufacturing, while high uniform elongation correlates to a steady and progressive work-hardening mechanism regulated by a hierarchically heterogeneous microstructure, with length scales spanning nearlymore » six orders of magnitude. In addition, solute segregation along cellular walls and low-angle grain boundaries can enhance dislocation pinning and promote twinning. This work demonstrates the potential of additive manufacturing to create alloys with unique microstructures and high performance for structural applications.« less

Snake velvet black: hierarchical micro- and nanostructure enhances dark colouration in Bitis rhinoceros.

PubMed

Spinner, Marlene; Kovalev, Alexander; Gorb, Stanislav N; Westhoff, Guido

2013-01-01

The West African Gaboon viper (Bitis rhinoceros) is a master of camouflage due to its colouration pattern. Its skin is geometrically patterned and features black spots that purport an exceptional spatial depth due to their velvety surface texture. Our study shades light on micromorphology, optical characteristics and principles behind such a velvet black appearance. We revealed a unique hierarchical pattern of leaf-like microstructures striated with nanoridges on the snake scales that coincides with the distribution of black colouration. Velvet black sites demonstrate four times lower reflectance and higher absorbance than other scales in the UV-near IR spectral range. The combination of surface structures impeding reflectance and absorbing dark pigments, deposited in the skin material, provides reflecting less than 11% of the light reflected by a polytetrafluoroethylene diffuse reflectance standard in any direction. A view-angle independent black structural colour in snakes is reported here for the first time.

Adsorption of heavy metal ions by hierarchically structured magnetite-carbonaceous spheres.

PubMed

Gong, Jingming; Wang, Xiaoqing; Shao, Xiulan; Yuan, Shuang; Yang, Chenlin; Hu, Xianluo

2012-11-15

Magnetically driven separation technology has received considerable attention in recent decade for its great potential application. In this work, hierarchically structured magnetite-carbonaceous microspheres (Fe(3)O(4)-C MSs) have been synthesized for the adsorption of heavy metal ions from aqueous solution. Each sphere contains numerous unique rattle-type structured magnetic particles, realizing the integration of rattle-type building unit into microspheres. The as-prepared composites with high BET surface area, hierarchical as well as mesoporous structures, exhibit an excellent adsorption capacity for heavy metal ions and a convenient separation procedure with the help of an external magnet. It was found that the maximum adsorption capacity of the composite toward Pb(2+) was ∼126mgg(-1), displaying a high efficiency for the removal of heavy metal ions. The Freundlich adsorption isotherm was applicable to describe the removal processes. Kinetics of the Pb(2+) removal was found to follow pseudo-second-order rate equation. The as-prepared composite of Fe(3)O(4)-C MSs as well as Pb(2+)-adsorbed composite were carefully examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Zeta potential measurements, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), nitrogen sorption measurements, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Based on the characterization results, a possible mechanism of Pb(2+) removal with the composite of Fe(3)O(4)-C MSs was proposed. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Computational Infrastructure for Engine Structural Performance Simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chamis, Christos C.

1997-01-01

Select computer codes developed over the years to simulate specific aspects of engine structures are described. These codes include blade impact integrated multidisciplinary analysis and optimization, progressive structural fracture, quantification of uncertainties for structural reliability and risk, benefits estimation of new technology insertion and hierarchical simulation of engine structures made from metal matrix and ceramic matrix composites. Collectively these codes constitute a unique infrastructure readiness to credibly evaluate new and future engine structural concepts throughout the development cycle from initial concept, to design and fabrication, to service performance and maintenance and repairs, and to retirement for cause and even to possible recycling. Stated differently, they provide 'virtual' concurrent engineering for engine structures total-life-cycle-cost.

Hierarchical organization of macaque and cat cortical sensory systems explored with a novel network processor.

PubMed

Hilgetag, C C; O'Neill, M A; Young, M P

2000-01-29

Neuroanatomists have described a large number of connections between the various structures of monkey and cat cortical sensory systems. Because of the complexity of the connection data, analysis is required to unravel what principles of organization they imply. To date, analysis of laminar origin and termination connection data to reveal hierarchical relationships between the cortical areas has been the most widely acknowledged approach. We programmed a network processor that searches for optimal hierarchical orderings of cortical areas given known hierarchical constraints and rules for their interpretation. For all cortical systems and all cost functions, the processor found a multitude of equally low-cost hierarchies. Laminar hierarchical constraints that are presently available in the anatomical literature were therefore insufficient to constrain a unique ordering for any of the sensory systems we analysed. Hierarchical orderings of the monkey visual system that have been widely reported, but which were derived by hand, were not among the optimal orderings. All the cortical systems we studied displayed a significant degree of hierarchical organization, and the anatomical constraints from the monkey visual and somato-motor systems were satisfied with very few constraint violations in the optimal hierarchies. The visual and somato-motor systems in that animal were therefore surprisingly strictly hierarchical. Most inconsistencies between the constraints and the hierarchical relationships in the optimal structures for the visual system were related to connections of area FST (fundus of superior temporal sulcus). We found that the hierarchical solutions could be further improved by assuming that FST consists of two areas, which differ in the nature of their projections. Indeed, we found that perfect hierarchical arrangements of the primate visual system, without any violation of anatomical constraints, could be obtained under two reasonable conditions, namely the subdivision of FST into two distinct areas, whose connectivity we predict, and the abolition of at least one of the less reliable rule constraints. Our analyses showed that the future collection of the same type of laminar constraints, or the inclusion of new hierarchical constraints from thalamocortical connections, will not resolve the problem of multiple optimal hierarchical representations for the primate visual system. Further data, however, may help to specify the relative ordering of some more areas. This indeterminacy of the visual hierarchy is in part due to the reported absence of some connections between cortical areas. These absences are consistent with limited cross-talk between differentiated processing streams in the system. Hence, hierarchical representation of the visual system is affected by, and must take into account, other organizational features, such as processing streams.

Spinous α-Fe2O3 hierarchical structures anchored on Ni foam for supercapacitor electrodes and visible light driven photocatalysts.

PubMed

Zheng, Xin; Han, Zhicheng; Yao, Shunyu; Xiao, Huanhao; Chai, Fang; Qu, Fengyu; Wu, Xiang

2016-04-28

Spinous α-Fe2O3 hierarchical structures grown on a Ni foam substrate have been successfully obtained by a facile one-step hydrothermal method. The prepared products are functionalized as supercapacitor electrodes without adding any ancillary materials such as carbon black or binders. Their electrochemical properties show a high discharge areal capacitance (681 mF cm(-2) at 1 mA cm(-2)), good rate performance (495 mF cm(-2) at 5 mA cm(-2)) and long-term cycling stability (23.9% loss after 6000 repetitive cycles at 1 mA cm(-2)). Such excellent supercapacitive characteristics could be mainly attributed to their unique spatial structures which provide many active sites and enhance the combination between the electrode and Ni foam to support fast ion and electron transfer. In addition, the prepared α-Fe2O3 product is also used as a photocatalyst for the photocatalytic degradation of several harmful organic dyes under visible light illumination. By comparing the photocatalytic performance towards Congo red dye with other photocatalysts, it was observed that the prepared spinous α-Fe2O3 hierarchical structure exhibited superior photocatalytic performance. Finally, photocatalytic recycle tests showed the superiority of the prepared α-Fe2O3 product. This demonstrates that spinous α-Fe2O3 structures could be promising candidate materials for high-capacity, low-cost supercapacitor electrodes and environmentally friendly photocatalysts.

PdCo/Pd-Hexacyanocobaltate Hybrid Nanoflowers: Cyanogel-Bridged One-Pot Synthesis and Their Enhanced Catalytic Performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Zhen-Yuan; Fu, Geng-Tao; Zhang, Lu; Yang, Xiao-Yu; Liu, Zhen-Qi; Sun, Dong-Mei; Xu, Lin; Tang, Ya-Wen

2016-08-01

Elaborate architectural manipulation of nanohybrids with multi-components into controllable 3D hierarchical structures is of great significance for both fundamental scientific interest and realization of various functionalities, yet remains a great challenge because different materials with distinct physical/chemical properties could hardly be incorporated simultaneously into the synthesis process. Here, we develop a novel one-pot cyanogel-bridged synthetic approach for the generation of 3D flower-like metal/Prussian blue analogue nanohybrids, namely PdCo/Pd-hexacyanocobaltate for the first time. The judicious introduction of polyethylene glycol (PEG) and the formation of cyanogel are prerequisite for the successful fabrication of such fascinating hierarchical nanostructures. Due to the unique 3D hierarchical structure and the synergistic effect between hybrid components, the as-prepared hybrid nanoflowers exhibit a remarkable catalytic activity and durability toward the reduction of Rhodamine B (RhB) by NaBH4. We expect that the obtained hybrid nanoflowers may hold great promises in water remediation field and beyond. Furthermore, the facile synthetic strategy presented here for synthesizing functional hybrid materials can be extendable for the synthesis of various functional hybrid nanomaterials owing to its versatility and feasibility.

PdCo/Pd-Hexacyanocobaltate Hybrid Nanoflowers: Cyanogel-Bridged One-Pot Synthesis and Their Enhanced Catalytic Performance.

PubMed

Liu, Zhen-Yuan; Fu, Geng-Tao; Zhang, Lu; Yang, Xiao-Yu; Liu, Zhen-Qi; Sun, Dong-Mei; Xu, Lin; Tang, Ya-Wen

2016-08-30

Elaborate architectural manipulation of nanohybrids with multi-components into controllable 3D hierarchical structures is of great significance for both fundamental scientific interest and realization of various functionalities, yet remains a great challenge because different materials with distinct physical/chemical properties could hardly be incorporated simultaneously into the synthesis process. Here, we develop a novel one-pot cyanogel-bridged synthetic approach for the generation of 3D flower-like metal/Prussian blue analogue nanohybrids, namely PdCo/Pd-hexacyanocobaltate for the first time. The judicious introduction of polyethylene glycol (PEG) and the formation of cyanogel are prerequisite for the successful fabrication of such fascinating hierarchical nanostructures. Due to the unique 3D hierarchical structure and the synergistic effect between hybrid components, the as-prepared hybrid nanoflowers exhibit a remarkable catalytic activity and durability toward the reduction of Rhodamine B (RhB) by NaBH4. We expect that the obtained hybrid nanoflowers may hold great promises in water remediation field and beyond. Furthermore, the facile synthetic strategy presented here for synthesizing functional hybrid materials can be extendable for the synthesis of various functional hybrid nanomaterials owing to its versatility and feasibility.

PdCo/Pd-Hexacyanocobaltate Hybrid Nanoflowers: Cyanogel-Bridged One-Pot Synthesis and Their Enhanced Catalytic Performance

PubMed Central

Liu, Zhen-Yuan; Fu, Geng-Tao; Zhang, Lu; Yang, Xiao-Yu; Liu, Zhen-Qi; Sun, Dong-Mei; Xu, Lin; Tang, Ya-Wen

2016-01-01

Elaborate architectural manipulation of nanohybrids with multi-components into controllable 3D hierarchical structures is of great significance for both fundamental scientific interest and realization of various functionalities, yet remains a great challenge because different materials with distinct physical/chemical properties could hardly be incorporated simultaneously into the synthesis process. Here, we develop a novel one-pot cyanogel-bridged synthetic approach for the generation of 3D flower-like metal/Prussian blue analogue nanohybrids, namely PdCo/Pd-hexacyanocobaltate for the first time. The judicious introduction of polyethylene glycol (PEG) and the formation of cyanogel are prerequisite for the successful fabrication of such fascinating hierarchical nanostructures. Due to the unique 3D hierarchical structure and the synergistic effect between hybrid components, the as-prepared hybrid nanoflowers exhibit a remarkable catalytic activity and durability toward the reduction of Rhodamine B (RhB) by NaBH4. We expect that the obtained hybrid nanoflowers may hold great promises in water remediation field and beyond. Furthermore, the facile synthetic strategy presented here for synthesizing functional hybrid materials can be extendable for the synthesis of various functional hybrid nanomaterials owing to its versatility and feasibility. PMID:27573057

Optically transparent super-hydrophobic thin film fabricated by reusable polyurethane-acrylate (PUA) mold

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, J.-S.; Park, J.-H.; Lee, D.-W.

2018-02-01

In this paper, we describe a simple manufacturing method for producing an optically transparent super-hydrophobic polymer thin film using a reusable photo-curable polymer mold. Soluble photoresist (PR) molds were prepared with under-exposed and under-baked processes, which created unique hierarchical micro/nano structures. The reverse phase of the PR mold was replicated on the surface of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) substrates. The unique patterns on the replicated PDMS molds were successfully transferred back to the UV curable polyurethane-acrylate (PUA) using a laboratory-made UV exposure system. Continuous production of the super-hydrophobic PDMS thin film was demonstrated using the reusable PUA mold. In addition, hydrophobic nano-silica powder was sprayed onto the micro/nano structured PDMS surfaces to further improve hydrophobicity. The fabricated PDMS thin films with hierarchical surface texturing showed a water contact angle  ⩾150°. Excellent optical transmittance within the range of visible light of wavelengths between 400-800 nm was experimentally confirmed using a spectrophotometer. High efficiency of the super-hydrophobic PDMS film in optical transparency was also confirmed using solar panels. The fabricated PUA molds are very suitable for use in roll-to-roll or roll-to-plate systems which allow continuous production of super-hydrophobic thin films with an excellent optical transparency.

Nickel Ferrite Nanoparticles Anchored onto Silica Nanofibers for Designing Magnetic and Flexible Nanofibrous Membranes.

PubMed

Hong, Feifei; Yan, Chengcheng; Si, Yang; He, Jianxin; Yu, Jianyong; Ding, Bin

2015-09-16

Many applications proposed for magnetic silica nanofibers require their assembly into a cellular membrane structure. The feature to keep structure stable upon large deformation is crucial for a macroscopic porous material which functions reliably. However, it remains a key issue to realize robust flexibility in two-dimensional (2D) magnetic silica nanofibrous networks. Here, we report that the combination of electrospun silica nanofibers with zein dip-coating can lead to the formation of flexible, magnetic, and hierarchical porous silica nanofibrous membranes (SNM). The 290 nm diameter silica nanofibers act as templates for the uniform anchoring of nickel ferrite nanoparticles (size of 50 nm). Benefiting from the homogeneous and stable nanofiber-nanoparticle composite structure, the resulting magnetic SNM can maintain their structure integrity under repeated bending as high as 180° and can facilely recover. The unique hierarchical structure also provides this new class of silica membrane with integrated properties of ultralow density, high porosity, large surface area, good magnetic responsiveness, robust dye adsorption capacity, and effective emulsion separation performance. Significantly, the synthesis of such fascinating membranes may provide new insight for further application of silica in a self-supporting, structurally adaptive, and 2D membrane form.

Engineering the shape and structure of materials by fractal cut.

PubMed

Cho, Yigil; Shin, Joong-Ho; Costa, Avelino; Kim, Tae Ann; Kunin, Valentin; Li, Ju; Lee, Su Yeon; Yang, Shu; Han, Heung Nam; Choi, In-Suk; Srolovitz, David J

2014-12-09

In this paper we discuss the transformation of a sheet of material into a wide range of desired shapes and patterns by introducing a set of simple cuts in a multilevel hierarchy with different motifs. Each choice of hierarchical cut motif and cut level allows the material to expand into a unique structure with a unique set of properties. We can reverse-engineer the desired expanded geometries to find the requisite cut pattern to produce it without changing the physical properties of the initial material. The concept was experimentally realized and applied to create an electrode that expands to >800% the original area with only very minor stretching of the underlying material. The generality of our approach greatly expands the design space for materials so that they can be tuned for diverse applications.

Squid inks-derived nanocarbons with unique ;shell@pearls; structure for high performance supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Fengli; Liu, Wei; Zhang, Yuan; Wang, Huanlei; Liu, Shuang; Hao, Enchao; Zhao, Shuping; Yang, Hongzhan

2017-06-01

Porous carbons derived from biomass are one current hotspot in exploring advanced electrode materials for supercapacitors. In this work, based on nanoparticles from squid inks, an N-doping porous carbons with a unique "shell@pearls" structure has been fabricated through a direct carbonization/activation procedure. Remarkably, a fantastic structural evolution from core-shell, yolk-shell to the porous matrix embedded with small spheres (like pears in shell) has been observed. The as-obtained products exhibit a hierarchical porosity comprised of micro-, meso- and macropores, as well with a large surface area (1957 m2 g-1) and N-doping (2.09%). As the electrode materials for supercapacitors, the "shell@pearls"bio-carbons show the very high capacitance of 329 F g-1 at 0.5 A g-1 and 265 F g-1 at 30 A g-1 and also a superior retention of 99.5% after 10000 cycles at 5 A g-1.

Generalized Synthesis of Ternary Sulfide Hollow Structures with Enhanced Photocatalytic Performance for Degradation and Hydrogen Evolution.

PubMed

Ding, Shuoping; Liu, Xiufan; Shi, Yiqiu; Liu, Ye; Zhou, Tengfei; Guo, Zaiping; Hu, Juncheng

2018-05-17

A series of ternary sulfide hollow structures have been successfully prepared by a facile glutathione (GSH)-assisted one-step hydrothermal route, where GSH acts as the source of sulfur and bubble template. We demonstrate the feasibility and versatility of this in situ gas-bubble template strategy by the fabrication of novel hollow structures of MIn 2 S 4 (M = Cd, Zn, Ca, Mg, and Mn). Interestingly, with the reaction time varying, the hierarchical CdIn 2 S 4 microspheres with controlled internal structures can be regulated from yolk-shell, smaller yolk-shell (yolk-shell with shrunk yolk), hollow, to solid. Under visible-light irradiation, all of our prepared CdIn 2 S 4 samples with different morphologies were photoactivated. In virtue of the appealing hierarchical hollow structure, the yolk-shell-structured CdIn 2 S 4 microspheres exhibited the optimal photocatalytic activity and excellent durability for both the X 3 B degradation and H 2 evolution, which can be ascribed to the synergy-promoting effect of the small crystallite size together with the unique structural advantages of the yolk-shell structure. Thus, we hypothesize that this proof-of-concept strategy paves an example of rational design of hollow structured ternary or multinary sulfides with superior photochemical performance, holding great potential for future multifunctional applications.

Analyzing Multilevel Data: An Empirical Comparison of Parameter Estimates of Hierarchical Linear Modeling and Ordinary Least Squares Regression

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rocconi, Louis M.

2011-01-01

Hierarchical linear models (HLM) solve the problems associated with the unit of analysis problem such as misestimated standard errors, heterogeneity of regression and aggregation bias by modeling all levels of interest simultaneously. Hierarchical linear modeling resolves the problem of misestimated standard errors by incorporating a unique random…

Unmarked: An R package for fitting hierarchical models of wildlife occurrence and abundance

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fiske, I.J.; Chandler, R.B.

2011-01-01

Ecological research uses data collection techniques that are prone to substantial and unique types of measurement error to address scientic questions about species abundance and distribution. These data collection schemes include a number of survey methods in which unmarked individuals are counted, or determined to be present, at spatially- referenced sites. Examples include site occupancy sampling, repeated counts, distance sampling, removal sampling, and double observer sampling. To appropriately analyze these data, hierarchical models have been developed to separately model explanatory variables of both a latent abundance or occurrence process and a conditional detection process. Because these models have a straightforward interpretation paralleling mecha- nisms under which the data arose, they have recently gained immense popularity. The common hierarchical structure of these models is well-suited for a unied modeling in- terface. The R package unmarked provides such a unied modeling framework, including tools for data exploration, model tting, model criticism, post-hoc analysis, and model comparison.

Sphere-Shaped Hierarchical Cathode with Enhanced Growth of Nanocrystal Planes for High-Rate and Cycling-Stable Li-Ion Batteries

DOE PAGES

Zhang, Linjing; Li, Ning; Wu, Borong; ...

2015-01-14

High-energy and high-power Li-ion batteries have been intensively pursued as power sources in electronic vehicles and renewable energy storage systems in smart grids. With this purpose, developing high-performance cathode materials is urgently needed. Here we report an easy and versatile strategy to fabricate high-rate and cycling-stable hierarchical sphered cathode Li 1.2Ni 0.13Mn 0.54Co 0.13O 2, by using an ionic interfusion method. The sphere-shaped hierarchical cathode is assembled with primary nanoplates with enhanced growth of nanocrystal planes in favor of Li+ intercalation/deintercalation, such as (010), (100), and (110) planes. This material with such unique structural features exhibits outstanding rate capability, cyclability,more » and high discharge capacities, achieving around 70% (175 mAh g–1) of the capacity at 0.1 C rate within about 2.1 min of ultrafast charging. Such cathode is feasible to construct high-energy and high-power Li-ion batteries.« less

Sphere-shaped hierarchical cathode with enhanced growth of nanocrystal planes for high-rate and cycling-stable li-ion batteries.

PubMed

Zhang, Linjing; Li, Ning; Wu, Borong; Xu, Hongliang; Wang, Lei; Yang, Xiao-Qing; Wu, Feng

2015-01-14

High-energy and high-power Li-ion batteries have been intensively pursued as power sources in electronic vehicles and renewable energy storage systems in smart grids. With this purpose, developing high-performance cathode materials is urgently needed. Here we report an easy and versatile strategy to fabricate high-rate and cycling-stable hierarchical sphered cathode Li(1.2)Ni(0.13)Mn(0.54)Co(0.13)O2, by using an ionic interfusion method. The sphere-shaped hierarchical cathode is assembled with primary nanoplates with enhanced growth of nanocrystal planes in favor of Li(+) intercalation/deintercalation, such as (010), (100), and (110) planes. This material with such unique structural features exhibits outstanding rate capability, cyclability, and high discharge capacities, achieving around 70% (175 mAh g(-1)) of the capacity at 0.1 C rate within about 2.1 min of ultrafast charging. Such cathode is feasible to construct high-energy and high-power Li-ion batteries.

Thin-Layer Polymer Wrapped Enzymes Encapsulated in Hierarchically Mesoporous Silica with High Activity and Enhanced Stability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Fang; Wang, Meitao; Liang, Chao; Jiang, Huangyong; Shen, Jian; Li, Hexing

2014-03-01

A novel soft-hard cooperative approach was developed to synthesize bioactive mesoporous composite by pre-wrapping Penicillin G amidase with poly(acrylaimde) nanogel skin and subsequently incorporating such Penicillin G amidase nanocapsules into hierarchically mesoporous silica. The as-received bioactive mesoporous composite exhibited comparable activity and extraordinarily high stability in comparison with native Penicillin G amidase and could be used repetitively in the water-medium hydrolysis of penicillin G potassium salt. Furthermore, this strategy could be extended to the synthesis of multifunctional bioactive mesoporous composite by simultaneously introducing glucose oxidase nanocapsules and horseradish peroxidase nanocapsules into hierarchically mesoporous silica, which demonstrated a synergic effect in one-pot tandem oxidation reaction. Improvements in the catalytic performances were attributed to the combinational unique structure from soft polymer skin and hard inorganic mesoporous silica shell, which cooperatively helped enzyme molecules to retain their appropriate geometry and simultaneously decreased the enzyme-support negative interaction and mass transfer limitation under heterogeneous conditions.

High-performance supercapacitor and lithium-ion battery based on 3D hierarchical NH4F-induced nickel cobaltate nanosheet-nanowire cluster arrays as self-supported electrodes.

PubMed

Chen, Yuejiao; Qu, Baihua; Hu, Lingling; Xu, Zhi; Li, Qiuhong; Wang, Taihong

2013-10-21

A facile hydrothermal method is developed for large-scale production of three-dimensional (3D) hierarchical porous nickel cobaltate nanowire cluster arrays derived from nanosheet arrays with robust adhesion on Ni foam. Based on the morphology evolution upon reaction time, a possible formation process is proposed. The role of NH4F in formation of the structure has also been investigated based on different NH4F amounts. This unique structure significantly enhances the electroactive surface areas of the NiCo2O4 arrays, leading to better interfacial/chemical distributions at the nanoscale, fast ion and electron transfer and good strain accommodation. Thus, when it is used for supercapacitor testing, a specific capacitance of 1069 F g(-1) at a very high current density of 100 A g(-1) was obtained. Even after more than 10,000 cycles at various large current densities, a capacitance of 2000 F g(-1) at 10 A g(-1) with 93.8% retention can be achieved. It also exhibits a high-power density (26.1 kW kg(-1)) at a discharge current density of 80 A g(-1). When used as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), it presents a high reversible capacity of 976 mA h g(-1) at a rate of 200 mA g(-1) with good cycling stability and rate capability. This array material is rarely used as an anode material. Our results show that this unique 3D hierarchical porous nickel cobaltite is promising for electrochemical energy applications.

Photonics and plasmonics go viral: self-assembly of hierarchical metamaterials

DOE PAGES

Wen, Amy M.; Podgornik, Rudolf; Strangi, Giuseppe; ...

2015-03-05

Sizing and shaping of mesoscale architectures with nanoscale features is a key opportunity to produce the next generation of higher-performing products and at the same time unveil completely new phenomena. This review article discusses recent advances in the design of novel photonic and plasmonic structures using a biology-inspired design. The proteinaceous capsids from viruses have long been discovered as platform technologies enabling unique applications in nanotechnology, materials, bioengineering, and medicine. In the context of materials applications, the highly organized structures formed by viral capsid proteins provide a 3D scaffold for the precise placement of plasmon and gain materials. Based onmore » their highly symmetrical structures, virus-based nanoparticles have a high propensity to self-assemble into higher-order crystalline structures, yielding hierarchical hybrid materials. Recent advances in the field have led to the development of virus-based light harvesting systems, plasmonic structures for application in high-performance metamaterials, binary nanoparticle lattices, and liquid crystalline arrays for sensing or display technologies. In conclusion, there is still much that could be explored in this area, and we foresee that this is only the beginning of great technological advances in virus-based materials for plasmonics and photonics applications.« less

Reflection of hierarchical medium structures of different scales in the space time data of wave fields distribution.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hachay, Olga; Khachay, Andrey

2015-04-01

The last decades are characterized by active development of Earth's sciences. The modern research methods and technologies give the opportunity to obtain new data about the Earth's structure and processes, which occur in its interior. The conception development about the nonlinear geodynamics practically coincides with research of nonlinear processes in different parts of physics. In geology soliton and auto wave conceptions are developed, principles of synergetic and self organization become be used, in geodynamics the macro quantum behavior of large mass matter, which are in critical state, in geophysics the auto wave nature of geophysical fields is researched in a frame of a new structural model with hierarchical inclusions. It is very significant to define the time of reaction lagging, in spite of the influence on the massif can be assumed as elastic. The unique model which can explain that effect is a model of the massif with a hierarchic structure. We developed a mathematical algorithm using integral and integral-differential equations for 2-D model for two problems in a frequency domain: diffraction a sound wave and linear polarized transverse wave through a arbitrary hierarchy rank inclusion plunged in an N-layered medium. That algorithm differs from the fractal model approach by a freer selecting of heterogeneities position of each rank. And the second, the problem is solved in the dynamical approach. The higher the amount of the hierarchic ranks the more is the degree of nonlinearity of the massive response and the longer can be the time of massive reaction lag of the influence. For research of hierarchic medium we had developed an iterative algorithm for electromagnetic and seismic fields in the problem setting similar to analyze higher for layered-block models with homogeneous inclusions. We had developed an iterative algorithm of inverse problem solution for the same models, using the approach of three stage interpretation. For that we had developed a new integral differential equation for the theoretical inverse problem of 2-D electromagnetic field in a hierarchic inclusion, embedded in the N-layered medium. References: Hachay O.A. et al.(2008 a) Modeling of seismic and electromagnetic field in the hierarchic heterogeneous media. Proceedings of International conference. Ekaterinburg: IGF UB RAS Hachay O.A. et al. (2008 b).Complex electromagnetic and seismic method of research of the crust and Earth's mantle structure. Proceedings of International conference. Ekaterinburg: IGF UB RAS Hachay O.A. et al. (2013) Modeling of electromagnetic and seismic fields in hierarchic heterogeneous media. Bulletin of South Ural State University. Series:"Computational mathematics and Software Engineering". 2: 48-55.

UV-driven microvalve based on a micro-nano TiO₂/SiO₂ composite surface for microscale flow control.

PubMed

Guo, Ting; Meng, Tao; Li, Wei; Qin, Jilong; Tong, Zhiping; Zhang, Qing; Li, Xueru

2014-03-28

This paper presents a novel ultraviolet (UV)-driven microvalve based on the concept of inserting a trimethyl chlorosilane (CTMS) modified TiO₂/SiO₂ composite patch of switchable wettability in a microfluidic system. A unique micro-nano hierarchical structure was designed and used to enhance the overall wetting contrast with the aim of improving the wetting-based valve performances. Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to characterize the morphology and chemical composition of the surface. UV-driven wettability conversion on the patched microchannel was investigated using water column relative height tests, and the results confirmed the significant improvement of the hierarchical structure with the surface hydrophobic/hydrophilic conversion, which produced enhancements of 276% and 95% of the water-repellent and water-sucking pressures, respectively, compared with those of the single-scale TiO₂ nanopatterned structure. Accordingly, a good reversible and repeated on-off performance was identified by the valve tests, highlighting the potential application of the novel microvalve in the efficient control of microscale flow.

UV-driven microvalve based on a micro-nano TiO2/SiO2 composite surface for microscale flow control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Ting; Meng, Tao; Li, Wei; Qin, Jilong; Tong, Zhiping; Zhang, Qing; Li, Xueru

2014-03-01

This paper presents a novel ultraviolet (UV)-driven microvalve based on the concept of inserting a trimethyl chlorosilane (CTMS) modified TiO2/SiO2 composite patch of switchable wettability in a microfluidic system. A unique micro-nano hierarchical structure was designed and used to enhance the overall wetting contrast with the aim of improving the wetting-based valve performances. Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to characterize the morphology and chemical composition of the surface. UV-driven wettability conversion on the patched microchannel was investigated using water column relative height tests, and the results confirmed the significant improvement of the hierarchical structure with the surface hydrophobic/hydrophilic conversion, which produced enhancements of 276% and 95% of the water-repellent and water-sucking pressures, respectively, compared with those of the single-scale TiO2 nanopatterned structure. Accordingly, a good reversible and repeated on-off performance was identified by the valve tests, highlighting the potential application of the novel microvalve in the efficient control of microscale flow.

Locating anger in the hierarchical structure of affect: comment on Carver and Harmon-Jones (2009).

PubMed

Watson, David

2009-03-01

C. S. Carver and E. Harmon-Jones (2009) have presented considerable evidence to support their argument that "anger relates to an appetitive or approach motivational system, whereas anxiety relates to an aversive or avoidance motivational system" (p. 183). However, they have failed to take sufficient account of the extensive psychometric data indicating that anger is strongly related to anxiety (and other negative affects) and more weakly associated with the positive affects. Considering all of the available evidence, the most accurate conclusion is that anger shows both approach and avoidance properties. Moreover, viewed in the context of the hierarchical structure of affect, some evidence suggests that the nonspecific component of anger (i.e., its shared variance with the other negative affects) is primarily related to the aversive or avoidance motivational system, whereas its specific component (i.e., its unique qualities that distinguish it from other negative affects) has a stronger link to the appetitive or approach system. The author concludes by considering the broader implications of these data for affective structure. (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved.

Hierarchical, ultrathin single-crystal nanowires of CdS conveniently produced in laser-induced thermal field

DOE PAGES

Han, Li -Li; Xin, Huolin L.; Kulinich, Sergei A.; ...

2015-07-16

Hierarchical nanowires (HNWs) exhibit unique properties and have wide applications, while often suffering from imperfect structure. We report a facile strategy toward ultrathin CdS HNWs with monocrystal structure, where a continuous-wave (CW) Nd:YAG laser is employed to irradiate an oleic acid (OA) solution containing precursors and a light absorber. The high heating rate and large temperature gradient generated by the CW laser lead to the rapid formation of tiny zinc-blende CdS nanocrystals which then line up into nanowires with the help of OA molecules. Next, the nanowires experience a phase transformation from zinc-blende to wurtzite structure, and the transformation-induced stressmore » creates terraces on their surface, which promotes the growth of side branches and eventually results in monocrystal HNWs with an ultrathin diameter of 24 nm. The one-step synthesis of HNWs is conducted in air and completes in just 40 seconds, thus being very simple and rapid. The prepared CdS HNWs display photocatalytic performance superior to their nanoparticle counterparts, thus showing promise for catalytic applications in the future.« less

3D architecture constructed via the confined growth of MoS2 nanosheets in nanoporous carbon derived from metal-organic frameworks for efficient hydrogen production.

PubMed

Liu, Yun; Zhou, Xiaoli; Ding, Tao; Wang, Chunde; Yang, Qing

2015-11-21

The design and synthesis of robust, high-performance and low-cost three-dimensional (3D) hierarchical structured materials for the electrochemical reduction of water to generate hydrogen is of great significance for practical water splitting applications. In this study, we develop an in situ space-confined method to synthesize an MoS2-based 3D hierarchical structure, in which the MoS2 nanosheets grow in the confined nanopores of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs)-derived 3D carbons as electrocatalysts for efficient hydrogen production. Benefiting from its unique structure, which has more exposed active sites and enhanced conductivity, the as-prepared MoS2/3D nanoporous carbon (3D-NPC) composite exhibits remarkable electrocatalytic activity for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) with a small onset overpotential of ∼0.16 V, large cathodic currents, small Tafel slope of 51 mV per decade and good durability. We anticipate that this in situ confined growth provides new insights into the construction of high performance catalysts for energy storage and conversion.

Fabrication of bristlegrass-like VO2 (B)-ZnO heteroarchitectures as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ma, Yining; Li, Wenjing; Ji, Shidong; Zhou, Huaijuan; Li, Rong; Li, Ning; Yao, Heliang; Cao, Xun; Jin, Ping

2017-08-01

Three-dimensional bristlegrass-like hierarchical VO2 (B)-ZnO heteroarchitectures with ZnO nanorods grown radially on VO2 (B) nanorods were successfully fabricated via a simple two-step synthesized method. When applied as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries, the VO2 (B)-ZnO hybrid electrode exhibited high reversible capacity and excellent recyclability, which could be originated from the unique hierarchical structure of the bristlegrass. After 80 cycles, the nanocomposite still maintained a higher reversible capacity of 329.4 mA h g-1 at a current density of 50 mA g-1. Therefore, the particular architecture of VO2 (B)-ZnO nanocomposite can be a promising candidate as the anode material in lithium-ion batteries.

Smectic Layer Origami via Preprogrammed Photoalignment.

PubMed

Ma, Ling-Ling; Tang, Ming-Jie; Hu, Wei; Cui, Ze-Qun; Ge, Shi-Jun; Chen, Peng; Chen, Lu-Jian; Qian, Hao; Chi, Li-Feng; Lu, Yan-Qing

2017-04-01

Hierarchical architecture is of vital importance in soft materials. Focal conic domains (FCDs) of smectic liquid crystals, characterized by an ordered lamellar structure, attract intensive attention. Simultaneously tailoring the geometry and clustering characteristics of FCDs remains a challenge. Here, the 3D smectic layer origami via a 2D preprogrammed photoalignment film is accomplished. Full control of hierarchical superstructures is demonstrated, including the domain size, shape, and orientation, and the lattice symmetry of fragmented toric FCDs. The unique symmetry breaking of resultant superstructures combined with the optical anisotropy of the liquid crystals induces an intriguing polarization-dependent diffraction. This work broadens the scientific understanding of self-assembled soft materials and may inspire new opportunities for advanced functional materials and devices. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

MOF-derived hierarchical double-shelled NiO/ZnO hollow spheres for high-performance supercapacitors.

PubMed

Li, Guo-Chang; Liu, Peng-Fei; Liu, Rui; Liu, Minmin; Tao, Kai; Zhu, Shuai-Ru; Wu, Meng-Ke; Yi, Fei-Yan; Han, Lei

2016-09-14

Nanorods-composed yolk-shell bimetallic-organic frameworks microspheres are successfully synthesized by a one-step solvothermal method in the absence of any template or surfactant. Furthermore, hierarchical double-shelled NiO/ZnO hollow spheres are obtained by calcination of the bimetallic organic frameworks in air. The NiO/ZnO hollow spheres, as supercapacitor electrodes, exhibit high capacitance of 497 F g(-1) at the current density of 1.3 A g(-1) and present a superior cycling stability. The superior electrochemical performance is believed to come from the unique double-shelled NiO/ZnO hollow structures, which offer free space to accommodate the volume change during the ion insertion and desertion processes, as well as provide rich electroactive sites for the electrochemical reactions.

Graphene-Like 2D Porous Carbon Nanosheets Derived from Cornstalk Pith for Energy Storage Materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, Kezheng; Niu, Qingyuan; Tang, Qiheng; Guo, Yaqing; Wang, Lizhen

2018-01-01

Biomass materials from different organisms or different parts (even different periods) of the same organism have different microscopic morphologies, hierarchical pore structures and even elemental compositions. Therefore, carbon materials inheriting the unique hierarchical microstructure of different biomass materials may exhibit significantly different electrochemical properties. Cornstalk pith and cornstalk skin (dried by freeze-drying) exhibit significantly different microstructures due to their different biological functions. The cornstalk skin-based carbon (S-carbon) exhibits a thick planar morphology, and the Barrett-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area is only about 332.07 m2 g-1. However, cornstalk pith-based carbon (P-carbon) exhibits a graphene-like 2D porous nanosheet structure with a rough, wrinkled morphology, and the BET surface area is about 805.17 m2 g-1. In addition, a P-carbon supercapacitor exhibits much higher specific capacitance and much better rate capability than an S-carbon supercapacitor in 6 M potassium hydroxide (KOH) electrolyte.

Hierarchical domain structure of lead-free piezoelectric (Na{sub 1/2} Bi{sub 1/2})TiO{sub 3}-(K{sub 1/2} Bi{sub 1/2})TiO{sub 3} single crystals

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Luo, Chengtao, E-mail: lchentao@vt.edu; Wang, Yaojin; Ge, Wenwei

2016-05-07

We report a unique hierarchical domain structure in single crystals of (Na{sub 1/2}Bi{sub 1/2})TiO{sub 3}-xat. %(K{sub 1/2}Bi{sub 1/2})TiO{sub 3} for x = 5 and 8 by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). A high density of polar nano-domains with a lamellar morphology was found, which were self-assembled into a quadrant-like configuration, which then assembled into conventional ferroelectric macro-domains. Studies by high resolution TEM revealed that the polar lamellar regions contained a coexistence of in-phase and anti-phase oxygen octahedral tilt regions of a few nanometers in size. Domain frustration over multiple length scales may play an important role in the stabilization of the hierarchy, andmore » in reducing the piezoelectric response of this Pb-free piezoelectric solid solution.« less

Probabilistic modeling of bifurcations in single-cell gene expression data using a Bayesian mixture of factor analyzers.

PubMed

Campbell, Kieran R; Yau, Christopher

2017-03-15

Modeling bifurcations in single-cell transcriptomics data has become an increasingly popular field of research. Several methods have been proposed to infer bifurcation structure from such data, but all rely on heuristic non-probabilistic inference. Here we propose the first generative, fully probabilistic model for such inference based on a Bayesian hierarchical mixture of factor analyzers. Our model exhibits competitive performance on large datasets despite implementing full Markov-Chain Monte Carlo sampling, and its unique hierarchical prior structure enables automatic determination of genes driving the bifurcation process. We additionally propose an Empirical-Bayes like extension that deals with the high levels of zero-inflation in single-cell RNA-seq data and quantify when such models are useful. We apply or model to both real and simulated single-cell gene expression data and compare the results to existing pseudotime methods. Finally, we discuss both the merits and weaknesses of such a unified, probabilistic approach in the context practical bioinformatics analyses.

Synthesis of hierarchical Ni(OH)(2) and NiO nanosheets and their adsorption kinetics and isotherms to Congo red in water.

PubMed

Cheng, Bei; Le, Yao; Cai, Weiquan; Yu, Jiaguo

2011-01-30

Ni(OH)(2) and NiO nanosheets with hierarchical porous structures were synthesized by a simple chemical precipitation method using nickel chloride as precursors and urea as precipitating agent. The as-prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms. Adsorption of Congo red (CR) onto the as-prepared samples from aqueous solutions was investigated and discussed. The pore structure analyses indicate that Ni(OH)(2) and NiO nanosheets are composed of at least three levels of hierarchical porous organization: small mesopores (ca. 3-5 nm), large mesopores (ca. 10-50 nm) and macropores (100-500 nm). The equilibrium adsorption data of CR on the as-prepared samples were analyzed by Langmuir and Freundlich models, suggesting that the Langmuir model provides the better correlation of the experimental data. The adsorption capacities for removal of CR was determined using the Langmuir equation and found to be 82.9, 151.7 and 39.7 mg/g for Ni(OH)(2) nanosheets, NiO nanosheets and NiO nanoparticles, respectively. Adsorption data were modeled using the pseudo-first-order, pseudo-second-order and intra-particle diffusion kinetics equations. The results indicate that pseudo-second-order kinetic equation and intra-particle diffusion model can better describe the adsorption kinetics. The as-prepared Ni(OH)(2) and NiO nanosheets are found to be effective adsorbents for the removal of Congo red pollutant from wastewater as a result of their unique hierarchical porous structures and high specific surface areas. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Template Free Architecture of Hierarchical Nanostructured ZnIn₂S₄ Rose-Like Flowers for Solar Hydrogen Production.

PubMed

Kale, Bharat B; Bhirud, Ashwini P; Baeg, Jin-Ook; Kulkarni, Milind V

2017-02-01

We have demonstrated the controlled synthesis of hierarchical nanostructured ZnIn₂S₄ using a facile template free hydrothermal/solvothermal method. The effect of solvents on the morphology and microstructure of ZnIn₂S₄ has been studied by using water, methanol and ethylene glycol as a solvents. The hierarchical nanostructure, i.e., rose-like morphology composed of very thin (5–6 nm) nanoplates of length ˜1 μm which was obtained in aqueous mediated ZnIn₂S₄. The porous structure (distorted flowers) and agglomerated nanoparticles were obtained using methanol-and ethylene glycol-mediated ZnIn₂S₄. Considering the band gap in the visible region, ZnIn₂S₄ is used as a solar light driven photocatalyst. An ecofriendly photocatalytic process for the conversion of poisonous H₂S into H₂ which is a green unconventional energy source has been demonstrated. The nanostructured ZnIn₂S₄ is employed as a photocatalyst for hydrogen production from H₂S via a solar light-driven eco-friendly approach. The stable photocatalytic activity of hydrogen evolution, i.e., 3964 μmol ⁻¹ was obtained using 0.5 gm of such hierarchical nanostructured ZnIn₂S₄ under visible light irradiation. The unique hierarchical nanostructured ZnIn₂S₄ ternary semiconductor having hexagonal layer is expected to have potential applications in solar cells, LEDs, charge storage, electrochemical recording, thermoelectricity, other prospective electronic and optical devices.

Porous Carbon with Willow-Leaf-Shaped Pores for High-Performance Supercapacitors.

PubMed

Shi, Yanhong; Zhang, Linlin; Schon, Tyler B; Li, Huanhuan; Fan, Chaoying; Li, Xiaoying; Wang, Haifeng; Wu, Xinglong; Xie, Haiming; Sun, Haizhu; Seferos, Dwight S; Zhang, Jingping

2017-12-13

A novel kind of biomass-derived, high-oxygen-containing carbon material doped with nitrogen that has willow-leaf-shaped pores was synthesized. The obtained carbon material has an exotic hierarchical pore structure composed of bowl-shaped macropores, willow-leaf-shaped pores, and an abundance of micropores. This unique hierarchical porous structure provides an effective combination of high current densities and high capacitance because of a pseudocapacitive component that is afforded by the introduction of nitrogen and oxygen dopants. Our synthetic optimization allows further improvements in the performance of this hierarchical porous carbon (HPC) material by providing a high degree of control over the graphitization degree, specific surface area, and pore volume. As a result, a large specific surface area (1093 m 2 g -1 ) and pore volume (0.8379 cm 3 g -1 ) are obtained for HPC-650, which affords fast ion transport because of its short ion-diffusion pathways. HPC-650 exhibits a high specific capacitance of 312 F g -1 at 1 A g -1 , retaining 76.5% of its capacitance at 20 A g -1 . Moreover, it delivers an energy density of 50.2 W h kg -1 at a power density of 1.19 kW kg -1 , which is sufficient to power a yellow-light-emitting diode and operate a commercial scientific calculator.

Highly Stretchable Superhydrophobic Composite Coating Based on Self-Adaptive Deformation of Hierarchical Structures.

PubMed

Hu, Xin; Tang, Changyu; He, Zhoukun; Shao, Hong; Xu, Keqin; Mei, Jun; Lau, Woon-Ming

2017-05-01

With the rapid development of stretchable electronics, functional textiles, and flexible sensors, water-proof protection materials are required to be built on various highly flexible substrates. However, maintaining the antiwetting of superhydrophobic surface under stretching is still a big challenge since the hierarchical structures at hybridized micro-nanoscales are easily damaged following large deformation of the substrates. This study reports a highly stretchable and mechanically stable superhydrophobic surface prepared by a facile spray coating of carbon black/polybutadiene elastomeric composite on a rubber substrate followed by thermal curing. The resulting composite coating can maintain its superhydrophobic property (water contact angle ≈170° and sliding angle <4°) at an extremely large stretching strain of up to 1000% and can withstand 1000 stretching-releasing cycles without losing its superhydrophobic property. Furthermore, the experimental observation and modeling analysis reveal that the stable superhydrophobic properties of the composite coating are attributed to the unique self-adaptive deformation ability of 3D hierarchical roughness of the composite coating, which delays the Cassie-Wenzel transition of surface wetting. In addition, it is first observed that the damaged coating can automatically recover its superhydrophobicity via a simple stretching treatment without incorporating additional hydrophobic materials. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Hierarchical Core/Shell NiCo2O4@NiCo2O4 Nanocactus Arrays with Dual-functionalities for High Performance Supercapacitors and Li-ion Batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Jinbing; Lu, Yang; Qiu, Kangwen; Yan, Hailong; Xu, Jinyou; Han, Lei; Liu, Xianming; Luo, Jingshan; Kim, Jang-Kyo; Luo, Yongsong

2015-07-01

We report the synthesis of three dimensional (3D) NiCo2O4@NiCo2O4 nanocactus arrays grown directly on a Ni current collector using a facile solution method followed by electrodeposition. They possess a unique 3D hierarchical core-shell structure with large surface area and dual-functionalities that can serve as electrodes for both supercapacitors (SCs) and lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). As the SC electrode, they deliver a remarkable specific capacitance of 1264 F g-1 at a current density of 2 A g-1 and ~93.4% of capacitance retention after 5000 cycles at 2 A g-1. When used as the anode for LIBs, a high reversible capacity of 925 mA h g-1 is achieved at a rate of 120 mA g-1 with excellent cyclic stability and rate capability. The ameliorating features of the NiCo2O4 core/shell structure grown directly on highly conductive Ni foam, such as hierarchical mesopores, numerous hairy needles and a large surface area, are responsible for the fast electron/ion transfer and large active sites which commonly contribute to the excellent electrochemical performance of both the SC and LIB electrodes.

Hierarchical Core/Shell NiCo2O4@NiCo2O4 Nanocactus Arrays with Dual-functionalities for High Performance Supercapacitors and Li-ion Batteries.

PubMed

Cheng, Jinbing; Lu, Yang; Qiu, Kangwen; Yan, Hailong; Xu, Jinyou; Han, Lei; Liu, Xianming; Luo, Jingshan; Kim, Jang-Kyo; Luo, Yongsong

2015-07-01

We report the synthesis of three dimensional (3D) NiCo2O4@NiCo2O4 nanocactus arrays grown directly on a Ni current collector using a facile solution method followed by electrodeposition. They possess a unique 3D hierarchical core-shell structure with large surface area and dual-functionalities that can serve as electrodes for both supercapacitors (SCs) and lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). As the SC electrode, they deliver a remarkable specific capacitance of 1264 F g(-1) at a current density of 2 A g(-1) and ~93.4% of capacitance retention after 5000 cycles at 2 A g(-1). When used as the anode for LIBs, a high reversible capacity of 925 mA h g(-1) is achieved at a rate of 120 mA g(-1) with excellent cyclic stability and rate capability. The ameliorating features of the NiCo2O4 core/shell structure grown directly on highly conductive Ni foam, such as hierarchical mesopores, numerous hairy needles and a large surface area, are responsible for the fast electron/ion transfer and large active sites which commonly contribute to the excellent electrochemical performance of both the SC and LIB electrodes.

Hierarchical ferroelectric and ferrotoroidic polarizations coexistent in nano-metamaterials

PubMed Central

Shimada, Takahiro; Lich, Le Van; Nagano, Koyo; Wang, Jie; Kitamura, Takayuki

2015-01-01

Tailoring materials to obtain unique, or significantly enhanced material properties through rationally designed structures rather than chemical constituents is principle of metamaterial concept, which leads to the realization of remarkable optical and mechanical properties. Inspired by the recent progress in electromagnetic and mechanical metamaterials, here we introduce the concept of ferroelectric nano-metamaterials, and demonstrate through an experiment in silico with hierarchical nanostructures of ferroelectrics using sophisticated real-space phase-field techniques. This new concept enables variety of unusual and complex yet controllable domain patterns to be achieved, where the coexistence between hierarchical ferroelectric and ferrotoroidic polarizations establishes a new benchmark for exploration of complexity in spontaneous polarization ordering. The concept opens a novel route to effectively tailor domain configurations through the control of internal structure, facilitating access to stabilization and control of complex domain patterns that provide high potential for novel functionalities. A key design parameter to achieve such complex patterns is explored based on the parity of junctions that connect constituent nanostructures. We further highlight the variety of additional functionalities that are potentially obtained from ferroelectric nano-metamaterials, and provide promising perspectives for novel multifunctional devices. This study proposes an entirely new discipline of ferroelectric nano-metamaterials, further driving advances in metamaterials research. PMID:26424484

The TiO2 Hierarchical Structure with Nanosheet Spheres for Improved Photoelectric Performance in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yin, Xin; Guan, Yingli; Song, Lixin; Xie, Xueyao; Du, Pingfan; Xiong, Jie

2018-04-01

A bi-layer photoanode is successfully fabricated for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) composed of P25/TiO2 nanorod (P25/TNR) as the underlayer and TiO2 nanosheet spheres (TNSs) as the light-scattering layer. Notably, the P25-TNR provides multiple functions, including more dye loading, more efficient charge transport and a lower electron recombination rate for the photoanode. Besides, the unique structure of TNS can significantly improve the light-harvesting capacity, boosting the light-harvesting efficiency. Therefore, an enhanced short-circuit current and power conversion efficiency of 18.04 mA cm-2 and 5.99%, respectively, were achieved for the P25/TNR-TNS-based DSSC, which was better than that of the P25-TNS-based (15.17 mA cm-2, 5.36%) and bare TNS-based (11.43 mA cm-2, 4.14%) DSSCs. This indicates that this bi-layer structure effectively combines the advantages of the one-dimensional (1D) nanostructure and three-dimensional (3D) hierarchical structure. In short, this work demonstrates the possibility of fabricating desirable photoanodes for high-performance DSSCs by rational design of nanostructures and effective combination of multi-functional components.

Hierarchical mutual information for the comparison of hierarchical community structures in complex networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perotti, Juan Ignacio; Tessone, Claudio Juan; Caldarelli, Guido

2015-12-01

The quest for a quantitative characterization of community and modular structure of complex networks produced a variety of methods and algorithms to classify different networks. However, it is not clear if such methods provide consistent, robust, and meaningful results when considering hierarchies as a whole. Part of the problem is the lack of a similarity measure for the comparison of hierarchical community structures. In this work we give a contribution by introducing the hierarchical mutual information, which is a generalization of the traditional mutual information and makes it possible to compare hierarchical partitions and hierarchical community structures. The normalized version of the hierarchical mutual information should behave analogously to the traditional normalized mutual information. Here the correct behavior of the hierarchical mutual information is corroborated on an extensive battery of numerical experiments. The experiments are performed on artificial hierarchies and on the hierarchical community structure of artificial and empirical networks. Furthermore, the experiments illustrate some of the practical applications of the hierarchical mutual information, namely the comparison of different community detection methods and the study of the consistency, robustness, and temporal evolution of the hierarchical modular structure of networks.

Microfabrication of hierarchical structures for engineered mechanical materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vera Canudas, Marc

Materials found in nature present, in some cases, unique properties from their constituents that are of great interest in engineered materials for applications ranging from structural materials for the construction of bridges, canals and buildings to the fabrication of new lightweight composites for airplane and automotive bodies, to protective thin film coatings, amongst other fields. Research in the growing field of biomimetic materials indicates that the micro-architectures present in natural materials are critical to their macroscopic mechanical properties. A better understanding of the effect that structure and hierarchy across scales have on the material properties will enable engineered materials with enhanced properties. At the moment, very few theoretical models predict mechanical properties of simple materials based on their microstructures. Moreover these models are based on observations from complex biological systems. One way to overcome this challenge is through the use of microfabrication techniques to design and fabricate simple materials, more appropriate for the study of hierarchical organizations and microstructured materials. Arrays of structures with controlled geometry and dimension can be designed and fabricated at different length scales, ranging from a few hundred nanometers to centimeters, in order to mimic similar systems found in nature. In this thesis, materials have been fabricated in order to gain fundamental insight into the complex hierarchical materials found in nature and to engineer novel materials with enhanced mechanical properties. The materials fabricated here were mechanically characterized and compared to simple mechanics models to describe their behavior with the goal of applying the knowledge acquired to the design and synthesis of future engineered materials with novel properties.

Fractal assembly of micrometre-scale DNA origami arrays with arbitrary patterns.

PubMed

Tikhomirov, Grigory; Petersen, Philip; Qian, Lulu

2017-12-06

Self-assembled DNA nanostructures enable nanometre-precise patterning that can be used to create programmable molecular machines and arrays of functional materials. DNA origami is particularly versatile in this context because each DNA strand in the origami nanostructure occupies a unique position and can serve as a uniquely addressable pixel. However, the scale of such structures has been limited to about 0.05 square micrometres, hindering applications that demand a larger layout and integration with more conventional patterning methods. Hierarchical multistage assembly of simple sets of tiles can in principle overcome this limitation, but so far has not been sufficiently robust to enable successful implementation of larger structures using DNA origami tiles. Here we show that by using simple local assembly rules that are modified and applied recursively throughout a hierarchical, multistage assembly process, a small and constant set of unique DNA strands can be used to create DNA origami arrays of increasing size and with arbitrary patterns. We illustrate this method, which we term 'fractal assembly', by producing DNA origami arrays with sizes of up to 0.5 square micrometres and with up to 8,704 pixels, allowing us to render images such as the Mona Lisa and a rooster. We find that self-assembly of the tiles into arrays is unaffected by changes in surface patterns on the tiles, and that the yield of the fractal assembly process corresponds to about 0.95 m - 1 for arrays containing m tiles. When used in conjunction with a software tool that we developed that converts an arbitrary pattern into DNA sequences and experimental protocols, our assembly method is readily accessible and will facilitate the construction of sophisticated materials and devices with sizes similar to that of a bacterium using DNA nanostructures.

Fractal assembly of micrometre-scale DNA origami arrays with arbitrary patterns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tikhomirov, Grigory; Petersen, Philip; Qian, Lulu

2017-12-01

Self-assembled DNA nanostructures enable nanometre-precise patterning that can be used to create programmable molecular machines and arrays of functional materials. DNA origami is particularly versatile in this context because each DNA strand in the origami nanostructure occupies a unique position and can serve as a uniquely addressable pixel. However, the scale of such structures has been limited to about 0.05 square micrometres, hindering applications that demand a larger layout and integration with more conventional patterning methods. Hierarchical multistage assembly of simple sets of tiles can in principle overcome this limitation, but so far has not been sufficiently robust to enable successful implementation of larger structures using DNA origami tiles. Here we show that by using simple local assembly rules that are modified and applied recursively throughout a hierarchical, multistage assembly process, a small and constant set of unique DNA strands can be used to create DNA origami arrays of increasing size and with arbitrary patterns. We illustrate this method, which we term ‘fractal assembly’, by producing DNA origami arrays with sizes of up to 0.5 square micrometres and with up to 8,704 pixels, allowing us to render images such as the Mona Lisa and a rooster. We find that self-assembly of the tiles into arrays is unaffected by changes in surface patterns on the tiles, and that the yield of the fractal assembly process corresponds to about 0.95m - 1 for arrays containing m tiles. When used in conjunction with a software tool that we developed that converts an arbitrary pattern into DNA sequences and experimental protocols, our assembly method is readily accessible and will facilitate the construction of sophisticated materials and devices with sizes similar to that of a bacterium using DNA nanostructures.

Polyaniline-Coated Activated Carbon Aerogel/Sulfur Composite for High-performance Lithium-Sulfur Battery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tang, Zhiwei; Jiang, Jinglin; Liu, Shaohong; Chen, Luyi; Liu, Ruliang; Zheng, Bingna; Fu, Ruowen; Wu, Dingcai

2017-12-01

An activated carbon aerogel (ACA-500) with high surface area (1765 m2 g-1), pore volume (2.04 cm3 g-1), and hierarchical porous nanonetwork structure is prepared through direct activation of organic aerogel (RC-500) with a low potassium hydroxide ratio (1:1). Based on this substrate, a polyaniline (PANi)-coated activated carbon aerogel/sulfur (ACA-500-S@PANi) composite is prepared via a simple two-step procedure, including melt-infiltration of sublimed sulfur into ACA-500, followed by an in situ polymerization of aniline on the surface of ACA-500-S composite. The obtained ACA-500-S@PANi composite delivers a high reversible capacity up to 1208 mAh g-1 at 0.2C and maintains 542 mAh g-1 even at a high rate (3C). Furthermore, this composite exhibits a discharge capacity of 926 mAh g-1 at the initial cycle and 615 mAh g-1 after 700 cycles at 1C rate, revealing an extremely low capacity decay rate (0.48‰ per cycle). The excellent electrochemical performance of ACA-500-S@PANi can be attributed to the synergistic effect of hierarchical porous nanonetwork structure and PANi coating. Activated carbon aerogels with high surface area and unique three-dimensional (3D) interconnected hierarchical porous structure offer an efficient conductive network for sulfur, and a highly conductive PANi-coating layer further enhances conductivity of the electrode and prevents the dissolution of polysulfide species.

Oxygen-rich hierarchical porous carbon made from pomelo peel fiber as electrode material for supercapacitor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Jing; Liu, Wenlong; Xiao, Dan; Wang, Xinhui

2017-09-01

Oxygen-rich hierarchical porous carbon has been fabricated using pomelo peel fiber as a carbon source via an improved KOH activation method. The morphology and chemical composition of the obtained carbon materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS), electron microscopy (EM), Raman spectra and elemental analysis. The unique porous structure with abundant oxygen functional groups is favorable to capacitive behavior, and the as-prepared carbon material exhibits high specific capacitance of 222.6 F g-1 at 0.5 A g-1 in 6 M KOH and superior stability over 5000 cycles. This work not only describes a simple way to prepare high-performance carbon material from the discarded pomelo peel, but also provides a strategy for its disposal issue and contributes to the environmental improvement.

Atomistic Origin of Deformation Twinning in Biomineral Aragonite.

PubMed

Liu, Jialin; Huang, Zaiwang; Pan, Zhiliang; Wei, Qiuming; Li, Xiaodong; Qi, Yue

2017-03-10

Deformation twinning rarely occurs in mineral materials which typically show brittle fracture. Surprisingly, it has recently been observed in the biomineral aragonite phase in nacre under high rate impact loading. In this Letter, the twinning tendency and the competition between fracture and deformation twinning were revealed by first principles calculations. The ratio of the unstable stacking fault energy and the stacking fault energy in orthorhombic aragonite is hitherto the highest in a broad range of metallic and oxide materials. The underlining physics for this high ratio is the multineighbor shared ionic bonds and the unique relaxation process during sliding in the aragonite structure. Overall, the unique deformation twining along with other highly coordinated deformation mechanisms synergistically work in the hierarchical structure of nacre, leading to the remarkable strengthening and toughening of nacre upon dynamic loading, and thus protecting the mother-of-pearl from predatory attacks.

Hierarchical polypyrrole based composites for high performance asymmetric supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Gao-Feng; Liu, Zhao-Qing; Lin, Jia-Ming; Li, Nan; Su, Yu-Zhi

2015-06-01

An advanced asymmetric supercapacitor with high energy density, exploiting hierarchical polypyrrole (PPy) based composites as both the anode [three dimensional (3D) chuzzle-like Ni@PPy@MnO2] and (3D cochleate-like Ni@MnO2@PPy) cathode, has been developed. The ultrathin PPy and flower-like MnO2 orderly coating on the high-conductivity 3D-Ni enhance charge storage while the unique 3D chuzzle-like and 3D cochleate-like structures provide storage chambers and fast ion transport pathways for benefiting the transport of electrolyte ions. The 3D cochleate-like Ni@MnO2@PPy possesses excellent pseudocapacitance with a relatively negative voltage window while preserved EDLC and free transmission channels conducive to hold the high power, providing an ideal cathode for the asymmetric supercapacitor. It is the first report of assembling hierarchical PPy based composites as both the anode and cathode for asymmetric supercapacitor, which exhibits wide operation voltage of 1.3-1.5 V with maximum energy and power densities of 59.8 Wh kg-1 and 7500 W kg-1.

Three-Dimensional-Moldable Nanofiber-Reinforced Transparent Composites with a Hierarchically Self-Assembled "Reverse" Nacre-like Architecture.

PubMed

Biswas, Subir K; Sano, Hironari; Shams, Md Iftekhar; Yano, Hiroyuki

2017-09-06

Achieving a structural hierarchy and a uniform nanofiller dispersion simultaneously remains highly challenging for obtaining a robust polymer nanocomposite of immiscible components. In this study, a remarkably facile Pickering emulsification approach is developed to fabricate hierarchical composites of immiscible acrylic polymer and native cellulose nanofibers by taking advantage of the dual role of the nanofibers as both emulsion stabilizer and polymer reinforcement. The composites feature a unique "reverse" nacre-like microstructure reinforced with a well-dispersed two-tier hierarchical nanofiber network, leading to a synergistic high strength, modulus, and toughness (20, 50, and 53 times that of neat polymer, respectively), high optical transparency (89%), high flexibility, and a drastically low thermal expansion (13 ppm K -1 , 1/15th of the neat polymer). The nanocomposites have a three-dimensional-shape moldability, also their surface can be patterned with micro/nanoscale features with high fidelity by in situ compression molding, making them attractive as the substrate for flexible displays, smart contact lens devices, and photovoltaics. The Pickering emulsification approach should be broadly applicable for the fabrication of novel functional materials of various immiscible components.

In Situ Chelating Synthesis of Hierarchical LiNi1/3 Co1/3 Mn1/3 O2 Polyhedron Assemblies with Ultralong Cycle Life for Li-Ion Batteries.

PubMed

Zhang, Yue; Jia, Dianzeng; Tang, Yakun; Huang, Yudai; Pang, Weikong; Guo, Zaiping; Zhou, Zhen

2018-06-03

Layered lithium transition-metal oxides, with large capacity and high discharge platform, are promising cathode materials for Li-ion batteries. However, their high-rate cycling stability still remains a large challenge. Herein, hierarchical LiNi 1/3 Co 1/3 Mn 1/3 O 2 polyhedron assemblies are obtained through in situ chelation of transition metal ions (Ni 2+ , Co 2+ , and Mn 2+ ) with amide groups uniformly distributed along the backbone of modified polyacrylonitrile chains to achieve intimate mixing at the atomic level. The assemblies exhibit outstanding electrochemical performances: superior rate capability, high volumetric energy density, and especially ultralong high-rate cyclability, due to the superiority of unique hierarchical structures. The polyhedrons with exposed active crystal facets provide more channels for Li + diffusion, and meso/macropores serve as access shortcuts for fast migration of electrolytes, Li + and electrons. The strategy proposed in this work can be extended to fabricate other mixed transition metal-based materials for advanced batteries. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Damage-tolerance strategies for nacre tablets.

PubMed

Wang, Shengnan; Zhu, Xinqiao; Li, Qiyang; Wang, Rizhi; Wang, Xiaoxiang

2016-05-01

Nacre, a natural armor, exhibits prominent penetration resistance against predatory attacks. Unraveling its hierarchical toughening mechanisms and damage-tolerance design strategies may provide significant inspiration for the pursuit of high-performance artificial armors. In this work, relationships between the structure and mechanical performance of nacre were investigated. The results show that other than their brick-and-mortar structure, individual nacre tablets significantly contribute to the damage localization of nacre. Affected by intracrystalline organics, the tablets exhibit a unique fracture behavior. The synergistic action of the nanoscale deformation mechanisms increases the energy dissipation efficiency of the tablets and contributes to the preservation of the structural and functional integrity of the shell. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Measuring the hierarchy of feedforward networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Corominas-Murtra, Bernat; Rodríguez-Caso, Carlos; Goñi, Joaquín; Solé, Ricard

2011-03-01

In this paper we explore the concept of hierarchy as a quantifiable descriptor of ordered structures, departing from the definition of three conditions to be satisfied for a hierarchical structure: order, predictability, and pyramidal structure. According to these principles, we define a hierarchical index taking concepts from graph and information theory. This estimator allows to quantify the hierarchical character of any system susceptible to be abstracted in a feedforward causal graph, i.e., a directed acyclic graph defined in a single connected structure. Our hierarchical index is a balance between this predictability and pyramidal condition by the definition of two entropies: one attending the onward flow and the other for the backward reversion. We show how this index allows to identify hierarchical, antihierarchical, and nonhierarchical structures. Our formalism reveals that departing from the defined conditions for a hierarchical structure, feedforward trees and the inverted tree graphs emerge as the only causal structures of maximal hierarchical and antihierarchical systems respectively. Conversely, null values of the hierarchical index are attributed to a number of different configuration networks; from linear chains, due to their lack of pyramid structure, to full-connected feedforward graphs where the diversity of onward pathways is canceled by the uncertainty (lack of predictability) when going backward. Some illustrative examples are provided for the distinction among these three types of hierarchical causal graphs.

Hierarchical MoO3/SnS2 core-shell nanowires with enhanced electrochemical performance for lithium-ion batteries.

PubMed

Hu, Chenli; Shu, Haibo; Shen, Zihong; Zhao, Tianfeng; Liang, Pei; Chen, Xiaoshuang

2018-06-27

Two-dimensional (2D) tin disulfide (SnS2) is a promising anode material for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) because of its high theoretical capacity. The main challenges associated with the SnS2 electrodes are the poor cycling stability and low rate capability due to structural degradation in the discharge/charge process. Here, a facile two-step synthesis method is developed to fabricate hierarchical MoO3/SnS2 core-shell nanowires, where ultrathin SnS2 nanosheets are vertically anchored on MoO3 nanobelts to induce a heterointerface. Benefiting from the unique structural and compositional characteristics, the hierarchical MoO3/SnS2 core-shell nanowires exhibit excellent electrochemical performance and deliver a high reversible capacity of 504 mA h g-1 after 100 stable cycles at a current density of 100 mA g-1, which is far superior to the MoO3 and SnS2 electrodes. An analysis of lithiation dynamics based on ab initio molecular dynamics simulations demonstrates that the formation of a hierarchical MoO3/SnS2 core-shell heterostructure can effectively suppress the rapid dissociation of shell-layer SnS2 nanosheets via the interfacial coupling effect and the central MoO3 backbone can trap and support the polysulfide in the discharge/charge process. The results are responsible for the high storage capacity and rate capability of MoO3/SnS2 electrode materials. This work provides a novel design strategy for constructing high-performance electrodes for LIBs.

Enhanced photocatalytic performance and degradation pathway of Rhodamine B over hierarchical double-shelled zinc nickel oxide hollow sphere heterojunction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Ying; Zhou, Jiabin; Cai, Weiquan; Zhou, Jun; Li, Zhen

2018-02-01

In this study, hierarchical double-shelled NiO/ZnO hollow spheres heterojunction were prepared by calcination of the metallic organic frameworks (MOFs) as a sacrificial template in air via a one-step solvothermal method. Additionally, the photocatalytic activity of the as-prepared samples for the degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) under UV-vis light irradiation were also investigated. NiO/ZnO microsphere comprised a core and a shell with unique hierarchically porous structure. The photocatalytic results showed that NiO/ZnO hollow spheres exhibited excellent catalytic activity for RhB degradation, causing complete decomposition of RhB (200 mL of 10 g/L) under UV-vis light irradiation within 3 h. Furthermore, the degradation pathway was proposed on the basis of the intermediates during the photodegradation process using liquid chromatography analysis coupled with mass spectroscopy (LC-MS). The improvement in photocatalytic performance could be attributed to the p-n heterojunction in the NiO/ZnO hollow spheres with hierarchically porous structure and the strong double-shell binding interaction, which enhances adsorption of the dye molecules on the catalyst surface and facilitates the electron/hole transfer within the framework. The degradation mechanism of pollutant is ascribed to the hydroxyl radicals (rad OH), which is the main oxidative species for the photocatalytic degradation of RhB. This work provides a facile and effective approach for the fabrication of porous metal oxides heterojunction with high photocatalytic activity and thus can be potentially used in the environmental purification.

Applications of hierarchically structured porous materials from energy storage and conversion, catalysis, photocatalysis, adsorption, separation, and sensing to biomedicine.

PubMed

Sun, Ming-Hui; Huang, Shao-Zhuan; Chen, Li-Hua; Li, Yu; Yang, Xiao-Yu; Yuan, Zhong-Yong; Su, Bao-Lian

2016-06-13

Over the last decade, significant effort has been devoted to the applications of hierarchically structured porous materials owing to their outstanding properties such as high surface area, excellent accessibility to active sites, and enhanced mass transport and diffusion. The hierarchy of porosity, structural, morphological and component levels in these materials is key for their high performance in all kinds of applications. The introduction of hierarchical porosity into materials has led to a significant improvement in the performance of materials. Herein, recent progress in the applications of hierarchically structured porous materials from energy conversion and storage, catalysis, photocatalysis, adsorption, separation, and sensing to biomedicine is reviewed. Their potential future applications are also highlighted. We particularly dwell on the relationship between hierarchically porous structures and properties, with examples of each type of hierarchically structured porous material according to its chemical composition and physical characteristics. The present review aims to open up a new avenue to guide the readers to quickly obtain in-depth knowledge of applications of hierarchically porous materials and to have a good idea about selecting and designing suitable hierarchically porous materials for a specific application. In addition to focusing on the applications of hierarchically porous materials, this comprehensive review could stimulate researchers to synthesize new advanced hierarchically porous solids.

Processing of hierarchical syntactic structure in music.

PubMed

Koelsch, Stefan; Rohrmeier, Martin; Torrecuso, Renzo; Jentschke, Sebastian

2013-09-17

Hierarchical structure with nested nonlocal dependencies is a key feature of human language and can be identified theoretically in most pieces of tonal music. However, previous studies have argued against the perception of such structures in music. Here, we show processing of nonlocal dependencies in music. We presented chorales by J. S. Bach and modified versions in which the hierarchical structure was rendered irregular whereas the local structure was kept intact. Brain electric responses differed between regular and irregular hierarchical structures, in both musicians and nonmusicians. This finding indicates that, when listening to music, humans apply cognitive processes that are capable of dealing with long-distance dependencies resulting from hierarchically organized syntactic structures. Our results reveal that a brain mechanism fundamental for syntactic processing is engaged during the perception of music, indicating that processing of hierarchical structure with nested nonlocal dependencies is not just a key component of human language, but a multidomain capacity of human cognition.

Fast Time-Varying Volume Rendering Using Time-Space Partition (TSP) Tree

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shen, Han-Wei; Chiang, Ling-Jen; Ma, Kwan-Liu

1999-01-01

We present a new, algorithm for rapid rendering of time-varying volumes. A new hierarchical data structure that is capable of capturing both the temporal and the spatial coherence is proposed. Conventional hierarchical data structures such as octrees are effective in characterizing the homogeneity of the field values existing in the spatial domain. However, when treating time merely as another dimension for a time-varying field, difficulties frequently arise due to the discrepancy between the field's spatial and temporal resolutions. In addition, treating spatial and temporal dimensions equally often prevents the possibility of detecting the coherence that is unique in the temporal domain. Using the proposed data structure, our algorithm can meet the following goals. First, both spatial and temporal coherence are identified and exploited for accelerating the rendering process. Second, our algorithm allows the user to supply the desired error tolerances at run time for the purpose of image-quality/rendering-speed trade-off. Third, the amount of data that are required to be loaded into main memory is reduced, and thus the I/O overhead is minimized. This low I/O overhead makes our algorithm suitable for out-of-core applications.

Bioinspired Hierarchical Nanofibrous Silver-Nanoparticle/Anatase-Rutile-Titania Composite as an Anode Material for Lithium-Ion Batteries.

PubMed

Luo, Yan; Li, Jiao; Huang, Jianguo

2016-11-29

A new bioinspired hierarchical nanofibrous silver-nanoparticle/anatase-rutile-titania (Ag-NP/A-R-titania) composite was fabricated by employing a natural cellulose substance (e.g., commercial laboratory cellulose filter paper) as the structural scaffold template, which was composed of anatase-phase titania (A-titania) nanotubes with rutile-phase titania (R-titania) nanoneedles grown on the surfaces and further silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) immobilized thereon. As it was employed as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), high reversible capacity, enhanced rate performance, and excellent cycling stability were achieved as compared with those of the corresponding cellulose-substance-derived nanotubular A-titania, R-titania, heterogeneous anatase/rutile titania (A-R-titania) composite, and commercial P25 powder. This benefited from its unique porous cross-linked three-dimensional structure inherited from the initial cellulose substance scaffold, which enhances the sufficient electrode/electrolyte contact, relieves the severe volume change upon cycling, and improves the amount of lithium-ion storage; moreover, the high loading content of the silver component in the composite improves the electrical conductivity of the electrode. The structural integrity of the composite was maintained upon long-term charge/discharge cycling, indicating its significant stability.

Design of a structural and functional hierarchy for planning and control of telerobotic systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Acar, Levent; Ozguner, Umit

1989-01-01

Hierarchical structures offer numerous advantages over conventional structures for the control of telerobotic systems. A hierarchically organized system can be controlled via undetailed task assignments and can easily adapt to changing circumstances. The distributed and modular structure of these systems also enables fast response needed in most telerobotic applications. On the other hand, most of the hierarchical structures proposed in the literature are based on functional properties of a system. These structures work best for a few given functions of a large class of systems. In telerobotic applications, all functions of a single system needed to be explored. This approach requires a hierarchical organization based on physical properties of a system and such a hierarchical organization is introduced. The decomposition, organization, and control of the hierarchical structure are considered, and a system with two robot arms and a camera is presented.

Hierarchical Core/Shell NiCo2O4@NiCo2O4 Nanocactus Arrays with Dual-functionalities for High Performance Supercapacitors and Li-ion Batteries

PubMed Central

Cheng, Jinbing; Lu, Yang; Qiu, Kangwen; Yan, Hailong; Xu, Jinyou; Han, Lei; Liu, Xianming; Luo, Jingshan; Kim, Jang-Kyo; Luo, Yongsong

2015-01-01

We report the synthesis of three dimensional (3D) NiCo2O4@NiCo2O4 nanocactus arrays grown directly on a Ni current collector using a facile solution method followed by electrodeposition. They possess a unique 3D hierarchical core-shell structure with large surface area and dual-functionalities that can serve as electrodes for both supercapacitors (SCs) and lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). As the SC electrode, they deliver a remarkable specific capacitance of 1264 F g−1 at a current density of 2 A g−1 and ~93.4% of capacitance retention after 5000 cycles at 2 A g−1. When used as the anode for LIBs, a high reversible capacity of 925 mA h g−1 is achieved at a rate of 120 mA g−1 with excellent cyclic stability and rate capability. The ameliorating features of the NiCo2O4 core/shell structure grown directly on highly conductive Ni foam, such as hierarchical mesopores, numerous hairy needles and a large surface area, are responsible for the fast electron/ion transfer and large active sites which commonly contribute to the excellent electrochemical performance of both the SC and LIB electrodes. PMID:26131926

Hierarchical carbon-coated acanthosphere-like Li4Ti5O12 microspheres for high-power lithium-ion batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sha, Yujing; Xu, Xiaomin; Li, Li; Cai, Rui; Shao, Zongping

2016-05-01

In this work, carbon-coated hierarchical acanthosphere-like Li4Ti5O12 microspheres (denoted as AM-LTO) were prepared via a two-step hydrothermal process with low-cost glucose as the organic carbon source. The hierarchical porous microspheres had open structures with diameters of 4-6 μm, which consisted of a bunch of willow leaf-like nanosheets. Each nanosheet was comprised of Li4Ti5O12 nanoparticles that are 20 nm in size and coated by a thin carbon layer. When applied as the anode material for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), the AM-LTO presented outstanding rate and cycling performance due to its unique morphologies. A high capacity of 145.6 mAh g-1 was achieved for AM-LTO at a rate of 40C (1C = 175 mAh g-1). In contrast, the sample synthesized without glucose as carbon source (denoted as S-LTO) experienced an obvious structural collapse during the hydrothermal reaction and presented a specific capacity of only 67 mAh g-1 at 1C, which further decreased to 14 mAh g-1 at 40C. Further morphological growth of the acanthosphere-like Li4Ti5O12 microspheres and their excellent performance as an anode in LIBs were also discussed in this work.

Hierarchically nested river landform sequences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pasternack, G. B.; Weber, M. D.; Brown, R. A.; Baig, D.

2017-12-01

River corridors exhibit landforms nested within landforms repeatedly down spatial scales. In this study we developed, tested, and implemented a new way to create river classifications by mapping domains of fluvial processes with respect to the hierarchical organization of topographic complexity that drives fluvial dynamism. We tested this approach on flow convergence routing, a morphodynamic mechanism with different states depending on the structure of nondimensional topographic variability. Five nondimensional landform types with unique functionality (nozzle, wide bar, normal channel, constricted pool, and oversized) represent this process at any flow. When this typology is nested at base flow, bankfull, and floodprone scales it creates a system with up to 125 functional types. This shows how a single mechanism produces complex dynamism via nesting. Given the classification, we answered nine specific scientific questions to investigate the abundance, sequencing, and hierarchical nesting of these new landform types using a 35-km gravel/cobble river segment of the Yuba River in California. The nested structure of flow convergence routing landforms found in this study revealed that bankfull landforms are nested within specific floodprone valley landform types, and these types control bankfull morphodynamics during moderate to large floods. As a result, this study calls into question the prevailing theory that the bankfull channel of a gravel/cobble river is controlled by in-channel, bankfull, and/or small flood flows. Such flows are too small to initiate widespread sediment transport in a gravel/cobble river with topographic complexity.

Unsupervised deep learning reveals prognostically relevant subtypes of glioblastoma.

PubMed

Young, Jonathan D; Cai, Chunhui; Lu, Xinghua

2017-10-03

One approach to improving the personalized treatment of cancer is to understand the cellular signaling transduction pathways that cause cancer at the level of the individual patient. In this study, we used unsupervised deep learning to learn the hierarchical structure within cancer gene expression data. Deep learning is a group of machine learning algorithms that use multiple layers of hidden units to capture hierarchically related, alternative representations of the input data. We hypothesize that this hierarchical structure learned by deep learning will be related to the cellular signaling system. Robust deep learning model selection identified a network architecture that is biologically plausible. Our model selection results indicated that the 1st hidden layer of our deep learning model should contain about 1300 hidden units to most effectively capture the covariance structure of the input data. This agrees with the estimated number of human transcription factors, which is approximately 1400. This result lends support to our hypothesis that the 1st hidden layer of a deep learning model trained on gene expression data may represent signals related to transcription factor activation. Using the 3rd hidden layer representation of each tumor as learned by our unsupervised deep learning model, we performed consensus clustering on all tumor samples-leading to the discovery of clusters of glioblastoma multiforme with differential survival. One of these clusters contained all of the glioblastoma samples with G-CIMP, a known methylation phenotype driven by the IDH1 mutation and associated with favorable prognosis, suggesting that the hidden units in the 3rd hidden layer representations captured a methylation signal without explicitly using methylation data as input. We also found differentially expressed genes and well-known mutations (NF1, IDH1, EGFR) that were uniquely correlated with each of these clusters. Exploring these unique genes and mutations will allow us to further investigate the disease mechanisms underlying each of these clusters. In summary, we show that a deep learning model can be trained to represent biologically and clinically meaningful abstractions of cancer gene expression data. Understanding what additional relationships these hidden layer abstractions have with the cancer cellular signaling system could have a significant impact on the understanding and treatment of cancer.

Fabrication of micro/nano hierarchical structures with analysis on the surface mechanics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jheng, Yu-Sheng; Lee, Yeeu-Chang

2016-10-01

Biomimicry refers to the imitation of mechanisms and features found in living creatures using artificial methods. This study used optical lithography, colloidal lithography, and dry etching to mimic the micro/nano hierarchical structures covering the soles of gecko feet. We measured the static contact angle and contact angle hysteresis to reveal the behavior of liquid drops on the hierarchical structures. Pulling tests were also performed to measure the resistance of movement between the hierarchical structures and a testing plate. Our results reveal that hierarchical structures at the micro-/nano-scale are considerably hydrophobic, they provide good flow characteristics, and they generate more contact force than do surfaces with micro-scale cylindrical structures.

Nanotwinned and hierarchical nanotwinned metals: a review of experimental, computational and theoretical efforts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Ligang; He, Xiaoqiao; Lu, Jian

2018-02-01

The recent studies on nanotwinned (NT) and hierarchical nanotwinned (HNT) face-centered cubic (FCC) metals are presented in this review. The HNT structures have been supposed as a kind of novel structure to bring about higher strength/ductility than NT counterparts in crystalline materials. We primarily focus on the recent developments of the experimental, atomistic and theoretical studies on the NT and HNT structures in the metallic materials. Some advanced bottom-up and top-down techniques for the fabrication of NT and HNT structures are introduced. The deformation induced HNT structures are available by virtue of severe plastic deformation (SPD) based techniques while the synthesis of growth HNT structures is so far almost unavailable. In addition, some representative molecular dynamics (MD) studies on the NT and HNT FCC metals unveil that the nanoscale effects such as twin spacing, grain size and plastic anisotropy greatly alter the performance of NT and HNT metals. The HNT structures may initiate unique phenomena in comparison with the NT ones. Furthermore, based on the phenomena and mechanisms revealed by experimental and MD simulation observations, a series of theoretical models have been proposed. They are effective to describe the mechanical behaviors of NT and HNT metals within the applicable scope. So far the development of manufacturing technologies of HNT structures, as well as the studies on the effects of HNT structures on the properties of metals are still in its infancy. Further exploration is required to promote the design of advanced materials.

Biotemplated materials for sustainable energy and environment: current status and challenges.

PubMed

Zhou, Han; Fan, Tongxiang; Zhang, Di

2011-10-17

Materials science will play a key role in the further development of emerging solutions for the increasing problems of energy and environment. Materials found in nature have many inspiring structures, such as hierarchical organizations, periodic architectures, or nanostructures, that endow them with amazing functions, such as energy harvesting and conversion, antireflection, structural coloration, superhydrophobicity, and biological self-assembly. Biotemplating is an effective strategy to obtain morphology-controllable materials with structural specificity, complexity, and related unique functions. Herein, we highlight the synthesis and application of biotemplated materials for six key areas of energy and environment technologies, namely, photocatalytic hydrogen evolution, CO(2) reduction, solar cells, lithium-ion batteries, photocatalytic degradation, and gas/vapor sensing. Although the applications differ from each other, a common fundamental challenge is to realize optimum structures for improved performances. We highlight the role of four typical structures derived from biological systems exploited to optimize properties: hierarchical (porous) structures, periodic (porous) structures, hollow structures, and nanostructures. We also provide examples of using biogenic elements (e.g., C, Si, N, I, P, S) for the creation of active materials. Finally, we disscuss the challenges of achieving the desired performance for large-scale commercial applications and provide some useful prototypes from nature for the biomimetic design of new materials or systems. The emphasis is mainly focused on the structural effects and compositional utilization of biotemplated materials. Copyright © 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Layered nanocomposites inspired by the structure and mechanical properties of nacre.

PubMed

Wang, Jianfeng; Cheng, Qunfeng; Tang, Zhiyong

2012-02-07

Nacre (mother-of-pearl), made of inorganic and organic constituents (95 vol% aragonite calcium carbonate (CaCO(3)) platelets and 5 vol% elastic biopolymers), possesses a unique combination of remarkable strength and toughness, which is compatible for conventional high performance materials. The excellent mechanical properties are related to its hierarchical structure and precisely designed organic-inorganic interface. The rational design of aragonite platelet strength, aspect ratio of aragonite platelets, and interface strength ensures that the strength of nacre is maximized under platelet pull-out failure mode. At the same time, the synergy of strain hardening mechanisms acting over multiple scales results in platelets sliding on one another, and thus maximizes the energy dissipation of viscoplastic biopolymers. The excellent integrated mechanical properties with hierarchical structure have inspired chemists and materials scientists to develop biomimetic strategies for artificial nacre materials. This critical review presents a broad overview of the state-of-the-art work on the preparation of layered organic-inorganic nanocomposites inspired by nacre, in particular, the advantages and disadvantages of various biomimetic strategies. Discussion is focused on the effect of the layered structure, interface, and component loading on strength and toughness of nacre-mimic layered nanocomposites (148 references). This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2012

Self-assembled materials and supramolecular chemistry within microfluidic environments: from common thermodynamic states to non-equilibrium structures.

PubMed

Sevim, S; Sorrenti, A; Franco, C; Furukawa, S; Pané, S; deMello, A J; Puigmartí-Luis, J

2018-05-01

Self-assembly is a crucial component in the bottom-up fabrication of hierarchical supramolecular structures and advanced functional materials. Control has traditionally relied on the use of encoded building blocks bearing suitable moieties for recognition and interaction, with targeting of the thermodynamic equilibrium state. On the other hand, nature leverages the control of reaction-diffusion processes to create hierarchically organized materials with surprisingly complex biological functions. Indeed, under non-equilibrium conditions (kinetic control), the spatio-temporal command of chemical gradients and reactant mixing during self-assembly (the creation of non-uniform chemical environments for example) can strongly affect the outcome of the self-assembly process. This directly enables a precise control over material properties and functions. In this tutorial review, we show how the unique physical conditions offered by microfluidic technologies can be advantageously used to control the self-assembly of materials and of supramolecular aggregates in solution, making possible the isolation of intermediate states and unprecedented non-equilibrium structures, as well as the emergence of novel functions. Selected examples from the literature will be used to confirm that microfluidic devices are an invaluable toolbox technology for unveiling, understanding and steering self-assembly pathways to desired structures, properties and functions, as well as advanced processing tools for device fabrication and integration.

Development of a computational model on the neural activity patterns of a visual working memory in a hierarchical feedforward Network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

An, Soyoung; Choi, Woochul; Paik, Se-Bum

2015-11-01

Understanding the mechanism of information processing in the human brain remains a unique challenge because the nonlinear interactions between the neurons in the network are extremely complex and because controlling every relevant parameter during an experiment is difficult. Therefore, a simulation using simplified computational models may be an effective approach. In the present study, we developed a general model of neural networks that can simulate nonlinear activity patterns in the hierarchical structure of a neural network system. To test our model, we first examined whether our simulation could match the previously-observed nonlinear features of neural activity patterns. Next, we performed a psychophysics experiment for a simple visual working memory task to evaluate whether the model could predict the performance of human subjects. Our studies show that the model is capable of reproducing the relationship between memory load and performance and may contribute, in part, to our understanding of how the structure of neural circuits can determine the nonlinear neural activity patterns in the human brain.

Modelling approaches for evaluating multiscale tendon mechanics

PubMed Central

Fang, Fei; Lake, Spencer P.

2016-01-01

Tendon exhibits anisotropic, inhomogeneous and viscoelastic mechanical properties that are determined by its complicated hierarchical structure and varying amounts/organization of different tissue constituents. Although extensive research has been conducted to use modelling approaches to interpret tendon structure–function relationships in combination with experimental data, many issues remain unclear (i.e. the role of minor components such as decorin, aggrecan and elastin), and the integration of mechanical analysis across different length scales has not been well applied to explore stress or strain transfer from macro- to microscale. This review outlines mathematical and computational models that have been used to understand tendon mechanics at different scales of the hierarchical organization. Model representations at the molecular, fibril and tissue levels are discussed, including formulations that follow phenomenological and microstructural approaches (which include evaluations of crimp, helical structure and the interaction between collagen fibrils and proteoglycans). Multiscale modelling approaches incorporating tendon features are suggested to be an advantageous methodology to understand further the physiological mechanical response of tendon and corresponding adaptation of properties owing to unique in vivo loading environments. PMID:26855747

Nitrogen-functionalization biochars derived from wheat straws via molten salt synthesis: An efficient adsorbent for atrazine removal.

PubMed

Yang, Fan; Sun, Lili; Xie, Weiling; Jiang, Qun; Gao, Yan; Zhang, Wei; Zhang, Ying

2017-12-31

N-doped porous carbon sheets (NPCS) resulted from wheat straws are fabricated through using molten salts via the carbonization-functionalization progress, which show unique hierarchical structure, large pore volume and high surface area with affluent micropores. Results indicate that there exist many hierarchical pores consisting of the single carbon sheet with ultrathin nature, owing to the template role of molten salt mixtures at high temperature. Such superior structure can bring about desired performance of adsorption capacity of 82.8mg/g and quick adsorption rate of 1.43L/(gh) with an initial concentration of 35mg/L at 25°C. Langmuir and Freundlich models are adopted to interpret the adsorption behavior of atrazine and modified Freundlich and intraparticle diffusion (IPD) models are employed to characterize the dynamics of adsorption. Furthermore, nitrogen-functionalization biochars via molten salt synthesis should be further developed as a one-pot methodology to produce N-doped carbons, opening up a feasible approach for resource utilization of crop straws and other biomass wastes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Ultrathin Hierarchical Porous Carbon Nanosheets for High-Performance Supercapacitors and Redox Electrolyte Energy Storage.

PubMed

Jayaramulu, Kolleboyina; Dubal, Deepak P; Nagar, Bhawna; Ranc, Vaclav; Tomanec, Ondrej; Petr, Martin; Datta, Kasibhatta Kumara Ramanatha; Zboril, Radek; Gómez-Romero, Pedro; Fischer, Roland A

2018-04-01

The design of advanced high-energy-density supercapacitors requires the design of unique materials that combine hierarchical nanoporous structures with high surface area to facilitate ion transport and excellent electrolyte permeability. Here, shape-controlled 2D nanoporous carbon sheets (NPSs) with graphitic wall structure through the pyrolysis of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are developed. As a proof-of-concept application, the obtained NPSs are used as the electrode material for a supercapacitor. The carbon-sheet-based symmetric cell shows an ultrahigh Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET)-area-normalized capacitance of 21.4 µF cm -2 (233 F g -1 ), exceeding other carbon-based supercapacitors. The addition of potassium iodide as redox-active species in a sulfuric acid (supporting electrolyte) leads to the ground-breaking enhancement in the energy density up to 90 Wh kg -1 , which is higher than commercial aqueous rechargeable batteries, maintaining its superior power density. Thus, the new material provides a double profits strategy such as battery-level energy and capacitor-level power density. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Asymmetric supercapacitors with high energy density based on helical hierarchical porous Na x MnO2 and MoO2.

PubMed

Lu, Xue-Feng; Huang, Zhi-Xiang; Tong, Ye-Xiang; Li, Gao-Ren

2016-01-01

Helical hierarchical porous Na x MnO 2 /CC and MoO 2 /CC, which are assembled from nanosheets and nanoparticles, respectively, are fabricated using a simple electrodeposition method. These unique helical porous structures enable electrodes to have a high capacitance and an outstanding cycling performance. Based on the helical Na x MnO 2 /CC as the positive electrodes and helical MoO 2 /CC as the negative electrodes, high performance Na x MnO 2 /CC//MoO 2 /CC asymmetric supercapacitors (ASCs) are successfully assembled, and they achieve a maximum volume C sp of 2.04 F cm -3 and a maximum energy density of 0.92 mW h cm -3 for the whole device and an excellent cycling stability with 97.22% C sp retention after 6000 cycles.

Bioinspired Nanoscale Materials for Biomedical and Energy Applications

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bhattacharya, Priyanka; Du, Dan; Lin, Yuehe

2014-05-01

The demand of green, affordable and environmentally sustainable materials has encouraged scientists in different fields to draw inspiration from nature in developing materials with unique properties such as miniaturization, hierarchical organization, and adaptability. Together with the exceptional properties of nanomaterials, over the past century, the field of bioinspired nanomaterials has taken huge leaps. While on one hand, the sophistication of hierarchical structures endow biological systems with multifunctionality, the synthetic control on the creation of nanomaterials enables the design of materials with specific functionalities. The aim of this review is to provide a comprehensive, up-to-date overview of the field of bioinspiredmore » nanomaterials, which we have broadly categorized into biotemplates and biomimics. We will discuss the application of bioinspired nanomaterials as biotemplates in catalysis, nanomedicine, immunoassays and in energy, drawing attention to novel materials such as protein cages. Further, the applications of bioinspired materials in tissue engineering and biomineralization will also be discussed.« less

Synthesis of hollow silica spheres with hierarchical shell structure by the dual action of liquid indium microbeads in vapor-liquid-solid growth.

PubMed

Wang, Jian-Tao; Wang, Hui; Ou, Xue-Mei; Lee, Chun-Sing; Zhang, Xiao-Hong

2011-07-05

Geometry-based adhesion arising from hierarchical surface structure enables microspheres to adhere to cells strongly, which is essential for inorganic microcapsules that function as drug delivery or diagnostic imaging agents. However, constructing a hierarchical structure on the outer shell of the products via the current microcapsule synthesis method is difficult. This work presents a novel approach to fabricating hollow microspheres with a hierarchical shell structure through the vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) process in which liquid indium droplets act as both templates for the formation of silica capsules and catalysts for the growth of hierarchical shell structure. This hierarchical shell structure offers the hollow microsphere an enhanced geometry-based adhesion. The results provide a facile method for fabricating hollow spheres and enriching their function through tailoring the geometry of their outer shells. © 2011 American Chemical Society

Developing JSequitur to Study the Hierarchical Structure of Biological Sequences in a Grammatical Inference Framework of String Compression Algorithms.

PubMed

Galbadrakh, Bulgan; Lee, Kyung-Eun; Park, Hyun-Seok

2012-12-01

Grammatical inference methods are expected to find grammatical structures hidden in biological sequences. One hopes that studies of grammar serve as an appropriate tool for theory formation. Thus, we have developed JSequitur for automatically generating the grammatical structure of biological sequences in an inference framework of string compression algorithms. Our original motivation was to find any grammatical traits of several cancer genes that can be detected by string compression algorithms. Through this research, we could not find any meaningful unique traits of the cancer genes yet, but we could observe some interesting traits in regards to the relationship among gene length, similarity of sequences, the patterns of the generated grammar, and compression rate.

Nonlinear control of high-frequency phonons in spider silk

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schneider, Dirk; Gomopoulos, Nikolaos; Koh, Cheong Y.; Papadopoulos, Periklis; Kremer, Friedrich; Thomas, Edwin L.; Fytas, George

2016-10-01

Spider dragline silk possesses superior mechanical properties compared with synthetic polymers with similar chemical structure due to its hierarchical structure comprised of partially crystalline oriented nanofibrils. To date, silk’s dynamic mechanical properties have been largely unexplored. Here we report an indirect hypersonic phononic bandgap and an anomalous dispersion of the acoustic-like branch from inelastic (Brillouin) light scattering experiments under varying applied elastic strains. We show the mechanical nonlinearity of the silk structure generates a unique region of negative group velocity, that together with the global (mechanical) anisotropy provides novel symmetry conditions for gap formation. The phononic bandgap and dispersion show strong nonlinear strain-dependent behaviour. Exploiting material nonlinearity along with tailored structural anisotropy could be a new design paradigm to access new types of dynamic behaviour.

Synthesis and morphogenesis of organic polymer materials with hierarchical structures in biominerals.

PubMed

Oaki, Yuya; Kijima, Misako; Imai, Hiroaki

2011-06-08

Synthesis and morphogenesis of polypyrrole (PPy) with hierarchical structures from nanoscopic to macroscopic scales have been achieved by using hierarchically organized architectures of biominerals. We adopted biominerals, such as a sea urchin spine and nacreous layer, having hierarchical architectures based on mesocrystals as model materials used for synthesis of an organic polymer. A sea urchin spine led to the formation of PPy macroscopic sponge structures consisting of nanosheets less than 100 nm in thickness with the mosaic interior of the nanoparticles. The morphologies of the resultant PPy hierarchical architectures can be tuned by the structural modification of the original biomineral with chemical and thermal treatments. In another case, a nacreous layer provided PPy porous nanosheets consisting of the nanoparticles. Conductive pathways were formed in these PPy hierarchical architectures. The nanoscale interspaces in the mesocrystal structures of biominerals are used for introduction and polymerization of the monomers, leading to the formation of hierarchically organized polymer architectures. These results show that functional organic materials with complex and nanoscale morphologies can be synthesized by using hierarchically organized architectures as observed in biominerals.

Three-Dimensional Hierarchical Structure ZnO@C@NiO on Carbon Cloth for Asymmetric Supercapacitor with Enhanced Cycle Stability.

PubMed

Ouyang, Yu; Xia, Xifeng; Ye, Haitao; Wang, Liang; Jiao, Xinyan; Lei, Wu; Hao, Qingli

2018-01-31

In this work, we synthesized the hierarchical ZnO@C@NiO core-shell nanorods arrays (CSNAs) grown on a carbon cloth (CC) conductive substrate by a three-step method involving hydrothermal and chemical bath methods. The morphology and chemical structure of the hybrid nanoarrays were characterized in detail. The combination and formation mechanism was proposed. The conducting carbon layer between ZnO and NiO layers can efficiently enhance the electric conductivity of the integrated electrodes, and also protect the corrosion of ZnO in an alkaline solution. Compared with ZnO@NiO nanorods arrays (NAs), the NiO in CC/ZnO@C@NiO electrodes, which possess a unique multilevel core-shell nanostructure exhibits a higher specific capacity (677 C/g at 1.43 A/g) and an enhanced cycling stability (capacity remain 71% after 5000 cycles), on account of the protection of carbon layer derived from glucose. Additionally, a flexible all-solid-state supercapacitor is readily constructed by coating the PVA/KOH gel electrolyte between the ZnO@C@NiO CSNAs and commercial graphene. The energy density of this all-solid-state device decreases from 35.7 to 16.0 Wh/kg as the power density increases from 380.9 to 2704.2 W/kg with an excellent cycling stability (87.5% of the initial capacitance after 10000 cycles). Thereby, the CC/ ZnO@C@NiO CSNAs of three-dimensional hierarchical structure is promising electrode materials for flexible all-solid-state supercapacitors.

Testing the hypothesis of hierarchical predictability in ecological restoration and succession.

PubMed

Abella, Scott R; Schetter, Timothy A; Walters, Timothy L

2018-02-01

To advance predictive ecology, the hypothesis of hierarchical predictability proposes that community measures for which species are interchangeable (e.g., structure and species richness) are more predictable than measures for which species identity matters (e.g., community composition). Predictability is hypothesized to decrease for response measures in order of the following categories: structure, species richness, function, and species composition. We tested this hypothesis using a 14-year, oak savanna-prairie restoration experiment that removed non-native pine plantations at 24 sites in northwestern Ohio, USA. Based on 24 response measures, the data showed minimal support for the hypothesis, because response measures varied in predictability within categories. Half of response measures had over half their variability modeled using fixed (restoration treatment and year) and random plot effects, and these "predictable" measures occurred in all four categories. Pine basal area, environment (e.g., soil texture), and antecedent vegetation accounted for over half the variation in change within the first three post-restoration years for 77% of response measures. Change between the 3rd and 14th years was less predictable, but most restoration measures increased favorably via sites achieving them in unique ways. We propose that variation will not conform with the hypothesis of hierarchical predictability in ecosystems with vegetation dynamics driven by stochastic processes such as seed dispersal, or where vegetation structure and species richness are influenced by species composition. The ability to predict a community measure may be more driven by the number of combinations of casual factors affecting a measure than by the number of values it can have.

How hierarchical is language use?

PubMed Central

Frank, Stefan L.; Bod, Rens; Christiansen, Morten H.

2012-01-01

It is generally assumed that hierarchical phrase structure plays a central role in human language. However, considerations of simplicity and evolutionary continuity suggest that hierarchical structure should not be invoked too hastily. Indeed, recent neurophysiological, behavioural and computational studies show that sequential sentence structure has considerable explanatory power and that hierarchical processing is often not involved. In this paper, we review evidence from the recent literature supporting the hypothesis that sequential structure may be fundamental to the comprehension, production and acquisition of human language. Moreover, we provide a preliminary sketch outlining a non-hierarchical model of language use and discuss its implications and testable predictions. If linguistic phenomena can be explained by sequential rather than hierarchical structure, this will have considerable impact in a wide range of fields, such as linguistics, ethology, cognitive neuroscience, psychology and computer science. PMID:22977157

A Library of the Nanoscale Self-Assembly of Amino Acids on Metal Surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iski, Erin; Yitamben, Esmeralda; Guisinger, Nathan

2012-02-01

The investigation of the hierarchical self-assembly of amino acids on surfaces represents a unique test-bed for the origin of enantio-favoritism in biology and the transmission of chirality from single molecules to complete surface layers. These chiral systems, in particular the assembly of isoleucine and alanine on Cu(111), represent a direct link to the understanding of certain biological processes, specifically the preference for some amino acids to form alpha helices vs. beta-pleated sheets in the secondary structure of proteins. Low temperature, ultra-high vacuum, scanning tunneling microscopy (LT UHV-STM) is used to study the hierarchical self-assembly of different amino acids on a Cu(111) single crystal in an effort to build a library of their two-dimensional structure with molecular-scale resolution for enhanced protein and peptide studies. Both enantiopure and racemic structures are studied in order to elucidate how chirality can affect the self-assembly of the amino acids. In some cases, density functional theory (DFT) models can be used to confirm the experimental structure. The advent of such a library with fully resolved, two-dimensional structures at different molecular coverages would address some of the complex questions surrounding the preferential formation of alpha helices vs. beta-pleated sheets in proteins and lead to a better understanding of the key role played by these amino acids in protein sequencing.

Hierarchically organized behavior and its neural foundations: A reinforcement-learning perspective

PubMed Central

Botvinick, Matthew M.; Niv, Yael; Barto, Andrew C.

2009-01-01

Research on human and animal behavior has long emphasized its hierarchical structure — the divisibility of ongoing behavior into discrete tasks, which are comprised of subtask sequences, which in turn are built of simple actions. The hierarchical structure of behavior has also been of enduring interest within neuroscience, where it has been widely considered to reflect prefrontal cortical functions. In this paper, we reexamine behavioral hierarchy and its neural substrates from the point of view of recent developments in computational reinforcement learning. Specifically, we consider a set of approaches known collectively as hierarchical reinforcement learning, which extend the reinforcement learning paradigm by allowing the learning agent to aggregate actions into reusable subroutines or skills. A close look at the components of hierarchical reinforcement learning suggests how they might map onto neural structures, in particular regions within the dorsolateral and orbital prefrontal cortex. It also suggests specific ways in which hierarchical reinforcement learning might provide a complement to existing psychological models of hierarchically structured behavior. A particularly important question that hierarchical reinforcement learning brings to the fore is that of how learning identifies new action routines that are likely to provide useful building blocks in solving a wide range of future problems. Here and at many other points, hierarchical reinforcement learning offers an appealing framework for investigating the computational and neural underpinnings of hierarchically structured behavior. PMID:18926527

Soybean Root-Derived Hierarchical Porous Carbon as Electrode Material for High-Performance Supercapacitors in Ionic Liquids.

PubMed

Guo, Nannan; Li, Min; Wang, Yong; Sun, Xingkai; Wang, Feng; Yang, Ru

2016-12-14

Soybeans are extensively cultivated worldwide as human food. However, large quantities of soybean roots (SRs), which possess an abundant three-dimensional (3D) structure, remain unused and produce enormous pressure on the environment. Here, 3D hierarchical porous carbon was prepared by the facile carbonization of SRs followed by chemical activation. The as-prepared material, possessing large specific surface area (2143 m 2 g -1 ), good electrical conductivity, and unique 3D hierarchical porosity, shows outstanding electrochemical performance as an electrode material for supercapacitors, such as a high capacitance (276 F g -1 at 0.5 A g -1 ), superior cycle stability (98% capacitance retention after 10,000 cycles at 5 A g -1 ), and good rate capability in a symmetric two-electrode supercapacitor in 6 M KOH. Furthermore, the maximum energy density of as-assembled symmetric supercapacitor can reach 100.5 Wh kg -1 in neat EMIM BF 4 . Moreover, a value of 40.7 Wh kg -1 is maintained at ultrahigh power density (63000 W kg -1 ). These results show that the as-assembled supercapacitor can simultaneously deliver superior energy and power density.

Cognitive risk factors explain the relations between neuroticism and social anxiety for males and females.

PubMed

Allan, Nicholas P; Oglesby, Mary E; Uhl, Aubree; Schmidt, Norman B

2017-04-01

The hierarchical model of vulnerabilities to emotional distress contextualizes the relation between neuroticism and social anxiety as occurring indirectly through cognitive risk factors. In particular, inhibitory intolerance of uncertainty (IU; difficulty in uncertain circumstances), fear of negative evaluation (FNE; fear of being judged negatively), and anxiety sensitivity (AS) social concerns (fear of outwardly observable anxiety) are related to social anxiety. It is unclear whether these risk factors uniquely relate to social anxiety, and whether they account for the relations between neuroticism and social anxiety. The indirect relations between neuroticism and social anxiety through these and other risk factors were examined using structural equation modeling in a sample of 462 individuals (M age = 36.56, SD = 12.93; 64.3% female). Results indicated that the relations between neuroticism and social anxiety could be explained through inhibitory IU, FNE, and AS social concerns. No gender differences were found. These findings provide support for the hierarchical model of vulnerabilities to emotional distress disorders, although the cognitive risk factors accounted for variance beyond their contribution to the relation between neuroticism and social anxiety, suggesting a more complex model than that expressed in the hierarchical model of vulnerabilities.

Hierarchical Metal-Organic Framework-Assembled Membrane Filter for Efficient Removal of Particulate Matter.

PubMed

Koo, Won-Tae; Jang, Ji-Soo; Qiao, Shaopeng; Hwang, Wontae; Jha, Gaurav; Penner, Reginald M; Kim, Il-Doo

2018-06-13

Here, we propose heterogeneous nucleation-assisted hierarchical growth of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) for efficient particulate matter (PM) removal. The assembly of two-dimensional (2D) Zn-based zeolite imidazole frameworks (2D-ZIF-L) in deionized water over a period of time produced hierarchical ZIF-L (H-ZIF-L) on hydrophilic substrates. During the assembly, the second nucleation and growth of ZIF-L occurred on the surface of the first ZIF-L, leading to the formation of flowerlike H-ZIF-L on the substrate. The flowerlike H-ZIF-L was easily synthesized on various substrates, namely, glass, polyurethane three-dimensional foam, nylon microfibers, and nonwoven fabrics. We demonstrated H-ZIF-L-assembled polypropylene microfibers as a washable membrane filter with highly efficient PM removal property (92.5 ± 0.8% for PM 2.5 and 99.5 ± 0.2% for PM 10 ), low pressure drop (10.5 Pa at 25 L min -1 ), long-term stability, and superior recyclability. These outstanding particle filtering properties are mainly attributed to the unique structure of the 2D-shaped H-ZIF-L, which is tightly anchored on individual fibers comprising the membrane.

Syntactic Structure and Artificial Grammar Learning: The Learnability of Embedded Hierarchical Structures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

de Vries, Meinou H.; Monaghan, Padraic; Knecht, Stefan; Zwitserlood, Pienie

2008-01-01

Embedded hierarchical structures, such as "the rat the cat ate was brown", constitute a core generative property of a natural language theory. Several recent studies have reported learning of hierarchical embeddings in artificial grammar learning (AGL) tasks, and described the functional specificity of Broca's area for processing such structures.…

Hierarchical architecture of ReS2/rGO composites with enhanced electrochemical properties for lithium-ion batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qi, Fei; Chen, Yuanfu; Zheng, Binjie; He, Jiarui; Li, Qian; Wang, Xinqiang; Lin, Jie; Zhou, Jinhao; Yu, Bo; Li, Pingjian; Zhang, Wanli

2017-08-01

Rhenium disulfide (ReS2), a two-dimensional (2D) semiconductor, has attracted more and more attention due to its unique anisotropic electronic, optical, mechanical properties. However, the facile synthesis and electrochemical property of ReS2 and its composite are still necessary to be researched. In this study, for the first time, the ReS2/reduced graphene oxide (rGO) composites have been synthesized through a facile and one-pot hydrothermal method. The ReS2/rGO composites exhibit a hierarchical, interconnected, and porous architecture constructed by nanosheets. As anode for lithium-ion batteries, the as-synthesized ReS2/rGO composites deliver a large initial capacity of 918 mAh g-1 at 0.2 C. In addition, the ReS2/rGO composites exhibit much better electrochemical cycling stability and rate capability than that of bare ReS2. The significant enhancement in electrochemical property can be attributed to its unique architecture constructed by nanosheets and porous structure, which can allow for easy electrolyte infiltration, efficient electron transfer, and ionic diffusion. Furthermore, the graphene with high electronic conductivity can provide good conductive passageways. The facile synthesis approach can be extended to prepare other 2D transition metal dichalcogenides semiconductors for energy storage and catalytic application.

A nontransferring dry adhesive with hierarchical polymer nanohairs.

PubMed

Jeong, Hoon Eui; Lee, Jin-Kwan; Kim, Hong Nam; Moon, Sang Heup; Suh, Kahp Y

2009-04-07

We present a simple yet robust method for fabricating angled, hierarchically patterned high-aspect-ratio polymer nanohairs to generate directionally sensitive dry adhesives. The slanted polymeric nanostructures were molded from an etched polySi substrate containing slanted nanoholes. An angled etching technique was developed to fabricate slanted nanoholes with flat tips by inserting an etch-stop layer of silicon dioxide. This unique etching method was equipped with a Faraday cage system to control the ion-incident angles in the conventional plasma etching system. The polymeric nanohairs were fabricated with tailored leaning angles, sizes, tip shapes, and hierarchical structures. As a result of controlled leaning angle and bulged flat top of the nanohairs, the replicated, slanted nanohairs showed excellent directional adhesion, exhibiting strong shear attachment (approximately 26 N/cm(2) in maximum) in the angled direction and easy detachment (approximately 2.2 N/cm(2)) in the opposite direction, with a hysteresis value of approximately 10. In addition to single scale nanohairs, monolithic, micro-nanoscale combined hierarchical hairs were also fabricated by using a 2-step UV-assisted molding technique. These hierarchical nanoscale patterns maintained their adhesive force even on a rough surface (roughness <20 microm) because of an increase in the contact area by the enhanced height of hierarchy, whereas simple nanohairs lost their adhesion strength. To demonstrate the potential applications of the adhesive patch, the dry adhesive was used to transport a large-area glass (47.5 x 37.5 cm(2), second-generation TFT-LCD glass), which could replace the current electrostatic transport/holding system with further optimization.

A nontransferring dry adhesive with hierarchical polymer nanohairs

PubMed Central

Jeong, Hoon Eui; Lee, Jin-Kwan; Kim, Hong Nam; Moon, Sang Heup; Suh, Kahp Y.

2009-01-01

We present a simple yet robust method for fabricating angled, hierarchically patterned high-aspect-ratio polymer nanohairs to generate directionally sensitive dry adhesives. The slanted polymeric nanostructures were molded from an etched polySi substrate containing slanted nanoholes. An angled etching technique was developed to fabricate slanted nanoholes with flat tips by inserting an etch-stop layer of silicon dioxide. This unique etching method was equipped with a Faraday cage system to control the ion-incident angles in the conventional plasma etching system. The polymeric nanohairs were fabricated with tailored leaning angles, sizes, tip shapes, and hierarchical structures. As a result of controlled leaning angle and bulged flat top of the nanohairs, the replicated, slanted nanohairs showed excellent directional adhesion, exhibiting strong shear attachment (≈26 N/cm2 in maximum) in the angled direction and easy detachment (≈2.2 N/cm2) in the opposite direction, with a hysteresis value of ≈10. In addition to single scale nanohairs, monolithic, micro-nanoscale combined hierarchical hairs were also fabricated by using a 2-step UV-assisted molding technique. These hierarchical nanoscale patterns maintained their adhesive force even on a rough surface (roughness <20 μm) because of an increase in the contact area by the enhanced height of hierarchy, whereas simple nanohairs lost their adhesion strength. To demonstrate the potential applications of the adhesive patch, the dry adhesive was used to transport a large-area glass (47.5 × 37.5 cm2, second-generation TFT-LCD glass), which could replace the current electrostatic transport/holding system with further optimization. PMID:19304801

Architecture engineering of hierarchically porous chitosan/vacuum-stripped graphene scaffold as bioanode for high performance microbial fuel cell.

PubMed

He, Ziming; Liu, Jing; Qiao, Yan; Li, Chang Ming; Tan, Timothy Thatt Yang

2012-09-12

The bioanode is the defining feature of microbial fuel cell (MFC) technology and often limits its performance. In the current work, we report the engineering of a novel hierarchically porous architecture as an efficient bioanode, consisting of biocompatible chitosan and vacuum-stripped graphene (CHI/VSG). With the hierarchical pores and unique VSG, an optimized bioanode delivered a remarkable maximum power density of 1530 mW m(-2) in a mediator-less MFC, 78 times higher than a carbon cloth anode.

Excellent capacitive performance of a three-dimensional hierarchical porous graphene/carbon composite with a superhigh surface area.

PubMed

Li, Xue Jin; Xing, Wei; Zhou, Jin; Wang, Gui Qiang; Zhuo, Shu Ping; Yan, Zi Feng; Xue, Qing Zhong; Qiao, Shi Zhang

2014-10-06

Three-dimensional hierarchical porous graphene/carbon composite was successfully synthesized from a solution of graphene oxide and a phenolic resin by using a facile and efficient method. The morphology, structure, and surface property of the composite were investigated intensively by a variety of means such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), N2 adsorption, Raman spectroscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). It is found that graphene serves as a scaffold to form a hierarchical pore texture in the composite, resulting in its superhigh surface area of 2034 m(2) g(-1), thin macropore wall, and high conductivity (152 S m(-1)). As evidenced by electrochemical measurements in both EMImBF4 ionic liquid and KOH electrolyte, the composite exhibits ideal capacitive behavior, high capacitance, and excellent rate performance due to its unique structure. In EMImBF4 , the composite has a high energy density of up to 50.1 Wh kg(-1) and also possesses quite stable cycling stability at 100 °C, suggesting its promising application in high-temperature supercapacitors. In KOH electrolyte, the specific capacitance of this composite can reach up to an unprecedented value of 186.5 F g(-1), even at a very high current density of 50 A g(-1), suggesting its prosperous application in high-power applications. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Biomass derived nitrogen-doped hierarchical porous carbon sheets for supercapacitors with high performance.

PubMed

Wang, Cunjing; Wu, Dapeng; Wang, Hongju; Gao, Zhiyong; Xu, Fang; Jiang, Kai

2018-08-01

A facile potassium chloride salt-locking technique combined with hydrothermal treatment on precursors was explored to prepare nitrogen-doped hierarchical porous carbon sheets in air from biomass. Benefiting from the effective synthesis strategy, the as-obtained carbon possesses a unique nitrogen-doped thin carbon sheet structure with abundant hierarchical pores and large specific surface areas of 1459 m 2  g -1 . The doped nitrogen in carbon framework has a positive effect on the electrochemical properties of the electrode material, the thin carbon sheet structure benefits for fast ion transfer, the abundant meso-pores provide convenient channels for rapid charge transportation, large specific surface area and lots of micro-pores guarantee sufficient ion-storage sites. Therefore, applied for supercapacitors, the carbon electrode material exhibits an outstanding specific capacitance of 451 F g -1 at 0.5 A g -1 in a three-electrode system. Moreover, the assembled symmetric supercapacitor based on two identical carbon electrodes also displays high specific capacitance of 309 F g -1 at 0.5 A g -1 , excellent rate capacity and remarkable cycling stability with 99.3% of the initial capacitance retention after 10,000 cycles at 5 A -1 . The synthesis strategy avoids expensive inert gas protection and the use of corrosive KOH and toxic ZnCl 2 activated reagents, representing a promising green route to design advanced carbon electrode materials from biomass for high-capacity supercapacitors. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

An effective immunization strategy for airborne epidemics in modular and hierarchical social contact network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Zhichao; Ge, Yuanzheng; Luo, Lei; Duan, Hong; Qiu, Xiaogang

2015-12-01

Social contact between individuals is the chief factor for airborne epidemic transmission among the crowd. Social contact networks, which describe the contact relationships among individuals, always exhibit overlapping qualities of communities, hierarchical structure and spatial-correlated. We find that traditional global targeted immunization strategy would lose its superiority in controlling the epidemic propagation in the social contact networks with modular and hierarchical structure. Therefore, we propose a hierarchical targeted immunization strategy to settle this problem. In this novel strategy, importance of the hierarchical structure is considered. Transmission control experiments of influenza H1N1 are carried out based on a modular and hierarchical network model. Results obtained indicate that hierarchical structure of the network is more critical than the degrees of the immunized targets and the modular network layer is the most important for the epidemic propagation control. Finally, the efficacy and stability of this novel immunization strategy have been validated as well.

Resolution of Singularities Introduced by Hierarchical Structure in Deep Neural Networks.

PubMed

Nitta, Tohru

2017-10-01

We present a theoretical analysis of singular points of artificial deep neural networks, resulting in providing deep neural network models having no critical points introduced by a hierarchical structure. It is considered that such deep neural network models have good nature for gradient-based optimization. First, we show that there exist a large number of critical points introduced by a hierarchical structure in deep neural networks as straight lines, depending on the number of hidden layers and the number of hidden neurons. Second, we derive a sufficient condition for deep neural networks having no critical points introduced by a hierarchical structure, which can be applied to general deep neural networks. It is also shown that the existence of critical points introduced by a hierarchical structure is determined by the rank and the regularity of weight matrices for a specific class of deep neural networks. Finally, two kinds of implementation methods of the sufficient conditions to have no critical points are provided. One is a learning algorithm that can avoid critical points introduced by the hierarchical structure during learning (called avoidant learning algorithm). The other is a neural network that does not have some critical points introduced by the hierarchical structure as an inherent property (called avoidant neural network).

Tetrazole amphiphile inducing growth of conducting polymers hierarchical nanostructures and their electromagnetic absorption properties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xie, Aming; Sun, Mengxiao; Zhang, Kun; Xia, Yilu; Wu, Fan

2018-05-01

Conducting polymers (CPs) at nano scales endow materials with special optical, electrical, and magnetic properties. The crucial factor to construct and regulate the micro-structures of CPs is the inducing reagent, particular in its chemical structure, such active sites, self-assembling properties. In this paper, we design and synthesize an amphiphile bearing tetrazole moiety on its skeleton, and use this amphiphile as an inducing reagent to prepare and regulate the micro-structures of a series of CPs including polypyrrole, polyaniline, poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) and poly(p-phenylenediamine). Because of the unique electric properties of CPs and size effect, we next explored the electromagnetic absorption performances of these CPs nanostructures. A synergetic combination of electric loss and magnetic loss is used to explain the absorption mechanism of these CPs nano-structures.

Improved Adhesion and Compliancy of Hierarchical Fibrillar Adhesives.

PubMed

Li, Yasong; Gates, Byron D; Menon, Carlo

2015-08-05

The gecko relies on van der Waals forces to cling onto surfaces with a variety of topography and composition. The hierarchical fibrillar structures on their climbing feet, ranging from mesoscale to nanoscale, are hypothesized to be key elements for the animal to conquer both smooth and rough surfaces. An epoxy-based artificial hierarchical fibrillar adhesive was prepared to study the influence of the hierarchical structures on the properties of a dry adhesive. The presented experiments highlight the advantages of a hierarchical structure despite a reduction of overall density and aspect ratio of nanofibrils. In contrast to an adhesive containing only nanometer-size fibrils, the hierarchical fibrillar adhesives exhibited a higher adhesion force and better compliancy when tested on an identical substrate.

Evaluating Hierarchical Structure in Music Annotations

PubMed Central

McFee, Brian; Nieto, Oriol; Farbood, Morwaread M.; Bello, Juan Pablo

2017-01-01

Music exhibits structure at multiple scales, ranging from motifs to large-scale functional components. When inferring the structure of a piece, different listeners may attend to different temporal scales, which can result in disagreements when they describe the same piece. In the field of music informatics research (MIR), it is common to use corpora annotated with structural boundaries at different levels. By quantifying disagreements between multiple annotators, previous research has yielded several insights relevant to the study of music cognition. First, annotators tend to agree when structural boundaries are ambiguous. Second, this ambiguity seems to depend on musical features, time scale, and genre. Furthermore, it is possible to tune current annotation evaluation metrics to better align with these perceptual differences. However, previous work has not directly analyzed the effects of hierarchical structure because the existing methods for comparing structural annotations are designed for “flat” descriptions, and do not readily generalize to hierarchical annotations. In this paper, we extend and generalize previous work on the evaluation of hierarchical descriptions of musical structure. We derive an evaluation metric which can compare hierarchical annotations holistically across multiple levels. sing this metric, we investigate inter-annotator agreement on the multilevel annotations of two different music corpora, investigate the influence of acoustic properties on hierarchical annotations, and evaluate existing hierarchical segmentation algorithms against the distribution of inter-annotator agreement. PMID:28824514

Life in the Outer Limits: Insight into Hierarchical Merging from the Outermost Structure of the Andromeda Stellar Halo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beaton, Rachael; Majewski, S. R.; Patterson, R. J.; Guhathakurta, P.; Gilbert, K.; Kalirai, J. S.; Tollerud, E. J.; SPLASH Team

2014-01-01

Owing to their large dynamical timescales, the stellar haloes of Milky Way (MW) sized galaxies represent ideal environments to test modern theories of galaxy formation in the Lambda-CDM paradigm. Only in stellar haloes can the remnants of hierarchical accretion be preserved over long timescales as in-tact dwarf satellites or as tidal debris and can be easily distinguished from the underlying smooth structure. Stellar haloes, however, remain some of the most difficult galactic structures to constrain due to their large angular extent and extremely low surface brightness. Thus, the basic properties of stellar haloes -- the overall stellar distribution, substructure fraction, global kinematics and detailed stellar content -- remained relatively unconstrained. In this thesis, we present several projects designed to understand the current structure and the the formation of the Andromeda (M31) stellar halo, the only stellar halo -- besides our own -- that is within reach of current ground based facilities on the large scale required to constrain the basic properties of stellar haloes. First, we describe a seven season imaging campaign comprising the backbone of the Spectroscopic and Photometric Landscape of the Andromeda Stellar Halo (SPLASH) program. This survey is unique in its application of the Washington + DDO51 filter system to select individual M31 RGB stars without spectroscopic follow up. Second, we use the SPLASH photometric survey to identify sample of halo stars at projected radii of 120 kpc, for which we have obtained spectroscopic follow-up. Third, we add this large radius sample to the existing spectroscopic results from SPLASH, and use this unique sample to explore the stellar kinematics of the halo at large radii with full azimuthal coverage. Lastly, we preview on-going work to constrain the formation of the Andromeda stellar halo, using both in-tact satellites and resolved M31 halo members as tracers of its accretion history.

Hierarchical LiFePO4 with a controllable growth of the (010) facet for lithium-ion batteries.

PubMed

Guo, Binbin; Ruan, Hongcheng; Zheng, Cheng; Fei, Hailong; Wei, Mingdeng

2013-09-27

Hierarchically structured LiFePO4 was successfully synthesized by ionic liquid solvothermal method. These hierarchically structured LiFePO4 samples were constructed from nanostructured platelets with their (010) facets mainly exposed. To the best of our knowledge, facet control of a hierarchical LiFePO4 crystal has not been reported yet. Based on a series of experimental results, a tentative mechanism for the formation of these hierarchical structures was proposed. After these hierarchically structured LiFePO4 samples were coated with a thin carbon layer and used as cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries, they exhibited excellent high-rate discharge capability and cycling stability. For instance, a capacity of 95% can be maintained for the LiFePO4 sample at a rate as high as 20 C, even after 1000 cycles.

Mathematical structure of unit systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kitano, Masao

2013-05-01

We investigate the mathematical structure of unit systems and the relations between them. Looking over the entire set of unit systems, we can find a mathematical structure that is called preorder (or quasi-order). For some pair of unit systems, there exists a relation of preorder such that one unit system is transferable to the other unit system. The transfer (or conversion) is possible only when all of the quantities distinguishable in the latter system are always distinguishable in the former system. By utilizing this structure, we can systematically compare the representations in different unit systems. Especially, the equivalence class of unit systems (EUS) plays an important role because the representations of physical quantities and equations are of the same form in unit systems belonging to an EUS. The dimension of quantities is uniquely defined in each EUS. The EUS's form a partially ordered set. Using these mathematical structures, unit systems and EUS's are systematically classified and organized as a hierarchical tree.

Synthesis and Characterization Hierarchical Three-Dimensional TiO2 Structure via Hydrothermal Method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Syuhada, N.; Yuliarto, B.; Nugraha

2018-05-01

TiO2 is one of the most potential candidates due to its fascinating properties for multi-discipline fields. One dimensional nanostructure TiO2 such as nanotube and nanorods has been widely used for many devices technology. Compare with one-dimensional nanostructure TiO2; the hierarchical TiO2 has not been widely applied. Three dimensional TiO2 play a promising role for application in many different fields such as photovoltaics, photocatalytic and a gas sensor. Herein, we report that the hierarchically structures TiO2 have been successfully obtained by the one-pot Hydrothermal process. The growth mechanism of Titania was controlled by Titanium (IV) isopropoxide (TTIP). Ethylene glycol (EG). Hydrochloric acid (HCl). Hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) molar ratio. TTIP was used as titanium source and CTAB as a soft template. The molar ratio of TTIP. EG. HCl. CTAB was 0.1:0.2:0.4:0.001. Those samples were synthesized using the hydrothermal method at 180 °C for 20 h. The purpose of this work was focused on investigating morphology, crystallite size, crystalline phase, and particle size. The properties of these materials were characterized by XRay Diffraction, Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy and Scanning Electron Microscope. It was found all particles exhibited unique spherical morphology which arranged by nanorods and good distribution nanoparticle. The Average size of the sphere has range 1 µm to 3 µm with diameter nanorods 60 nm to 100 nm. The TiO2 spheres were constructed of interconnected nanorods and formed a three dimensional (3D) porous framework. XRD analysis confirmed that sample consisted of pure rutile crystal structure with crystallite size was 50 nm, and EDS revealed an elemental content of Ti 61.03 % and O 38.97 %.

Controllable synthesis of layered Co-Ni hydroxide hierarchical structures for high-performance hybrid supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yuan, Peng; Zhang, Ning; Zhang, Dan; Liu, Tao; Chen, Limiao; Ma, Renzhi; Qiu, Guanzhou; Liu, Xiaohe

2016-01-01

A facile solvothermal method is developed for synthesizing layered Co-Ni hydroxide hierarchical structures by using hexamethylenetetramine (HMT) as alkaline reagent. The electrochemical measurements reveal that the specific capacitances of layered bimetallic (Co-Ni) hydroxides are generally superior to those of layered monometallic (Co, Ni) hydroxides. The as-prepared Co0.5Ni0.5 hydroxide hierarchical structures possesses the highest specific capacitance of 1767 F g-1 at a galvanic current density of 1 A g-1 and an outstanding specific capacitance retention of 87% after 1000 cycles. In comparison with the dispersed nanosheets of Co-Ni hydroxide, layered hydroxide hierarchical structures show much superior electrochemical performance. This study provides a promising method to construct hierarchical structures with controllable transition-metal compositions for enhancing the electrochemical performance in hybrid supercapacitors.

On Hierarchical Threshold Access Structures

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-11-01

One of the recent generalizations of (t, n) secret sharing for hierarchical threshold access structures is given by Tassa, where he answers the...of theoretical background. We give a conceptually simpler alternative for the understanding of the realization of hierarchical threshold access

The Voronoi spatio-temporal data structure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mioc, Darka

2002-04-01

Current GIS models cannot integrate the temporal dimension of spatial data easily. Indeed, current GISs do not support incremental (local) addition and deletion of spatial objects, and they can not support the temporal evolution of spatial data. Spatio-temporal facilities would be very useful in many GIS applications: harvesting and forest planning, cadastre, urban and regional planning, and emergency planning. The spatio-temporal model that can overcome these problems is based on a topological model---the Voronoi data structure. Voronoi diagrams are irregular tessellations of space, that adapt to spatial objects and therefore they are a synthesis of raster and vector spatial data models. The main advantage of the Voronoi data structure is its local and sequential map updates, which allows us to automatically record each event and performed map updates within the system. These map updates are executed through map construction commands that are composed of atomic actions (geometric algorithms for addition, deletion, and motion of spatial objects) on the dynamic Voronoi data structure. The formalization of map commands led to the development of a spatial language comprising a set of atomic operations or constructs on spatial primitives (points and lines), powerful enough to define the complex operations. This resulted in a new formal model for spatio-temporal change representation, where each update is uniquely characterized by the numbers of newly created and inactivated Voronoi regions. This is used for the extension of the model towards the hierarchical Voronoi data structure. In this model, spatio-temporal changes induced by map updates are preserved in a hierarchical data structure that combines events and corresponding changes in topology. This hierarchical Voronoi data structure has an implicit time ordering of events visible through changes in topology, and it is equivalent to an event structure that can support temporal data without precise temporal information. This formal model of spatio-temporal change representation is currently applied to retroactive map updates and visualization of map evolution. It offers new possibilities in the domains of temporal GIS, transaction processing, spatio-temporal queries, spatio-temporal analysis, map animation and map visualization.

3D Printing of Hierarchical Silk Fibroin Structures.

PubMed

Sommer, Marianne R; Schaffner, Manuel; Carnelli, Davide; Studart, André R

2016-12-21

Like many other natural materials, silk is hierarchically structured from the amino acid level up to the cocoon or spider web macroscopic structures. Despite being used industrially in a number of applications, hierarchically structured silk fibroin objects with a similar degree of architectural control as in natural structures have not been produced yet due to limitations in fabrication processes. In a combined top-down and bottom-up approach, we exploit the freedom in macroscopic design offered by 3D printing and the template-guided assembly of ink building blocks at the meso- and nanolevel to fabricate hierarchical silk porous materials with unprecedented structural control. Pores with tunable sizes in the range 40-350 μm are generated by adding sacrificial organic microparticles as templates to a silk fibroin-based ink. Commercially available wax particles or monodisperse polycaprolactone made by microfluidics can be used as microparticle templates. Since closed pores are generated after template removal, an ultrasonication treatment can optionally be used to achieve open porosity. Such pore templating particles can be further modified with nanoparticles to create a hierarchical template that results in porous structures with a defined nanotopography on the pore walls. The hierarchically porous silk structures obtained with this processing technique can potentially be utilized in various application fields from structural materials to thermal insulation to tissue engineering scaffolds.

Application of a hierarchical structure stochastic learning automation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Neville, R. G.; Chrystall, M. S.; Mars, P.

1979-01-01

A hierarchical structure automaton was developed using a two state stochastic learning automato (SLA) in a time shared model. Application of the hierarchical SLA to systems with multidimensional, multimodal performance criteria is described. Results of experiments performed with the hierarchical SLA using a performance index with a superimposed noise component of ? or - delta distributed uniformly over the surface are discussed.

Three-dimensional hierarchical and interconnected honeycomb-like porous carbon derived from pomelo peel for high performance supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Jingyuan; Li, Hongpeng; Zhang, Hongsen; Liu, Qi; Li, Rumin; Li, Bin; Wang, Jun

2018-01-01

The urgent need for sustainable development of human society has forced material scientists to explore novel materials starting from cheap natural precursors for next-generation energy storage devices by using environmentally friendly strategies. In this work, heteroatom-functionalized porous carbonaceous materials with 3D hierarchical and interconnected honeycomb-like structure have been successfully synthesized by using waste biomass pomelo peel as raw material through the combination of hydrothermal carbonization and followed KOH activation procedure. Benefiting from the unique honeycomb-like structure and high specific surface area, the as-obtained carbon material exhibits satisfactory capacitive behavior: 374 F/g at 0.1 A/g; excellent cycling stability of 92.5% capacitance retention over continuous 5000 cycles. More importantly, the as-assembled symmetric supercapacitors based on as-prepared electrode material can deliver high gravimetric and volumetric energy density of 20 W h/kg and 18.7 W h/L in 6 M KOH, respectively, as well as outstanding cycling stability. The obtained results demonstrate the possibility for taking full advantage of sustainable and large scale advanced carbon materials by choosing waste biomass, particularly the pomelo peel as a raw material.

Three dimensional carbon-bubble foams with hierarchical pores for ultra-long cycling life supercapacitors.

PubMed

Wang, Bowen; Zhang, Weigang; Wang, Lei; Wei, Jiake; Bai, Xuedong; Liu, Jingyue; Zhang, Guanhua; Duan, Huigao

2018-07-06

Design and synthesis of integrated, interconnected porous structures are critical to the development of high-performance supercapacitors. We develop a novel and facile synthesis technic to construct three-dimensional carbon-bubble foams with hierarchical pores geometry. The carbon-bubble foams are fabricated by conformally coating, via catalytic decomposition of ethanol, a layer of carbon coating onto the surfaces of pre-formed ZnO foams and then the removal of the ZnO template by a reduction-evaporation process. Both the wall thickness and the pore size can be well tuned by adjusting the catalytic decomposition time and temperature. The as-synthesized carbon-bubble foams electrode retains 90.3% of the initial capacitance even after 70 000 continuous cycles under a high current density of 20 A g -1 , demonstrating excellent long-time electrochemical and cycling stability. The symmetric device displays rate capability retention of 81.8% with the current density increasing from 0.4 to 20 A g -1 . These achieved electrochemical performances originate from the unique structural design of the carbon-bubble foams, which provide not only abundant transport channels for electron and ion but also high active surface area accessible by the electrolyte ions.

Three dimensional carbon-bubble foams with hierarchical pores for ultra-long cycling life supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Bowen; Zhang, Weigang; Wang, Lei; Wei, Jiake; Bai, Xuedong; Liu, Jingyue; Zhang, Guanhua; Duan, Huigao

2018-07-01

Design and synthesis of integrated, interconnected porous structures are critical to the development of high-performance supercapacitors. We develop a novel and facile synthesis technic to construct three-dimensional carbon-bubble foams with hierarchical pores geometry. The carbon-bubble foams are fabricated by conformally coating, via catalytic decomposition of ethanol, a layer of carbon coating onto the surfaces of pre-formed ZnO foams and then the removal of the ZnO template by a reduction-evaporation process. Both the wall thickness and the pore size can be well tuned by adjusting the catalytic decomposition time and temperature. The as-synthesized carbon-bubble foams electrode retains 90.3% of the initial capacitance even after 70 000 continuous cycles under a high current density of 20 A g‑1, demonstrating excellent long-time electrochemical and cycling stability. The symmetric device displays rate capability retention of 81.8% with the current density increasing from 0.4 to 20 A g‑1. These achieved electrochemical performances originate from the unique structural design of the carbon-bubble foams, which provide not only abundant transport channels for electron and ion but also high active surface area accessible by the electrolyte ions.

Wetting and Dewetting Transitions on Submerged Superhydrophobic Surfaces with Hierarchical Structures.

PubMed

Wu, Huaping; Yang, Zhe; Cao, Binbin; Zhang, Zheng; Zhu, Kai; Wu, Bingbing; Jiang, Shaofei; Chai, Guozhong

2017-01-10

The wetting transition on submersed superhydrophobic surfaces with hierarchical structures and the influence of trapped air on superhydrophobic stability are predicted based on the thermodynamics and mechanical analyses. The dewetting transition on the hierarchically structured surfaces is investigated, and two necessary thermodynamic conditions and a mechanical balance condition for dewetting transition are proposed. The corresponding thermodynamic phase diagram of reversible transition and the critical reversed pressure well explain the experimental results reported previously. Our theory provides a useful guideline for precise controlling of breaking down and recovering of superhydrophobicity by designing superhydrophobic surfaces with hierarchical structures under water.

Materials with structural hierarchy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lakes, Roderic

1993-01-01

The role of structural hierarchy in determining bulk material properties is examined. Dense hierarchical materials are discussed, including composites and polycrystals, polymers, and biological materials. Hierarchical cellular materials are considered, including cellular solids and the prediction of strength and stiffness in hierarchical cellular materials.

Tailoring lumazine synthase assemblies for bionanotechnology.

PubMed

Azuma, Yusuke; Edwardson, Thomas G W; Hilvert, Donald

2018-05-21

Nanoscale compartments formed by hierarchical protein self-assembly are valuable platforms for nanotechnology development. The well-defined structure and broad chemical functionality of protein cages, as well as their amenability to genetic and chemical modification, have enabled their repurposing for diverse applications. In this review, we summarize progress in the engineering of the cage-forming enzyme lumazine synthase. This bacterial nanocompartment has proven to be a malleable scaffold. The natural protein has been diversified to afford a family of unique proteinaceous capsules that have been modified, evolved and assembled with other components to produce nanoreactors, artificial organelles, delivery vehicles and virus mimics.

Formation of Uniform Hollow Silica microcapsules

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, Huan; Kim, Chanjoong

2012-02-01

Microcapsules are small containers with diameters in the range of 0.1 -- 100 μm. Mesoporous microcapsules with hollow morphologies possess unique properties such as low-density and high encapsulation capacity, while allowing controlled release by permeating substances with a specific size and chemistry. Our process is a one-step fabrication of monodisperse hollow silica capsules with a hierarchical pore structure and high size uniformity using double emulsion templates obtained by the glass-capillary microfluidic technique to encapsulate various active ingredients. These hollow silica microcapsules can be used as biomedical applications such as drug delivery and controlled release.

Formation of Uniform Hollow Silica microcapsules

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, Huan; Kim, Chanjoong

2013-03-01

Microcapsules are small containers with diameters in the range of 0.1 - 100 μm. Mesoporous microcapsules with hollow morphologies possess unique properties such as low-density and high encapsulation capacity, while allowing controlled release by permeating substances with a specific size and chemistry. Our process is a one-step fabrication of monodisperse hollow silica capsules with a hierarchical pore structure and high size uniformity using double emulsion templates obtained by the glass-capillary microfluidic technique to encapsulate various active ingredients. These hollow silica microcapsules can be used as biomedical applications such as drug delivery and controlled release.

Influence of nanomaterials on stem cell differentiation: designing an appropriate nanobiointerface

PubMed Central

Ilie, Ioana; Ilie, Razvan; Mocan, Teodora; Bartos, Dana; Mocan, Lucian

2012-01-01

During the last decade, due to advances in functionalization chemistry, novel nanobiomaterials with applications in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine have been developed. These novel materials with their unique physical and chemical properties are bioactive hierarchical structures that hold great promise for future development of human tissues. Thus, various nanomaterials are currently being intensively explored in the directed differentiation of stem cells, the design of novel bioactive scaffolds, and new research avenues towards tissue regeneration. This paper illustrates the latest achievements in the applications of nanotechnology in tissue engineering in the field of regenerative medicine. PMID:22619557

Unique Associations between Peer Relations and Social Anxiety in Early Adolescence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Flanagan, Kelly S.; Erath, Stephen A.; Bierman, Karen L.

2008-01-01

This study examined the unique associations between feelings of social anxiety and multiple dimensions of peer relations (positive peer nominations, peer- and self-reported peer victimization, and self-reported friendship quality) among 383 sixth- and seventh-grade students. Hierarchical regression analysis provided evidence for the unique…

Design Rules for Tailoring Antireflection Properties of Hierarchical Optical Structures

DOE PAGES

Leon, Juan J. Diaz; Hiszpanski, Anna M.; Bond, Tiziana C.; ...

2017-05-18

Hierarchical structures consisting of small sub-wavelength features stacked atop larger structures have been demonstrated as an effective means of reducing the reflectance of surfaces. However, optical devices require different antireflective properties depending on the application, and general unifying guidelines on hierarchical structures' design to attain a desired antireflection spectral response are still lacking. The type of reflectivity (diffuse, specular, or total/hemispherical) and its angular- and spectral-dependence are all dictated by the structural parameters. Through computational and experimental studies, guidelines have been devised to modify these various aspects of reflectivity across the solar spectrum by proper selection of the features ofmore » hierarchical structures. In this wavelength regime, micrometer-scale substructures dictate the long-wavelength spectral response and effectively reduce specular reflectance, whereas nanometer-scale substructures dictate primarily the visible wavelength spectral response and reduce diffuse reflectance. Coupling structures having these two length scales into hierarchical arrays impressively reduces surfaces' hemispherical reflectance across a broad spectrum of wavelengths and angles. Furthermore, such hierarchical structures in silicon are demonstrated having an average total reflectance across the solar spectrum of 1.1% (average weighted reflectance of 1% in the 280–2500 nm range of the AM 1.5 G spectrum) and specular reflectance <1% even at angles of incidence as high as 67°.« less

Asymmetric supercapacitors with high energy density based on helical hierarchical porous NaxMnO2 and MoO2 † †Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5sc03326h Click here for additional data file.

PubMed Central

Lu, Xue-Feng; Huang, Zhi-Xiang; Tong, Ye-Xiang

2016-01-01

Helical hierarchical porous NaxMnO2/CC and MoO2/CC, which are assembled from nanosheets and nanoparticles, respectively, are fabricated using a simple electrodeposition method. These unique helical porous structures enable electrodes to have a high capacitance and an outstanding cycling performance. Based on the helical NaxMnO2/CC as the positive electrodes and helical MoO2/CC as the negative electrodes, high performance NaxMnO2/CC//MoO2/CC asymmetric supercapacitors (ASCs) are successfully assembled, and they achieve a maximum volume C sp of 2.04 F cm–3 and a maximum energy density of 0.92 mW h cm–3 for the whole device and an excellent cycling stability with 97.22% C sp retention after 6000 cycles. PMID:28791103

Free-standing hierarchically sandwich-type tungsten disulfide nanotubes/graphene anode for lithium-ion batteries.

PubMed

Chen, Renjie; Zhao, Teng; Wu, Weiping; Wu, Feng; Li, Li; Qian, Ji; Xu, Rui; Wu, Huiming; Albishri, Hassan M; Al-Bogami, A S; El-Hady, Deia Abd; Lu, Jun; Amine, Khalil

2014-10-08

Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMD), analogue of graphene, could form various dimensionalities. Similar to carbon, one-dimensional (1D) nanotube of TMD materials has wide application in hydrogen storage, Li-ion batteries, and supercapacitors due to their unique structure and properties. Here we demonstrate the feasibility of tungsten disulfide nanotubes (WS2-NTs)/graphene (GS) sandwich-type architecture as anode for lithium-ion batteries for the first time. The graphene-based hierarchical architecture plays vital roles in achieving fast electron/ion transfer, thus leading to good electrochemical performance. When evaluated as anode, WS2-NTs/GS hybrid could maintain a capacity of 318.6 mA/g over 500 cycles at a current density of 1A/g. Besides, the hybrid anode does not require any additional polymetric binder, conductive additives, or a separate metal current-collector. The relatively high density of this hybrid is beneficial for high capacity per unit volume. Those characteristics make it a potential anode material for light and high-performance lithium-ion batteries.

Hierarchical Bayesian Model Averaging for Non-Uniqueness and Uncertainty Analysis of Artificial Neural Networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fijani, E.; Chitsazan, N.; Nadiri, A.; Tsai, F. T.; Asghari Moghaddam, A.

2012-12-01

Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) have been widely used to estimate concentration of chemicals in groundwater systems. However, estimation uncertainty is rarely discussed in the literature. Uncertainty in ANN output stems from three sources: ANN inputs, ANN parameters (weights and biases), and ANN structures. Uncertainty in ANN inputs may come from input data selection and/or input data error. ANN parameters are naturally uncertain because they are maximum-likelihood estimated. ANN structure is also uncertain because there is no unique ANN model given a specific case. Therefore, multiple plausible AI models are generally resulted for a study. One might ask why good models have to be ignored in favor of the best model in traditional estimation. What is the ANN estimation variance? How do the variances from different ANN models accumulate to the total estimation variance? To answer these questions we propose a Hierarchical Bayesian Model Averaging (HBMA) framework. Instead of choosing one ANN model (the best ANN model) for estimation, HBMA averages outputs of all plausible ANN models. The model weights are based on the evidence of data. Therefore, the HBMA avoids overconfidence on the single best ANN model. In addition, HBMA is able to analyze uncertainty propagation through aggregation of ANN models in a hierarchy framework. This method is applied for estimation of fluoride concentration in the Poldasht plain and the Bazargan plain in Iran. Unusually high fluoride concentration in the Poldasht and Bazargan plains has caused negative effects on the public health. Management of this anomaly requires estimation of fluoride concentration distribution in the area. The results show that the HBMA provides a knowledge-decision-based framework that facilitates analyzing and quantifying ANN estimation uncertainties from different sources. In addition HBMA allows comparative evaluation of the realizations for each source of uncertainty by segregating the uncertainty sources in a hierarchical framework. Fluoride concentration estimation using the HBMA method shows better agreement to the observation data in the test step because they are not based on a single model with a non-dominate weights.

Culture Modulates the Brain Response to Harmonic Violations: An EEG Study on Hierarchical Syntactic Structure in Music.

PubMed

Akrami, Haleh; Moghimi, Sahar

2017-01-01

We investigated the role of culture in processing hierarchical syntactic structures in music. We examined whether violation of non-local dependencies manifest in event related potentials (ERP) for Western and Iranian excerpts by recording EEG while participants passively listened to sequences of modified/original excerpts. We also investigated oscillatory and synchronization properties of brain responses during processing of hierarchical structures. For the Western excerpt, subjective ratings of conclusiveness were marginally significant and the difference in the ERP components fell short of significance. However, ERP and behavioral results showed that while listening to culturally familiar music, subjects comprehended whether or not the hierarchical syntactic structure was fulfilled. Irregularities in the hierarchical structures of the Iranian excerpt elicited an early negativity in the central regions bilaterally, followed by two later negativities from 450-700 to 750-950 ms. The latter manifested throughout the scalp. Moreover, violations of hierarchical structure in the Iranian excerpt were associated with (i) an early decrease in the long range alpha phase synchronization, (ii) an early increase in the oscillatory activity in the beta band over the central areas, and (iii) a late decrease in the theta band phase synchrony between left anterior and right posterior regions. Results suggest that rhythmic structures and melodic fragments, representative of Iranian music, created a familiar context in which recognition of complex non-local syntactic structures was feasible for Iranian listeners. Processing of neural responses to the Iranian excerpt indicated neural mechanisms for processing of hierarchical syntactic structures in music at different levels of cortical integration.

Masking effects of speech and music: does the masker's hierarchical structure matter?

PubMed

Shi, Lu-Feng; Law, Yvonne

2010-04-01

Speech and music are time-varying signals organized by parallel hierarchical rules. Through a series of four experiments, this study compared the masking effects of single-talker speech and instrumental music on speech perception while manipulating the complexity of hierarchical and temporal structures of the maskers. Listeners' word recognition was found to be similar between hierarchically intact and disrupted speech or classical music maskers (Experiment 1). When sentences served as the signal, significantly greater masking effects were observed with disrupted than intact speech or classical music maskers (Experiment 2), although not with jazz or serial music maskers, which differed from the classical music masker in their hierarchical structures (Experiment 3). Removing the classical music masker's temporal dynamics or partially restoring it affected listeners' sentence recognition; yet, differences in performance between intact and disrupted maskers remained robust (Experiment 4). Hence, the effect of structural expectancy was largely present across maskers when comparing them before and after their hierarchical structure was purposefully disrupted. This effect seemed to lend support to the auditory stream segregation theory.

An Analysis of Turkey's PISA 2015 Results Using Two-Level Hierarchical Linear Modelling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Atas, Dogu; Karadag, Özge

2017-01-01

In the field of education, most of the data collected are multi-level structured. Cities, city based schools, school based classes and finally students in the classrooms constitute a hierarchical structure. Hierarchical linear models give more accurate results compared to standard models when the data set has a structure going far as individuals,…

Ray tracing a three-dimensional scene using a hierarchical data structure

DOEpatents

Wald, Ingo; Boulos, Solomon; Shirley, Peter

2012-09-04

Ray tracing a three-dimensional scene made up of geometric primitives that are spatially partitioned into a hierarchical data structure. One example embodiment is a method for ray tracing a three-dimensional scene made up of geometric primitives that are spatially partitioned into a hierarchical data structure. In this example embodiment, the hierarchical data structure includes at least a parent node and a corresponding plurality of child nodes. The method includes a first act of determining that a first active ray in the packet hits the parent node and a second act of descending to each of the plurality of child nodes.

Hierarchical Nanostructures of Nitrogen-Doped Porous Carbon Polyhedrons Confined in Carbon Nanosheets for High-Performance Supercapacitors.

PubMed

Zhao, Zhe; Liu, Siliang; Zhu, Jixin; Xu, Jingsan; Li, Le; Huang, Zhaoqi; Zhang, Chao; Liu, Tianxi

2018-05-31

Interconnected close-packed nitrogen-doped porous carbon polyhedrons (NCPs) confined in two-dimensional carbon nanosheets (CNSs) have been prepared through a sustainable one-pot pyrolysis of a simple solid mixture of zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) crystals and with organic potassium as the precursors. The hierarchically organized framework of the NCP-CNS composites enables NCPs and CNSs to act as well-defined electrolyte reservoirs and mechanical buffers accommodating large volume expansions of NCPs, respectively. Among the unique composite nanostructures, the NCPs with vast micropores provide electric double-layer capacitances, while the CNSs bridge the individual NCPs to form a conductive pathway with a hierarchical porosity. As a result, the NCP-CNS composites with high electrical integrity and structural stability are used as electrode materials for high-performance supercapacitors, which exhibit excellent electrochemical capacitive characteristics in terms of an outstanding capacitance of 300 F g -1 at 1 A g -1 , large energy density of 20.9 W h kg -1 , and great cycling performance of 100% retention after 6000 cycles. This work therefore presents a one-pot and efficient strategy to prepare an ordered arrangement of ZIF-8-derived porous carbons toward new electrode materials in promising energy storage systems.

3D interconnected hierarchical porous N-doped carbon constructed by flake-like nanostructure with Fe/Fe3C for efficient oxygen reduction reaction and supercapacitor.

PubMed

Li, Guoning; Zhang, Jiajun; Li, Weisong; Fan, Kai; Xu, Chunjian

2018-05-17

Hierarchical porous N-doped carbon with Fe/Fe3C nanoparticles, high content of N dopants (10.51 wt%), and a 3D interconnected porous architecture constructed by flake-like nanostructure was facilely prepared by carbonization of a zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) as a self-sacrificing template and potassium ferricyanide (PF) as a multifunctional iron precursor. The unique porous structure can offer a continuous pathway for electron transfer and shorten the mass transfer pathway, which contribute to both an oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and a supercapacitor. The influence of the carbonization temperature and iron content on the performance of ORR and supercapacitor was investigated. The as-prepared composites carbonized at 800 °C (Fe-CZIF-800-10) displayed comparable ORR activity with Pt/C in alkaline media as well as excellent long-term stability, superb methanol tolerance, and appreciable onset potential in acid media. Moreover, Fe-CZIF-800-10 exhibited excellent capacity of 246 F g-1 at a current density of 0.5 A g-1 and stability in 6 M KOH. This report provides a facile approach to prepare hierarchical porous Fe/N-doped carbon as a promising electrode material for both fuel cell and supercapacitor applications.

3D Networked Tin Oxide/Graphene Aerogel with a Hierarchically Porous Architecture for High-Rate Performance Sodium-Ion Batteries.

PubMed

Xie, Xiuqiang; Chen, Shuangqiang; Sun, Bing; Wang, Chengyin; Wang, Guoxiu

2015-09-07

Low-cost and sustainable sodium-ion batteries are regarded as a promising technology for large-scale energy storage and conversion. The development of high-rate anode materials is highly desirable for sodium-ion batteries. The optimization of mass transport and electron transfer is crucial in the discovery of electrode materials with good high-rate performances. Herein, we report the synthesis of 3 D interconnected SnO2 /graphene aerogels with a hierarchically porous structure as anode materials for sodium-ion batteries. The unique 3 D architecture was prepared by a facile in situ process, during which cross-linked 3 D conductive graphene networks with macro-/meso-sized hierarchical pores were formed and SnO2 nanoparticles were dispersed uniformly on the graphene surface simultaneously. Such a 3 D functional architecture not only facilitates the electrode-electrolyte interaction but also provides an efficient electron pathway within the graphene networks. When applied as anode materials in sodium-ion batteries, the as-prepared SnO2 /graphene aerogel exhibited high reversible capacity, improved cycling performance compared to SnO2 , and promising high-rate capability. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Tubular structured hierarchical mesoporous titania material derived from natural cellulosic substances and application as photocatalyst for degradation of methylene blue

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Huang, Haiqing; Liu, Xiaoyan; Huang, Jianguo, E-mail: jghuang@zju.edu.cn

Graphical abstract: Bio-inspired, tubular structured hierarchical mesoporous titania material with high photocatalytic activity under UV light was fabricated employing natural cellulosic substance (cotton) as hard template and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) surfactant as soft template using a one-pot sol-gel method. Highlights: {yields} Tubular structured mesoporous titania material was fabricated by sol-gel method. {yields} The titania material faithfully recorded the hierarchical structure of the template substrate (cotton). {yields} The titania material exhibited high photocatalytic activity in decomposition of methylene blue. -- Abstract: Bio-inspired, tubular structured hierarchical mesoporous titania material was designed and fabricated employing natural cellulosic substance (cotton) as hard template andmore » cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) surfactant as soft template by one-pot sol-gel method. The tubular structured hierarchical mesoporous titania material processes large specific surface area (40.23 m{sup 2}/g) and shows high photocatalytic activity in the photodegradation of methylene blue under UV light irradiation.« less

Hierarchical macroscopic fibrillar adhesives: in situ study of buckling and adhesion mechanisms on wavy substrates.

PubMed

Bauer, Christina T; Kroner, Elmar; Fleck, Norman A; Arzt, Eduard

2015-10-23

Nature uses hierarchical fibrillar structures to mediate temporary adhesion to arbitrary substrates. Such structures provide high compliance such that the flat fibril tips can be better positioned with respect to asperities of a wavy rough substrate. We investigated the buckling and adhesion of hierarchically structured adhesives in contact with flat smooth, flat rough and wavy rough substrates. A macroscopic model for the structural adhesive was fabricated by molding polydimethylsiloxane into pillars of diameter in the range of 0.3-4.8 mm, with up to three different hierarchy levels. Both flat-ended and mushroom-shaped hierarchical samples buckled at preloads one quarter that of the single level structures. We explain this behavior by a change in the buckling mode; buckling leads to a loss of contact and diminishes adhesion. Our results indicate that hierarchical structures can have a strong influence on the degree of adhesion on both flat and wavy substrates. Strategies are discussed that achieve highly compliant substrates which adhere to rough substrates.

Effects of hierarchical structures and insulating liquid media on adhesion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Weixu; Wang, Xiaoli; Li, Hanqing; Song, Xintao

2017-11-01

Effects of hierarchical structures and insulating liquid media on adhesion are investigated through a numerical adhesive contact model established in this paper, in which hierarchical structures are considered by introducing the height distribution into the surface gap equation, and media are taken into account through the Hamaker constant in Lifshitz-Hamaker approach. Computational methods such as inexact Newton method, bi-conjugate stabilized (Bi-CGSTAB) method and fast Fourier transform (FFT) technique are employed to obtain the adhesive force. It is shown that hierarchical structured surface exhibits excellent anti-adhesive properties compared with flat, micro or nano structured surfaces. Adhesion force is more dependent on the sizes of nanostructures than those of microstructures, and the optimal ranges of nanostructure pitch and maximum height for small adhesion force are presented. Insulating liquid media effectively decrease the adhesive interaction and 1-bromonaphthalene exhibits the smallest adhesion force among the five selected media. In addition, effects of hierarchical structures with optimal sizes on reducing adhesion are more obvious than those of the selected insulating liquid media.

Applying macromolecular crowding to 3D bioprinting: fabrication of 3D hierarchical porous collagen-based hydrogel constructs.

PubMed

Ng, Wei Long; Goh, Min Hao; Yeong, Wai Yee; Naing, May Win

2018-02-27

Native tissues and/or organs possess complex hierarchical porous structures that confer highly-specific cellular functions. Despite advances in fabrication processes, it is still very challenging to emulate the hierarchical porous collagen architecture found in most native tissues. Hence, the ability to recreate such hierarchical porous structures would result in biomimetic tissue-engineered constructs. Here, a single-step drop-on-demand (DOD) bioprinting strategy is proposed to fabricate hierarchical porous collagen-based hydrogels. Printable macromolecule-based bio-inks (polyvinylpyrrolidone, PVP) have been developed and printed in a DOD manner to manipulate the porosity within the multi-layered collagen-based hydrogels by altering the collagen fibrillogenesis process. The experimental results have indicated that hierarchical porous collagen structures could be achieved by controlling the number of macromolecule-based bio-ink droplets printed on each printed collagen layer. This facile single-step bioprinting process could be useful for the structural design of collagen-based hydrogels for various tissue engineering applications.

CuO-Decorated ZnO Hierarchical Nanostructures as Efficient and Established Sensing Materials for H2S Gas Sensors

PubMed Central

Vuong, Nguyen Minh; Chinh, Nguyen Duc; Huy, Bui The; Lee, Yong-Ill

2016-01-01

Highly sensitive hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas sensors were developed from CuO-decorated ZnO semiconducting hierarchical nanostructures. The ZnO hierarchical nanostructure was fabricated by an electrospinning method following hydrothermal and heat treatment. CuO decoration of ZnO hierarchical structures was carried out by a wet method. The H2S gas-sensing properties were examined at different working temperatures using various quantities of CuO as the variable. CuO decoration of the ZnO hierarchical structure was observed to promote sensitivity for H2S gas higher than 30 times at low working temperature (200 °C) compared with that in the nondecorated hierarchical structure. The sensing mechanism of the hybrid sensor structure is also discussed. The morphology and characteristics of the samples were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV-vis absorption, photoluminescence (PL), and electrical measurements. PMID:27231026

Rod-like hierarchical Sn/SnOx@C nanostructures with enhanced lithium storage properties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Juan; Chen, Sanmei; Tang, Jingjing; Tian, Hangyu; Bai, Tao; Zhou, Xiangyang

2018-03-01

Rod-like hierarchical Sn/SnOx@C nanostructures have been designed and synthesized via calcining resorcinol-formaldehyde (RF) resin coated Sn-based metal-organic frameworks. The rod-like hierarchical Sn/SnOx@C nanostructures are made of a great number of carbon-wrapped primary Sn/SnOx nanospheres of 100-200 nm in diameter. The as-prepared hierarchical Sn/SnOx@C nanocomposite manifests a high initial reversible capacity of 1177 mAh g-1 and remains 1001 mAh g-1 after 240 cycles at a current density of 200 mA g-1. It delivers outstanding high-rate performance with a reversible capacity of 823 mAh g-1 even at a high current density of 1000 mA g-1. The enhanced electrochemical performances of the Sn/SnOx@C electrode are mainly attributed to the synergistic effect of the unique hierarchical micro/nanostructures and the protective carbon layer.

Vapour sensitivity of an ALD hierarchical photonic structure inspired by Morpho.

PubMed

Poncelet, Olivier; Tallier, Guillaume; Mouchet, Sébastien R; Crahay, André; Rasson, Jonathan; Kotipalli, Ratan; Deparis, Olivier; Francis, Laurent A

2016-05-09

The unique architecture of iridescent Morpho butterfly scales is known to exhibit different optical responses to various vapours. However, the mechanism behind this phenomenon is not fully quantitatively understood. This work reports on process developments in the micro-fabrication of a Morpho-inspired photonic structure in atomic layer deposited (ALD) materials in order to investigate the vapour optical sensitivity of such artificial nanostructures. By developing recipes for dry and wet etching of ALD oxides, we micro-fabricated two structures: one combining Al2O3 and TiO2, and the other combining Al2O3 and HfO2. For the first time, we report the optical response of such ALD Morpho-like structures measured under a controlled flow of either ethanol or isopropyl alcohol (IPA) vapour. In spite of the small magnitude of the effect, the results show a selective vapour response (depending on the materials used).

High electrochemical performances of hierarchical hydrangea macrophylla like NiCo{sub 2}O{sub 4} and NiCo{sub 2}S{sub 4} as anode materials for Li-ion batteries

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jin, Rencheng, E-mail: jinrc427@126.com; Liu, Gang; Liu, Chunping

2016-08-15

Graphical abstract: Mesoporous hydrangea macrophylla like NiCo{sub 2}O{sub 4} and NiCo{sub 2}S{sub 4} have been fabricated, which present excellent electrochemical performances as anode materials for Li-ion batteries. - Highlights: • Hierarchical NiCo{sub 2}O{sub 4} is successfully fabricated. • Hierarchical NiCo{sub 2}S{sub 4} is prepared via sulfide anion exchange. • The hierarchical NiCo{sub 2}O{sub 4} and NiCo{sub 2}S{sub 4} exhibit good electrochemical properties. - Abstract: In this work, hierarchical hydrangea macrophylla like NiCo{sub 2}O{sub 4} has been synthesized by solvothermal method followed by calcination treatment in air. By using Na{sub 2}S as sulfur source, the NiCo{sub 2}O{sub 4} is converted intomore » NiCo{sub 2}S{sub 4}. Such hierarchical NiCo{sub 2}O{sub 4} exhibits a high specific capacity and excellent cycling stability (928 mAh g{sup −1} at a current density of 100 mA g{sup −1} after 100 cycles). Even at high current density of 2000 mA g{sup −1}, the electrode still delivers a specific capacity of 371 mAh g{sup −1} after 50 cycles. When the NiCo{sub 2}S{sub 4} is used as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries, a high discharge capacity of 1204 mAh g{sup −1} can be achieved. Meanwhile, the NiCo{sub 2}S{sub 4} electrode displays good cycling stability and rate capability. The excellent electrochemical performances can be attributed to the unique porous structure, which can effectively reduce the diffusion length for lithium ions and electrons, and alleviate volume expansion during the charge-discharge processes.« less

An exactly solvable model of hierarchical self-assembly

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dudowicz, Jacek; Douglas, Jack F.; Freed, Karl F.

2009-06-01

Many living and nonliving structures in the natural world form by hierarchical organization, but physical theories that describe this type of organization are scarce. To address this problem, a model of equilibrium self-assembly is formulated in which dynamically associating species organize into hierarchical structures that preserve their shape at each stage of assembly. In particular, we consider symmetric m-gons that associate at their vertices into Sierpinski gasket structures involving the hierarchical association of triangles, squares, hexagons, etc., at their corner vertices, thereby leading to fractal structures after many generations of assembly. This rather idealized model of hierarchical assembly yields an infinite sequence of self-assembly transitions as the morphology progressively organizes to higher levels of the hierarchy, and these structures coexists at dynamic equilibrium, as found in real hierarchically self-assembling systems such as amyloid fiber forming proteins. Moreover, the transition sharpness progressively grows with increasing m, corresponding to larger and larger loops in the assembled structures. Calculations are provided for several basic thermodynamic properties (including the order parameters for assembly for each stage of the hierarchy, average mass of clusters, specific heat, transition sharpness, etc.) that are required for characterizing the interaction parameters governing this type of self-assembly and for elucidating other basic qualitative aspects of these systems. Our idealized model of hierarchical assembly gives many insights into this ubiquitous type of self-organization process.

Silver-cotton nanocomposites: Nano-design of microfibrillar structure causes morphological changes and increased tenacity

PubMed Central

Nam, Sunghyun; Condon, Brian D.; Delhom, Christopher D.; Fontenot, Krystal R.

2016-01-01

The interactions of nanoparticles with polymer hosts have important implications for directing the macroscopic properties of composite fibers, yet little is known about such interactions with hierarchically ordered natural polymers due to the difficulty of achieving uniform dispersion of nanoparticles within semi-crystalline natural fiber. In this study we have homogeneously dispersed silver nanoparticles throughout an entire volume of cotton fiber. The resulting electrostatic interaction and distinct supramolecular structure of the cotton fiber provided a favorable environment for the controlled formation of nanoparticles (12 ± 3 nm in diameter). With a high surface-to-volume ratio, the extensive interfacial contacts of the nanoparticles efficiently “glued” the structural elements of microfibrils together, producing a unique inorganic-organic hybrid substructure that reinforced the multilayered architecture of the cotton fiber. PMID:27849038

Novel hollow Pt-ZnO nanocomposite microspheres with hierarchical structure and enhanced photocatalytic activity and stability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Changlin; Yang, Kai; Xie, Yu; Fan, Qizhe; Yu, Jimmy C.; Shu, Qing; Wang, Chunying

2013-02-01

Noble metal/semiconductor nanocomposites play an important role in high efficient photocatalysis. Herein, we demonstrate a facile strategy for fabrication of hollow Pt-ZnO nanocomposite microspheres with hierarchical structure under mild solvothermal conditions using Zn (CH3COO)2.2H2O and HPtCl4 as the precursors, and polyethylene glycol-6000 (PEG-6000) and ethylene glycol as the reducing agent and solvent, respectively. The as-synthesized ZnO and Pt-ZnO composite nanocrystals were well characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), nitrogen-physical adsorption, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS), and photoluminescence (PL) emission spectroscopy. It was found that Pt content greatly influences the morphology of Pt-ZnO composite nanocrystals. Suitable concentration of HPtCl4 in the reaction solution system can produce well hierarchically hollow Pt-ZnO nanocomposite microspheres, which are composed of an assembly of fine Pt-ZnO nanocrystals. Photocatalytic tests of the Pt-ZnO microspheres for the degradation of the dye acid orange II revealed extremely high photocatalytic activity and stability compared with those of pure ZnO and corresponding Pt deposited ZnO. The remarkable photocatalytic performance of hollow Pt-ZnO microspheres mainly originated from their unique nanostructures and the low recombination rate of the e-/h+ pairs by the platinum nanoparticles embedded in ZnO nanocrystals.Noble metal/semiconductor nanocomposites play an important role in high efficient photocatalysis. Herein, we demonstrate a facile strategy for fabrication of hollow Pt-ZnO nanocomposite microspheres with hierarchical structure under mild solvothermal conditions using Zn (CH3COO)2.2H2O and HPtCl4 as the precursors, and polyethylene glycol-6000 (PEG-6000) and ethylene glycol as the reducing agent and solvent, respectively. The as-synthesized ZnO and Pt-ZnO composite nanocrystals were well characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), nitrogen-physical adsorption, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS), and photoluminescence (PL) emission spectroscopy. It was found that Pt content greatly influences the morphology of Pt-ZnO composite nanocrystals. Suitable concentration of HPtCl4 in the reaction solution system can produce well hierarchically hollow Pt-ZnO nanocomposite microspheres, which are composed of an assembly of fine Pt-ZnO nanocrystals. Photocatalytic tests of the Pt-ZnO microspheres for the degradation of the dye acid orange II revealed extremely high photocatalytic activity and stability compared with those of pure ZnO and corresponding Pt deposited ZnO. The remarkable photocatalytic performance of hollow Pt-ZnO microspheres mainly originated from their unique nanostructures and the low recombination rate of the e-/h+ pairs by the platinum nanoparticles embedded in ZnO nanocrystals. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Fig. S1-S3. See DOI: 10.1039/c2nr33595f

Hierarchical auto-configuration addressing in mobile ad hoc networks (HAAM)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ram Srikumar, P.; Sumathy, S.

2017-11-01

Addressing plays a vital role in networking to identify devices uniquely. A device must be assigned with a unique address in order to participate in the data communication in any network. Different protocols defining different types of addressing are proposed in literature. Address auto-configuration is a key requirement for self organizing networks. Existing auto-configuration based addressing protocols require broadcasting probes to all the nodes in the network before assigning a proper address to a new node. This needs further broadcasts to reflect the status of the acquired address in the network. Such methods incur high communication overheads due to repetitive flooding. To address this overhead, a new partially stateful address allocation scheme, namely Hierarchical Auto-configuration Addressing (HAAM) scheme is extended and proposed. Hierarchical addressing basically reduces latency and overhead caused during address configuration. Partially stateful addressing algorithm assigns addresses without the need for flooding and global state awareness, which in turn reduces the communication overhead and space complexity respectively. Nodes are assigned addresses hierarchically to maintain the graph of the network as a spanning tree which helps in effectively avoiding the broadcast storm problem. Proposed algorithm for HAAM handles network splits and merges efficiently in large scale mobile ad hoc networks incurring low communication overheads.

Disease implications of animal social network structure: A synthesis across social systems.

PubMed

Sah, Pratha; Mann, Janet; Bansal, Shweta

2018-05-01

The disease costs of sociality have largely been understood through the link between group size and transmission. However, infectious disease spread is driven primarily by the social organization of interactions in a group and not its size. We used statistical models to review the social network organization of 47 species, including mammals, birds, reptiles, fish and insects by categorizing each species into one of three social systems, relatively solitary, gregarious and socially hierarchical. Additionally, using computational experiments of infection spread, we determined the disease costs of each social system. We find that relatively solitary species have large variation in number of social partners, that socially hierarchical species are the least clustered in their interactions, and that social networks of gregarious species tend to be the most fragmented. However, these structural differences are primarily driven by weak connections, which suggest that different social systems have evolved unique strategies to organize weak ties. Our synthetic disease experiments reveal that social network organization can mitigate the disease costs of group living for socially hierarchical species when the pathogen is highly transmissible. In contrast, highly transmissible pathogens cause frequent and prolonged epidemic outbreaks in gregarious species. We evaluate the implications of network organization across social systems despite methodological challenges, and our findings offer new perspective on the debate about the disease costs of group living. Additionally, our study demonstrates the potential of meta-analytic methods in social network analysis to test ecological and evolutionary hypotheses on cooperation, group living, communication and resilience to extrinsic pressures. © 2017 The Authors. Journal of Animal Ecology © 2017 British Ecological Society.

Hierarchical classification with a competitive evolutionary neural tree.

PubMed

Adams, R G.; Butchart, K; Davey, N

1999-04-01

A new, dynamic, tree structured network, the Competitive Evolutionary Neural Tree (CENT) is introduced. The network is able to provide a hierarchical classification of unlabelled data sets. The main advantage that the CENT offers over other hierarchical competitive networks is its ability to self determine the number, and structure, of the competitive nodes in the network, without the need for externally set parameters. The network produces stable classificatory structures by halting its growth using locally calculated heuristics. The results of network simulations are presented over a range of data sets, including Anderson's IRIS data set. The CENT network demonstrates its ability to produce a representative hierarchical structure to classify a broad range of data sets.

Method and system for rendering and interacting with an adaptable computing environment

DOEpatents

Osbourn, Gordon Cecil [Albuquerque, NM; Bouchard, Ann Marie [Albuquerque, NM

2012-06-12

An adaptable computing environment is implemented with software entities termed "s-machines", which self-assemble into hierarchical data structures capable of rendering and interacting with the computing environment. A hierarchical data structure includes a first hierarchical s-machine bound to a second hierarchical s-machine. The first hierarchical s-machine is associated with a first layer of a rendering region on a display screen and the second hierarchical s-machine is associated with a second layer of the rendering region overlaying at least a portion of the first layer. A screen element s-machine is linked to the first hierarchical s-machine. The screen element s-machine manages data associated with a screen element rendered to the display screen within the rendering region at the first layer.

The Advantages of Hierarchical Linear Modeling. ERIC/AE Digest.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Osborne, Jason W.

This digest introduces hierarchical data structure, describes how hierarchical models work, and presents three approaches to analyzing hierarchical data. Hierarchical, or nested data, present several problems for analysis. People or creatures that exist within hierarchies tend to be more similar to each other than people randomly sampled from the…

Small Angle X-ray Scattering for Nanoparticle Research

DOE PAGES

Li, Tao; Senesi, Andrew J.; Lee, Byeongdu

2016-04-07

X-ray scattering is a structural characterization tool that has impacted diverse fields of study. It is unique in its ability to examine materials in real time and under realistic sample environments, enabling researchers to understand morphology at nanometer and ångström length scales using complementary small and wide angle X-ray scattering (SAXS, WAXS), respectively. Herein, we focus on the use of SAXS to examine nanoscale particulate systems. We provide a theoretical foundation for X-ray scattering, considering both form factor and structure factor, as well as the use of correlation functions, which may be used to determine a particle’s size, size distribution,more » shape, and organization into hierarchal structures. The theory is expanded upon with contemporary use cases. Both transmission and reflection (grazing incidence) geometries are addressed, as well the combination of SAXS with other X-ray and non-X ray characterization tools. Furthermore, we conclude with an examination of several key areas of research where X-rays scattering has played a pivotal role, including in situ nanoparticle synthesis, nanoparticle assembly, and in operando studies of catalysts and energy storage materials. Throughout this review we highlight the unique capabilities of X-ray scattering for structural characterization of materials in their native environment.« less

Modeling and Characterization of Electrical Resistivity of Carbon Composite Laminates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yasuda, Hiromi

Origami has recently received significant interest from the scientific and engineering communities as a method for designing building blocks of engineered structures to enhance their mechanical properties. However, the primary focus has been placed on their kinematic applications by leveraging the compactness and auxeticity of planar origami platforms. In this thesis, we study two different types of volumetric origami structures, Tachi-Miura Polyhedron (TMP) and Triangulated Cylindrical Origami (TCO), hierarchically from a single unit cell level to an assembly of multi-origami cells. We strategically assemble these origami cells into mechanical metamaterials and demonstrate their unique static/dynamic mechanical responses. In particular, these origami structures exhibit tailorable stiffness and strain softening/hardening behaviors, which leads to rich wave dynamics in origami-based architectures such as tunable frequency bands and new types of nonlinear wave propagations. One of the novel waveforms investigated in this thesis is the rarefaction solitary wave arising from strain-softening nature of origami unit cell. This unique wave dynamic mechanism is analyzed in numerical, analytical, and experimental approaches. By leveraging their tailorable folding mechanisms, the origami-based mechanical metamaterials can be used for designing new types of engineering devices and structures, not only for deployable space and disaster relief applications, but also for vibration filtering, impact mitigation, and energy harvesting.

Small Angle X-ray Scattering for Nanoparticle Research

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, Tao; Senesi, Andrew J.; Lee, Byeongdu

X-ray scattering is a structural characterization tool that has impacted diverse fields of study. It is unique in its ability to examine materials in real time and under realistic sample environments, enabling researchers to understand morphology at nanometer and ångström length scales using complementary small and wide angle X-ray scattering (SAXS, WAXS), respectively. Herein, we focus on the use of SAXS to examine nanoscale particulate systems. We provide a theoretical foundation for X-ray scattering, considering both form factor and structure factor, as well as the use of correlation functions, which may be used to determine a particle’s size, size distribution,more » shape, and organization into hierarchal structures. The theory is expanded upon with contemporary use cases. Both transmission and reflection (grazing incidence) geometries are addressed, as well the combination of SAXS with other X-ray and non-X ray characterization tools. Furthermore, we conclude with an examination of several key areas of research where X-rays scattering has played a pivotal role, including in situ nanoparticle synthesis, nanoparticle assembly, and in operando studies of catalysts and energy storage materials. Throughout this review we highlight the unique capabilities of X-ray scattering for structural characterization of materials in their native environment.« less

Correlation between the hierarchical structures and nanomechanical properties of amyloid fibrils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Gyudo; Lee, Wonseok; Baik, Seunghyun; Kim, Yong Ho; Eom, Kilho; Kwon, Taeyun

2018-07-01

Amyloid fibrils have recently been highlighted due to their excellent mechanical properties, which not only play a role in their biological functions but also imply their applications in biomimetic material design. Despite recent efforts to unveil how the excellent mechanical properties of amyloid fibrils originate, it has remained elusive how the anisotropic nanomechanical properties of hierarchically structured amyloid fibrils are determined. Here, we characterize the anisotropic nanomechanical properties of hierarchically structured amyloid fibrils using atomic force microscopy experiments and atomistic simulations. It is shown that the hierarchical structure of amyloid fibrils plays a crucial role in determining their radial elastic property but does not make any effect on their bending elastic property. This is attributed to the role of intermolecular force acting between the filaments (constituting the fibril) on the radial elastic modulus of amyloid fibrils. Our finding illustrates how the hierarchical structure of amyloid fibrils encodes their anisotropic nanomechanical properties. Our study provides key design principles of amyloid fibrils, which endow valuable insight into the underlying mechanisms of amyloid mechanics.

Self‐Assembled Graphene‐Based Architectures and Their Applications

PubMed Central

Yuan, Zhongke; Xiao, Xiaofen; Li, Jing; Zhao, Zhe

2017-01-01

Abstract Due to unique planar structures and remarkable thermal, electronic, and mechanical properties, chemically modified graphenes (CMGs) such as graphene oxides, reduced graphene oxides, and the related derivatives are recognized as the attractive building blocks for “bottom‐up” nanotechnology, while self‐assembly of CMGs has emerged as one of the most promising approaches to construct advanced functional materials/systems based on graphene. By virtue of a variety of noncovalent forces like hydrogen bonding, van der Waals interaction, metal‐to‐ligand bonds, electrostatic attraction, hydrophobic–hydrophilic interactions, and π–π interactions, the CMGs bearing various functional groups are highly desirable for the assemblies with themselves and a variety of organic and/or inorganic species which can yield various hierarchical nanostructures and macroscopic composites endowed with unique structures, properties, and functions for widespread technological applications such as electronics, optoelectronics, electrocatalysis/photocatalysis, environment, and energy storage and conversion. In this review, significant recent advances concerning the self‐assembly of CMGs are summarized, and the broad applications of self‐assembled graphene‐based materials as well as some future opportunities and challenges in this vibrant area are elucidated. PMID:29619311

Evaluating a stage model in predicting monolingual spanish-speaking Latinas' cervical cancer screening practices: the role of psychosocial and cultural predictors.

PubMed

Arredondo, Elva Maria; Pollak, Kathryn; Costanzo, Philip R

2008-12-01

The goals of this study are to evaluate (a) the effectiveness of a stage model in predicting Latinas' self-report of obtaining a Pap test and (b) the unique role of psychosocial/cultural factors in predicting progress toward behavior change. One-on-one structured interviews with monolingual Spanish-speaking Latinas (n=190) were conducted. Most participants (85%) intended to obtain a Pap smear within 1 year; therefore, staging women based on intention was not possible. Moreover, results from the polychotomous hierarchical logistic regression suggest that psychosocial and cultural factors were independent predictors of Pap test history. A stage model may not be appropriate for predicting Pap test screening among Latinas. Results suggest that unique cultural, psychosocial, and demographic factors may inhibit cervical cancer screening practices. Clinicians may need to tailor messages on these cultural and psychosocial factors to increase Pap testing among Latinas.

Electrospun carbon nanofibers surface-grafted with vapor-grown carbon nanotubes as hierarchical electrodes for supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Zhengping; Wu, Xiang-Fa; Fong, Hao

2012-01-01

This letter reports the fabrication and electrochemical properties of electrospun carbon nanofibers surface-grafted with vapor-grown carbon nanotubes (CNTs) as hierarchical electrodes for supercapacitors. The specific capacitance of the fabricated electrodes was measured up to 185 F/g at the low discharge current density of 625 mA/g; a decrease of 38% was detected at the high discharge current density of 2.5 A/g. The morphology and microstructure of the electrodes were examined by electron microscopy, and the unique connectivity of the hybrid nanomaterials was responsible for the high specific capacitance and low intrinsic contact electric resistance of the hierarchical electrodes.

TiO2 nanowire-templated hierarchical nanowire network as water-repelling coating

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hang, Tian; Chen, Hui-Jiuan; Xiao, Shuai; Yang, Chengduan; Chen, Meiwan; Tao, Jun; Shieh, Han-ping; Yang, Bo-ru; Liu, Chuan; Xie, Xi

2017-12-01

Extraordinary water-repelling properties of superhydrophobic surfaces make them novel candidates for a great variety of potential applications. A general approach to achieve superhydrophobicity requires low-energy coating on the surface and roughness on nano- and micrometre scale. However, typical construction of superhydrophobic surfaces with micro-nano structure through top-down fabrication is restricted by sophisticated fabrication techniques and limited choices of substrate materials. Micro-nanoscale topographies templated by conventional microparticles through surface coating may produce large variations in roughness and uncontrollable defects, resulting in poorly controlled surface morphology and wettability. In this work, micro-nanoscale hierarchical nanowire network was fabricated to construct self-cleaning coating using one-dimensional TiO2 nanowires as microscale templates. Hierarchical structure with homogeneous morphology was achieved by branching ZnO nanowires on the TiO2 nanowire backbones through hydrothermal reaction. The hierarchical nanowire network displayed homogeneous micro/nano-topography, in contrast to hierarchical structure templated by traditional microparticles. This hierarchical nanowire network film exhibited high repellency to both water and cell culture medium after functionalization with fluorinated organic molecules. The hierarchical structure templated by TiO2 nanowire coating significantly increased the surface superhydrophobicity compared to vertical ZnO nanowires with nanotopography alone. Our results demonstrated a promising strategy of using nanowires as microscale templates for the rational design of hierarchical coatings with desired superhydrophobicity that can also be applied to various substrate materials.

TiO2 nanowire-templated hierarchical nanowire network as water-repelling coating

PubMed Central

Hang, Tian; Chen, Hui-Jiuan; Xiao, Shuai; Yang, Chengduan; Chen, Meiwan; Tao, Jun; Shieh, Han-ping; Yang, Bo-ru; Liu, Chuan

2017-01-01

Extraordinary water-repelling properties of superhydrophobic surfaces make them novel candidates for a great variety of potential applications. A general approach to achieve superhydrophobicity requires low-energy coating on the surface and roughness on nano- and micrometre scale. However, typical construction of superhydrophobic surfaces with micro-nano structure through top-down fabrication is restricted by sophisticated fabrication techniques and limited choices of substrate materials. Micro-nanoscale topographies templated by conventional microparticles through surface coating may produce large variations in roughness and uncontrollable defects, resulting in poorly controlled surface morphology and wettability. In this work, micro-nanoscale hierarchical nanowire network was fabricated to construct self-cleaning coating using one-dimensional TiO2 nanowires as microscale templates. Hierarchical structure with homogeneous morphology was achieved by branching ZnO nanowires on the TiO2 nanowire backbones through hydrothermal reaction. The hierarchical nanowire network displayed homogeneous micro/nano-topography, in contrast to hierarchical structure templated by traditional microparticles. This hierarchical nanowire network film exhibited high repellency to both water and cell culture medium after functionalization with fluorinated organic molecules. The hierarchical structure templated by TiO2 nanowire coating significantly increased the surface superhydrophobicity compared to vertical ZnO nanowires with nanotopography alone. Our results demonstrated a promising strategy of using nanowires as microscale templates for the rational design of hierarchical coatings with desired superhydrophobicity that can also be applied to various substrate materials. PMID:29308265

Modular and hierarchical structure of social contact networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ge, Yuanzheng; Song, Zhichao; Qiu, Xiaogang; Song, Hongbin; Wang, Yong

2013-10-01

Social contact networks exhibit overlapping qualities of communities, hierarchical structure and spatial-correlated nature. We propose a mixing pattern of modular and growing hierarchical structures to reconstruct social contact networks by using an individual’s geospatial distribution information in the real world. The hierarchical structure of social contact networks is defined based on the spatial distance between individuals, and edges among individuals are added in turn from the modular layer to the highest layer. It is a gradual process to construct the hierarchical structure: from the basic modular model up to the global network. The proposed model not only shows hierarchically increasing degree distribution and large clustering coefficients in communities, but also exhibits spatial clustering features of individual distributions. As an evaluation of the method, we reconstruct a hierarchical contact network based on the investigation data of a university. Transmission experiments of influenza H1N1 are carried out on the generated social contact networks, and results show that the constructed network is efficient to reproduce the dynamic process of an outbreak and evaluate interventions. The reproduced spread process exhibits that the spatial clustering of infection is accordant with the clustering of network topology. Moreover, the effect of individual topological character on the spread of influenza is analyzed, and the experiment results indicate that the spread is limited by individual daily contact patterns and local clustering topology rather than individual degree.

Hierarchically Organized Behavior and Its Neural Foundations: A Reinforcement Learning Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Botvinick, Matthew M.; Niv, Yael; Barto, Andrew C.

2009-01-01

Research on human and animal behavior has long emphasized its hierarchical structure--the divisibility of ongoing behavior into discrete tasks, which are comprised of subtask sequences, which in turn are built of simple actions. The hierarchical structure of behavior has also been of enduring interest within neuroscience, where it has been widely…

Fabrication and condensation characteristics of metallic superhydrophobic surface with hierarchical micro-nano structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chu, Fuqiang; Wu, Xiaomin

2016-05-01

Metallic superhydrophobic surfaces have various applications in aerospace, refrigeration and other engineering fields due to their excellent water repellent characteristics. This study considers a simple but widely applicable fabrication method using a two simultaneous chemical reactions method to prepare the acid-salt mixed solutions to process the metal surfaces with surface deposition and surface etching to construct hierarchical micro-nano structures on the surface and then modify the surface with low surface-energy materials. Al-based and Cu-based superhydrophobic surfaces were fabricated using this method. The Al-based superhydrophobic surface had a water contact angle of 164° with hierarchical micro-nano structures similar to the lotus leaves. The Cu-based surface had a water contact angle of 157° with moss-like hierarchical micro-nano structures. Droplet condensation experiments were also performed on these two superhydrophobic surfaces to investigate their condensation characteristics. The results show that the Al-based superhydrophobic surface has lower droplet density, higher droplet jumping probability, slower droplet growth rate and lower surface coverage due to the more structured hierarchical structures.

Argument structure hierarchy system and method for facilitating analysis and decision-making processes

DOEpatents

Janssen, Terry

2000-01-01

A system and method for facilitating decision-making comprising a computer program causing linkage of data representing a plurality of argument structure units into a hierarchical argument structure. Each argument structure unit comprises data corresponding to a hypothesis and its corresponding counter-hypothesis, data corresponding to grounds that provide a basis for inference of the hypothesis or its corresponding counter-hypothesis, data corresponding to a warrant linking the grounds to the hypothesis or its corresponding counter-hypothesis, and data corresponding to backing that certifies the warrant. The hierarchical argument structure comprises a top level argument structure unit and a plurality of subordinate level argument structure units. Each of the plurality of subordinate argument structure units comprises at least a portion of the grounds of the argument structure unit to which it is subordinate. Program code located on each of a plurality of remote computers accepts input from one of a plurality of contributors. Each input comprises data corresponding to an argument structure unit in the hierarchical argument structure and supports the hypothesis or its corresponding counter-hypothesis. A second programming code is adapted to combine the inputs into a single hierarchical argument structure. A third computer program code is responsive to the second computer program code and is adapted to represent a degree of support for the hypothesis and its corresponding counter-hypothesis in the single hierarchical argument structure.

Using cluster analysis and a classification and regression tree model to developed cover types in the Sky Islands of southeastern Arizona

Treesearch

Jose M. Iniguez; Joseph L. Ganey; Peter J. Daughtery; John D. Bailey

2005-01-01

The objective of this study was to develop a rule based cover type classification system for the forest and woodland vegetation in the Sky Islands of southeastern Arizona. In order to develop such a system we qualitatively and quantitatively compared a hierarchical (Ward’s) and a non-hierarchical (k-means) clustering method. Ecologically, unique groups represented by...

Using cluster analysis and a classification and regression tree model to developed cover types in the Sky Islands of southeastern Arizona [Abstract

Treesearch

Jose M. Iniguez; Joseph L. Ganey; Peter J. Daugherty; John D. Bailey

2005-01-01

The objective of this study was to develop a rule based cover type classification system for the forest and woodland vegetation in the Sky Islands of southeastern Arizona. In order to develop such system we qualitatively and quantitatively compared a hierarchical (Ward’s) and a non-hierarchical (k-means) clustering method. Ecologically, unique groups and plots...

ECOD: An Evolutionary Classification of Protein Domains

PubMed Central

Kinch, Lisa N.; Pei, Jimin; Shi, Shuoyong; Kim, Bong-Hyun; Grishin, Nick V.

2014-01-01

Understanding the evolution of a protein, including both close and distant relationships, often reveals insight into its structure and function. Fast and easy access to such up-to-date information facilitates research. We have developed a hierarchical evolutionary classification of all proteins with experimentally determined spatial structures, and presented it as an interactive and updatable online database. ECOD (Evolutionary Classification of protein Domains) is distinct from other structural classifications in that it groups domains primarily by evolutionary relationships (homology), rather than topology (or “fold”). This distinction highlights cases of homology between domains of differing topology to aid in understanding of protein structure evolution. ECOD uniquely emphasizes distantly related homologs that are difficult to detect, and thus catalogs the largest number of evolutionary links among structural domain classifications. Placing distant homologs together underscores the ancestral similarities of these proteins and draws attention to the most important regions of sequence and structure, as well as conserved functional sites. ECOD also recognizes closer sequence-based relationships between protein domains. Currently, approximately 100,000 protein structures are classified in ECOD into 9,000 sequence families clustered into close to 2,000 evolutionary groups. The classification is assisted by an automated pipeline that quickly and consistently classifies weekly releases of PDB structures and allows for continual updates. This synchronization with PDB uniquely distinguishes ECOD among all protein classifications. Finally, we present several case studies of homologous proteins not recorded in other classifications, illustrating the potential of how ECOD can be used to further biological and evolutionary studies. PMID:25474468

ECOD: an evolutionary classification of protein domains.

PubMed

Cheng, Hua; Schaeffer, R Dustin; Liao, Yuxing; Kinch, Lisa N; Pei, Jimin; Shi, Shuoyong; Kim, Bong-Hyun; Grishin, Nick V

2014-12-01

Understanding the evolution of a protein, including both close and distant relationships, often reveals insight into its structure and function. Fast and easy access to such up-to-date information facilitates research. We have developed a hierarchical evolutionary classification of all proteins with experimentally determined spatial structures, and presented it as an interactive and updatable online database. ECOD (Evolutionary Classification of protein Domains) is distinct from other structural classifications in that it groups domains primarily by evolutionary relationships (homology), rather than topology (or "fold"). This distinction highlights cases of homology between domains of differing topology to aid in understanding of protein structure evolution. ECOD uniquely emphasizes distantly related homologs that are difficult to detect, and thus catalogs the largest number of evolutionary links among structural domain classifications. Placing distant homologs together underscores the ancestral similarities of these proteins and draws attention to the most important regions of sequence and structure, as well as conserved functional sites. ECOD also recognizes closer sequence-based relationships between protein domains. Currently, approximately 100,000 protein structures are classified in ECOD into 9,000 sequence families clustered into close to 2,000 evolutionary groups. The classification is assisted by an automated pipeline that quickly and consistently classifies weekly releases of PDB structures and allows for continual updates. This synchronization with PDB uniquely distinguishes ECOD among all protein classifications. Finally, we present several case studies of homologous proteins not recorded in other classifications, illustrating the potential of how ECOD can be used to further biological and evolutionary studies.

Hierarchical structure observation and nanoindentation size effect characterization for a limnetic shell

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Jingru; Fan, Cuncai; Ma, Hansong; Wei, Yueguang

2015-06-01

In the present research, hierarchical structure observation and mechanical property characterization for a type of biomaterial are carried out. The investigated biomaterial is Hyriopsis cumingii, a typical limnetic shell, which consists of two different structural layers, a prismatic "pillar" structure and a nacreous "brick and mortar" structure. The prismatic layer looks like a "pillar forest" with variation-section pillars sized on the order of several tens of microns. The nacreous material looks like a "brick wall" with bricks sized on the order of several microns. Both pillars and bricks are composed of nanoparticles. The mechanical properties of the hierarchical biomaterial are measured by using the nanoindentation test. Hardness and modulus are measured for both the nacre layer and the prismatic layer, respectively. The nanoindentation size effects for the hierarchical structural materials are investigated experimentally. The results show that the prismatic nanostructured material has a higher stiffness and hardness than the nacre nanostructured material. In addition, the nanoindentation size effects for the hierarchical structural materials are described theoretically, by using the trans-scale mechanics theory considering both strain gradient effect and the surface/interface effect. The modeling results are consistent with experimental ones.

Hierarchical structured Sm2O3 modified CuO nanoflowers as electrode materials for high performance supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Xiaojuan; He, Mingqian; He, Ping; Liu, Hongtao; Bai, Hongmei; Chen, Jingchao; He, Shaoying; Zhang, Xingquan; Dong, Faqing; Chen, Yang

2017-12-01

By a simple and cost effective chemical precipitation-hydrothermal method, novel hierarchical structured Sm2O3 modified CuO nanoflowers are prepared and investigated as electrode materials for supercapacitors. The physical properties of prepared materials are characterized by XRD, FE-SEM, EDX and FTIR techniques. Furthermore, electrochemical performances of prepared materials are investigated by cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge/discharge and electrochemical impedance spectrum in 1.0 M KOH electrolyte. The resulting Sm2O3 modified CuO based electrodes exhibit obviously enhanced capacitive properties owing to the unique nanostructures and strong synergistic effects. It is worth noting that the optimized SC-3 based electrode exhibits the best electrochemical performances in all prepared electrodes, including higher specific capacitance (383.4 F g-1 at 0.5 A g-1) and good rate capability (393.2 F g-1 and 246.3 F g-1 at 0.3 A g-1 and 3.0 A g-1, respectively), as well as excellent cycling stability (84.6% capacitance retention after 2000 cycles at 1.0 A g-1). The present results show that Sm2O3 is used as a promising modifier to change the morphology and improve electrochemical performances of CuO materials.

A nitrogen-doped 3D hierarchical carbon/sulfur composite for advanced lithium sulfur batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Xiaoyan; Huang, Wenlong; Wang, Dongdong; Tian, Jianhua; Shan, Zhongqiang

2017-07-01

Hybrid nanostructures containing one-dimensional (1D) carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and three-dimensional (3D) mesoporous carbon sphere have many promising applications due to their unique physical chemical properties. In this study, a novel 3D hierarchical carbon material (MCCNT) composed of mesoporous carbon sphere core and nitrogen rich CNTs shell is successfully prepared via an aerosol spray and subsequent chemical vapor deposition (CVD) processes. Owning to its well defined porous structure and favorable conductive framework, MCCNT is used as a potential sulfur host in lithium sulfur batteries through a classic melt-diffusion method. When cycled at a current density of 0.2 C (1 C = 1675 mA h g-1), it delivers an initial capacity as high as 1438.7 mAh g-1. Even if the current density increase to 1 C, the specific capacity still remain up to 534.6 mAh g-1 after 300 cycles. The enhanced electrochemical performance can be attributed to the hybrid structure of MCCNT, in which, the porous core works as a host to confine sulfur and accommodate volume expansion and the external CNTs provide excellent electron and ion conductive frame work. Furthermore, the in-situ doped nitrogen on the surface of CNTs enables effective trapping of lithium polysulfides, leading to a much-improved cycling performance.

Combined expert system/neural networks method for process fault diagnosis

DOEpatents

Reifman, Jaques; Wei, Thomas Y. C.

1995-01-01

A two-level hierarchical approach for process fault diagnosis is an operating system employs a function-oriented approach at a first level and a component characteristic-oriented approach at a second level, where the decision-making procedure is structured in order of decreasing intelligence with increasing precision. At the first level, the diagnostic method is general and has knowledge of the overall process including a wide variety of plant transients and the functional behavior of the process components. An expert system classifies malfunctions by function to narrow the diagnostic focus to a particular set of possible faulty components that could be responsible for the detected functional misbehavior of the operating system. At the second level, the diagnostic method limits its scope to component malfunctions, using more detailed knowledge of component characteristics. Trained artificial neural networks are used to further narrow the diagnosis and to uniquely identify the faulty component by classifying the abnormal condition data as a failure of one of the hypothesized components through component characteristics. Once an anomaly is detected, the hierarchical structure is used to successively narrow the diagnostic focus from a function misbehavior, i.e., a function oriented approach, until the fault can be determined, i.e., a component characteristic-oriented approach.

Combined expert system/neural networks method for process fault diagnosis

DOEpatents

Reifman, J.; Wei, T.Y.C.

1995-08-15

A two-level hierarchical approach for process fault diagnosis of an operating system employs a function-oriented approach at a first level and a component characteristic-oriented approach at a second level, where the decision-making procedure is structured in order of decreasing intelligence with increasing precision. At the first level, the diagnostic method is general and has knowledge of the overall process including a wide variety of plant transients and the functional behavior of the process components. An expert system classifies malfunctions by function to narrow the diagnostic focus to a particular set of possible faulty components that could be responsible for the detected functional misbehavior of the operating system. At the second level, the diagnostic method limits its scope to component malfunctions, using more detailed knowledge of component characteristics. Trained artificial neural networks are used to further narrow the diagnosis and to uniquely identify the faulty component by classifying the abnormal condition data as a failure of one of the hypothesized components through component characteristics. Once an anomaly is detected, the hierarchical structure is used to successively narrow the diagnostic focus from a function misbehavior, i.e., a function oriented approach, until the fault can be determined, i.e., a component characteristic-oriented approach. 9 figs.

Rice husks as a sustainable silica source for hierarchical flower-like metal silicate architectures assembled into ultrathin nanosheets for adsorption and catalysis.

PubMed

Zhang, Shouwei; Gao, Huihui; Li, Jiaxing; Huang, Yongshun; Alsaedi, Ahmed; Hayat, Tasawar; Xu, Xijin; Wang, Xiangke

2017-01-05

Metal silicates have attracted extensive interests due to their unique structure and promising properties in adsorption and catalysis. However, their applications were hampered by the complex and expensive synthesis. In this paper, three-dimensional (3D) hierarchical flower-like metal silicate, including magnesium silicate, zinc silicate, nickel silicate and cobalt silicate, were for the first time prepared by using rice husks as a sustainable silicon source. The flower-like morphology, interconnected ultrathin nanosheets structure and high specific surface area endowed them with versatile applications. Magnesium silicate was used as an adsorbent with the maximum adsorption capacities of 557.9, 381.3, and 482.8mg/g for Pb 2+ , tetracycline (TC), and UO 2 2+ , respectively. Ni nanoparticles/silica (Ni NPs/SiO 2 ) exhibited high catalytic activity and good stability for 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) reduction within only ∼160s, which can be attributed to the ultra-small particle size (∼6.8nm), good dispersion and high loading capacity of Ni NPs. Considering the abundance and renewability of rice husks, metal silicate with complex architecture can be easily produced at a large scale and become a sustainable and reliable resource for multifunctional applications. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Action detection by double hierarchical multi-structure space-time statistical matching model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Jing; Zhu, Junwei; Cui, Yiyin; Bai, Lianfa; Yue, Jiang

2018-03-01

Aimed at the complex information in videos and low detection efficiency, an actions detection model based on neighboring Gaussian structure and 3D LARK features is put forward. We exploit a double hierarchical multi-structure space-time statistical matching model (DMSM) in temporal action localization. First, a neighboring Gaussian structure is presented to describe the multi-scale structural relationship. Then, a space-time statistical matching method is proposed to achieve two similarity matrices on both large and small scales, which combines double hierarchical structural constraints in model by both the neighboring Gaussian structure and the 3D LARK local structure. Finally, the double hierarchical similarity is fused and analyzed to detect actions. Besides, the multi-scale composite template extends the model application into multi-view. Experimental results of DMSM on the complex visual tracker benchmark data sets and THUMOS 2014 data sets show the promising performance. Compared with other state-of-the-art algorithm, DMSM achieves superior performances.

Action detection by double hierarchical multi-structure space–time statistical matching model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Jing; Zhu, Junwei; Cui, Yiyin; Bai, Lianfa; Yue, Jiang

2018-06-01

Aimed at the complex information in videos and low detection efficiency, an actions detection model based on neighboring Gaussian structure and 3D LARK features is put forward. We exploit a double hierarchical multi-structure space-time statistical matching model (DMSM) in temporal action localization. First, a neighboring Gaussian structure is presented to describe the multi-scale structural relationship. Then, a space-time statistical matching method is proposed to achieve two similarity matrices on both large and small scales, which combines double hierarchical structural constraints in model by both the neighboring Gaussian structure and the 3D LARK local structure. Finally, the double hierarchical similarity is fused and analyzed to detect actions. Besides, the multi-scale composite template extends the model application into multi-view. Experimental results of DMSM on the complex visual tracker benchmark data sets and THUMOS 2014 data sets show the promising performance. Compared with other state-of-the-art algorithm, DMSM achieves superior performances.

Structure-property relationships of a biological mesocrystal in the adult sea urchin spine

PubMed Central

Seto, Jong; Ma, Yurong; Davis, Sean A.; Meldrum, Fiona; Gourrier, Aurelien; Kim, Yi-Yeoun; Schilde, Uwe; Sztucki, Michael; Burghammer, Manfred; Maltsev, Sergey; Jäger, Christian; Cölfen, Helmut

2012-01-01

Structuring over many length scales is a design strategy widely used in Nature to create materials with unique functional properties. We here present a comprehensive analysis of an adult sea urchin spine, and in revealing a complex, hierarchical structure, show how Nature fabricates a material which diffracts as a single crystal of calcite and yet fractures as a glassy material. Each spine comprises a highly oriented array of Mg-calcite nanocrystals in which amorphous regions and macromolecules are embedded. It is postulated that this mesocrystalline structure forms via the crystallization of a dense array of amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) precursor particles. A residual surface layer of ACC and/or macromolecules remains around the nanoparticle units which creates the mesocrystal structure and contributes to the conchoidal fracture behavior. Nature’s demonstration of how crystallization of an amorphous precursor phase can create a crystalline material with remarkable properties therefore provides inspiration for a novel approach to the design and synthesis of synthetic composite materials. PMID:22343283

Structure-property relationships of a biological mesocrystal in the adult sea urchin spine.

PubMed

Seto, Jong; Ma, Yurong; Davis, Sean A; Meldrum, Fiona; Gourrier, Aurelien; Kim, Yi-Yeoun; Schilde, Uwe; Sztucki, Michael; Burghammer, Manfred; Maltsev, Sergey; Jäger, Christian; Cölfen, Helmut

2012-03-06

Structuring over many length scales is a design strategy widely used in Nature to create materials with unique functional properties. We here present a comprehensive analysis of an adult sea urchin spine, and in revealing a complex, hierarchical structure, show how Nature fabricates a material which diffracts as a single crystal of calcite and yet fractures as a glassy material. Each spine comprises a highly oriented array of Mg-calcite nanocrystals in which amorphous regions and macromolecules are embedded. It is postulated that this mesocrystalline structure forms via the crystallization of a dense array of amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) precursor particles. A residual surface layer of ACC and/or macromolecules remains around the nanoparticle units which creates the mesocrystal structure and contributes to the conchoidal fracture behavior. Nature's demonstration of how crystallization of an amorphous precursor phase can create a crystalline material with remarkable properties therefore provides inspiration for a novel approach to the design and synthesis of synthetic composite materials.

Rapid Self-healing Nanocomposite Hydrogel with Tunable Dynamic Mechanics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Qiaochu; Mishra, Sumeet; Chapman, Brian; Chen, Pangkuan; Tracy, Joseph; Holten-Andersen, Niels

The macroscopic healing rate and efficiency in self-repairing hydrogel materials are largely determined by the dissociation dynamics of their polymer network, which is hardly achieved in a controllable manner. Inspired by mussel's adhesion chemistry, we developed a novel approach to assemble inorganic nanoparticles and catechol-decorated PEG polymer into a hydrogel network. When utilized as reversible polymer-particle crosslinks, catechol-metal coordination bonds yield a unique gel network with dynamic mechanics controlled directly by interfacial crosslink structure. Taking advantage of this structure-property relationship at polymer-particle interfaces, we designed a hierarchically structured hybrid gel with two distinct relaxation timescales. By tuning the relative contribution of the two relaxation modes, we are able to finely control the gel's dynamic mechanical behavior from a viscoelastic fluid to a stiff solid, yet preserving its rapid self-healing property without the need for external stimuli.

Chemical modulation of M13 bacteriophage and its functional opportunities for nanomedicine

PubMed Central

Chung, Woo-Jae; Lee, Doe-Young; Yoo, So Young

2014-01-01

M13 bacteriophage (phage) has emerged as an attractive bionanomaterial owing to its genetically tunable surface chemistry and its potential to self-assemble into hierarchical structures. Furthermore, because of its unique nanoscopic structure, phage has been proposed as a model system in soft condensed physics and as a biomimetic building block for structured functional materials. Genetic engineering of phage provides great opportunities to develop novel nanomaterials with functional surface peptide motifs; however, this biological approach is generally limited to peptides containing the 20 natural amino acids. To extend the scope of phage applications, strategies involving chemical modification have been employed to incorporate a wider range of functional groups, including synthetic chemical compounds. In this review, we introduce the design of chemoselective phage functionalization and discuss how such a strategy is combined with genetic engineering for a variety of medical applications, as reported in recent literature. PMID:25540583

Chemical modulation of M13 bacteriophage and its functional opportunities for nanomedicine.

PubMed

Chung, Woo-Jae; Lee, Doe-Young; Yoo, So Young

2014-01-01

M13 bacteriophage (phage) has emerged as an attractive bionanomaterial owing to its genetically tunable surface chemistry and its potential to self-assemble into hierarchical structures. Furthermore, because of its unique nanoscopic structure, phage has been proposed as a model system in soft condensed physics and as a biomimetic building block for structured functional materials. Genetic engineering of phage provides great opportunities to develop novel nanomaterials with functional surface peptide motifs; however, this biological approach is generally limited to peptides containing the 20 natural amino acids. To extend the scope of phage applications, strategies involving chemical modification have been employed to incorporate a wider range of functional groups, including synthetic chemical compounds. In this review, we introduce the design of chemoselective phage functionalization and discuss how such a strategy is combined with genetic engineering for a variety of medical applications, as reported in recent literature.

Polymer-Coated Graphene Aerogel Beads and Supercapacitor Application.

PubMed

Ouyang, An; Cao, Anyuan; Hu, Song; Li, Yanhui; Xu, Ruiqiao; Wei, Jinquan; Zhu, Hongwei; Wu, Dehai

2016-05-04

Graphene aerogels are highly porous materials with many energy and environmental applications; tailoring the structure and composition of pore walls within the aerogel is the key to those applications. Here, by freeze casting the graphene oxide sheets, we directly fabricated freestanding porous graphene beads containing radially oriented through channels from the sphere center to its surface. Furthermore, we introduced pseudopolymer to make reinforced, functional composite beads with a unique pore morphology. We showed that polymer layers can be coated smoothly on both sides of the pore walls, as well as on the junctions between adjacent pores, resulting in uniform polymer-graphene-polymer sandwiched structures (skeletons) throughout the bead. These composite beads significantly improved the electrochemical properties, with specific capacitances up to 669 F/g and good cyclic stability. Our results indicate that controlled fabrication of homogeneous hierarchical structures is a potential route toward high performance composite electrodes for various energy applications.

Controlling Hydrogel Mechanics via Bio-Inspired Polymer-Nanoparticle Bond Dynamics.

PubMed

Li, Qiaochu; Barrett, Devin G; Messersmith, Phillip B; Holten-Andersen, Niels

2016-01-26

Interactions between polymer molecules and inorganic nanoparticles can play a dominant role in nanocomposite material mechanics, yet control of such interfacial interaction dynamics remains a significant challenge particularly in water. This study presents insights on how to engineer hydrogel material mechanics via nanoparticle interface-controlled cross-link dynamics. Inspired by the adhesive chemistry in mussel threads, we have incorporated iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe3O4 NPs) into a catechol-modified polymer network to obtain hydrogels cross-linked via reversible metal-coordination bonds at Fe3O4 NP surfaces. Unique material mechanics result from the supra-molecular cross-link structure dynamics in the gels; in contrast to the previously reported fluid-like dynamics of transient catechol-Fe(3+) cross-links, the catechol-Fe3O4 NP structures provide solid-like yet reversible hydrogel mechanics. The structurally controlled hierarchical mechanics presented here suggest how to develop hydrogels with remote-controlled self-healing dynamics.

Breaking the icosahedra in boron carbide

PubMed Central

Xie, Kelvin Y.; An, Qi; Sato, Takanori; Breen, Andrew J.; Ringer, Simon P.; Goddard, William A.; Cairney, Julie M.; Hemker, Kevin J.

2016-01-01

Findings of laser-assisted atom probe tomography experiments on boron carbide elucidate an approach for characterizing the atomic structure and interatomic bonding of molecules associated with extraordinary structural stability. The discovery of crystallographic planes in these boron carbide datasets substantiates that crystallinity is maintained to the point of field evaporation, and characterization of individual ionization events gives unexpected evidence of the destruction of individual icosahedra. Statistical analyses of the ions created during the field evaporation process have been used to deduce relative atomic bond strengths and show that the icosahedra in boron carbide are not as stable as anticipated. Combined with quantum mechanics simulations, this result provides insight into the structural instability and amorphization of boron carbide. The temporal, spatial, and compositional information provided by atom probe tomography makes it a unique platform for elucidating the relative stability and interactions of primary building blocks in hierarchically crystalline materials. PMID:27790982

Maps and streams in the auditory cortex: nonhuman primates illuminate human speech processing

PubMed Central

Rauschecker, Josef P; Scott, Sophie K

2010-01-01

Speech and language are considered uniquely human abilities: animals have communication systems, but they do not match human linguistic skills in terms of recursive structure and combinatorial power. Yet, in evolution, spoken language must have emerged from neural mechanisms at least partially available in animals. In this paper, we will demonstrate how our understanding of speech perception, one important facet of language, has profited from findings and theory in nonhuman primate studies. Chief among these are physiological and anatomical studies showing that primate auditory cortex, across species, shows patterns of hierarchical structure, topographic mapping and streams of functional processing. We will identify roles for different cortical areas in the perceptual processing of speech and review functional imaging work in humans that bears on our understanding of how the brain decodes and monitors speech. A new model connects structures in the temporal, frontal and parietal lobes linking speech perception and production. PMID:19471271

On the importance of avoiding shortcuts in applying cognitive models to hierarchical data.

PubMed

Boehm, Udo; Marsman, Maarten; Matzke, Dora; Wagenmakers, Eric-Jan

2018-06-12

Psychological experiments often yield data that are hierarchically structured. A number of popular shortcut strategies in cognitive modeling do not properly accommodate this structure and can result in biased conclusions. To gauge the severity of these biases, we conducted a simulation study for a two-group experiment. We first considered a modeling strategy that ignores the hierarchical data structure. In line with theoretical results, our simulations showed that Bayesian and frequentist methods that rely on this strategy are biased towards the null hypothesis. Secondly, we considered a modeling strategy that takes a two-step approach by first obtaining participant-level estimates from a hierarchical cognitive model and subsequently using these estimates in a follow-up statistical test. Methods that rely on this strategy are biased towards the alternative hypothesis. Only hierarchical models of the multilevel data lead to correct conclusions. Our results are particularly relevant for the use of hierarchical Bayesian parameter estimates in cognitive modeling.

Toward Scalable Fabrication of Hierarchical Silica Capsules with Integrated Micro-, Meso-, and Macropores.

PubMed

Zhou, Weizheng; Tong, Gangsheng; Wang, Dali; Zhu, Bangshang; Ren, Yu; Butler, Michael; Pelan, Eddie; Yan, Deyue; Zhu, Xinyuan; Stoyanov, Simeon D

2016-04-06

Hierarchical porous structures are ubiquitous in biological organisms and inorganic systems. Although such structures have been replicated, designed, and fabricated, they are often inferior to naturally occurring analogues. Apart from the complexity and multiple functionalities developed by the biological systems, the controllable and scalable production of hierarchically porous structures and building blocks remains a technological challenge. Herein, a facile and scalable approach is developed to fabricate hierarchical hollow spheres with integrated micro-, meso-, and macropores ranging from 1 nm to 100 μm (spanning five orders of magnitude). (Macro)molecules, micro-rods (which play a key role for the creation of robust capsules), and emulsion droplets have been successfully employed as multiple length scale templates, allowing the creation of hierarchical porous macrospheres. Thanks to their specific mechanical strength, these hierarchical porous spheres could be incorporated and assembled as higher level building blocks in various novel materials. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Hierarchical virtual screening approaches in small molecule drug discovery.

PubMed

Kumar, Ashutosh; Zhang, Kam Y J

2015-01-01

Virtual screening has played a significant role in the discovery of small molecule inhibitors of therapeutic targets in last two decades. Various ligand and structure-based virtual screening approaches are employed to identify small molecule ligands for proteins of interest. These approaches are often combined in either hierarchical or parallel manner to take advantage of the strength and avoid the limitations associated with individual methods. Hierarchical combination of ligand and structure-based virtual screening approaches has received noteworthy success in numerous drug discovery campaigns. In hierarchical virtual screening, several filters using ligand and structure-based approaches are sequentially applied to reduce a large screening library to a number small enough for experimental testing. In this review, we focus on different hierarchical virtual screening strategies and their application in the discovery of small molecule modulators of important drug targets. Several virtual screening studies are discussed to demonstrate the successful application of hierarchical virtual screening in small molecule drug discovery. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Delineating the joint hierarchical structure of clinical and personality disorders in an outpatient psychiatric sample.

PubMed

Forbes, Miriam K; Kotov, Roman; Ruggero, Camilo J; Watson, David; Zimmerman, Mark; Krueger, Robert F

2017-11-01

A large body of research has focused on identifying the optimal number of dimensions - or spectra - to model individual differences in psychopathology. Recently, it has become increasingly clear that ostensibly competing models with varying numbers of spectra can be synthesized in empirically derived hierarchical structures. We examined the convergence between top-down (bass-ackwards or sequential principal components analysis) and bottom-up (hierarchical agglomerative cluster analysis) statistical methods for elucidating hierarchies to explicate the joint hierarchical structure of clinical and personality disorders. Analyses examined 24 clinical and personality disorders based on semi-structured clinical interviews in an outpatient psychiatric sample (n=2900). The two methods of hierarchical analysis converged on a three-tier joint hierarchy of psychopathology. At the lowest tier, there were seven spectra - disinhibition, antagonism, core thought disorder, detachment, core internalizing, somatoform, and compulsivity - that emerged in both methods. These spectra were nested under the same three higher-order superspectra in both methods: externalizing, broad thought dysfunction, and broad internalizing. In turn, these three superspectra were nested under a single general psychopathology spectrum, which represented the top tier of the hierarchical structure. The hierarchical structure mirrors and extends upon past research, with the inclusion of a novel compulsivity spectrum, and the finding that psychopathology is organized in three superordinate domains. This hierarchy can thus be used as a flexible and integrative framework to facilitate psychopathology research with varying levels of specificity (i.e., focusing on the optimal level of detailed information, rather than the optimal number of factors). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Hierarchical Clustering Methodology for the Estimation of Toxicity

EPA Science Inventory

A Quantitative Structure Activity Relationship (QSAR) methodology based on hierarchical clustering was developed to predict toxicological endpoints. This methodology utilizes Ward's method to divide a training set into a series of structurally similar clusters. The structural sim...

Chemical grafting of the superhydrophobic surface on copper with hierarchical microstructure and its formation mechanism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cai, Junyan; Wang, Shuhui; Zhang, Junhong; Liu, Yang; Hang, Tao; Ling, Huiqin; Li, Ming

2018-04-01

In this paper, a superhydrophobic surface with hierarchical structure was fabricated by chemical deposition of Cu micro-cones array, followed by chemical grafting of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA). Water contact measurements give contact angle of 131.0° on these surfaces after PMMA grafting of 2 min and 165.2° after 6 min. The superhydrophobicity results from two factors: (1) the hierarchical structure due to Cu micro-cones array and the second level structure caused by intergranular corrosion during grafting of PMMA (confirmed by the scanning electron microscopy) and (2) the chemical modification of a low surface energy PMMA layer (confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectrometer and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy). In the chemical grafting process, the spontaneous reduction of nitrobenzene diazonium (NBD) tetrafluoroborate not only causes the corrosion of the Cu surface that leads to a hierarchical structure, but also initiates the polymerization of methyl methacrylate (MMA) monomers and thus the low free energy surface. Such a robust approach to fabricate the hierarchical structured surface with superhydrophobicity is expected to have practical application in anti-corrosion industry.

The study of dynamic force acted on water strider leg departing from water surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Peiyuan; Zhao, Meirong; Jiang, Jile; Zheng, Yelong

2018-01-01

Water-walking insects such as water striders can skate on the water surface easily with the help of the hierarchical structure on legs. Numerous theoretical and experimental studies show that the hierarchical structure would help water strider in quasi-static case such as load-bearing capacity. However, the advantage of the hierarchical structure in the dynamic stage has not been reported yet. In this paper, the function of super hydrophobicity and the hierarchical structure was investigated by measuring the adhesion force of legs departing from the water surface at different lifting speed by a dynamic force sensor. The results show that the adhesion force decreased with the increase of lifting speed from 0.02 m/s to 0.4 m/s, whose mechanic is investigated by Energy analysis. In addition, it can be found that the needle shape setae on water strider leg can help them depart from water surface easily. Thus, it can serve as a starting point to understand how the hierarchical structure on the legs help water-walking insects to jump upward rapidly to avoid preying by other insects.

Correlation between the hierarchical structures and nanomechanical properties of amyloid fibrils.

PubMed

Lee, Gyudo; Lee, Wonseok; Baik, Seunghyun; Kim, Yong Ho; Eom, Kilho; Kwon, Taeyun

2018-04-12

Amyloid fibrils have recently been highlighted due to their excellent mechanical properties, which not only play a role in their biological functions but also imply their applications in biomimetic material design. Despite recent efforts to unveil how the excellent mechanical properties of amyloid fibrils originate, it has remained elusive how the anisotropic nanomechanical properties of hierarchically structured amyloid fibrils are determined. Here, we characterize the anisotropic nanomechanical properties of hierarchically structured amyloid fibrils using atomic force microscopy (AFM) experiments and atomistic simulations. It is shown that the hierarchical structure of amyloid fibrils plays a crucial role in determining their radial elastic property but does not make any effect on their radial bending elastic property. This is attributed to the role of intermolecular force acting between the filaments (constituting the fibril) on the radial elastic modulus of amyloid fibrils. Our finding illustrates how the hierarchical structure of amyloid fibrils encodes their anisotropic nanomechanical properties. Our study provides key design principles of amyloid fibrils, which endow valuable insight into the underlying mechanisms of amyloid mechanics. © 2018 IOP Publishing Ltd.

3D printed hierarchical honeycombs with shape integrity under large compressive deformations

DOE PAGES

Chen, Yanyu; Li, Tiantian; Jia, Zian; ...

2017-10-12

Here, we describe the in-plane compressive performance of a new type of hierarchical cellular structure created by replacing cell walls in regular honeycombs with triangular lattice configurations. The fabrication of this relatively complex material architecture with size features spanning from micrometer to centimeter is facilitated by the availability of commercial 3D printers. We apply to these hierarchical honeycombs a thermal treatment that facilitates the shape preservation and structural integrity of the structures under large compressive loading. The proposed hierarchical honeycombs exhibit a progressive failure mode, along with improved stiffness and energy absorption under uniaxial compression. High energy dissipation and shapemore » integrity at large imposed strains (up to 60%) have also been observed in these hierarchical honeycombs under cyclic loading. Experimental and numerical studies suggest that these anomalous mechanical behaviors are attributed to the introduction of a structural hierarchy, intrinsically controlled by the cell wall slenderness of the triangular lattice and by the shape memory effect induced by the thermal and mechanical compressive treatment.« less

Band-gap analysis of a novel lattice with a hierarchical periodicity using the spectral element method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Zhijing; Li, Fengming; Zhang, Chuanzeng

2018-05-01

Inspired by the hierarchical structures of butterfly wing surfaces, a new kind of lattice structures with a two-order hierarchical periodicity is proposed and designed, and the band-gap properties are investigated by the spectral element method (SEM). The equations of motion of the whole structure are established considering the macro and micro periodicities of the system. The efficiency of the SEM is exploited in the modeling process and validated by comparing the results with that of the finite element method (FEM). Based on the highly accurate results in the frequency domain, the dynamic behaviors of the proposed two-order hierarchical structures are analyzed. An original and interesting finding is the existence of the distinct macro and micro stop-bands in the given frequency domain. The mechanisms for these two types of band-gaps are also explored. Finally, the relations between the hierarchical periodicities and the different types of the stop-bands are investigated by analyzing the parametrical influences.

3D printed hierarchical honeycombs with shape integrity under large compressive deformations

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, Yanyu; Li, Tiantian; Jia, Zian

Here, we describe the in-plane compressive performance of a new type of hierarchical cellular structure created by replacing cell walls in regular honeycombs with triangular lattice configurations. The fabrication of this relatively complex material architecture with size features spanning from micrometer to centimeter is facilitated by the availability of commercial 3D printers. We apply to these hierarchical honeycombs a thermal treatment that facilitates the shape preservation and structural integrity of the structures under large compressive loading. The proposed hierarchical honeycombs exhibit a progressive failure mode, along with improved stiffness and energy absorption under uniaxial compression. High energy dissipation and shapemore » integrity at large imposed strains (up to 60%) have also been observed in these hierarchical honeycombs under cyclic loading. Experimental and numerical studies suggest that these anomalous mechanical behaviors are attributed to the introduction of a structural hierarchy, intrinsically controlled by the cell wall slenderness of the triangular lattice and by the shape memory effect induced by the thermal and mechanical compressive treatment.« less

3D Mimicry of Native-Tissue-Fiber Architecture Guides Tendon-Derived Cells and Adipose Stem Cells into Artificial Tendon Constructs.

PubMed

Laranjeira, Mariana; Domingues, Rui M A; Costa-Almeida, Raquel; Reis, Rui L; Gomes, Manuela E

2017-08-01

Tendon and ligament (T/L) function is intrinsically related with their unique hierarchically and anisotropically organized extracellular matrix. Their natural healing capacity is, however, limited. Here, continuous and aligned electrospun nanofiber threads (CANT) based on synthetic/natural polymer blends mechanically reinforced with cellulose nanocrystals are produced to replicate the nanoscale collagen fibrils grouped into microscale collagen fibers that compose the native T/L. CANT are then incrementally assembled into 3D hierarchical scaffolds, resulting in woven constructions, which simultaneously mimic T/L nano-to-macro architecture, nanotopography, and nonlinear biomechanical behavior. Biological performance is assessed using human-tendon-derived cells (hTDCs) and human adipose stem cells (hASCs). Scaffolds nanotopography and microstructure induce a high cytoskeleton elongation and anisotropic organization typical of tendon tissues. Moreover, the expression of tendon-related markers (Collagen types I and III, Tenascin-C, and Scleraxis) by both cell types, and the similarities observed on their expression patterns over time suggest that the developed scaffolds not only prevent the phenotypic drift of hTDCs, but also trigger tenogenic differentiation of hASCs. Overall, these results demonstrate a feasible approach for the scalable production of 3D hierarchical scaffolds that exhibit key structural and biomechanical properties, which can be advantageously explored in acellular and cellular T/L TE strategies. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Recognition and characterization of hierarchical interstellar structure. II - Structure tree statistics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Houlahan, Padraig; Scalo, John

1992-01-01

A new method of image analysis is described, in which images partitioned into 'clouds' are represented by simplified skeleton images, called structure trees, that preserve the spatial relations of the component clouds while disregarding information concerning their sizes and shapes. The method can be used to discriminate between images of projected hierarchical (multiply nested) and random three-dimensional simulated collections of clouds constructed on the basis of observed interstellar properties, and even intermediate systems formed by combining random and hierarchical simulations. For a given structure type, the method can distinguish between different subclasses of models with different parameters and reliably estimate their hierarchical parameters: average number of children per parent, scale reduction factor per level of hierarchy, density contrast, and number of resolved levels. An application to a column density image of the Taurus complex constructed from IRAS data is given. Moderately strong evidence for a hierarchical structural component is found, and parameters of the hierarchy, as well as the average volume filling factor and mass efficiency of fragmentation per level of hierarchy, are estimated. The existence of nested structure contradicts models in which large molecular clouds are supposed to fragment, in a single stage, into roughly stellar-mass cores.

Organizational and Spatial Dynamics of Attentional Focusing in Hierarchically Structured Objects

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yeari, Menahem; Goldsmith, Morris

2011-01-01

Is the focusing of visual attention object-based, space-based, both, or neither? Attentional focusing latencies in hierarchically structured compound-letter objects were examined, orthogonally manipulating global size (larger vs. smaller) and organizational complexity (two-level structure vs. three-level structure). In a dynamic focusing task,…

Inferring gene ontologies from pairwise similarity data

PubMed Central

Kramer, Michael; Dutkowski, Janusz; Yu, Michael; Bafna, Vineet; Ideker, Trey

2014-01-01

Motivation: While the manually curated Gene Ontology (GO) is widely used, inferring a GO directly from -omics data is a compelling new problem. Recognizing that ontologies are a directed acyclic graph (DAG) of terms and hierarchical relations, algorithms are needed that: analyze a full matrix of gene–gene pairwise similarities from -omics data;infer true hierarchical structure in these data rather than enforcing hierarchy as a computational artifact; andrespect biological pleiotropy, by which a term in the hierarchy can relate to multiple higher level terms. Methods addressing these requirements are just beginning to emerge—none has been evaluated for GO inference. Methods: We consider two algorithms [Clique Extracted Ontology (CliXO), LocalFitness] that uniquely satisfy these requirements, compared with methods including standard clustering. CliXO is a new approach that finds maximal cliques in a network induced by progressive thresholding of a similarity matrix. We evaluate each method’s ability to reconstruct the GO biological process ontology from a similarity matrix based on (a) semantic similarities for GO itself or (b) three -omics datasets for yeast. Results: For task (a) using semantic similarity, CliXO accurately reconstructs GO (>99% precision, recall) and outperforms other approaches (<20% precision, <20% recall). For task (b) using -omics data, CliXO outperforms other methods using two -omics datasets and achieves ∼30% precision and recall using YeastNet v3, similar to an earlier approach (Network Extracted Ontology) and better than LocalFitness or standard clustering (20–25% precision, recall). Conclusion: This study provides algorithmic foundation for building gene ontologies by capturing hierarchical and pleiotropic structure embedded in biomolecular data. Contact: tideker@ucsd.edu PMID:24932003

NASA thesaurus. Volume 1: Hierarchical listing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1985-01-01

There are 16,835 postable terms and 3,765 nonpostable terms approved for use in the NASA scientific and technical information system in the Hierarchical Listing of the NASA Thesaurus. The generic structure is presented for many terms. The broader term and narrower term relationships are shown in an indented fashion that illustrates the generic structure better than the more widely used BT and NT listings. Related terms are generously applied, thus enhancing the usefulness of the Hierarchical Listing. Greater access to the Hierarchical Listing may be achieved with the collateral use of Volume 2 - Access Vocabulary.

NASA Thesaurus. Volume 1: Hierarchical listing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1982-01-01

There are 16,713 postable terms and 3,716 nonpostable terms approved for use in the NASA scientific and technical information system in the Hierarchical Listing of the NASA Thesaurus. The generic structure is presented for many terms. The broader term and narrower term relationships are shown in an indented fashion that illustrates the generic structure better than the more widely used BT and NT listings. Related terms are generously applied, thus enhancing the usefulness of the Hierarchical Listing. Greater access to the Hierarchical Listing may be achieved with the collateral use of Volume 2 - Access Vocabulary.

Adaptive variable structure hierarchical fuzzy control for a class of high-order nonlinear dynamic systems.

PubMed

Mansouri, Mohammad; Teshnehlab, Mohammad; Aliyari Shoorehdeli, Mahdi

2015-05-01

In this paper, a novel adaptive hierarchical fuzzy control system based on the variable structure control is developed for a class of SISO canonical nonlinear systems in the presence of bounded disturbances. It is assumed that nonlinear functions of the systems be completely unknown. Switching surfaces are incorporated into the hierarchical fuzzy control scheme to ensure the system stability. A fuzzy soft switching system decides the operation area of the hierarchical fuzzy control and variable structure control systems. All the nonlinearly appeared parameters of conclusion parts of fuzzy blocks located in different layers of the hierarchical fuzzy control system are adjusted through adaptation laws deduced from the defined Lyapunov function. The proposed hierarchical fuzzy control system reduces the number of rules and consequently the number of tunable parameters with respect to the ordinary fuzzy control system. Global boundedness of the overall adaptive system and the desired precision are achieved using the proposed adaptive control system. In this study, an adaptive hierarchical fuzzy system is used for two objectives; it can be as a function approximator or a control system based on an intelligent-classic approach. Three theorems are proven to investigate the stability of the nonlinear dynamic systems. The important point about the proposed theorems is that they can be applied not only to hierarchical fuzzy controllers with different structures of hierarchical fuzzy controller, but also to ordinary fuzzy controllers. Therefore, the proposed algorithm is more general. To show the effectiveness of the proposed method four systems (two mechanical, one mathematical and one chaotic) are considered in simulations. Simulation results demonstrate the validity, efficiency and feasibility of the proposed approach to control of nonlinear dynamic systems. Copyright © 2014 ISA. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Ways of looking ahead: hierarchical planning in language production.

PubMed

Lee, Eun-Kyung; Brown-Schmidt, Sarah; Watson, Duane G

2013-12-01

It is generally assumed that language production proceeds incrementally, with chunks of linguistic structure planned ahead of speech. Extensive research has examined the scope of language production and suggests that the size of planned chunks varies across contexts (Ferreira & Swets, 2002; Wagner & Jescheniak, 2010). By contrast, relatively little is known about the structure of advance planning, specifically whether planning proceeds incrementally according to the surface structure of the utterance, or whether speakers plan according to the hierarchical relationships between utterance elements. In two experiments, we examine the structure and scope of lexical planning in language production using a picture description task. Analyses of speech onset times and word durations show that speakers engage in hierarchical planning such that structurally dependent lexical items are planned together and that hierarchical planning occurs for both direct and indirect dependencies. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Facile solid-state synthesis of Ni@C nanosheet-assembled hierarchical network for high-performance lithium storage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gu, Jinghe; Li, Qiyun; Zeng, Pan; Meng, Yulin; Zhang, Xiukui; Wu, Ping; Zhou, Yiming

2017-08-01

Micro/nano-architectured transition-metal@C hybrids possess unique structural and compositional features toward lithium storage, and are thus expected to manifest ideal anodic performances in advanced lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Herein, we propose a facile and scalable solid-state coordination and subsequent pyrolysis route for the formation of a novel type of micro/nano-architectured transition-metal@C hybrid (i.e., Ni@C nanosheet-assembled hierarchical network, Ni@C network). Moreover, this coordination-pyrolysis route has also been applied for the construction of bare carbon network using zinc salts instead of nickel salts as precursors. When applied as potential anodic materials in LIBs, the Ni@C network exhibits Ni-content-dependent electrochemical performances, and the partially-etched Ni@C network manifests markedly enhanced Li-storage performances in terms of specific capacities, cycle life, and rate capability than the pristine Ni@C network and carbon network. The proposed solid-state coordination and pyrolysis strategy would open up new opportunities for constructing micro/nano-architectured transition-metal@C hybrids as advanced anode materials for LIBs.

Distinct Photovoltaic Performance of Hierarchical Nanostructures Self-Assembled from Multiblock Copolymers.

PubMed

Xu, Zhanwen; Lin, Jiaping; Zhang, Liangshun; Wang, Liquan; Wang, Gengchao; Tian, Xiaohui; Jiang, Tao

2018-06-14

We applied a multi-scale approach coupling dissipative particle dynamics method with a drift-diffusion model to elucidate the photovoltaic properties of multiblock copolymers consisting of alternating electron donor and acceptor blocks. A series of hierarchical lamellae-in-lamellar structures were obtained from the self-assembly of the multiblock copolymers. A distinct improvement in photovoltaic performance upon the morphology transformation from lamella to lamellae-in-lamella was observed. The hierarchical lamellae-in-lamellar structures significantly enhanced exciton dissociation and charge carrier transport, which consequently contributed to the improved photovoltaic performance. Based on our theoretical calculations, the hierarchical nanostructures can achieve a much enhanced energy conversion efficiency, improved by around 25% compared with that of general ones, through structure modulation on number and size of the small-length-scale domains. Our findings are supported by recent experimental evidence and yield guidelines for designing hierarchical materials with improved photovoltaic properties.

High-energy lithium-ion hybrid supercapacitors composed of hierarchical urchin-like WO3/C anodes and MOF-derived polyhedral hollow carbon cathodes.

PubMed

Xu, Juan; Li, Yuanyuan; Wang, Lei; Cai, Qifa; Li, Qingwei; Gao, Biao; Zhang, Xuming; Huo, Kaifu; Chu, Paul K

2016-09-22

A lithium-ion hybrid supercapacitor (Li-HSC) comprising a Li-ion battery type anode and an electrochemical double layer capacitance (EDLC) type cathode has attracted much interest because it accomplishes a large energy density without compromising the power density. In this work, hierarchical carbon coated WO 3 (WO 3 /C) with a unique mesoporous structure and metal-organic framework derived nitrogen-doped carbon hollow polyhedra (MOF-NC) are prepared and adopted as the anode and the cathode for Li-HSCs. The hierarchical mesoporous WO 3 /C microspheres assembled by radially oriented WO 3 /C nanorods along the (001) plane enable effective Li + insertion, thus exhibit high capacity, excellent rate performance and a long cycling life due to their high Li + conductivity, electronic conductivity and structural robustness. The WO 3 /C structure shows a reversible specific capacity of 508 mA h g -1 at a 0.1 C rate (1 C = 696 mA h g -1 ) after 160 discharging-charging cycles with excellent rate capability. The MOF-NC achieved the specific capacity of 269.9 F g -1 at a current density of 0.2 A g -1 . At a high current density of 6 A g -1 , 92.4% of the initial capacity could be retained after 2000 discharging-charging cycles, suggesting excellent cycle stability. The Li-HSC comprising a WO 3 /C anode and a MOF-NC cathode boasts a large energy density of 159.97 W h kg -1 at a power density of 173.6 W kg -1 and 88.3% of the capacity is retained at a current density of 5 A g -1 after 3000 charging-discharging cycles, which are better than those previously reported for Li-HSCs. The high energy and power densities of the Li-HSCs of WO 3 /C//MOF-NC render large potential in energy storage.

Emergence of the interplay between hierarchy and contact splitting in biological adhesion highlighted through a hierarchical shear lag model.

PubMed

Brely, Lucas; Bosia, Federico; Pugno, Nicola M

2018-06-20

Contact unit size reduction is a widely studied mechanism as a means to improve adhesion in natural fibrillar systems, such as those observed in beetles or geckos. However, these animals also display complex structural features in the way the contact is subdivided in a hierarchical manner. Here, we study the influence of hierarchical fibrillar architectures on the load distribution over the contact elements of the adhesive system, and the corresponding delamination behaviour. We present an analytical model to derive the load distribution in a fibrillar system loaded in shear, including hierarchical splitting of contacts, i.e. a "hierarchical shear-lag" model that generalizes the well-known shear-lag model used in mechanics. The influence on the detachment process is investigated introducing a numerical procedure that allows the derivation of the maximum delamination force as a function of the considered geometry, including statistical variability of local adhesive energy. Our study suggests that contact splitting generates improved adhesion only in the ideal case of extremely compliant contacts. In real cases, to produce efficient adhesive performance, contact splitting needs to be coupled with hierarchical architectures to counterbalance high load concentrations resulting from contact unit size reduction, generating multiple delamination fronts and helping to avoid detrimental non-uniform load distributions. We show that these results can be summarized in a generalized adhesion scaling scheme for hierarchical structures, proving the beneficial effect of multiple hierarchical levels. The model can thus be used to predict the adhesive performance of hierarchical adhesive structures, as well as the mechanical behaviour of composite materials with hierarchical reinforcements.

Conceptual Structure within and between Modalities

PubMed Central

Dilkina, Katia; Lambon Ralph, Matthew A.

2012-01-01

Current views of semantic memory share the assumption that conceptual representations are based on multimodal experience, which activates distinct modality-specific brain regions. This proposition is widely accepted, yet little is known about how each modality contributes to conceptual knowledge and how the structure of this contribution varies across these multiple information sources. We used verbal feature lists, features from drawings, and verbal co-occurrence statistics from latent semantic analysis to examine the informational structure in four domains of knowledge: perceptual, functional, encyclopedic, and verbal. The goals of the analysis were three-fold: (1) to assess the structure within individual modalities; (2) to compare structures between modalities; and (3) to assess the degree to which concepts organize categorically or randomly. Our results indicated significant and unique structure in all four modalities: perceptually, concepts organize based on prominent features such as shape, size, color, and parts; functionally, they group based on use and interaction; encyclopedically, they arrange based on commonality in location or behavior; and verbally, they group associatively or relationally. Visual/perceptual knowledge gives rise to the strongest hierarchical organization and is closest to classic taxonomic structure. Information is organized somewhat similarly in the perceptual and encyclopedic domains, which differs significantly from the structure in the functional and verbal domains. Notably, the verbal modality has the most unique organization, which is not at all categorical but also not random. The idiosyncrasy and complexity of conceptual structure across modalities raise the question of how all of these modality-specific experiences are fused together into coherent, multifaceted yet unified concepts. Accordingly, both methodological and theoretical implications of the present findings are discussed. PMID:23293593

Segregating the core computational faculty of human language from working memory.

PubMed

Makuuchi, Michiru; Bahlmann, Jörg; Anwander, Alfred; Friederici, Angela D

2009-05-19

In contrast to simple structures in animal vocal behavior, hierarchical structures such as center-embedded sentences manifest the core computational faculty of human language. Previous artificial grammar learning studies found that the left pars opercularis (LPO) subserves the processing of hierarchical structures. However, it is not clear whether this area is activated by the structural complexity per se or by the increased memory load entailed in processing hierarchical structures. To dissociate the effect of structural complexity from the effect of memory cost, we conducted a functional magnetic resonance imaging study of German sentence processing with a 2-way factorial design tapping structural complexity (with/without hierarchical structure, i.e., center-embedding of clauses) and working memory load (long/short distance between syntactically dependent elements; i.e., subject nouns and their respective verbs). Functional imaging data revealed that the processes for structure and memory operate separately but co-operatively in the left inferior frontal gyrus; activities in the LPO increased as a function of structural complexity, whereas activities in the left inferior frontal sulcus (LIFS) were modulated by the distance over which the syntactic information had to be transferred. Diffusion tensor imaging showed that these 2 regions were interconnected through white matter fibers. Moreover, functional coupling between the 2 regions was found to increase during the processing of complex, hierarchically structured sentences. These results suggest a neuroanatomical segregation of syntax-related aspects represented in the LPO from memory-related aspects reflected in the LIFS, which are, however, highly interconnected functionally and anatomically.

Hierarchical structures consisting of SiO2 nanorods and p-GaN microdomes for efficiently harvesting solar energy for InGaN quantum well photovoltaic cells.

PubMed

Ho, Cheng-Han; Lien, Der-Hsien; Chang, Hung-Chih; Lin, Chin-An; Kang, Chen-Fang; Hsing, Meng-Kai; Lai, Kun-Yu; He, Jr-Hau

2012-12-07

We experimentally and theoretically demonstrated the hierarchical structure of SiO(2) nanorod arrays/p-GaN microdomes as a light harvesting scheme for InGaN-based multiple quantum well solar cells. The combination of nano- and micro-structures leads to increased internal multiple reflection and provides an intermediate refractive index between air and GaN. Cells with the hierarchical structure exhibit improved short-circuit current densities and fill factors, rendering a 1.47 fold efficiency enhancement as compared to planar cells.

Synthetic Design of Polysulfone Membranes: Morphological Effect on Property and Performance in Flow Batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gindt, Brandon

This dissertation outlines a novel path towards improved understanding and function of proton exchange membranes (PEMs) for redox flow batteries, a large-scale battery storage device. This research uses synthetic methods and nanotechnology through two different approaches to prepare tailored polymer membranes: 1) Ion exchange membranes with enhanced chemical structures to promote membrane morphology on the nano-scale were prepared. Specifically, functional polysulfones (PSUs) were synthesized from different pre-sulfonated monomers. These PSUs have controlled placement and content of unique sulfonic acid moieties. PEMs were fabricated and characterized. The new PEMs showed desirable physical properties and performance in a vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) cell. 2) Nanoporous PSU membranes were fabricated via post-hydrolysis of polylactide (PLA) from PLA-PSU-PLA triblock copolymer membranes. The controlled morphology and pore size of the resulting nanoporous membranes were evaluated by different microscopy and scattering techniques to understand structure-property relationships. Further, the resulting nanopore surface was chemically modified with sulfonic acid moieties. Membranes were analyzed and evaluated as separators for a VRFB. The chemically modified nanoporous PEMs exhibited unique behavior with respect to their ion conductivity when exposed to solutions of increasing acid concentration. In addition, the hierarchical micro-nanoporous membranes developed further showed promising structure and properties.

Sugar apple-shaped TiO2 hierarchical spheres for highly efficient dye-sensitized solar cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lei, Bing-Xin; Zeng, Li-Li; Zhang, Ping; Qiao, He-Kang; Sun, Zhen-Fan

2014-05-01

The sugar apple-shaped TiO2 hierarchical spheres are prepared by a facile hydrothermal method using polyethylene glycol 600 as stabilized reagent, (NH4)2TiF6 and urea as starting materials at 180 °C. The characterizations show that the TiO2 hierarchical sphere has well-defined pyramid-shaped crystal facets. The as-prepared TiO2 hierarchical spheres are crystalline of the anatase phase, with a diameter of about 2-4 μm and a surface area of 36.846 m2 g-1. The optical investigation evidences that the sugar apple-shaped TiO2 hierarchical sphere film exhibits a prominent light scattering effect at a wavelength range of 600-800 nm due to the unique hierarchical morphology. Furthermore, the sugar apple-shaped TiO2 hierarchical spheres are deposited as the scattering layer to balance the dye adsorption and light scattering effect in DSSCs and a 7.20% solar energy conversion efficiency is demonstrated, indicating an improvement compared with the P25 cell (6.68%). Based on the optical and electrochemical investigations, the high conversion efficiency is mainly due to the effective suppression of the back reaction of the injected electron with the I3- in the electrolyte and excellent light scattering ability.

The Hierarchical Structure of Formal Operational Tasks.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bart, William M.; Mertens, Donna M.

1979-01-01

The hierarchical structure of the formal operational period of Piaget's theory of cognitive development was explored through the application of ordering theoretical methods to a set of data that systematically utilized the various formal operational schemes. Results suggested a common structure underlying task performance. (Author/BH)

Mechanically durable superoleophobic aluminum surfaces with microstep and nanoreticula hierarchical structure for self-cleaning and anti-smudge properties.

PubMed

Peng, Shan; Bhushan, Bharat

2016-01-01

Superoleophobic aluminum surfaces are of interest for self-cleaning, anti-smudge (fingerprint resistance), anti-fouling, and corrosion resistance applications. In the published literature on superoleophobic aluminum surfaces, mechanical durability, self-cleaning, and anti-smudge properties data are lacking. Microstep structure has often been used to prepare superhydrophobic aluminum surfaces which produce the microstructure. The nanoreticula structure has also been used, and is reported to be able to trap air-pockets, which are desirable for a high contact angle. In this work, the microstep and nanoreticula structures were produced on aluminum surfaces to form a hierarchical micro/nanostructure by a simple two-step chemical etching process. The hierarchical structure, when modified with fluorosilane, made the surface superoleophobic. The effect of nanostructure, microstructure, and hierarchical structure on wettability and durability were studied and compared. The superoleophobic aluminum surfaces were found to be wear resistant, self-cleaning, and have anti-smudge and corrosion resistance properties. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

New insight in magnetic saturation behavior of nickel hierarchical structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ma, Ji; Zhang, Jianxing; Liu, Chunting; Chen, Kezheng

2017-09-01

It is unanimously accepted that non-ferromagnetic inclusions in a ferromagnetic system will lower down total saturation magnetization in unit of emu/g. In this study, ;lattice strain; was found to be another key factor to have critical impact on magnetic saturation behavior of the system. The lattice strain determined assembling patterns of primary nanoparticles in hierarchical structures and was intimately related with the formation process of these architectures. Therefore, flower-necklace-like and cauliflower-like nickel hierarchical structures were used as prototype systems to evidence the relationship between assembling patterns of primary nanoparticles and magnetic saturation behaviors of these architectures. It was found that the influence of lattice strain on saturation magnetization outperformed that of non-ferromagnetic inclusions in these hierarchical structures. This will enable new insights into fundamental understanding of related magnetic effects.

Hierarchical structure graphitic-like/MoS2 film as superlubricity material

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gong, Zhenbin; Jia, Xiaolong; Ma, Wei; Zhang, Bin; Zhang, Junyan

2017-08-01

Friction and wear result in a great amount of energy loss and the invalidation of mechanical parts, thus it is necessary to minimize friction in practical application. In this study, the graphitic-like/MoS2 films with hierarchical structure were synthesized by the combination of pulse current plasma chemical-vapor deposition and medium frequency unbalanced magnetron sputtering in preheated environment. This hierarchical structure composite with multilayer nano sheets endows the films excellent tribological performance, which easily achieves macro superlubricity (friction coefficient ∼0.004) under humid air. Furthermore, it is expected that hierarchical structure of graphitic-like/MoS2 films could match the requirements of large scale, high bear-capacity and wear-resistance of actual working conditions, which could be widely used in the industrial production as a promising superlubricity material.

Cauliflower-derived porous carbon without activation for electrochemical capacitor and CO2 capture applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Du, Juan; Yu, Yifeng; Lv, Haijun; Chen, Chunlin; Zhang, Jian; Chen, Aibing

2018-01-01

Carbon materials have attracted great attention in CO2 capture and energy storage due to their excellent characteristics such as tunable pore structure, modulated surface properties and superior bulk conductivities, etc. Biomass, provided by nature with non-toxic, widespread, abundant, and sustainable advantages, is considered to be a very promising precursor of carbons for the view of economic, environmental, and societal issues. However, the preparation of high-performance biomass-derived carbons is still a big challenge because of the multistep process for their synthesis and subsequent activation. Herein, hierarchically porous structured carbon materials have been prepared by directly carbonizing dried cauliflowers without any addition of agents and activation process, featuring with large specific surface area, hierarchically porous structure and improved pore volume, as well as suitable nitrogen content. Being used as a solid-state CO2 adsorbent, the obtained product exhibited a high CO2 adsorption capacity of 3.1 mmol g-1 under 1 bar and 25 °C and a remarkable reusability of 96.7% retention after 20 adsorption/regeneration cycles. Our study reveals that choosing a good biomass source was significant as the unique structure of precursor endows the carbonized product with abundant pores without the need of any post-treatment. Used as an electrode material in electrochemical capacitor, the non-activated porous carbon displayed a fairly high specific capacitance of 228.9 F g-1 at 0.5 A g-1 and an outstanding stability of 99.2% retention after 5000 cycles at 5 A g-1. [Figure not available: see fulltext.

Bio-inspired Fabrication of Complex Hierarchical Structure in Silicon.

PubMed

Gao, Yang; Peng, Zhengchun; Shi, Tielin; Tan, Xianhua; Zhang, Deqin; Huang, Qiang; Zou, Chuanping; Liao, Guanglan

2015-08-01

In this paper, we developed a top-down method to fabricate complex three dimensional silicon structure, which was inspired by the hierarchical micro/nanostructure of the Morpho butterfly scales. The fabrication procedure includes photolithography, metal masking, and both dry and wet etching techniques. First, microscale photoresist grating pattern was formed on the silicon (111) wafer. Trenches with controllable rippled structures on the sidewalls were etched by inductively coupled plasma reactive ion etching Bosch process. Then, Cr film was angled deposited on the bottom of the ripples by electron beam evaporation, followed by anisotropic wet etching of the silicon. The simple fabrication method results in large scale hierarchical structure on a silicon wafer. The fabricated Si structure has multiple layers with uniform thickness of hundreds nanometers. We conducted both light reflection and heat transfer experiments on this structure. They exhibited excellent antireflection performance for polarized ultraviolet, visible and near infrared wavelengths. And the heat flux of the structure was significantly enhanced. As such, we believe that these bio-inspired hierarchical silicon structure will have promising applications in photovoltaics, sensor technology and photonic crystal devices.

Rational construction of nickel cobalt sulfide nanoflakes on CoO nanosheets with the help of carbon layer as the battery-like electrode for supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Jinghuang; Liu, Yulin; Wang, Yiheng; Jia, Henan; Chen, Shulin; Qi, Junlei; Qu, Chaoqun; Cao, Jian; Fei, Weidong; Feng, Jicai

2017-09-01

Herein, binder-free hierarchically structured nickel cobalt sulfide nanoflakes on CoO nanosheets with the help of carbon layer (Ni-Co-S@C@CoO NAs) are fabricated via hydrothermal synthesis, carbonization treatment and electrodeposition, where three key components (CoO nanosheet arrays, a carbon layer and Ni-Co-S nanoflakes) are strategically combined to construct an efficient electrode for supercapacitors. The highly well-defined CoO nanosheets are utilized as ideal conductive scaffolds, where the conductivity is further improved by coating carbon layer, as well as the large electroactive surface area of Ni-Co-S nanoflakes. Furthermore, self-supported electrodes are directly grown on Ni foam without conductive additives or binders, which can effectively simplify the whole preparation process and achieve excellent electrical contact. Benefiting from the unique structural features, the hierarchically structured Ni-Co-S@C@CoO NAs exhibit high specific capacitance up to 4.97 F cm-2, excellent rate capability, and maintains 93.2% of the initial capacitance after 10000 cycles. Furthermore, an asymmetric supercapacitor using the Ni-Co-S@C@CoO NAs electrode and activated carbon is assembled, which achieves a high energy density (49.7 W h kg-1) with long cycling lifespan. These results demonstrate the as-fabricated Ni-Co-S@C@CoO NAs can be a competitive battery-like electrode for supercapacitors in energy storages.

Surfaces for high heat dissipation with no Leidenfrost limit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sajadi, Seyed Mohammad; Irajizad, Peyman; Kashyap, Varun; Farokhnia, Nazanin; Ghasemi, Hadi

2017-07-01

Heat dissipation from hot surfaces through cooling droplets is limited by the Leidenfrost point (LFP), in which an insulating vapor film prevents direct contact between the cooling droplet and the hot surface. A range of approaches have been developed to raise this limit to higher temperatures, but the limit still exists. Recently, a surface architecture, decoupled hierarchical structure, was developed that allows the suppression of LFP completely. However, heat dissipation by the structure in the low superheat region was inferior to other surfaces and the structure required an extensive micro/nano fabrication procedure. Here, we present a metallic surface structure with no LFP and high heat dissipation capacity in all temperature ranges. The surface features the nucleate boiling phenomenon independent of the temperature with an approximate heat transfer coefficient of 20 kW m-2 K-1. This surface is developed in a one-step process with no micro/nano fabrication. We envision that this metallic surface provides a unique platform for high heat dissipation in power generation, photonics/electronics, and aviation systems.

Resource atlases for multi-atlas brain segmentations with multiple ontology levels based on T1-weighted MRI.

PubMed

Wu, Dan; Ma, Ting; Ceritoglu, Can; Li, Yue; Chotiyanonta, Jill; Hou, Zhipeng; Hsu, John; Xu, Xin; Brown, Timothy; Miller, Michael I; Mori, Susumu

2016-01-15

Technologies for multi-atlas brain segmentation of T1-weighted MRI images have rapidly progressed in recent years, with highly promising results. This approach, however, relies on a large number of atlases with accurate and consistent structural identifications. Here, we introduce our atlas inventories (n=90), which cover ages 4-82years with unique hierarchical structural definitions (286 structures at the finest level). This multi-atlas library resource provides the flexibility to choose appropriate atlases for various studies with different age ranges and structure-definition criteria. In this paper, we describe the details of the atlas resources and demonstrate the improved accuracy achievable with a dynamic age-matching approach, in which atlases that most closely match the subject's age are dynamically selected. The advanced atlas creation strategy, together with atlas pre-selection principles, is expected to support the further development of multi-atlas image segmentation. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

SDSS J1056+5516: A Triple AGN or an SMBH Recoil Candidate?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kalfountzou, E.; Santos Lleo, M.; Trichas, M.

2017-12-01

We report the discovery of a kiloparsec-scale triple supermassive black hole system at z = 0.256: SDSS J1056+5516, discovered by our systematic search for binary quasars. The system contains three strong emission-line nuclei, which are offset by < 250 {km} {{{s}}}-1 and by 15-18 kpc in projected separation, suggesting that the nuclei belong to the same physical structure. The system includes a tidal arm feature spanning ˜100 kpc in projected distance at the systems’ redshift, inhabiting an ongoing or recent galaxy merger. Based on our results, such a structure can only satisfy one of the three scenarios; a triple supermasive black hole (SMBH) interacting system, a triple AGN, or a recoiling SMBH. Each of these scenarios is unique for our understanding of the hierarchical growth of galaxies, AGN triggering, and gravitational waves.

Au functionalized ZnO rose-like hierarchical structures and their enhanced NO2 sensing performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shingange, K.; Swart, H. C.; Mhlongo, G. H.

2018-04-01

Herein, we present ZnO rose-like hierarchical nanostructures employed as support to Au nanoparticles to produce Au functionalized three dimensional (3D) ZnO hierarchical nanostructures (Au/ZnO) for NO2 detection using a microwave-assisted method. Comparative analysis of NO2 sensing performance between the pristine ZnO and Au/ZnO rose-like structures at 300 °C revealed improved NO2 response and rapid response-recovery times with Au incorporation owing to a combination of high surface accessibility induced by hierarchical nanostructure design and catalytic activity of the small Au nanoparticles. Structural and optical analyses acquired from X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscope and photoluminescence spectroscopy were also performed.

Hierarchical and hybrid energy storage devices in data centers: Architecture, control and provisioning.

PubMed

Sun, Mengshu; Xue, Yuankun; Bogdan, Paul; Tang, Jian; Wang, Yanzhi; Lin, Xue

2018-01-01

Recently, a new approach has been introduced that leverages and over-provisions energy storage devices (ESDs) in data centers for performing power capping and facilitating capex/opex reductions, without performance overhead. To fully realize the potential benefits of the hierarchical ESD structure, we propose a comprehensive design, control, and provisioning framework including (i) designing power delivery architecture supporting hierarchical ESD structure and hybrid ESDs for some levels, as well as (ii) control and provisioning of the hierarchical ESD structure including run-time ESD charging/discharging control and design-time determination of ESD types, homogeneous/hybrid options, ESD provisioning at each level. Experiments have been conducted using real Google data center workloads based on realistic data center specifications.

Hierarchical and hybrid energy storage devices in data centers: Architecture, control and provisioning

PubMed Central

Xue, Yuankun; Bogdan, Paul; Tang, Jian; Wang, Yanzhi; Lin, Xue

2018-01-01

Recently, a new approach has been introduced that leverages and over-provisions energy storage devices (ESDs) in data centers for performing power capping and facilitating capex/opex reductions, without performance overhead. To fully realize the potential benefits of the hierarchical ESD structure, we propose a comprehensive design, control, and provisioning framework including (i) designing power delivery architecture supporting hierarchical ESD structure and hybrid ESDs for some levels, as well as (ii) control and provisioning of the hierarchical ESD structure including run-time ESD charging/discharging control and design-time determination of ESD types, homogeneous/hybrid options, ESD provisioning at each level. Experiments have been conducted using real Google data center workloads based on realistic data center specifications. PMID:29351553

Stochastic lumping analysis for linear kinetics and its application to the fluctuation relations between hierarchical kinetic networks.

PubMed

Deng, De-Ming; Chang, Cheng-Hung

2015-05-14

Conventional studies of biomolecular behaviors rely largely on the construction of kinetic schemes. Since the selection of these networks is not unique, a concern is raised whether and under which conditions hierarchical schemes can reveal the same experimentally measured fluctuating behaviors and unique fluctuation related physical properties. To clarify these questions, we introduce stochasticity into the traditional lumping analysis, generalize it from rate equations to chemical master equations and stochastic differential equations, and extract the fluctuation relations between kinetically and thermodynamically equivalent networks under intrinsic and extrinsic noises. The results provide a theoretical basis for the legitimate use of low-dimensional models in the studies of macromolecular fluctuations and, more generally, for exploring stochastic features in different levels of contracted networks in chemical and biological kinetic systems.

Network dysfunction of emotional and cognitive processes in those at genetic risk of bipolar disorder.

PubMed

Breakspear, Michael; Roberts, Gloria; Green, Melissa J; Nguyen, Vinh T; Frankland, Andrew; Levy, Florence; Lenroot, Rhoshel; Mitchell, Philip B

2015-11-01

The emotional and cognitive vulnerabilities that precede the development of bipolar disorder are poorly understood. The inferior frontal gyrus-a key cortical hub for the integration of cognitive and emotional processes-exhibits both structural and functional changes in bipolar disorder, and is also functionally impaired in unaffected first-degree relatives, showing diminished engagement during inhibition of threat-related emotional stimuli. We hypothesized that this functional impairment of the inferior frontal gyrus in those at genetic risk of bipolar disorder reflects the dysfunction of broader network dynamics underlying the coordination of emotion perception and cognitive control. To test this, we studied effective connectivity in functional magnetic resonance imaging data acquired from 41 first-degree relatives of patients with bipolar disorder, 45 matched healthy controls and 55 participants with established bipolar disorder. Dynamic causal modelling was used to model the neuronal interaction between key regions associated with fear perception (the anterior cingulate), inhibition (the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex) and the region upon which these influences converge, namely the inferior frontal gyrus. Network models that embodied non-linear, hierarchical relationships were the most strongly supported by data from our healthy control and bipolar participants. We observed a marked difference in the hierarchical influence of the anterior cingulate on the effective connectivity from the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex to the inferior frontal gyrus that is unique to the at-risk cohort. Non-specific, non-hierarchical mechanisms appear to compensate for this network disturbance. We thus establish a specific network disturbance suggesting dysfunction in the processes that support hierarchical relationships between emotion and cognitive control in those at high genetic risk for bipolar disorder. © The Author (2015). Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Guarantors of Brain. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Emerging Hierarchical Aerogels: Self-Assembly of Metal and Semiconductor Nanocrystals.

PubMed

Cai, Bin; Sayevich, Vladimir; Gaponik, Nikolai; Eychmüller, Alexander

2018-06-19

Aerogels assembled from colloidal metal or semiconductor nanocrystals (NCs) feature large surface area, ultralow density, and high porosity, thus rendering them attractive in various applications, such as catalysis, sensors, energy storage, and electronic devices. Morphological and structural modification of the aerogel backbones while maintaining the aerogel properties enables a second stage of the aerogel research, which is defined as hierarchical aerogels. Different from the conventional aerogels with nanowire-like backbones, those hierarchical aerogels are generally comprised of at least two levels of architectures, i.e., an interconnected porous structure on the macroscale and a specially designed configuration at local backbones at the nanoscale. This combination "locks in" the inherent properties of the NCs, so that the beneficial genes obtained by nanoengineering are retained in the resulting monolithic hierarchical aerogels. Herein, groundbreaking advances in the design, synthesis, and physicochemical properties of the hierarchical aerogels are reviewed and organized in three sections: i) pure metallic hierarchical aerogels, ii) semiconductor hierarchical aerogels, and iii) metal/semiconductor hybrid hierarchical aerogels. This report aims to define and demonstrate the concept, potential, and challenges of the hierarchical aerogels, thereby providing a perspective on the further development of these materials. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Pore-scale study of effects of macroscopic pores and their distributions on reactive transport in hierarchical porous media

DOE PAGES

Chen, Li; Zhang, Ruiyuan; Min, Ting; ...

2018-05-19

For applications of reactive transport in porous media, optimal porous structures should possess both high surface area for reactive sites loading and low mass transport resistance. Hierarchical porous media with a combination of pores at different scales are designed for this purpose. In this paper, using the lattice Boltzmann method, pore-scale numerical studies are conducted to investigate diffusion-reaction processes in 2D hierarchical porous media generated by self-developed reconstruction scheme. Complex interactions between porous structures and reactive transport are revealed under different conditions. Simulation results show that adding macropores can greatly enhance the mass transport, but at the same time reducemore » the reactive surface, leading to complex change trend of the total reaction rate. Effects of gradient distribution of macropores within the porous medium are also investigated. It is found that a front-loose, back-tight (FLBT) hierarchical structure is desirable for enhancing mass transport, increasing total reaction rate, and improving catalyst utilization. Finally, on the whole, from the viewpoint of reducing cost and improving material performance, hierarchical porous structures, especially gradient structures with the size of macropores gradually decreasing along the transport direction, are desirable for catalyst application.« less

Hierarchical structural health monitoring system combining a fiber optic spinal cord network and distributed nerve cell devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Minakuchi, Shu; Tsukamoto, Haruka; Takeda, Nobuo

2009-03-01

This study proposes novel hierarchical sensing concept for detecting damages in composite structures. In the hierarchical system, numerous three-dimensionally structured sensor devices are distributed throughout the whole structural area and connected with the optical fiber network through transducing mechanisms. The distributed "sensory nerve cell" devices detect the damage, and the fiber optic "spinal cord" network gathers damage signals and transmits the information to a measuring instrument. This study began by discussing the basic concept of the hierarchical sensing system thorough comparison with existing fiber optic based systems and nerve systems in the animal kingdom. Then, in order to validate the proposed sensing concept, impact damage detection system for the composite structure was proposed. The sensor devices were developed based on Comparative Vacuum Monitoring (CVM) system and the Brillouin based distributed strain sensing was utilized to gather the damage signals from the distributed devices. Finally a verification test was conducted using prototype devices. Occurrence of barely visible impact damage was successfully detected and it was clearly indicated that the hierarchical system has better repairability, higher robustness, and wider monitorable area compared to existing systems utilizing embedded optical fiber sensors.

Pore-scale study of effects of macroscopic pores and their distributions on reactive transport in hierarchical porous media

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, Li; Zhang, Ruiyuan; Min, Ting

For applications of reactive transport in porous media, optimal porous structures should possess both high surface area for reactive sites loading and low mass transport resistance. Hierarchical porous media with a combination of pores at different scales are designed for this purpose. In this paper, using the lattice Boltzmann method, pore-scale numerical studies are conducted to investigate diffusion-reaction processes in 2D hierarchical porous media generated by self-developed reconstruction scheme. Complex interactions between porous structures and reactive transport are revealed under different conditions. Simulation results show that adding macropores can greatly enhance the mass transport, but at the same time reducemore » the reactive surface, leading to complex change trend of the total reaction rate. Effects of gradient distribution of macropores within the porous medium are also investigated. It is found that a front-loose, back-tight (FLBT) hierarchical structure is desirable for enhancing mass transport, increasing total reaction rate, and improving catalyst utilization. Finally, on the whole, from the viewpoint of reducing cost and improving material performance, hierarchical porous structures, especially gradient structures with the size of macropores gradually decreasing along the transport direction, are desirable for catalyst application.« less

NASA thesaurus. Volume 1: Hierarchical Listing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1988-01-01

There are over 17,000 postable terms and nearly 4,000 nonpostable terms approved for use in the NASA scientific and technical information system in the Hierarchical Listing of the NASA Thesaurus. The generic structure is presented for many terms. The broader term and narrower term relationships are shown in an indented fashion that illustrates the generic structure better than the more widely used BT and NT listings. Related terms are generously applied, thus enhancing the usefulness of the Hierarchical Listing. Greater access to the Hierarchical Listing may be achieved with the collateral use of Volume 2 - Access Vocabulary and Volume 3 - Definitions.

Hierarchical structure in sharply divided phase space for the piecewise linear map

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akaishi, Akira; Aoki, Kazuki; Shudo, Akira

2017-05-01

We have studied a two-dimensional piecewise linear map to examine how the hierarchical structure of stable regions affects the slow dynamics in Hamiltonian systems. In the phase space there are infinitely many stable regions, each of which is polygonal-shaped, and the rest is occupied by chaotic orbits. By using symbolic representation of stable regions, a procedure to compute the edges of the polygons is presented. The stable regions are hierarchically distributed in phase space and the edges of the stable regions show the marginal instability. The cumulative distribution of the recurrence time obeys a power law as ˜t-2 , the same as the one for the system with phase space, which is composed of a single stable region and chaotic components. By studying the symbol sequence of recurrence trajectories, we show that the hierarchical structure of stable regions has no significant effect on the power-law exponent and that only the marginal instability on the boundary of stable regions is responsible for determining the exponent. We also discuss the relevance of the hierarchical structure to those in more generic chaotic systems.

Hierarchical ultrathin alumina membrane for the fabrication of unique nanodot arrays

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Yuyang; Wang, Yi; Wang, Hailong; Wang, Xinnan; Cong, Ming; Xu, Weiqing; Xu, Shuping

2016-01-01

Ultrathin alumina membranes (UTAMs) as evaporation masks have been a powerful tool for the fabrication of high-density nanodot arrays and have received much attention in magnetic memory devices, photovoltaics, and nanoplasmonics. In this paper, we report the fabrication of a hierarchical ultrathin alumina membrane (HUTAM) with highly ordered submicro/nanoscale channels and its application as an evaporation mask for the realization of unique non-hexagonal nanodot arrays dependent on the geometrical features of the HUTAM. This is the first report of a UTAM with a hierarchical geometry, breaking the stereotype that only limited sets of nanopatterns can be realized using the UTAM method (with typical inter-pore distance of 100 nm). The fabrication of a HUTAM is discussed in detail. An improved, longer wet etching time than previously reported is found to effectively remove the barrier layer and widen the pores of a HUTAM. A growth sustainability issue brought about by pre-patterning is discussed. Spectral comparison was made to distinguish the UTAM nanodots and HUTAM nanodots. Our results can be an inspiration for more sophisticated applications of pre-patterned anodized aluminum oxide in photocatalysis, photovoltaics, and nanoplasmonics.

Fabrication of Advanced Thermoelectric Materials by Hierarchical Nanovoid Generation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Park, Yeonjoon (Inventor); Elliott, James R. (Inventor); Stoakley, Diane M. (Inventor); Chu, Sang-Hyon (Inventor); King, Glen C. (Inventor); Kim, Jae-Woo (Inventor); Choi, Sang Hyouk (Inventor); Lillehei, Peter T. (Inventor)

2011-01-01

A novel method to prepare an advanced thermoelectric material has hierarchical structures embedded with nanometer-sized voids which are key to enhancement of the thermoelectric performance. Solution-based thin film deposition technique enables preparation of stable film of thermoelectric material and void generator (voigen). A subsequent thermal process creates hierarchical nanovoid structure inside the thermoelectric material. Potential application areas of this advanced thermoelectric material with nanovoid structure are commercial applications (electronics cooling), medical and scientific applications (biological analysis device, medical imaging systems), telecommunications, and defense and military applications (night vision equipments).

Thermal conductivity of pillared graphene-epoxy nanocomposites using molecular dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lakshmanan, A.; Srivastava, S.; Ramazani, A.; Sundararaghavan, V.

2018-04-01

Thermal conductivity in a pillared graphene-epoxy nanocomposite (PGEN) is studied using equilibrium molecular dynamics simulations. PGEN is a proposed material for advanced thermal management applications because it combines high in-plane conductivity of graphene with high axial conductivity of a nanotube to significantly enhance the overall conductivity of the epoxy matrix material. Anisotropic conductivity of PGEN has been compared with that of pristine and functionalized carbon nanotube-epoxy nanocomposites, showcasing the advantages of the unique hierarchical structure of PGEN. Compared to pure carbon allotropes, embedding the epoxy matrix also promotes a weaker dependence of conductivity on thermal variations. These features make this an attractive material for thermal management applications.

Nanobiotechnology and bone regeneration: a mini-review.

PubMed

Gusić, Nadomir; Ivković, Alan; VaFaye, John; Vukasović, Andreja; Ivković, Jana; Hudetz, Damir; Janković, Saša

2014-09-01

The purpose of this paper is to review current developments in bone tissue engineering, with special focus on the promising role of nanobiotechnology. This unique fusion between nanotechnology and biotechnology offers unprecedented possibilities in studying and modulating biological processes on a molecular and atomic scale. First we discuss the multiscale hierarchical structure of bone and its implication on the design of new scaffolds and delivery systems. Then we briefly present different types of nanostructured scaffolds, and finally we conclude with nanoparticle delivery systems and their potential use in promoting bone regeneration. This review is not meant to be exhaustive and comprehensive, but aims to highlight concepts and key advances in the field of nanobiotechnology and bone regeneration.

Atomic structure solution of the complex quasicrystal approximant Al77Rh15Ru8 from electron diffraction data.

PubMed

Samuha, Shmuel; Mugnaioli, Enrico; Grushko, Benjamin; Kolb, Ute; Meshi, Louisa

2014-12-01

The crystal structure of the novel Al77Rh15Ru8 phase (which is an approximant of decagonal quasicrystals) was determined using modern direct methods (MDM) applied to automated electron diffraction tomography (ADT) data. The Al77Rh15Ru8 E-phase is orthorhombic [Pbma, a = 23.40 (5), b = 16.20 (4) and c = 20.00 (5) Å] and has one of the most complicated intermetallic structures solved solely by electron diffraction methods. Its structural model consists of 78 unique atomic positions in the unit cell (19 Rh/Ru and 59 Al). Precession electron diffraction (PED) patterns and high-resolution electron microscopy (HRTEM) images were used for the validation of the proposed atomic model. The structure of the E-phase is described using hierarchical packing of polyhedra and a single type of tiling in the form of a parallelogram. Based on this description, the structure of the E-phase is compared with that of the ε6-phase formed in Al-Rh-Ru at close compositions.

Delineating the Structure of Normal and Abnormal Personality: An Integrative Hierarchical Approach

PubMed Central

Markon, Kristian E.; Krueger, Robert F.; Watson, David

2008-01-01

Increasing evidence indicates that normal and abnormal personality can be treated within a single structural framework. However, identification of a single integrated structure of normal and abnormal personality has remained elusive. Here, a constructive replication approach was used to delineate an integrative hierarchical account of the structure of normal and abnormal personality. This hierarchical structure, which integrates many Big Trait models proposed in the literature, replicated across a meta-analysis as well as an empirical study, and across samples of participants as well as measures. The proposed structure resembles previously suggested accounts of personality hierarchy and provides insight into the nature of personality hierarchy more generally. Potential directions for future research on personality and psychopathology are discussed. PMID:15631580

Delineating the structure of normal and abnormal personality: an integrative hierarchical approach.

PubMed

Markon, Kristian E; Krueger, Robert F; Watson, David

2005-01-01

Increasing evidence indicates that normal and abnormal personality can be treated within a single structural framework. However, identification of a single integrated structure of normal and abnormal personality has remained elusive. Here, a constructive replication approach was used to delineate an integrative hierarchical account of the structure of normal and abnormal personality. This hierarchical structure, which integrates many Big Trait models proposed in the literature, replicated across a meta-analysis as well as an empirical study, and across samples of participants as well as measures. The proposed structure resembles previously suggested accounts of personality hierarchy and provides insight into the nature of personality hierarchy more generally. Potential directions for future research on personality and psychopathology are discussed.

A spatial analysis of hierarchical waste transport structures under growing demand.

PubMed

Tanguy, Audrey; Glaus, Mathias; Laforest, Valérie; Villot, Jonathan; Hausler, Robert

2016-10-01

The design of waste management systems rarely accounts for the spatio-temporal evolution of the demand. However, recent studies suggest that this evolution affects the planning of waste management activities like the choice and location of treatment facilities. As a result, the transport structure could also be affected by these changes. The objective of this paper is to study the influence of the spatio-temporal evolution of the demand on the strategic planning of a waste transport structure. More particularly this study aims at evaluating the effect of varying spatial parameters on the economic performance of hierarchical structures (with one transfer station). To this end, three consecutive generations of three different spatial distributions were tested for hierarchical and non-hierarchical transport structures based on costs minimization. Results showed that a hierarchical structure is economically viable for large and clustered spatial distributions. The distance parameter was decisive but the loading ratio of trucks and the formation of clusters of sources also impacted the attractiveness of the transfer station. Thus the territories' morphology should influence strategies as regards to the installation of transfer stations. The use of spatial-explicit tools such as the transport model presented in this work that take into account the territory's evolution are needed to help waste managers in the strategic planning of waste transport structures. © The Author(s) 2016.

Segregating the core computational faculty of human language from working memory

PubMed Central

Makuuchi, Michiru; Bahlmann, Jörg; Anwander, Alfred; Friederici, Angela D.

2009-01-01

In contrast to simple structures in animal vocal behavior, hierarchical structures such as center-embedded sentences manifest the core computational faculty of human language. Previous artificial grammar learning studies found that the left pars opercularis (LPO) subserves the processing of hierarchical structures. However, it is not clear whether this area is activated by the structural complexity per se or by the increased memory load entailed in processing hierarchical structures. To dissociate the effect of structural complexity from the effect of memory cost, we conducted a functional magnetic resonance imaging study of German sentence processing with a 2-way factorial design tapping structural complexity (with/without hierarchical structure, i.e., center-embedding of clauses) and working memory load (long/short distance between syntactically dependent elements; i.e., subject nouns and their respective verbs). Functional imaging data revealed that the processes for structure and memory operate separately but co-operatively in the left inferior frontal gyrus; activities in the LPO increased as a function of structural complexity, whereas activities in the left inferior frontal sulcus (LIFS) were modulated by the distance over which the syntactic information had to be transferred. Diffusion tensor imaging showed that these 2 regions were interconnected through white matter fibers. Moreover, functional coupling between the 2 regions was found to increase during the processing of complex, hierarchically structured sentences. These results suggest a neuroanatomical segregation of syntax-related aspects represented in the LPO from memory-related aspects reflected in the LIFS, which are, however, highly interconnected functionally and anatomically. PMID:19416819

Hierarchical structure of stock price fluctuations in financial markets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, Ya-Chun; Cai, Shi-Min; Wang, Bing-Hong

2012-12-01

The financial market and turbulence have been broadly compared on account of the same quantitative methods and several common stylized facts they share. In this paper, the She-Leveque (SL) hierarchy, proposed to explain the anomalous scaling exponents deviating from Kolmogorov monofractal scaling of the velocity fluctuation in fluid turbulence, is applied to study and quantify the hierarchical structure of stock price fluctuations in financial markets. We therefore observed certain interesting results: (i) the hierarchical structure related to multifractal scaling generally presents in all the stock price fluctuations we investigated. (ii) The quantitatively statistical parameters that describe SL hierarchy are different between developed financial markets and emerging ones, distinctively. (iii) For the high-frequency stock price fluctuation, the hierarchical structure varies with different time periods. All these results provide a novel analogy in turbulence and financial market dynamics and an insight to deeply understand multifractality in financial markets.

Hierarchical structure for audio-video based semantic classification of sports video sequences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kolekar, M. H.; Sengupta, S.

2005-07-01

A hierarchical structure for sports event classification based on audio and video content analysis is proposed in this paper. Compared to the event classifications in other games, those of cricket are very challenging and yet unexplored. We have successfully solved cricket video classification problem using a six level hierarchical structure. The first level performs event detection based on audio energy and Zero Crossing Rate (ZCR) of short-time audio signal. In the subsequent levels, we classify the events based on video features using a Hidden Markov Model implemented through Dynamic Programming (HMM-DP) using color or motion as a likelihood function. For some of the game-specific decisions, a rule-based classification is also performed. Our proposed hierarchical structure can easily be applied to any other sports. Our results are very promising and we have moved a step forward towards addressing semantic classification problems in general.

Leading virtual teams: hierarchical leadership, structural supports, and shared team leadership.

PubMed

Hoch, Julia E; Kozlowski, Steve W J

2014-05-01

Using a field sample of 101 virtual teams, this research empirically evaluates the impact of traditional hierarchical leadership, structural supports, and shared team leadership on team performance. Building on Bell and Kozlowski's (2002) work, we expected structural supports and shared team leadership to be more, and hierarchical leadership to be less, strongly related to team performance when teams were more virtual in nature. As predicted, results from moderation analyses indicated that the extent to which teams were more virtual attenuated relations between hierarchical leadership and team performance but strengthened relations for structural supports and team performance. However, shared team leadership was significantly related to team performance regardless of the degree of virtuality. Results are discussed in terms of needed research extensions for understanding leadership processes in virtual teams and practical implications for leading virtual teams. (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

Metal hierarchical patterning by direct nanoimprint lithography

PubMed Central

Radha, Boya; Lim, Su Hui; Saifullah, Mohammad S. M.; Kulkarni, Giridhar U.

2013-01-01

Three-dimensional hierarchical patterning of metals is of paramount importance in diverse fields involving photonics, controlling surface wettability and wearable electronics. Conventionally, this type of structuring is tedious and usually involves layer-by-layer lithographic patterning. Here, we describe a simple process of direct nanoimprint lithography using palladium benzylthiolate, a versatile metal-organic ink, which not only leads to the formation of hierarchical patterns but also is amenable to layer-by-layer stacking of the metal over large areas. The key to achieving such multi-faceted patterning is hysteretic melting of ink, enabling its shaping. It undergoes transformation to metallic palladium under gentle thermal conditions without affecting the integrity of the hierarchical patterns on micro- as well as nanoscale. A metallic rice leaf structure showing anisotropic wetting behavior and woodpile-like structures were thus fabricated. Furthermore, this method is extendable for transferring imprinted structures to a flexible substrate to make them robust enough to sustain numerous bending cycles. PMID:23446801

Fabrication of porous hierarchical polymer/ceramic composites by electron irradiation of organic/inorganic polymers: route to a highly durable, large-area superhydrophobic coating.

PubMed

Lee, Eun Je; Kim, Jae Joon; Cho, Sung Oh

2010-03-02

Polymer/ceramic composite films with micro- and nanocombined hierarchical structures are fabricated by electron irradiation of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) microspheres/silicone grease. Electron irradiation induces volume contraction of PMMA microspheres and simultaneously transforms silicone grease into a ceramic material of silicon oxycarbide with many nanobumps. As a result, highly porous structures that consist of micrometer-sized pores and microparticles decorated with nanobumps are created. The fabricated films with the porous hierarchical structure exhibit good superhydrophobicity with excellent self-cleaning and antiadhesion properties after surface treatment with fluorosilane. In addition, the porous hierarchical structures are covered with silicon oxycarbide, and thus the superhydrophobic coatings have high hardness and strong adhesion to the substrate. The presented technique provides a straightforward route to producing large-area, mechanically robust superhydrophobic films on various substrate materials.

Tuning Wettability and Adhesion of Structured Surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Badge, Ila

Structured surfaces with feature size ranging from a few micrometers down to nanometers are of great interest in the applications such as design of anti-wetting surfaces, tissue engineering, microfluidics, filtration, microelectronic devices, anti-reflective coatings and reversible adhesives. A specific surface property demands particular roughness geometry along with suitable surface chemistry. Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (PECVD) is a technique that offers control over surface chemistry without significantly affecting the roughness and thus, provides a flexibility to alter surface chemistry selectively for a given structured surface. In this study, we have used PECVD to fine tune wetting and adhesion properties. The research presented focuses on material design aspects as well as the fundamental understanding of wetting and adhesion phenomena of structured surfaces. In order to study the effect of surface roughness and surface chemistry on the surface wettability independently, we developed a model surface by combination of colloidal lithography and PECVD. A systematically controlled hierarchical roughness using spherical colloidal particles and surface chemistry allowed for quantitative prediction of contact angles corresponding to metastable and stable wetting states. A well-defined roughness and chemical composition of the surface enabled establishing a correlation between theory predictions and experimental measurements. We developed an extremely robust superhydrophobic surface based on Carbon-Nanotubes (CNT) mats. The surface of CNTs forming a nano-porous mesh was modified using PECVD to deposit a layer of hydrophobic coating (PCNT). The PCNT surface thus formed is superhydrophobic with almost zero contact angle hysteresis. We demonstrated that the PCNT surface is not wetted under steam condensation even after prolonged exposure and also continues to retain its superhydrophobicity after multiple frosting-defrosting cycles. The anti-wetting behavior of PCNT surface is consistent with our model predictions, derived based on thermodynamic theory of wetting. The surface of gecko feet is a very unique natural structured surface. The hierarchical surface structure of a Gecko toe pad is responsible for its reversible adhesive properties and superhydrophobicity. van der Waals interactions is known to be the key mechanism behind Gecko adhesion. However, we found that the wettability, thus the surface chemistry plays a significant role in Gecko adhesion mechanism, especially in the case of underwater adhesion. We used PECVD process to deposit a layer of coating with known chemistry on the surface of sheds of gecko toes to study the effect that wettability of the toe surface has on its adhesion. In summary, we demonstrated that PECVD can be effectively used as means of surface chemistry control for tunable structure-property relationship of three types of structured surfaces; each having unique surface features.

A frogspawn-inspired hierarchical porous NaTi2(PO4)3-C array for high-rate and long-life aqueous rechargeable sodium batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Baidan; Lin, Bo; Zhang, Sen; Deng, Chao

2015-11-01

Hollow micro/nano-arrays have attracted tremendous attention in the field of energy conversion and storage, but such structures usually compromise the volumetric energy density of the electrode materials. Frogspawn consists of a spawn core and a transparent jelly shell organized in a hierarchical porous array, which exhibits superior mechanical strength and high-efficiency oxygen permeability. It can be used as a model for designing a new high-performance electrode material, which has advantages such as a high surface area, fast mass transport and superior durability. Herein, we report a frogspawn-like NaTi2(PO4)3/C array prepared by a facile preform impregnation strategy. The framework is formed by a hollow carbon sphere connected by the NaTi2(PO4)3/C skeleton, and its hollow is filled with the NaTi2(PO4)3 nanospheres. The whole hierarchical porous three-dimensional array copies the structure of a frogspawn. This unique structure not only enables easy electrolyte percolation and fast electron/ion transport, but also enhances the reversible capacity and cycling durability. When it is applied as an anode of the aqueous sodium ion battery, it exhibits favorable high rate capability and superior cycling stability, and retains 89% of the initial capacity after two thousand cycles at 20 C. Moreover, the full cell using the frogspawn-inspired NaTi2(PO4)3-C as the anode and Na0.44MnO2 as the cathode is capable of ultralong cycling up to one thousand cycles at alternate 10 and 60 C, which is among the best of state-of-the-art aqueous sodium ion systems. Therefore, the frogspawn-inspired architecture provides a new strategy to the tailored design of polyanion materials for high-power applications.Hollow micro/nano-arrays have attracted tremendous attention in the field of energy conversion and storage, but such structures usually compromise the volumetric energy density of the electrode materials. Frogspawn consists of a spawn core and a transparent jelly shell organized in a hierarchical porous array, which exhibits superior mechanical strength and high-efficiency oxygen permeability. It can be used as a model for designing a new high-performance electrode material, which has advantages such as a high surface area, fast mass transport and superior durability. Herein, we report a frogspawn-like NaTi2(PO4)3/C array prepared by a facile preform impregnation strategy. The framework is formed by a hollow carbon sphere connected by the NaTi2(PO4)3/C skeleton, and its hollow is filled with the NaTi2(PO4)3 nanospheres. The whole hierarchical porous three-dimensional array copies the structure of a frogspawn. This unique structure not only enables easy electrolyte percolation and fast electron/ion transport, but also enhances the reversible capacity and cycling durability. When it is applied as an anode of the aqueous sodium ion battery, it exhibits favorable high rate capability and superior cycling stability, and retains 89% of the initial capacity after two thousand cycles at 20 C. Moreover, the full cell using the frogspawn-inspired NaTi2(PO4)3-C as the anode and Na0.44MnO2 as the cathode is capable of ultralong cycling up to one thousand cycles at alternate 10 and 60 C, which is among the best of state-of-the-art aqueous sodium ion systems. Therefore, the frogspawn-inspired architecture provides a new strategy to the tailored design of polyanion materials for high-power applications. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Lab-assembled preform impregnation system; EDX spectroscopy of the residual carbon matrix after HF treatment; atomic parameters and lattice parameters of the prepared array; crystal structural, morphological and physical characteristics of the reference samples, comparison of the electrochemical performance between the frogspawn-inspired array and the previously reported results. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr06505d

Structure-dependent performance of TiO 2/C as anode material for Na-ion batteries

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

He, Hanna; Gan, Qingmeng; Wang, Haiyan

The performance of energy storage materials is highly dependent on their nanostructures. Herein, hierarchical rod-in-tube TiO 2 with a uniform carbon coating is synthesized as the anode material for sodium-ion batteries by a facile solvothermal method. This unique structure consists of a tunable nanorod core, interstitial hollow spaces, and a functional nanotube shell assembled from two-dimensional nanosheets. By adjusting the types of solvents used and reaction time, the morphologies of TiO 2/C composites can be tuned to nanoparticles, microrods, rod-in-tube structures, or microtubes. Among these materials, rod-in-tube TiO 2 with a uniform carbon coating shows the highest electronic conductivity, specificmore » surface area (336.4 m(2) g(-1)), and porosity, and these factors lead to the best sodium storage capability. Benefiting from the unique structural features and improved electronic/ionic conductivity, the as-obtained rod-in-tube TiO2/C in coin cell tests exhibits a high discharge capacity of 277.5 and 153.9 mAh g(-1) at 50 and 5000 mA g(-1), respectively, and almost 100% capacity retention over 14,000 cycles at 5000 mA g(-1). In operando high-energy X-ray diffraction further confirms the stable crystal structure of the rod-in-tube TiO 2/C during Na+ insertion/extraction. This work highlights that nanostructure design is an effective strategy to achieve advanced energy storage materials.« less

Mental structures and hierarchical brain processing. Comment on “Toward a computational framework for cognitive biology: Unifying approaches from cognitive neuroscience and comparative cognition” by W. Tecumseh Fitch

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petkov, C. I.

2014-09-01

Fitch proposes an appealing hypothesis that humans are dendrophiles, who constantly build mental trees supported by analogous hierarchical brain processes [1]. Moreover, it is argued that, by comparison, nonhuman animals build flat or more compact behaviorally-relevant structures. Should we thus expect less impressive hierarchical brain processes in other animals? Not necessarily.

Structural alphabets derived from attractors in conformational space

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background The hierarchical and partially redundant nature of protein structures justifies the definition of frequently occurring conformations of short fragments as 'states'. Collections of selected representatives for these states define Structural Alphabets, describing the most typical local conformations within protein structures. These alphabets form a bridge between the string-oriented methods of sequence analysis and the coordinate-oriented methods of protein structure analysis. Results A Structural Alphabet has been derived by clustering all four-residue fragments of a high-resolution subset of the protein data bank and extracting the high-density states as representative conformational states. Each fragment is uniquely defined by a set of three independent angles corresponding to its degrees of freedom, capturing in simple and intuitive terms the properties of the conformational space. The fragments of the Structural Alphabet are equivalent to the conformational attractors and therefore yield a most informative encoding of proteins. Proteins can be reconstructed within the experimental uncertainty in structure determination and ensembles of structures can be encoded with accuracy and robustness. Conclusions The density-based Structural Alphabet provides a novel tool to describe local conformations and it is specifically suitable for application in studies of protein dynamics. PMID:20170534

The hierarchical structure of self-reported impulsivity

PubMed Central

Kirby, Kris N.; Finch, Julia C.

2010-01-01

The hierarchical structure of 95 self-reported impulsivity items, along with delay-discount rates for money, was examined. A large sample of college students participated in the study (N = 407). Items represented every previously proposed dimension of self-reported impulsivity. Exploratory PCA yielded at least 7 interpretable components: Prepared/Careful, Impetuous, Divertible, Thrill and Risk Seeking, Happy-Go-Lucky, Impatiently Pleasure Seeking, and Reserved. Discount rates loaded on Impatiently Pleasure Seeking, and correlated with the impulsiveness and venturesomeness scales from the I7 (Eysenck, Pearson, Easting, & Allsopp, 1985). The hierarchical emergence of the components was explored, and we show how this hierarchical structure may help organize conflicting dimensions found in previous analyses. Finally, we argue that the discounting model (Ainslie, 1975) provides a qualitative framework for understanding the dimensions of impulsivity. PMID:20224803

Relation between financial market structure and the real economy: comparison between clustering methods.

PubMed

Musmeci, Nicoló; Aste, Tomaso; Di Matteo, T

2015-01-01

We quantify the amount of information filtered by different hierarchical clustering methods on correlations between stock returns comparing the clustering structure with the underlying industrial activity classification. We apply, for the first time to financial data, a novel hierarchical clustering approach, the Directed Bubble Hierarchical Tree and we compare it with other methods including the Linkage and k-medoids. By taking the industrial sector classification of stocks as a benchmark partition, we evaluate how the different methods retrieve this classification. The results show that the Directed Bubble Hierarchical Tree can outperform other methods, being able to retrieve more information with fewer clusters. Moreover,we show that the economic information is hidden at different levels of the hierarchical structures depending on the clustering method. The dynamical analysis on a rolling window also reveals that the different methods show different degrees of sensitivity to events affecting financial markets, like crises. These results can be of interest for all the applications of clustering methods to portfolio optimization and risk hedging [corrected].

Personality in Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes): Exploring the Hierarchical Structure and Associations with the Vasopressin V1A Receptor Gene

PubMed Central

Latzman, Robert D.; Hopkins, William D.; Keebaugh, Alaine C.; Young, Larry J.

2014-01-01

One of the major contributions of recent personality psychology is the finding that traits are related to each other in an organized hierarchy. To date, however, researchers have yet to investigate this hierarchy in nonhuman primates. Such investigations are critical in confirming the cross-species nature of trait personality helping to illuminate personality as neurobiologically-based and evolutionarily-derived dimensions of primate disposition. Investigations of potential genetic polymorphisms associated with hierarchical models of personality among nonhuman primates represent a critical first step. The current study examined the hierarchical structure of chimpanzee personality as well as sex-specific associations with a polymorphism in the promoter region of the vasopressin V1a receptor gene (AVPR1A), a gene associated with dispositional traits, among 174 chimpanzees. Results confirmed a hierarchical structure of personality across species and, despite differences in early rearing experiences, suggest a sexually dimorphic role of AVPR1A polymorphisms on hierarchical personality profiles at a higher-order level. PMID:24752497

Hierarchical flexural strength of enamel: transition from brittle to damage-tolerant behaviour

PubMed Central

Bechtle, Sabine; Özcoban, Hüseyin; Lilleodden, Erica T.; Huber, Norbert; Schreyer, Andreas; Swain, Michael V.; Schneider, Gerold A.

2012-01-01

Hard, biological materials are generally hierarchically structured from the nano- to the macro-scale in a somewhat self-similar manner consisting of mineral units surrounded by a soft protein shell. Considerable efforts are underway to mimic such materials because of their structurally optimized mechanical functionality of being hard and stiff as well as damage-tolerant. However, it is unclear how different hierarchical levels interact to achieve this performance. In this study, we consider dental enamel as a representative, biological hierarchical structure and determine its flexural strength and elastic modulus at three levels of hierarchy using focused ion beam (FIB) prepared cantilevers of micrometre size. The results are compared and analysed using a theoretical model proposed by Jäger and Fratzl and developed by Gao and co-workers. Both properties decrease with increasing hierarchical dimension along with a switch in mechanical behaviour from linear-elastic to elastic-inelastic. We found Gao's model matched the results very well. PMID:22031729

Relation between Financial Market Structure and the Real Economy: Comparison between Clustering Methods

PubMed Central

Musmeci, Nicoló; Aste, Tomaso; Di Matteo, T.

2015-01-01

We quantify the amount of information filtered by different hierarchical clustering methods on correlations between stock returns comparing the clustering structure with the underlying industrial activity classification. We apply, for the first time to financial data, a novel hierarchical clustering approach, the Directed Bubble Hierarchical Tree and we compare it with other methods including the Linkage and k-medoids. By taking the industrial sector classification of stocks as a benchmark partition, we evaluate how the different methods retrieve this classification. The results show that the Directed Bubble Hierarchical Tree can outperform other methods, being able to retrieve more information with fewer clusters. Moreover, we show that the economic information is hidden at different levels of the hierarchical structures depending on the clustering method. The dynamical analysis on a rolling window also reveals that the different methods show different degrees of sensitivity to events affecting financial markets, like crises. These results can be of interest for all the applications of clustering methods to portfolio optimization and risk hedging. PMID:25786703

A hierarchical clustering methodology for the estimation of toxicity.

PubMed

Martin, Todd M; Harten, Paul; Venkatapathy, Raghuraman; Das, Shashikala; Young, Douglas M

2008-01-01

ABSTRACT A quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) methodology based on hierarchical clustering was developed to predict toxicological endpoints. This methodology utilizes Ward's method to divide a training set into a series of structurally similar clusters. The structural similarity is defined in terms of 2-D physicochemical descriptors (such as connectivity and E-state indices). A genetic algorithm-based technique is used to generate statistically valid QSAR models for each cluster (using the pool of descriptors described above). The toxicity for a given query compound is estimated using the weighted average of the predictions from the closest cluster from each step in the hierarchical clustering assuming that the compound is within the domain of applicability of the cluster. The hierarchical clustering methodology was tested using a Tetrahymena pyriformis acute toxicity data set containing 644 chemicals in the training set and with two prediction sets containing 339 and 110 chemicals. The results from the hierarchical clustering methodology were compared to the results from several different QSAR methodologies.

Hierarchical analysis of the degradation of fibre-reinforced polymers under the presence of void imperfections

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

The subject of this work is the investigation of the influence of voids on the mechanical properties of fibre-reinforced polymers (FRPs) under compression loading. To specify the damage accumulation of FRPs in the presence of voids, the complex three-dimensional structure of the composite including voids was analysed and a reduced mechanical model composite was derived. The hierarchical analysis of the model composite on a micro-scale level implies the description of the stress and strain behaviour of the matrix using the photoelasticity technique and digital image correlation technology. These studies are presented along with an analytical examination of the stability of a single fibre. As a result of the experimental and analytical studies, the stiffness of the matrix and fibre as well as their bonding, the initial fibre orientation and the fibre diameter have the highest impact on the failure initiation. All these facts lead to a premature fibre–matrix debonding with ongoing loss of stability of the fibre and followed by kink-band formation. Additional studies on the meso-scale of transparent glass FRPs including a unique void showed that the experiments carried out on the model composites could be transferred to real composites. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Multiscale modelling of the structural integrity of composite materials’. PMID:27242296

Dimensional and Componential Structure of a Hierarchical Organization of Pain-Related Anxiety Constructs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vancleef, Linda M. G.; Vlaeyen, Johan W. S.; Peters, Madelon L.

2009-01-01

Research has identified several anxiety and fear constructs that contribute directly or indirectly to the chronic course of pain. One way to gain insight into the frequently observed interrelations between these constructs may be by conceptualizing them within a hierarchical structure. In this structure, general and specific constructs are…

Drag reduction using metallic engineered surfaces with highly ordered hierarchical topographies: nanostructures on micro-riblets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Taekyung; Shin, Ryung; Jung, Myungki; Lee, Jinhyung; Park, Changsu; Kang, Shinill

2016-03-01

Durable drag-reduction surfaces have recently received much attention, due to energy-saving and power-consumption issues associated with harsh environment applications, such as those experienced by piping infrastructure, ships, aviation, underwater vehicles, and high-speed ground vehicles. In this study, a durable, metallic surface with highly ordered hierarchical structures was used to enhance drag-reduction properties, by combining two passive drag-reduction strategies: an air-layer effect induced by nanostructures and secondary vortex generation by micro-riblet structures. The nanostructures and micro-riblet structures were designed to increase slip length. The top-down fabrication method used to form the metallic hierarchical structures combined laser interference lithography, photolithography, thermal reflow, nanoimprinting, and pulse-reverse-current electrochemical deposition. The surfaces were formed from nickel, which has high hardness and corrosion resistance, making it suitable for use in harsh environments. The drag-reduction properties of various metal surfaces were investigated based on the surface structure: a bare surface, a nanostructured surface, a micro-riblet surface, and a hierarchically structured surface of nanostructures on micro-riblets.

NASA Thesaurus. Volume 1: Hierarchical listing. Volume 2: Access vocabulary. Volume 3: Definitions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

There are over 17,500 postable terms and some 4,000 nonpostable terms approved for use in the NASA Scientific and Technical Information Database in the Hierarchical Listing of the NASA Thesaurus. The generic structure is presented for many terms. The broader term and narrower term relationships are shown in an indented fashion that illustrates the generic structure better than the more widely used BT and NT listings. Related terms are generously applied, thus enhancing the usefulness of the Hierarchical Listing. Greater access to the Hierarchical Listing may be achieved with the collateral use of Volume 2 - Access Vocabulary and Volume 3 - Definitions.

Hierarchical Bi2Te3 Nanostrings: Green Synthesis and Their Thermoelectric Properties.

PubMed

Song, Shuyan; Liu, Yu; Wang, Qishun; Pan, Jing; Sun, Yabin; Zhang, Lingling

2018-05-20

Bi2Te3 hierarchical nanostrings have been synthesized through a solvothermal approach with the assistance of sucrose. The hierarchical Bi2Te3 was supposed to be fabricated through a self-assembly process. Te nanorods first emerge with the reduction of TeO32- followed by heterogeneous nucleation of Bi2Te3 nanoplates on the surface and tips of Te nanorods. Te nanorods further transform into Bi2Te3 nanorods simultaneously with the nanoplates' growth leading to a hierarchical structure. Through controlling the reaction kinetics by adding different amount of ethylene glycol, the length of nanorods and the number of nanoplates could be tailored. The use of sucrose is vital to the formation of hierarchical structure because it not only serves as a template for the well-defined growth of Te nanorods but also promotes the heterogeneous nucleation of Bi2Te3 in the self-assembly process. The Bi2Te3 nanomaterial shows a moderate thermoelectric performance because of its hierarchical structure. This study shows a promising way to synthesize Bi2Te3-based nanostructures through environmental friendly approach. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Structural Interplay - Tuning Mechanics in Peptide-Polyurea Hybrids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Korley, Lashanda

Utilizing cues from natural materials, we have been inspired to explore the hierarchical arrangement critical to energy absorption and mechanical enhancement in synthetic systems. Of particular interest is the soft domain ordering proposed as a contributing element to the observed toughness in spider silk. Multiblock copolymers, are ideal and dynamic systems in which to explore this approach via variations in secondary structure of nature's building blocks - peptides. We have designed a new class of polyurea hybrids that incorporate peptidic copolymers as the soft segment. The impact of hierarchical ordering on the thermal, mechanical, and morphological behavior of these bio-inspired polyurethanes with a siloxane-based, peptide soft segment was investigated. These peptide-polyurethane/urea hybrids were microphase segregated, and the beta-sheet secondary structure of the soft segment was preserved during polymerization and film casting. Toughness enhancement at low strains was achieved, but the overall extensibility of the peptide-incorporated systems was reduced due to the unique hard domain organization. To decouple the secondary structure influence in the siloxane-peptide soft segment from mechanics dominated by the hard domain, we also developed non-chain extended peptide-polyurea hybrids in which the secondary structure (beta sheet vs. alpha helix) was tuned via choice of peptide and peptide length. It was shown that this structural approach allowed tailoring of extensibility, toughness, and modulus. The sheet-dominant hybrid materials were typically tougher and more elastic due to intermolecular H-bonding facilitating load distribution, while the helical-prevalent systems generally exhibited higher stiffness. Recently, we have explored the impact of a molecular design strategy that overlays a covalent and physically crosslinked architecture in these peptide-polyurea hybrids, demonstrating that physical constraints in the network hybrids influences peptide hydrogen bonding and morphology. These structural features correlated well with systematic changes in modulus, extensibility, and hysteresis. Complementary to this effort is the design of PEG-based peptide-polyurea hybrids with tunable and responsive as structural and injectable hydrogels. The authors acknowledge funding support from the National Science Foundation (CAREER DMR-0953236).

The inner formal structure of the H-T-P drawings: an exploratory study.

PubMed

Vass, Z

1998-08-01

The study describes some interrelated patterns of traits of the House-Tree-Person (H-T-P) drawings with the instruments of hierarchical cluster analysis. First, according to the literature 1 7 formal or structural aspects of the projective drawings were collected, after which a detailed manual for coding was compiled. Second, the interrater reliability and the consistency of this manual was tested. Third, the hierarchical cluster structure of the reliable and consistent formal aspects was analysed. Results are: (a) a psychometrically tested coding manual of the investigated formal-structural aspects, each of them illustrated with drawings that showed the highest interrater agreement; and (b) the hierarchic cluster structure of the formal aspects of the H-T-P drawings of "normal" adults.

Self-organized emergence of multilayer structure and chimera states in dynamical networks with adaptive couplings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kasatkin, D. V.; Yanchuk, S.; Schöll, E.; Nekorkin, V. I.

2017-12-01

We report the phenomenon of self-organized emergence of hierarchical multilayered structures and chimera states in dynamical networks with adaptive couplings. This process is characterized by a sequential formation of subnetworks (layers) of densely coupled elements, the size of which is ordered in a hierarchical way, and which are weakly coupled between each other. We show that the hierarchical structure causes the decoupling of the subnetworks. Each layer can exhibit either a two-cluster state, a periodic traveling wave, or an incoherent state, and these states can coexist on different scales of subnetwork sizes.

Electroactive nanoparticle directed assembly of functionalized graphene nanosheets into hierarchical structures with hybrid compositions for flexible supercapacitors.

PubMed

Choi, Bong Gill; Huh, Yun Suk; Hong, Won Hi; Erickson, David; Park, Ho Seok

2013-05-07

Hierarchical structures of hybrid materials with the controlled compositions have been shown to offer a breakthrough for energy storage and conversion. Here, we report the integrative assembly of chemically modified graphene (CMG) building blocks into hierarchical complex structures with the hybrid composition for high performance flexible pseudocapacitors. The formation mechanism of hierarchical CMG/Nafion/RuO2 (CMGNR) microspheres, which is triggered by the cooperative interplay during the in situ synthesis of RuO2 nanoparticles (NPs), was extensively investigated. In particular, the hierarchical CMGNR microspheres consisting of the aggregates of CMG/Nafion (CMGN) nanosheets and RuO2 NPs provided large surface area and facile ion accessibility to storage sites, while the interconnected nanosheets offered continuous electron pathways and mechanical integrity. The synergistic effect of CMGNR hybrids on the supercapacitor (SC) performance was derived from the hybrid composition of pseudocapacitive RuO2 NPs with the conductive CMGNs as well as from structural features. Consequently, the CMGNR-SCs showed a specific capacitance as high as 160 F g(-1), three-fold higher than that of conventional graphene SCs, and a capacitance retention of >95% of the maximum value even after severe bending and 1000 charge-discharge tests due to the structural and compositional features.

Electroactive nanoparticle directed assembly of functionalized graphene nanosheets into hierarchical structures with hybrid compositions for flexible supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Choi, Bong Gill; Huh, Yun Suk; Hong, Won Hi; Erickson, David; Park, Ho Seok

2013-04-01

Hierarchical structures of hybrid materials with the controlled compositions have been shown to offer a breakthrough for energy storage and conversion. Here, we report the integrative assembly of chemically modified graphene (CMG) building blocks into hierarchical complex structures with the hybrid composition for high performance flexible pseudocapacitors. The formation mechanism of hierarchical CMG/Nafion/RuO2 (CMGNR) microspheres, which is triggered by the cooperative interplay during the in situ synthesis of RuO2 nanoparticles (NPs), was extensively investigated. In particular, the hierarchical CMGNR microspheres consisting of the aggregates of CMG/Nafion (CMGN) nanosheets and RuO2 NPs provided large surface area and facile ion accessibility to storage sites, while the interconnected nanosheets offered continuous electron pathways and mechanical integrity. The synergistic effect of CMGNR hybrids on the supercapacitor (SC) performance was derived from the hybrid composition of pseudocapacitive RuO2 NPs with the conductive CMGNs as well as from structural features. Consequently, the CMGNR-SCs showed a specific capacitance as high as 160 F g-1, three-fold higher than that of conventional graphene SCs, and a capacitance retention of >95% of the maximum value even after severe bending and 1000 charge-discharge tests due to the structural and compositional features.Hierarchical structures of hybrid materials with the controlled compositions have been shown to offer a breakthrough for energy storage and conversion. Here, we report the integrative assembly of chemically modified graphene (CMG) building blocks into hierarchical complex structures with the hybrid composition for high performance flexible pseudocapacitors. The formation mechanism of hierarchical CMG/Nafion/RuO2 (CMGNR) microspheres, which is triggered by the cooperative interplay during the in situ synthesis of RuO2 nanoparticles (NPs), was extensively investigated. In particular, the hierarchical CMGNR microspheres consisting of the aggregates of CMG/Nafion (CMGN) nanosheets and RuO2 NPs provided large surface area and facile ion accessibility to storage sites, while the interconnected nanosheets offered continuous electron pathways and mechanical integrity. The synergistic effect of CMGNR hybrids on the supercapacitor (SC) performance was derived from the hybrid composition of pseudocapacitive RuO2 NPs with the conductive CMGNs as well as from structural features. Consequently, the CMGNR-SCs showed a specific capacitance as high as 160 F g-1, three-fold higher than that of conventional graphene SCs, and a capacitance retention of >95% of the maximum value even after severe bending and 1000 charge-discharge tests due to the structural and compositional features. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Electrodeposition procedure, TEM, SEM, and AFM images, XPS, FT-IR, and XRD spectra, mechanical strain-stress curve, textural and conductive properties, and impedance spectroscopy. See DOI: 10.1039/c3nr33674c

Design and synthesis of hierarchical mesoporous WO3-MnO2 composite nanostructures on carbon cloth for high-performance supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shinde, Pragati A.; Lokhande, Vaibhav C.; Patil, Amar M.; Ji, Taeksoo; Lokhande, Chandrakant D.

2017-12-01

To enhance the energy density and power performance of supercapacitors, the rational design and synthesis of active electrode materials with hierarchical mesoporous structure is highly desired. In the present work, fabrication of high-performance hierarchical mesoporous WO3-MnO2 composite nanostructures on carbon cloth substrate via a facile hydrothermal method is reported. By varying the content of MnO2 in the composite, different WO3-MnO2 composite thin films are obtained. The formation of composite is confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analyses. The Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis reveals maximum specific surface area of 153 m2 g-1. The optimized WO3-MnO2 composite electrode demonstrates remarkable electrochemical performance with high specific capacitance of 657 F g-1 at a scan rate of 5 mV s-1 and superior longterm cycling stability (92% capacity retention over 2000 CV cycles). Furthermore, symmetric flexible solid-state supercapacitor based on WO3-MnO2 electrodes has been fabricated. The device exhibits good electrochemical performance with maximum specific capacitance of 78 F g-1 at a scan rate of 5 mV s-1 and specific energy of 10.8 Wh kg-1 at a specific power of 0.65 kW kg-1. The improved electrochemical performance could be ascribed to the unique combination of multivalence WO3 and MnO2 nanostructures and synergistic effect between them

Quantifying the Hierarchical Order in Self-Aligned Carbon Nanotubes from Atomic to Micrometer Scale.

PubMed

Meshot, Eric R; Zwissler, Darwin W; Bui, Ngoc; Kuykendall, Tevye R; Wang, Cheng; Hexemer, Alexander; Wu, Kuang Jen J; Fornasiero, Francesco

2017-06-27

Fundamental understanding of structure-property relationships in hierarchically organized nanostructures is crucial for the development of new functionality, yet quantifying structure across multiple length scales is challenging. In this work, we used nondestructive X-ray scattering to quantitatively map the multiscale structure of hierarchically self-organized carbon nanotube (CNT) "forests" across 4 orders of magnitude in length scale, from 2.0 Å to 1.5 μm. Fully resolved structural features include the graphitic honeycomb lattice and interlayer walls (atomic), CNT diameter (nano), as well as the greater CNT ensemble (meso) and large corrugations (micro). Correlating orientational order across hierarchical levels revealed a cascading decrease as we probed finer structural feature sizes with enhanced sensitivity to small-scale disorder. Furthermore, we established qualitative relationships for single-, few-, and multiwall CNT forest characteristics, showing that multiscale orientational order is directly correlated with number density spanning 10 9 -10 12 cm -2 , yet order is inversely proportional to CNT diameter, number of walls, and atomic defects. Lastly, we captured and quantified ultralow-q meridional scattering features and built a phenomenological model of the large-scale CNT forest morphology, which predicted and confirmed that these features arise due to microscale corrugations along the vertical forest direction. Providing detailed structural information at multiple length scales is important for design and synthesis of CNT materials as well as other hierarchically organized nanostructures.

Structure and mechanical properties of naturally occurring lightweight foam-filled cylinder--the peacock's tail coverts shaft and its components.

PubMed

Liu, Z Q; Jiao, D; Meyers, M A; Zhang, Z F

2015-04-01

Feather shaft, which is primarily featured by a cylinder filled with foam, possesses a unique combination of mechanical robustness and flexibility with a low density through natural evolution and selection. Here the hierarchical structures of peacock's tail coverts shaft and its components are systematically characterized from millimeter to nanometer length scales. The variations in constituent and geometry along the length are examined. The mechanical properties under both dry and wet conditions are investigated. The deformation and failure behaviors and involved strengthening, stiffening and toughening mechanisms are analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively and correlated to the structures. It is revealed that the properties of feather shaft and its components have been optimized through various structural adaptations. Synergetic strengthening and stiffening effects can be achieved in overall rachis owing to increased failure resistance. This study is expected to aid in deeper understandings on the ingenious structure-property design strategies developed by nature, and accordingly, provide useful inspiration for the development of high-performance synthetic foams and foam-filled materials. Copyright © 2015 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Tree branch-shaped cupric oxide for highly effective photoelectrochemical water reduction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jang, Youn Jeong; Jang, Ji-Wook; Choi, Sun Hee; Kim, Jae Young; Kim, Ju Hun; Youn, Duck Hyun; Kim, Won Yong; Han, Suenghoon; Sung Lee, Jae

2015-04-01

Highly efficient tree branch-shaped CuO photocathodes are fabricated using the hybrid microwave annealing process with a silicon susceptor within 10 minutes. The unique hierarchical, one-dimensional structure provides more facile charge transport, larger surface areas, and increased crystallinity and crystal ordering with less defects compared to irregular-shaped CuO prepared by conventional thermal annealing. As a result, the photocathode fabricated with the tree branch-shaped CuO produces an unprecedently high photocurrent density of -4.4 mA cm-2 at 0 VRHE under AM 1.5 G simulated sunlight compared to -1.44 mA cm-2 observed for a photocathode fabricated by thermal annealing. It is also confirmed that stoichiometric hydrogen and oxygen are produced from photoelectrochemical water splitting on the tree branch-shaped CuO photocathode and a platinum anode.Highly efficient tree branch-shaped CuO photocathodes are fabricated using the hybrid microwave annealing process with a silicon susceptor within 10 minutes. The unique hierarchical, one-dimensional structure provides more facile charge transport, larger surface areas, and increased crystallinity and crystal ordering with less defects compared to irregular-shaped CuO prepared by conventional thermal annealing. As a result, the photocathode fabricated with the tree branch-shaped CuO produces an unprecedently high photocurrent density of -4.4 mA cm-2 at 0 VRHE under AM 1.5 G simulated sunlight compared to -1.44 mA cm-2 observed for a photocathode fabricated by thermal annealing. It is also confirmed that stoichiometric hydrogen and oxygen are produced from photoelectrochemical water splitting on the tree branch-shaped CuO photocathode and a platinum anode. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: The detailed schematic diagram for the HMA process, XRD results, the temperature profile during HMA, derivative XANES results, TEM images, J-V curves, lists of previously reported copper oxide photocathode, and parameters extracted from EIS. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr00208g

Nanowire-Assembled Hierarchical ZnCo2O4 Microstructure Integrated with a Low-Power Microheater for Highly Sensitive Formaldehyde Detection.

PubMed

Long, Hu; Harley-Trochimczyk, Anna; Cheng, Siyi; Hu, Hao; Chi, Won Seok; Rao, Ameya; Carraro, Carlo; Shi, Tielin; Tang, Zirong; Maboudian, Roya

2016-11-23

Nanowire-assembled 3D hierarchical ZnCo 2 O 4 microstructure is synthesized by a facile hydrothermal route and a subsequent annealing process. In comparison to simple nanowires, the resulting dandelion-like structure yields more open spaces between nanowires, which allow for better gas diffusion and provide more active sites for gas adsorption while maintaining good electrical conductivity. The hierarchical ZnCo 2 O 4 microstructure is integrated on a low-power microheater platform without using binders or conductive additives. The hierarchical structure of the ZnCo 2 O 4 sensing material provides reliable electrical connection across the sensing electrodes. The resulting sensor exhibits an ultralow detection limit of 3 ppb toward formaldehyde with fast response and recovery as well as good selectivity to CO, H 2 , and hydrocarbons such as n-pentane, propane, and CH 4 . The sensor only consumes ∼5.7 mW for continuous operation at 300 °C with good long-term stability. The excellent sensing performance of this hierarchical structure based sensor suggests the advantages of combining such structures with microfabricated heaters for practical low-power sensing applications.

Indirect estimates of natal dispersal distance from genetic data in a stream-dwelling fish (Mogurnda adspersa).

PubMed

Shipham, Ashlee; Schmidt, Daniel J; Hughes, Jane M

2013-01-01

Recent work has highlighted the need to account for hierarchical patterns of genetic structure when estimating evolutionary and ecological parameters of interest. This caution is particularly relevant to studies of riverine organisms, where hierarchical structure appears to be commonplace. Here, we indirectly estimate dispersal distance in a hierarchically structured freshwater fish, Mogurnda adspersa. Microsatellite and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) data were obtained for 443 individuals across 27 sites separated by an average of 1.3 km within creeks of southeastern Queensland, Australia. Significant genetic structure was found among sites (mtDNA Φ(ST) = 0.508; microsatellite F(ST) = 0.225, F'(ST) = 0.340). Various clustering methods produced congruent patterns of hierarchical structure reflecting stream architecture. Partial mantel tests identified contiguous sets of sample sites where isolation by distance (IBD) explained F(ST) variation without significant contribution of hierarchical structure. Analysis of mean natal dispersal distance (σ) within sets of IBD-linked sample sites suggested most dispersal occurs over less than 1 km, and the average effective density (D(e)) was estimated at 11.5 individuals km(-1); indicating sedentary behavior and small effective population size are responsible for the remarkable patterns of genetic structure observed. Our results demonstrate that Rousset's regression-based method is applicable to estimating the scale of dispersal in riverine organisms and that identifying contiguous populations that satisfy the assumptions of this model is achievable with genetic clustering methods and partial correlations.

Hierarchical Co-based Porous Layered Double Hydroxide Arrays Derived via Alkali Etching for High-performance Supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abushrenta, Nasser; Wu, Xiaochao; Wang, Junnan; Liu, Junfeng; Sun, Xiaoming

2015-08-01

Hierarchical nanoarchitecture and porous structure can both provide advantages for improving the electrochemical performance in energy storage electrodes. Here we report a novel strategy to synthesize new electrode materials, hierarchical Co-based porous layered double hydroxide (PLDH) arrays derived via alkali etching from Co(OH)2@CoAl LDH nanoarrays. This structure not only has the benefits of hierarchical nanoarrays including short ion diffusion path and good charge transport, but also possesses a large contact surface area owing to its porous structure which lead to a high specific capacitance (23.75 F cm-2 or 1734 F g-1 at 5 mA cm-2) and excellent cycling performance (over 85% after 5000 cycles). The enhanced electrode material is a promising candidate for supercapacitors in future application.

Hierarchical Co-based Porous Layered Double Hydroxide Arrays Derived via Alkali Etching for High-performance Supercapacitors

PubMed Central

Abushrenta, Nasser; Wu, Xiaochao; Wang, Junnan; Liu, Junfeng; Sun, Xiaoming

2015-01-01

Hierarchical nanoarchitecture and porous structure can both provide advantages for improving the electrochemical performance in energy storage electrodes. Here we report a novel strategy to synthesize new electrode materials, hierarchical Co-based porous layered double hydroxide (PLDH) arrays derived via alkali etching from Co(OH)2@CoAl LDH nanoarrays. This structure not only has the benefits of hierarchical nanoarrays including short ion diffusion path and good charge transport, but also possesses a large contact surface area owing to its porous structure which lead to a high specific capacitance (23.75 F cm−2 or 1734 F g−1 at 5 mA cm−2) and excellent cycling performance (over 85% after 5000 cycles). The enhanced electrode material is a promising candidate for supercapacitors in future application. PMID:26278334

Hierarchically Superstructured Metal Sulfides: Facile Perturbation-Assisted Nanofusion Synthesis and Visible Light Photocatalytic Characterizations

DOE PAGES

Yue, Yanfeng; Li, Yunchao; Bridges, Craig A.; ...

2016-11-29

A novel and simple perturbation-assisted nanofusion (PNF) synthetic strategy was developed for the fabrication of stable hierarchically superstructured metal sulfides. This promising approach, based on a kinetically controlled precipitation to simultaneously condense and re-dissolve polymorphic nanocrystallites, provides the resultant samples with a unique mesoporous framework. This PNF approach is environmentally friendly, produces gram-scale products in a matter of hours, and is complimentary to traditional hard or soft templating methods for the construction of mesoporous metal sulfides. PNF derived hierarchical porous CdS exhibited a vastly improved photocatalytic performance over its commercial bulk counterpart under visible light irradiation, demonstrating the advantage ofmore » the porous morphology for photocatalysis resulting from the enlarged surface area and the easy accessibility of the mesopores.« less

Bottom-up Formation of Carbon-Based Structures with Multilevel Hierarchy from MOF-Guest Polyhedra.

PubMed

Wang, Tiesheng; Kim, Hyun-Kyung; Liu, Yingjun; Li, Weiwei; Griffiths, James T; Wu, Yue; Laha, Sourav; Fong, Kara D; Podjaski, Filip; Yun, Chao; Kumar, R Vasant; Lotsch, Bettina V; Cheetham, Anthony K; Smoukov, Stoyan K

2018-05-16

Three-dimensional carbon-based structures have proven useful for tailoring material properties in structural mechanical and energy storage applications. One approach to obtain them has been by carbonization of selected metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) with catalytic metals, but this is not applicable to most common MOF structures. Here, we present a strategy to transform common MOFs, by guest inclusions and high-temperature MOF-guest interactions, into complex carbon-based, diatom-like, hierarchical structures (named for the morphological similarities with the naturally existing diatomaceous species). As an example, we introduce metal salt guests into HKUST-1-type MOFs to generate a family of carbon-based nano-diatoms with two to four levels of structural hierarchy. We report control of the morphology by simple changes in the chemistry of the MOF and guest, with implications for the formation mechanisms. We demonstrate that one of these structures has unique advantages as a fast-charging lithium-ion battery anode. The tunability of composition should enable further studies of reaction mechanisms and result in the growth of a myriad of unprecedented carbon-based structures from the enormous variety of currently available MOF-guest candidates.

Causal reasoning with forces

PubMed Central

Wolff, Phillip; Barbey, Aron K.

2015-01-01

Causal composition allows people to generate new causal relations by combining existing causal knowledge. We introduce a new computational model of such reasoning, the force theory, which holds that people compose causal relations by simulating the processes that join forces in the world, and compare this theory with the mental model theory (Khemlani et al., 2014) and the causal model theory (Sloman et al., 2009), which explain causal composition on the basis of mental models and structural equations, respectively. In one experiment, the force theory was uniquely able to account for people's ability to compose causal relationships from complex animations of real-world events. In three additional experiments, the force theory did as well as or better than the other two theories in explaining the causal compositions people generated from linguistically presented causal relations. Implications for causal learning and the hierarchical structure of causal knowledge are discussed. PMID:25653611

Carbon Microfibers with Hierarchical Porous Structure from Electrospun Fiber-Like Natural Biopolymer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liang, Yeru; Wu, Dingcai; Fu, Ruowen

2013-01-01

Electrospinning offers a powerful route for building one-dimensional (1D) micro/nanostructures, but a common requirement for toxic or corrosive organic solvents during the preparation of precursor solution has limited their large scale synthesis and broad applications. Here we report a facile and low-cost way to prepare 1D porous carbon microfibers by using an electrospun fiber-like natural product, i.e., silk cocoon, as precursor. We surprisingly found that by utilizing a simple carbonization treatment, the cocoon microfiber can be directly transformed into 1D carbon microfiber of ca. 6 μm diameter with a unique three-dimensional porous network structure composed of interconnected carbon nanoparticles of 10~40 nm diameter. We further showed that the as-prepared carbon product presents superior electrochemical performance as binder-free electrodes of supercapacitors and good adsorption property toward organic vapor.

Architecture, Assembly, and Emerging Applications of Branched Functional Polyelectrolytes and Poly(ionic liquid)s.

PubMed

Xu, Weinan; Ledin, Petr A; Shevchenko, Valery V; Tsukruk, Vladimir V

2015-06-17

Branched polyelectrolytes with cylindrical brush, dendritic, hyperbranched, grafted, and star architectures bearing ionizable functional groups possess complex and unique assembly behavior in solution at surfaces and interfaces as compared to their linear counterparts. This review summarizes the recent developments in the introduction of various architectures and understanding of the assembly behavior of branched polyelectrolytes with a focus on functional polyelectrolytes and poly(ionic liquid)s with responsive properties. The branched polyelectrolytes and poly(ionic liquid)s interact electrostatically with small molecules, linear polyelectrolytes, or other branched polyelectrolytes to form assemblies of hybrid nanoparticles, multilayer thin films, responsive microcapsules, and ion-conductive membranes. The branched structures lead to unconventional assemblies and complex hierarchical structures with responsive properties as summarized in this review. Finally, we discuss prospectives for emerging applications of branched polyelectrolytes and poly(ionic liquid)s for energy harvesting and storage, controlled delivery, chemical microreactors, adaptive surfaces, and ion-exchange membranes.

Hollow raspberry-like PdAg alloy nanospheres: High electrocatalytic activity for ethanol oxidation in alkaline media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peng, Cheng; Hu, Yongli; Liu, Mingrui; Zheng, Yixiong

2015-03-01

Palladium-silver (PdAg) alloy nanospheres with unique structure were prepared using a one-pot procedure based on the galvanic replacement reaction. Their electrocatalytic activity for ethanol oxidation in alkaline media was evaluated. The morphology and crystal structure of the samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Electrochemical characterization techniques, including cyclic voltammetry (CV) and chronoamperometry (CA) measurements were used to analyze the electrochemical performance of the PdAg alloy nanospheres. The SEM and TEM images showed that the PdAg alloy nanospheres exhibit a hierarchical nanostructure with hollow interiors and porous walls. Compared to the commercial Pd/C catalyst, the as-prepared PdAg alloy nanospheres exhibit superior electrocatalytic activity and stability towards ethanol electro-oxidation in alkaline media, showing its potential as a new non-Pt electro-catalyst for direct alcohol fuel cells (DAFCs).

Asymmetric block copolymer membranes with ultrahigh porosity and hierarchical pore structure by plain solvent evaporation.

PubMed

Yu, H; Qiu, X; Behzad, A R; Musteata, V; Smilgies, D-M; Nunes, S P; Peinemann, K-V

2016-10-04

Membranes with a hierarchical porous structure could be manufactured from a block copolymer blend by pure solvent evaporation. Uniform pores in a 30 nm thin skin layer supported by a macroporous structure were formed. This new process is attractive for membrane production because of its simplicity and the lack of liquid waste.

Hierarchical Dirichlet process model for gene expression clustering

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Clustering is an important data processing tool for interpreting microarray data and genomic network inference. In this article, we propose a clustering algorithm based on the hierarchical Dirichlet processes (HDP). The HDP clustering introduces a hierarchical structure in the statistical model which captures the hierarchical features prevalent in biological data such as the gene express data. We develop a Gibbs sampling algorithm based on the Chinese restaurant metaphor for the HDP clustering. We apply the proposed HDP algorithm to both regulatory network segmentation and gene expression clustering. The HDP algorithm is shown to outperform several popular clustering algorithms by revealing the underlying hierarchical structure of the data. For the yeast cell cycle data, we compare the HDP result to the standard result and show that the HDP algorithm provides more information and reduces the unnecessary clustering fragments. PMID:23587447

Three-dimensional core-shell Fe2O3 @ carbon/carbon cloth as binder-free anode for the high-performance lithium-ion batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Xiaohua; Zhang, Miao; Liu, Enzuo; He, Fang; Shi, Chunsheng; He, Chunnian; Li, Jiajun; Zhao, Naiqin

2016-12-01

A facile and scalable strategy is developed to fabricate three dimensional core-shell Fe2O3 @ carbon/carbon cloth structure by simple hydrothermal route as binder-free lithium-ion battery anode. In the unique structure, carbon coated Fe2O3 nanorods uniformly disperse on carbon cloth which forms the conductive carbon network. The hierarchical porous Fe2O3 nanorods in situ grown on the carbon cloth can effectively shorten the transfer paths of lithium ions and reduce the contact resistance. The carbon coating significantly inhibits pulverization of active materials during the repeated Li-ion insertion/extraction, as well as the direct exposure of Fe2O3 to the electrolyte. Benefiting from the structural integrity and flexibility, the nanocomposites used as binder-free anode for lithium-ion batteries, demonstrate high reversible capacity and excellent cyclability. Moreover, this kind of material represents an alternative promising candidate for flexible, cost-effective, and binder-free energy storage devices.

Mesoscale Graphene-like Honeycomb Mono- and Multilayers Constructed via Self-Assembly of Coclusters.

PubMed

Hou, Xue-Sen; Zhu, Guo-Long; Ren, Li-Jun; Huang, Zi-Han; Zhang, Rui-Bin; Ungar, Goran; Yan, Li-Tang; Wang, Wei

2018-02-07

Honeycomb structure endows graphene with extraordinary properties. But could a honeycomb monolayer superlattice also be generated via self-assembly of colloids or nanoparticles? Here we report the construction of mono- and multilayer molecular films with honeycomb structure that can be regarded as self-assembled artificial graphene (SAAG). We construct fan-shaped molecular building blocks by covalently connecting two kinds of clusters, one polyoxometalate and four polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes. The precise shape control enables these complex molecules to self-assemble into a monolayer 2D honeycomb superlattice that mirrors that of graphene but on the mesoscale. The self-assembly of the SAAG was also reproduced via coarse-grained molecular simulations of a fan-shaped building block. It revealed a hierarchical process and the key role of intermediate states in determining the honeycomb structure. Experimental images also show a diversity of bi- and trilayer stacking modes. The successful creation of SAAG and its stacks opens up prospects for the preparation of novel self-assembled nanomaterials with unique properties.

Hierarchically nanostructured hydroxyapatite: hydrothermal synthesis, morphology control, growth mechanism, and biological activity

PubMed Central

Ma, Ming-Guo

2012-01-01

Hierarchically nanosized hydroxyapatite (HA) with flower-like structure assembled from nanosheets consisting of nanorod building blocks was successfully synthesized by using CaCl2, NaH2PO4, and potassium sodium tartrate via a hydrothermal method at 200°C for 24 hours. The effects of heating time and heating temperature on the products were investigated. As a chelating ligand and template molecule, the potassium sodium tartrate plays a key role in the formation of hierarchically nanostructured HA. On the basis of experimental results, a possible mechanism based on soft-template and self-assembly was proposed for the formation and growth of the hierarchically nanostructured HA. Cytotoxicity experiments indicated that the hierarchically nanostructured HA had good biocompatibility. It was shown by in-vitro experiments that mesenchymal stem cells could attach to the hierarchically nanostructured HA after being cultured for 48 hours. Objective The purpose of this study was to develop facile and effective methods for the synthesis of novel hydroxyapatite (HA) with hierarchical nanostructures assembled from independent and discrete nanobuilding blocks. Methods A simple hydrothermal approach was applied to synthesize HA by using CaCl2, NaH2PO4, and potassium sodium tartrate at 200°C for 24 hours. The cell cytotoxicity of the hierarchically nanostructured HA was tested by MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) assay. Results HA displayed the flower-like structure assembled from nanosheets consisting of nanorod building blocks. The potassium sodium tartrate was used as a chelating ligand, inducing the formation and self-assembly of HA nanorods. The heating time and heating temperature influenced the aggregation and morphology of HA. The cell viability did not decrease with the increasing concentration of hierarchically nanostructured HA added. Conclusion A novel, simple and reliable hydrothermal route had been developed for the synthesis of hierarchically nanosized HA with flower-like structure assembled from nanosheets consisting of nanorod building blocks. The HA with the hierarchical nanostructure was formed via a soft-template assisted self-assembly mechanism. The hierarchically nanostructured HA has a good biocompatibility and essentially no in-vitro cytotoxicity. PMID:22619527

Fabrication and good ethanol sensing of biomorphic SnO2 with architecture hierarchy of butterfly wings.

PubMed

Song, Fang; Su, Huilan; Han, Jie; Zhang, Di; Chen, Zhixin

2009-12-09

Using super-hydrophobic butterfly wings as templates, we developed an aqueous sol-gel soakage process assisted by ethanol-wetting and followed by calcination to fabricate well-organized porous hierarchical SnO(2) with connective hollow interiors and thin mesoporous walls. The exquisite hierarchical architecture of SnO(2) is faithfully replicated from the lightweight skeleton of butterfly wings at the level from nano- to macro-scales. On the basis of the self-assembly of SnO(2) nanocrystallites with diameter around 7.0 nm, the interconnected tubes (lamellas), the fastigiated hollow tubers (pillars) and the double-layered substrates further construct the biomorphic hierarchical architecture. Benefiting from the small grain size and the unique hierarchical architecture, the biomorphic SnO(2) as an ethanol sensor exhibits high sensitivity (49.8 to 50 ppm ethanol), and fast response/recovery time (11/31 s to 50 ppm ethanol) even at relatively low working temperature (170 degrees C).

CoMn2O4 Spinel Hierarchical Microspheres Assembled with Porous Nanosheets as Stable Anodes for Lithium-ion Batteries

PubMed Central

Hu, Lin; Zhong, Hao; Zheng, Xinrui; Huang, Yimin; Zhang, Ping; Chen, Qianwang

2012-01-01

Herein, we report the feasibility to enhance the capacity and stability of CoMn2O4 anode materials by fabricating hierarchical mesoporous structure. The open space between neighboring nanosheets allows for easy diffusion of the electrolyte. The hierarchical microspheres assembled with nanosheets can ensure that every nanosheet participates in the electrochemical reaction, because every nanosheet is contacted with the electrolyte solution. The hierarchical structure and well interconnected pores on the surface of nanosheets will enhance the CoMn2O4/electrolyte contact area, shorten the Li+ ion diffusion length in the nanosheets, and accommodate the strain induced by the volume change during the electrochemical reaction. The last, hierarchical architecture with spherical morphology possesses relatively low surface energy, which results in less extent of self-aggregation during charge/discharge process. As a result, CoMn2O4 hierarchical microspheres can achieve a good cycle ability and high rate capability. PMID:23248749

CryoTEM as an Advanced Analytical Tool for Materials Chemists.

PubMed

Patterson, Joseph P; Xu, Yifei; Moradi, Mohammad-Amin; Sommerdijk, Nico A J M; Friedrich, Heiner

2017-07-18

Morphology plays an essential role in chemistry through the segregation of atoms and/or molecules into different phases, delineated by interfaces. This is a general process in materials synthesis and exploited in many fields including colloid chemistry, heterogeneous catalysis, and functional molecular systems. To rationally design complex materials, we must understand and control morphology evolution. Toward this goal, we utilize cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryoTEM), which can track the structural evolution of materials in solution with nanometer spatial resolution and a temporal resolution of <1 s. In this Account, we review examples of our own research where direct observations by cryoTEM have been essential to understanding morphology evolution in macromolecular self-assembly, inorganic nucleation and growth, and the cooperative evolution of hybrid materials. These three different research areas are at the heart of our approach to materials chemistry where we take inspiration from the myriad examples of complex materials in Nature. Biological materials are formed using a limited number of chemical components and under ambient conditions, and their formation pathways were refined during biological evolution by enormous trial and error approaches to self-organization and biomineralization. By combining the information on what is possible in nature and by focusing on a limited number of chemical components, we aim to provide an essential insight into the role of structure evolution in materials synthesis. Bone, for example, is a hierarchical and hybrid material which is lightweight, yet strong and hard. It is formed by the hierarchical self-assembly of collagen into a macromolecular template with nano- and microscale structure. This template then directs the nucleation and growth of oriented, nanoscale calcium phosphate crystals to form the composite material. Fundamental insight into controlling these structuring processes will eventually allow us to design such complex materials with predetermined and potentially unique properties.

Hierarchical drivers of reef-fish metacommunity structure.

PubMed

MacNeil, M Aaron; Graham, Nicholas A J; Polunin, Nicholas V C; Kulbicki, Michel; Galzin, René; Harmelin-Vivien, Mireille; Rushton, Steven P

2009-01-01

Coral reefs are highly complex ecological systems, where multiple processes interact across scales in space and time to create assemblages of exceptionally high biodiversity. Despite the increasing frequency of hierarchically structured sampling programs used in coral-reef science, little progress has been made in quantifying the relative importance of processes operating across multiple scales. The vast majority of reef studies are conducted, or at least analyzed, at a single spatial scale, ignoring the implicitly hierarchical structure of the overall system in favor of small-scale experiments or large-scale observations. Here we demonstrate how alpha (mean local number of species), beta diversity (degree of species dissimilarity among local sites), and gamma diversity (overall species richness) vary with spatial scale, and using a hierarchical, information-theoretic approach, we evaluate the relative importance of site-, reef-, and atoll-level processes driving the fish metacommunity structure among 10 atolls in French Polynesia. Process-based models, representing well-established hypotheses about drivers of reef-fish community structure, were assembled into a candidate set of 12 hierarchical linear models. Variation in fish abundance, biomass, and species richness were unevenly distributed among transect, reef, and atoll levels, establishing the relative contribution of variation at these spatial scales to the structure of the metacommunity. Reef-fish biomass, species richness, and the abundance of most functional-groups corresponded primarily with transect-level habitat diversity and atoll-lagoon size, whereas detritivore and grazer abundances were largely correlated with potential covariates of larval dispersal. Our findings show that (1) within-transect and among-atoll factors primarily drive the relationship between alpha and gamma diversity in this reef-fish metacommunity; (2) habitat is the primary correlate with reef-fish metacommunity structure at multiple spatial scales; and (3) inter-atoll connectedness was poorly correlated with the nonrandom clustering of reef-fish species. These results demonstrate the importance of modeling hierarchical data and processes in understanding reef-fish metacommunity structure.

Cognitive Diagnostic Analysis Using Hierarchically Structured Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Su, Yu-Lan

2013-01-01

This dissertation proposes two modified cognitive diagnostic models (CDMs), the deterministic, inputs, noisy, "and" gate with hierarchy (DINA-H) model and the deterministic, inputs, noisy, "or" gate with hierarchy (DINO-H) model. Both models incorporate the hierarchical structures of the cognitive skills in the model estimation…

Fabrication of hierarchical porous nickel based metal-organic framework (Ni-MOF) constructed with nanosheets as novel pseudo-capacitive material for asymmetric supercapacitor.

PubMed

Du, Pengcheng; Dong, Yuman; Liu, Chang; Wei, Wenli; Liu, Dong; Liu, Peng

2018-05-15

Hierarchical porous nickel based metal-organic framework (Ni-MOF) constructed with nanosheets is fabricated by a facile hydrothermal process with the existence of trimesic acid and nickel ions. Various structures of Ni-MOFs can be obtained through adjusting the molar ratio of trimesic acid and nickel ion, the obtained hierarchical porous Ni-MOF exhibits optimal porous structure, which also possesses largest specific surface area. The hierarchical porous structure constructed with nanosheets can supply more active sites for electrochemical reactions to realize the excellent electrochemical properties, thus the hierarchical porous Ni-MOF reveals an outstanding specific capacitance of 1057 F/g at current density of 1 A/g, and delivers high specific capacitance of 649 F/g at current density of 30 A/g, indicating that it exhibits good rate capability of 63.4% even up to 30 A/g. The hierarchical porous Ni-MOF keeps 70% of its original value up to 2 500 charge-discharge cycles at the current density of 10 A/g. Furthermore, asymmetric supercapacitors (ASCs) were assembled based on hierarchical porous Ni-MOF and activated carbon (AC), the ASCs reveal specific capacitance of 87 F/g at current density of 0.5 A/g, and exhibit high energy density of 21.05 Wh/kg and power density of 6.03 kW/kg. Additionally, the tandem ASCs can light up a red LED. The hierarchical porous Ni-MOF exhibits promising applications in high performance supercapacitors. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Multi-scale, Hierarchically Nested Young Stellar Structures in LEGUS Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thilker, David A.; LEGUS Team

2017-01-01

The study of star formation in galaxies has predominantly been limited to either young stellar clusters and HII regions, or much larger kpc-scale morphological features such as spiral arms. The HST Legacy ExtraGalactic UV Survey (LEGUS) provides a rare opportunity to link these scales in a diverse sample of nearby galaxies and obtain a more comprehensive understanding of their co-evolution for comparison against model predictions. We have utilized LEGUS stellar photometry to identify young, resolved stellar populations belonging to several age bins and then defined nested hierarchical structures as traced by these subsamples of stars. Analagous hierarchical structures were also defined using LEGUS catalogs of unresolved young stellar clusters. We will present our emerging results concerning the physical properties (e.g. area, star counts, stellar mass, star formation rate, ISM characteristics), occupancy statistics (e.g. clusters per substructure versus age and scale, parent/child demographics) and relation to overall galaxy morphology/mass for these building blocks of hierarchical star-forming structure.

Constrained hierarchical least square nonlinear equation solvers. [for indefinite stiffness and large structural deformations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Padovan, J.; Lackney, J.

1986-01-01

The current paper develops a constrained hierarchical least square nonlinear equation solver. The procedure can handle the response behavior of systems which possess indefinite tangent stiffness characteristics. Due to the generality of the scheme, this can be achieved at various hierarchical application levels. For instance, in the case of finite element simulations, various combinations of either degree of freedom, nodal, elemental, substructural, and global level iterations are possible. Overall, this enables a solution methodology which is highly stable and storage efficient. To demonstrate the capability of the constrained hierarchical least square methodology, benchmarking examples are presented which treat structure exhibiting highly nonlinear pre- and postbuckling behavior wherein several indefinite stiffness transitions occur.

Morphology evolution of hierarchical ZnO nanostructures modulated by supersaturation and growth temperature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, Youguo; Zhou, Lixia; Yu, Lianqing; Zhang, Ye

2008-07-01

Three kinds of ZnO hierarchical structures, nanocombs with tube- and needle-shaped teeth and hierarchical nanorod arrays, were successfully synthesized through the chemical vapor deposition method. Combining the experimental parameters, the microcosmic growing conditions (growth temperature and supersaturation) along the flux was discussed at length, and, based on the conclusions, three reasonable growth processes were proposed. The results and discussions were beneficial to further realize the relation between the growing behavior of the nanomaterial and microcosmic conditions, and the hierarchical nanostructures obtained were also expected to have potential applications as functional blocks in future nanodevices. Furthermore, the study of photoluminescence further indicated that the physical properties were strongly dependent on the crystal structure.

Overview of Biomineralization and Nanobacteria

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ciftcioglu, N.; McKay, D. S.

2005-01-01

Biomineralization is a frequently used term in nanotechnology, astrobiology, geology, and medicine. In the process of biomineralization, a living organism provides a chemical environment that controls the nucleation and growth of unique mineral phases. Often these materials exhibit hierarchical structural order, leading to superior physical properties, not found either in their inorganic counterparts or in synthetic materials. Biomineralization is widespread in the biosphere and hundreds of different minerals are produced or assisted by a variety of organisms from bacteria to humans. Teeth, bones, kidney stones, and skeletons of algae, mussels, and magnetotactic bacteria are all examples of biomineralization. We do not fully understand the control mechanism of biomineralization either in primitive or in developed organisms. The presence of organic molecules, among other characteristics, can influence the coherence length for X-ray scattering in biogenic crystals. Control over biomineral properties can be accomplished at a myriad of levels, including the regulation of particle size, shape, crystal orientation, polymorphic structure, defect texture, and particle assembly. In the latter case, cellular processes enable control in both the spatial and temporal domain in such a way that hierarchical composite structures can be built which increase the toughness and durability of the material, which is invaluable for load-bearing materials such as bones, teeth, mollusk shells, etc. Durability of biominerals produces remarkably preserved bacterial and cyanobacterial microfossils from billions of years-old samples. The differentiation between microfossils and nonbiogenic artifacts has been a lively discussion subject in astrobiology especially in the last decade. Clearly, more detailed information on the mechanism of biomineralization, and the effect of organic matter on crystal formation/fossilization would help focus such discussions.

mTM-align: a server for fast protein structure database search and multiple protein structure alignment.

PubMed

Dong, Runze; Pan, Shuo; Peng, Zhenling; Zhang, Yang; Yang, Jianyi

2018-05-21

With the rapid increase of the number of protein structures in the Protein Data Bank, it becomes urgent to develop algorithms for efficient protein structure comparisons. In this article, we present the mTM-align server, which consists of two closely related modules: one for structure database search and the other for multiple structure alignment. The database search is speeded up based on a heuristic algorithm and a hierarchical organization of the structures in the database. The multiple structure alignment is performed using the recently developed algorithm mTM-align. Benchmark tests demonstrate that our algorithms outperform other peering methods for both modules, in terms of speed and accuracy. One of the unique features for the server is the interplay between database search and multiple structure alignment. The server provides service not only for performing fast database search, but also for making accurate multiple structure alignment with the structures found by the search. For the database search, it takes about 2-5 min for a structure of a medium size (∼300 residues). For the multiple structure alignment, it takes a few seconds for ∼10 structures of medium sizes. The server is freely available at: http://yanglab.nankai.edu.cn/mTM-align/.

Integrating 3D Flower-Like Hierarchical Cu2NiSnS4 with Reduced Graphene Oxide as Advanced Anode Materials for Na-Ion Batteries.

PubMed

Yuan, Shuang; Wang, Sai; Li, Lin; Zhu, Yun-hai; Zhang, Xin-bo; Yan, Jun-min

2016-04-13

Development of an anode material with high performance and low cost is crucial for implementation of next-generation Na-ion batteries (NIBs) electrode, which is proposed to meet the challenges of large scale renewable energy storage. Metal chalcogenides are considered as promising anode materials for NIBs due to their high theoretical capacity, low cost, and abundant sources. Unfortunately, their practical application in NIBs is still hindered because of low conductivity and morphological collapse caused by their volume expansion and shrinkage during Na(+) intercalation/deintercalation. To solve the daunting challenges, herein, we fabricated novel three-dimensional (3D) Cu2NiSnS4 nanoflowers (CNTSNs) as a proof-of-concept experiment using a facile and low-cost method. Furthermore, homogeneous integration with reduced graphene oxide nanosheets (RGNs) endows intrinsically insulated CNTSNs with superior electrochemical performances, including high specific capacity (up to 837 mAh g(-1)), good rate capability, and long cycling stability, which could be attributed to the unique 3D hierarchical structure providing fast ion diffusion pathway and high contact area at the electrode/electrolyte interface.

Design and Synthesis of Hierarchical SiO2@C/TiO2 Hollow Spheres for High-Performance Supercapacitors.

PubMed

Zhang, Ying; Zhao, Yan; Cao, Shunsheng; Yin, Zhengliang; Cheng, Li; Wu, Limin

2017-09-06

TiO 2 has been widely investigated as an electrode material because of its long cycle life and good durability, but the relatively low theoretical capacity restricts its practical application. Herein, we design and synthesize novel hierarchical SiO 2 @C/TiO 2 (HSCT) hollow spheres via a template-directed method. These unique HSCT hollow spheres combine advantages from both TiO 2 such as cycle stability and SiO 2 with a high accessible area and ionic transport. In particular, the existence of a C layer is able to enhance the electrical conductivity. The SiO 2 layer with a porous structure can increase the ion diffusion channels and accelerate the ion transfer from the outer to the inner layers. The electrochemical measurements demonstrate that the HSCT-hollow-sphere-based electrode manifests a high specific capacitance of 1018 F g -1 at 1 A g -1 which is higher than those for hollow TiO 2 (113 F g -1 ) and SiO 2 /TiO 2 (252 F g -1 ) electrodes, and substantially higher than those of all the previously reported TiO 2 -based electrodes.

L-cysteine-assisted synthesis of hierarchical NiS2 hollow spheres supported carbon nitride as photocatalysts with enhanced lifetime

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, Chengzhang; Jiang, Zhifeng; Chen, Linlin; Qian, Kun; Xie, Jimin

2017-03-01

Novel hierarchical NiS2 hollow spheres modified by graphite-like carbon nitride were prepared using a facile L-cysteine-assisted solvothermal route. The NiS2/g-C3N4 composites exhibited excellent photocatalytic efficiency in rhodamine B, methyl orange and ciprofloxacin degradation as compared to single g-C3N4 and NiS2, which could be due to the synergistic effects of the unique hollow sphere-like structure, strong visible-light absorption and increased separation rate of the photoinduced electron-hole pairs at the intimate interface of heterojunctions. A suitable combination of g-C3N4 with NiS2 showed the best photocatalytic performance. In addition, an electron spin resonance and trapping experiment demonstrated that the photogenerated hydroxyl radicals and superoxide radicals were the two main photoactive species in photocatalysis. A possible photocatalytic mechanism of NiS2/g-C3N4 composites under visible light irradiation is also proposed. The strategy presented here can be extended to a general strategy for constructing 3D/2D heterostructured photocatalysts for broad applications in photocatalysis.

Flexible, High-Wettability and Fire-Resistant Separators Based on Hydroxyapatite Nanowires for Advanced Lithium-Ion Batteries.

PubMed

Li, Heng; Wu, Dabei; Wu, Jin; Dong, Li-Ying; Zhu, Ying-Jie; Hu, Xianluo

2017-11-01

Separators play a pivotal role in the electrochemical performance and safety of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). The commercial microporous polyolefin-based separators often suffer from inferior electrolyte wettability, low thermal stability, and severe safety concerns. Herein, a novel kind of highly flexible and porous separator based on hydroxyapatite nanowires (HAP NWs) with excellent thermal stability, fire resistance, and superior electrolyte wettability is reported. A hierarchical cross-linked network structure forms between HAP NWs and cellulose fibers (CFs) via hybridization, which endows the separator with high flexibility and robust mechanical strength. The high thermal stability of HAP NW networks enables the separator to preserve its structural integrity at temperatures as high as 700 °C, and the fire-resistant property of HAP NWs ensures high safety of the battery. In particular, benefiting from its unique composition and highly porous structure, the as-prepared HAP/CF separator exhibits near zero contact angle with the liquid electrolyte and high electrolyte uptake of 253%, indicating superior electrolyte wettability compared with the commercial polyolefin separator. The as-prepared HAP/CF separator has unique advantages of superior electrolyte wettability, mechanical robustness, high thermal stability, and fire resistance, thus, is promising as a new kind of separator for advanced LIBs with enhanced performance and high safety. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

The hierarchical nature of the spin alignment of dark matter haloes in filaments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aragon-Calvo, M. A.; Yang, Lin Forrest

2014-05-01

Dark matter haloes in cosmological filaments and walls have (in average) their spin vector aligned with their host structure. While haloes in walls are aligned with the plane of the wall independently of their mass, haloes in filaments present a mass-dependent two-regime orientation. Here, we show that the transition mass determining the change in the alignment regime (from parallel to perpendicular) depends on the hierarchical level in which the halo is located, reflecting the hierarchical nature of the Cosmic Web. By explicitly exposing the hierarchical structure of the Cosmic Web, we are able to identify the contributions of different components of the filament network to the alignment signal. We propose a unifying picture of angular momentum acquisition that is based on the results presented here and previous results found by other authors. In order to do a hierarchical characterization of the Cosmic Web, we introduce a new implementation of the multiscale morphology filter, the MMF-2, that significantly improves the identification of structures and explicitly describes their hierarchy. L36

A fully automatic evolutionary classification of protein folds: Dali Domain Dictionary version 3

PubMed Central

Dietmann, Sabine; Park, Jong; Notredame, Cedric; Heger, Andreas; Lappe, Michael; Holm, Liisa

2001-01-01

The Dali Domain Dictionary (http://www.ebi.ac.uk/dali/domain) is a numerical taxonomy of all known structures in the Protein Data Bank (PDB). The taxonomy is derived fully automatically from measurements of structural, functional and sequence similarities. Here, we report the extension of the classification to match the traditional four hierarchical levels corresponding to: (i) supersecondary structural motifs (attractors in fold space), (ii) the topology of globular domains (fold types), (iii) remote homologues (functional families) and (iv) homologues with sequence identity above 25% (sequence families). The computational definitions of attractors and functional families are new. In September 2000, the Dali classification contained 10 531 PDB entries comprising 17 101 chains, which were partitioned into five attractor regions, 1375 fold types, 2582 functional families and 3724 domain sequence families. Sequence families were further associated with 99 582 unique homologous sequences in the HSSP database, which increases the number of effectively known structures several-fold. The resulting database contains the description of protein domain architecture, the definition of structural neighbours around each known structure, the definition of structurally conserved cores and a comprehensive library of explicit multiple alignments of distantly related protein families. PMID:11125048

Hierarchical and Well-Ordered Porous Copper for Liquid Transport Properties Control.

PubMed

Pham, Quang N; Shao, Bowen; Kim, Yongsung; Won, Yoonjin

2018-05-09

Liquid delivery through interconnected pore network is essential for various interfacial transport applications ranging from energy storage to evaporative cooling. The liquid transport performance in porous media can be significantly improved through the use of hierarchical morphology that leverages transport phenomena at different length scales. Traditional surface engineering techniques using chemical or thermal reactions often show nonuniform surface nanostructuring within three-dimensional pore network due to uncontrollable diffusion and reactivity in geometrically complex porous structures. Here, we demonstrate hierarchical architectures on the basis of crystalline copper inverse opals using an electrochemistry approach, which offers volumetric controllability of structural and surface properties within the complex porous metal. The electrochemical process sequentially combines subtractive and additive steps-electrochemical polishing and electrochemical oxidation-to improve surface wetting properties without sacrificing structural permeability. We report the transport performance of the hierarchical inverse opals by measuring the capillary-driven liquid rise. The capillary performance parameter of hierarchically engineered inverse opal ( K/ R eff = ∼5 × 10 -3 μm) is shown to be higher than that of a typical crystalline inverse opal ( K/ R eff = ∼1 × 10 -3 μm) owing to the enhancement in fluid permeable and hydrophilic pathways. The new surface engineering method presented in this work provides a rational approach in designing hierarchical porous copper for transport performance enhancements.

Elaboration and properties of hierarchically structured optical thin films of MIL-101(Cr).

PubMed

Demessence, Aude; Horcajada, Patricia; Serre, Christian; Boissière, Cédric; Grosso, David; Sanchez, Clément; Férey, Gérard

2009-12-14

Stable nanoparticles dispersions of the porous hybrid MIL-101(Cr) allow dip-coating of high quality optical thin films with dual hierarchical porous structure. Moreover, for the first time, mechanical and sorption properties of mesoporous MOFs based thin films are evaluated.

Zinc oxide hierarchical nanostructures for photocatalysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yukhnovets, O.; Semenova, A. A.; Levkevich, E. A.; Maximov, A. I.; Moshnikov, V. A.

2018-03-01

In this work, we perform the study of zinc oxide hierarchical structures synthesized by the low-temperature hydrothermal method. The paper considers morphological properties of obtained structures. Photocatalytic activity of samples was analysed by methyl orange degradation under UV irradiation. The sufficient decrease in methyl orange has been demonstrated.

"Signs of honor" among Russian inmates in Israel's prisons.

PubMed

Shoham, Efrat

2010-12-01

The unique nature of Israeli society as an immigrant society has also affected the prison population in Israel. This article focuses on a social and cultural phenomenon that particularly characterizes the prisoners of Russian origin, the phenomenon of tattoos. Using postmodernist theories, the article examines the function of the tattoo among Russian prisoners and the role it plays in constructing the criminal self-identity of these inmates in Israeli prisons. The tattoos observed during 2005-2006 among the Russian prisoners in four major Israeli prisons reflect the values of the Russian criminal subculture from which they evolved and were imported. This subculture is characterized by a hierarchical class structure and manifestations of machismo, domination, defiance, rebellion, and open antagonism against the Establishment and its representatives.

Hierarchical structure and dynamics of oligocarbonate-functionalized PEG block copolymer gels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prabhu, Vivek; Wei, Guangmin; Ali, Samim; Venkataraman, Shrinivas; Yang, Yi Yan; Hedrick, James

Hierarchical, self-assembled block copolymers in aqueous solutions provide advanced materials for biomaterial applications. Recent advancements in the synthesis of aliphatic polycarbonates have shown nontraditional micellar and hierarchical structures driven by the supramolecular assembly of the carbonate block functionality that includes cholesterol, vitamin D, and fluorene. This presentation shall describe the supramolecular assembly structure and dynamics observed by static and dynamic light scattering, small-angle neutron scattering and transmission electron microscopy in a model pi-pi stacking driven fluorene system. The combination of real-space and reciprocal space methods to develop appropriate models that quantify the structure from the micelle to transient gel network will be discussed. 1) Biomedical Research Council, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, 2) NIST Materials Genome Initiative.

Examining the Factor Structure and Hierarchical Nature of the Quality of Life Construct

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Mian; Schalock, Robert L.; Verdugo, Miguel A.; Jenaro, Christina

2010-01-01

There is considerable debate in the area of individual quality of life research regarding the factor structure and hierarchical nature of the quality of life construct. Our purpose in this study was to test via structural equation modeling an a priori quality of life model consisting of eight first-order factors and one second-order factor. Data…

Hierarchical structure and mechanical properties of remineralized dentin.

PubMed

Chen, Yi; Wang, Jianming; Sun, Jian; Mao, Caiyun; Wang, Wei; Pan, Haihua; Tang, Ruikang; Gu, Xinhua

2014-12-01

It is widely accepted that the mechanical properties of dentin are significantly determined by its hierarchical structure. The current correlation between the mechanical properties and the hierarchical structure was mainly established by studying altered forms of dentin, which limits the potential outcome of the research. In this study, dentins with three different hierarchical structures were obtained via two different remineralization procedures and at different remineralization stages: (1) a dentin structure with amorphous minerals incorporated into the collagen fibrils, (2) a dentin with crystallized nanominerals incorporated into the collagen fibrils, and (3) a dentin with an out-of-order mineral layer filling the collagen fibrils matrix. Nanoindentation tests were performed to investigate the mechanical behavior of the remineralized dentin slides. The results showed that the incorporation of the crystallized nanominerals into the acid-etched demineralized organic fibrils resulted in a remarkable improvement of the mechanical properties of the dentin. In contrast, for the other two structures, i.e. the amorphous minerals inside the collagen fibrils and the out-of-order mineral layer within the collagen fibrils matrix, the excellent mechanical properties of dentin could not be restored. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Multilevel Higher-Order Item Response Theory Models

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huang, Hung-Yu; Wang, Wen-Chung

2014-01-01

In the social sciences, latent traits often have a hierarchical structure, and data can be sampled from multiple levels. Both hierarchical latent traits and multilevel data can occur simultaneously. In this study, we developed a general class of item response theory models to accommodate both hierarchical latent traits and multilevel data. The…

Scale of association: hierarchical linear models and the measurement of ecological systems

Treesearch

Sean M. McMahon; Jeffrey M. Diez

2007-01-01

A fundamental challenge to understanding patterns in ecological systems lies in employing methods that can analyse, test and draw inference from measured associations between variables across scales. Hierarchical linear models (HLM) use advanced estimation algorithms to measure regression relationships and variance-covariance parameters in hierarchically structured...

Multifunctional Nanostructured Conductive Polymer Gels: Synthesis, Properties, and Applications

DOE PAGES

Zhao, Fei; Shi, Ye; Pan, Lijia; ...

2017-06-26

Conductive polymers have attracted significant interest over the past few decades because they synergize the advantageous features of conventional polymeric materials and organic conductors. With rationally designed nanostructures, conductive polymers can further exhibit exceptional mechanical, electrical, and optical properties because of their confined dimensions at the nanoscale level. Among various nanostructured conductive polymers, conductive polymer gels (CPGs) with synthetically tunable hierarchical 3D network structures show great potential for a wide range of applications, such as bioelectronics, and energy storage/conversion devices owing to their structural features. CPGs retain the properties of nanosized conductive polymers during the assembly of the nanobuilding blocksmore » into a monolithic macroscopic structure while generating structure-derived features from the highly cross-linked network. In this Account, we review our recent progress on the synthesis, properties, and novel applications of dopant cross-linked CPGs. We first describe the synthetic strategies, in which molecules with multiple functional groups are adopted as cross-linkers to cross-link conductive polymer chains into a 3D molecular network. These cross-linking molecules also act as dopants to improve the electrical conductivity of the gel network. The microstructure and physical/chemical properties of CPGs can be tuned by controlling the synthetic conditions such as species of monomers and cross-linkers, reaction temperature, and solvents. By incorporating other functional polymers or particles into the CPG matrix, hybrid gels have been synthesized with tailored structures. These hybrid gel materials retain the functionalities from each component, as well as enable synergic effects to improve mechanical and electrical properties of CPGs. We then introduce the unique structure-derived properties of the CPGs. The network facilitates both electronic and ionic transport owing to the continuous pathways for electrons and hierarchical pores for ion diffusion. CPGs also provide high surface area and solvent compatibility, similar to natural gels. With these improved properties, CPGs have been explored to enable novel conceptual devices in diverse applications from smart electronics and ultrasensitive biosensors, to energy storage and conversion devices. CPGs have also been adopted for developing hybrid materials with multifunctionalities, such as stimuli responsiveness, self-healing properties, and super-repellency to liquid. With synthetically tunable physical/chemical properties, CPGs emerge as a unique material platform to develop novel multifunctional materials that have the potential to impact electronics, energy, and environmental technologies. Our hope is that this Account promotes further efforts toward synthetic control, fundamental investigation, and application exploration of CPGs.« less

Multifunctional Nanostructured Conductive Polymer Gels: Synthesis, Properties, and Applications

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhao, Fei; Shi, Ye; Pan, Lijia

Conductive polymers have attracted significant interest over the past few decades because they synergize the advantageous features of conventional polymeric materials and organic conductors. With rationally designed nanostructures, conductive polymers can further exhibit exceptional mechanical, electrical, and optical properties because of their confined dimensions at the nanoscale level. Among various nanostructured conductive polymers, conductive polymer gels (CPGs) with synthetically tunable hierarchical 3D network structures show great potential for a wide range of applications, such as bioelectronics, and energy storage/conversion devices owing to their structural features. CPGs retain the properties of nanosized conductive polymers during the assembly of the nanobuilding blocksmore » into a monolithic macroscopic structure while generating structure-derived features from the highly cross-linked network. In this Account, we review our recent progress on the synthesis, properties, and novel applications of dopant cross-linked CPGs. We first describe the synthetic strategies, in which molecules with multiple functional groups are adopted as cross-linkers to cross-link conductive polymer chains into a 3D molecular network. These cross-linking molecules also act as dopants to improve the electrical conductivity of the gel network. The microstructure and physical/chemical properties of CPGs can be tuned by controlling the synthetic conditions such as species of monomers and cross-linkers, reaction temperature, and solvents. By incorporating other functional polymers or particles into the CPG matrix, hybrid gels have been synthesized with tailored structures. These hybrid gel materials retain the functionalities from each component, as well as enable synergic effects to improve mechanical and electrical properties of CPGs. We then introduce the unique structure-derived properties of the CPGs. The network facilitates both electronic and ionic transport owing to the continuous pathways for electrons and hierarchical pores for ion diffusion. CPGs also provide high surface area and solvent compatibility, similar to natural gels. With these improved properties, CPGs have been explored to enable novel conceptual devices in diverse applications from smart electronics and ultrasensitive biosensors, to energy storage and conversion devices. CPGs have also been adopted for developing hybrid materials with multifunctionalities, such as stimuli responsiveness, self-healing properties, and super-repellency to liquid. With synthetically tunable physical/chemical properties, CPGs emerge as a unique material platform to develop novel multifunctional materials that have the potential to impact electronics, energy, and environmental technologies. Our hope is that this Account promotes further efforts toward synthetic control, fundamental investigation, and application exploration of CPGs.« less

Multifunctional Nanostructured Conductive Polymer Gels: Synthesis, Properties, and Applications.

PubMed

Zhao, Fei; Shi, Ye; Pan, Lijia; Yu, Guihua

2017-07-18

Conductive polymers have attracted significant interest over the past few decades because they synergize the advantageous features of conventional polymeric materials and organic conductors. With rationally designed nanostructures, conductive polymers can further exhibit exceptional mechanical, electrical, and optical properties because of their confined dimensions at the nanoscale level. Among various nanostructured conductive polymers, conductive polymer gels (CPGs) with synthetically tunable hierarchical 3D network structures show great potential for a wide range of applications, such as bioelectronics, and energy storage/conversion devices owing to their structural features. CPGs retain the properties of nanosized conductive polymers during the assembly of the nanobuilding blocks into a monolithic macroscopic structure while generating structure-derived features from the highly cross-linked network. In this Account, we review our recent progress on the synthesis, properties, and novel applications of dopant cross-linked CPGs. We first describe the synthetic strategies, in which molecules with multiple functional groups are adopted as cross-linkers to cross-link conductive polymer chains into a 3D molecular network. These cross-linking molecules also act as dopants to improve the electrical conductivity of the gel network. The microstructure and physical/chemical properties of CPGs can be tuned by controlling the synthetic conditions such as species of monomers and cross-linkers, reaction temperature, and solvents. By incorporating other functional polymers or particles into the CPG matrix, hybrid gels have been synthesized with tailored structures. These hybrid gel materials retain the functionalities from each component, as well as enable synergic effects to improve mechanical and electrical properties of CPGs. We then introduce the unique structure-derived properties of the CPGs. The network facilitates both electronic and ionic transport owing to the continuous pathways for electrons and hierarchical pores for ion diffusion. CPGs also provide high surface area and solvent compatibility, similar to natural gels. With these improved properties, CPGs have been explored to enable novel conceptual devices in diverse applications from smart electronics and ultrasensitive biosensors, to energy storage and conversion devices. CPGs have also been adopted for developing hybrid materials with multifunctionalities, such as stimuli responsiveness, self-healing properties, and super-repellency to liquid. With synthetically tunable physical/chemical properties, CPGs emerge as a unique material platform to develop novel multifunctional materials that have the potential to impact electronics, energy, and environmental technologies. We hope that this Account promotes further efforts toward synthetic control, fundamental investigation, and application exploration of CPGs.

Interlinked multiphase Fe-doped MnO2 nanostructures: a novel design for enhanced pseudocapacitive performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Ziya; Wang, Fengping; Li, Yan; Hu, Jianlin; Lu, Yanzhen; Xu, Mei

2016-03-01

Structure designing and morphology control can lead to high performance pseudocapacitive materials for supercapacitors. In this work, we have designed interlinked multiphase Fe-doped MnO2 nanostructures (α-MnO2/R-MnO2/ε-MnO2) to enhance the electrochemical properties by a facile method. These hierarchical hollow microspheres assembled by interconnected nanoflakes, and with plenty of porous nanorods radiating from the spherical shells were hydrothermally obtained. The supercapacitor electrode prepared from the unique construction exhibits outstanding specific capacitance of 267.0 F g-1 even under a high mass loading (~5 mg cm-2). Obviously improved performances compared to pure MnO2 are also demonstrated with a good rate capability, high energy density (1.30 mW h cm-3) and excellent cycling stability of 100% capacitance retention after 2000 cycles at 2 A g-1. The synergistic effects of alternative crystal structures, appropriate crystallinity and optimal morphology are identified to be responsible for the observations. This rational multiphase composite strategy provides a promising idea for materials scientists to design and prepare scalable electrode materials for energy storage devices.Structure designing and morphology control can lead to high performance pseudocapacitive materials for supercapacitors. In this work, we have designed interlinked multiphase Fe-doped MnO2 nanostructures (α-MnO2/R-MnO2/ε-MnO2) to enhance the electrochemical properties by a facile method. These hierarchical hollow microspheres assembled by interconnected nanoflakes, and with plenty of porous nanorods radiating from the spherical shells were hydrothermally obtained. The supercapacitor electrode prepared from the unique construction exhibits outstanding specific capacitance of 267.0 F g-1 even under a high mass loading (~5 mg cm-2). Obviously improved performances compared to pure MnO2 are also demonstrated with a good rate capability, high energy density (1.30 mW h cm-3) and excellent cycling stability of 100% capacitance retention after 2000 cycles at 2 A g-1. The synergistic effects of alternative crystal structures, appropriate crystallinity and optimal morphology are identified to be responsible for the observations. This rational multiphase composite strategy provides a promising idea for materials scientists to design and prepare scalable electrode materials for energy storage devices. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr08857g

Hierarchically porous LaFeO3 perovskite prepared from the pomelo peel bio-template for catalytic oxidation of NO

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Shaojun; Wang, Li; Wang, Ying; Li, Xing

2018-05-01

In this paper, pomelo peel was used as biological template to obtain hierarchically porous LaFeO3 perovskite for the catalytic oxidation of NO to NO2. In addition, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), N2 adsorption-desorption analyses, X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS), NO temperature-programmed desorption (NO-TPD), oxygen temperature-programmed desorption (O2-TPD) and hydrogen temperature-programmed reduction (H2-TPR) were used to investigate the micro-structure and the redox properties of the hierarchically porous LaFeO3 perovskite prepared from pomelo peel biological template and the LaFeO3 perovskite without the biological template. The results indicated that the hierarchically porous LaFeO3 perovskite successfully replicated the porous structure of pomelo peel with high specific surface area. Compared to the LaFeO3 perovskite prepared without the pomelo peel template, the hierarchically porous LaFeO3 perovskite showed better catalytic oxidization of NO to NO2 under the same conditions. The maximum NO conversions for LaFeO3 prepared with and without template were 90% at 305 °C and 76% at 313 °C, respectively. This is mainly attributed to the higher ratio of Fe4+/Fe3+, the hierarchically porous structure with more adsorbed oxygen species and higher surface area for the hierarchically porous LaFeO3 perovskite compared with the sample prepared without the pomelo peel template.

Enhanced lithium storage performances of hierarchical hollow MoS₂ nanoparticles assembled from nanosheets.

PubMed

Wang, Meng; Li, Guangda; Xu, Huayun; Qian, Yitai; Yang, Jian

2013-02-01

MoS(2), because of its layered structure and high theoretical capacity, has been regarded as a potential candidate for electrode materials in lithium secondary batteries. But it suffers from the poor cycling stability and low rate capability. Here, hierarchical hollow nanoparticles of MoS(2) nanosheets with an increased interlayer distance are synthesized by a simple solvothermal reaction at a low temperature. The formation of hierarchical hollow nanoparticles is based on the intermediate, K(2)NaMoO(3)F(3), as a self-sacrificed template. These hollow nanoparticles exhibit a reversible capacity of 902 mA h g(-1) at 100 mA g(-1) after 80 cycles, much higher than the solid counterpart. At a current density of 1000 mA g(-1), the reversible capacity of the hierarchical hollow nanoparticles could be still maintained at 780 mAh g(-1). The enhanced lithium storage performances of the hierarchical hollow nanoparticles in reversible capacities, cycling stability and rate performances can be attributed to their hierarchical surface, hollow structure feature and increased layer distance of S-Mo-S. Hierarchical hollow nanoparticles as an ensemble of these features, could be applied to other electrode materials for the superior electrochemical performance.

Perception of hierarchical boundaries in music and its modulation by expertise.

PubMed

Zhang, Jingjing; Jiang, Cunmei; Zhou, Linshu; Yang, Yufang

2016-10-01

Hierarchical structure with units of different timescales is a key feature of music. For the perception of such structures, the detection of each boundary is crucial. Here, using electroencephalography (EEG), we explore the perception of hierarchical boundaries in music, and test whether musical expertise modifies such processing. Musicians and non-musicians were presented with musical excerpts containing boundaries at three hierarchical levels, including section, phrase and period boundaries. Non-boundary was chosen as a baseline condition. Recordings from musicians showed CPS (closure positive shift) was evoked at all the three boundaries, and their amplitude increased as the hierarchical level became higher, which suggest that musicians could represent music events at different timescales in a hierarchical way. For non-musicians, the CPS was only elicited at the period boundary and undistinguishable negativities were induced at all the three boundaries. The results indicate that a different and less clear way was used by non-musicians in boundary perception. Our findings reveal, for the first time, an ERP correlate of perceiving hierarchical boundaries in music, and show that the phrasing ability could be enhanced by musical expertise. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Unique associations between peer relations and social anxiety in early adolescence.

PubMed

Flanagan, Kelly S; Erath, Stephen A; Bierman, Karen L

2008-10-01

This study examined the unique associations between feelings of social anxiety and multiple dimensions of peer relations (positive peer nominations, peer- and self-reported peer victimization, and self-reported friendship quality) among 383 sixth- and seventh-grade students. Hierarchical regression analysis provided evidence for the unique contribution made by peer relations to social anxiety above that made by adolescents' individual vulnerabilities (i.e., teacher ratings of social behavior, self-reported social appraisals assessed by hypothetical vignettes). Two subgroups of socially anxious adolescents--those with and without peer problems--were distinguished by their social behavior but not their social appraisals.

The Hierarchical Personality Structure of Aspiring Creative Writers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maslej, Marta M.; Rain, Marina; Fong, Katrina; Oatley, Keith; Mar, Raymond A.

2014-01-01

Empirical studies of personality traits in creative writers have demonstrated mixed findings, perhaps due to issues of sampling, measurement, and the reporting of statistical information. The goal of this study is to quantify the personality structure of aspiring creative writers according to a modern hierarchal model of trait personality. A…

Multilevel Analysis of Structural Equation Models via the EM Algorithm.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jo, See-Heyon

The question of how to analyze unbalanced hierarchical data generated from structural equation models has been a common problem for researchers and analysts. Among difficulties plaguing statistical modeling are estimation bias due to measurement error and the estimation of the effects of the individual's hierarchical social milieu. This paper…

Printable Fabrication of Nanocoral-Structured Electrodes for High-Performance Flexible and Planar Supercapacitor with Artistic Design.

PubMed

Lin, Yuanjing; Gao, Yuan; Fan, Zhiyong

2017-11-01

Planar supercapacitors with high flexibility, desirable operation safety, and high performance are considered as attractive candidates to serve as energy-storage devices for portable and wearable electronics. Here, a scalable and printable technique is adopted to construct novel and unique hierarchical nanocoral structures as the interdigitated electrodes on flexible substrates. The as-fabricated flexible all-solid-state planar supercapacitors with nanocoral structures achieve areal capacitance up to 52.9 mF cm -2 , which is 2.5 times that of devices without nanocoral structures, and this figure-of-merit is among the highest in the literature for the same category of devices. More interestingly, due to utilization of the inkjet-printing technique, excellent versatility on electrode-pattern artistic design is achieved. Particularly, working supercapacitors with artistically designed patterns are demonstrated. Meanwhile, the high scalability of such a printable method is also demonstrated by fabrication of large-sized artistic supercapacitors serving as energy-storage devices in a wearable self-powered system as a proof of concept. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Hierarchical Structure of Articular Bone-Cartilage Interface and Its Potential Application for Osteochondral Tissue Engineering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bian, Weiguo; Qin, Lian; Li, Dichen; Wang, Jin; Jin, Zhongmin

2010-09-01

The artificial biodegradable osteochondral construct is one of mostly promising lifetime substitute in the joint replacement. And the complex hierarchical structure of natural joint is important in developing the osteochondral construct. However, the architecture features of the interface between cartilage and bone, in particular those at the micro-and nano-structural level, remain poorly understood. This paper investigates these structural data of the cartilage-bone interface by micro computerized tomography (μCT) and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The result of μCT shows that important bone parameters and the density of articular cartilage are all related to the position in the hierarchical structure. The conjunctions of bone and cartilage were defined by SEM. All of the study results would be useful for the design of osteochondral construct further manufactured by nano-tech. A three-dimensional model with gradient porous structure is constructed in the environment of Pro/ENGINEERING software.

Supramolecular structure of polymer binders and composites: targeted control based on the hierarchy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matveeva, Larisa; Belentsov, Yuri

2017-10-01

The article discusses the problem of targeted control over properties by modifying the supramolecular structure of polymer binders and composites based on their hierarchy. Control over the structure formation of polymers and introduction of modifying additives should be tailored to the specific hierarchical structural levels. Characteristics of polymer materials are associated with structural defects, which also display a hierarchical pattern. Classification of structural defects in polymers is presented. The primary structural level (nano level) of supramolecular formations is of great importance to the reinforcement and regulation of strength characteristics.

Fabrication of controlled hierarchical wrinkle structures on polydimethylsiloxane via one-step C4F8 plasma treatment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miao, Liming; Cheng, Xiaoliang; Chen, Haotian; Song, Yu; Guo, Hang; Zhang, Jinxin; Chen, Xuexian; Zhang, Haixia

2018-01-01

We report a simple method for fabricating two-dimensional and nested hierarchical wrinkle structures on polydimethylsiloxane surfaces via one-step C4F8 plasma treatment that innovatively combines two approaches to monolayer wrinkle structure fabrication. The wavelengths of the two dimensions of the wrinkle structures can be controlled by plasma treatment (radio frequency (RF) power and plasma treatment time) and stretching (stretching strain and axial stretching), respectively. We also analyze the different interactions between the two dimensions of wrinkle structures with different wavelengths and explain the phenomenon using Fourier waveform superposition. The character of the two dimensions and hierarchy is obvious when the wavelengths of the two wrinkles are different. In surface wetting tests, the hierarchical wrinkle shows great hydrophobicity and keeps the stretching property under 25%.

Hierarchical porous graphene/polyaniline composite film with superior rate performance for flexible supercapacitors.

PubMed

Meng, Yuena; Wang, Kai; Zhang, Yajie; Wei, Zhixiang

2013-12-23

A highly flexible graphene free-standing film with hierarchical structure is prepared by a facile template method. With a porous structure, the film can be easily bent and cut, and forms a composite with another material as a scaffold. The 3D graphene film exhibits excellent rate capability and its capacitance is further improved by forming a composite with polyaniline nanowire arrays. The flexible hierarchical composite proves to be an excellent electrode material for flexible supercapacitors. © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Humpback whale song: A new review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frankel, Adam S.

2003-04-01

The humpback whale song has been described and investigated since the early 1970s. Much has been learned about the humpback whale social structure, but the understanding of the song and its function remains elusive. The hierarchical nature of the song structure was described early on: Songs can be sung for a long period, apparently by males, and primarily during the mating season. However, singers also become physically competitive, suggesting alternative mating strategies. There are a number of unique structural features of song. Its structure evolves over time and combination. The nature of song evolution strongly implies cultural transmission. Song structure appears to be shared within an entire population, even though there appears to be little interchange of individuals between sub populations. Despite over thirty years of inquiry there are still numerous unanswered questions: Why is the song structure so complex? Is song a sexual advertisement, an acoustic space mediation mechanism, or both? How do females choose mates, or do they? What drives song evolution, and why is there so much variation in the rate of change? Are there nonreproductive functions of song? What prompts a male to begin or end singing? Our current understanding and the outstanding questions yet to be answered will be reviewed.

Ordered patterns and structures via interfacial self-assembly: superlattices, honeycomb structures and coffee rings.

PubMed

Ma, Hongmin; Hao, Jingcheng

2011-11-01

Self-assembly is now being intensively studied in chemistry, physics, biology, and materials engineering and has become an important "bottom-up" approach to create intriguing structures for different applications. Self-assembly is not only a practical approach for creating a variety of nanostructures, but also shows great superiority in building hierarchical structures with orders on different length scales. The early work in self-assembly focused on molecular self-assembly in bulk solution, including the resultant dye aggregates, liposomes, vesicles, liquid crystals, gels and so on. Interfacial self-assembly has been a great concern over the last two decades, largely because of the unique and ingenious roles of this method for constructing materials at interfaces, such as self-assembled monolayers, Langmuir-Blodgett films, and capsules. Nanocrystal superlattices, honeycomb films and coffee rings are intriguing structural materials with more complex features and can be prepared by interfacial self-assembly on different length scales. In this critical review, we outline the recent development in the preparation and application of colloidal nanocrystal superlattices, honeycomb-patterned macroporous structures by the breath figure method, and coffee-ring-like patterns (247 references). This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2011

Nacre-Templated Synthesis of Highly Dispersible Carbon Nanomeshes for Layered Membranes with High-Flux Filtration and Sensing Properties.

PubMed

Kong, Meng; Li, Mingjie; Shang, Ruoxu; Wu, Jingyu; Yan, Peisong; Xu, Dongmei; Li, Chaoxu

2018-01-24

Marine shells not only represent a rapidly accumulating type of fishery wastes but also offer a unique sort of hybrid nanomaterials produced greenly and massively in nature. The elaborate "brick and mortar" structures of nacre enabled the synthesis of carbon nanomeshes with <1 nm thickness, hierarchical porosity, and high specific surface area through pyrolysis, in which two-dimensional (2D) organic layers served as the carbonaceous precursor and aragonite platelets as the hard template. Mineral bridges within 2D organic layers templated the formation of mesh pores of 20-70 nm. In contrast to other hydrophobic carbon nanomaterials, these carbon nanomeshes showed super dispersibility in diverse solvents and thus processability for membranes through filtration, patterning, spray-coating, and ink-writing. The carbon membranes with layered structures were capable of serving not only for high-flux filtration and continuous flow absorption but also for electrochemical and strain sensing with high sensitivity. Thus, utilization of marine shells, on one hand, relieves the environmental concern of shellfish waste, on the other hand, offers a facile, green, low-cost, and massive approach to synthesize unique carbon nanomeshes alternative to graphene nanomeshes and applicable in environmental adsorption, filtration, wearable sensors, and flexible microelectronics.

HH 222: A GIANT HERBIG-HARO FLOW FROM THE QUADRUPLE SYSTEM V380 ORI

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Reipurth, Bo; Aspin, Colin; Connelley, M. S.

2013-11-01

HH 222 is a giant shocked region in the L1641 cloud, and is popularly known as the Orion Streamers or ''the waterfall'' on account of its unusual structure. At the center of these streamers are two infrared sources coincident with a nonthermal radio jet aligned along the principal streamer. The unique morphology of HH 222 has long been associated with this radio jet. However, new infrared images show that the two sources are distant elliptical galaxies, indicating that the radio jet is merely an improbable line-of-sight coincidence. Accurate proper motion measurements of HH 222 reveal that the shock structure ismore » a giant bow shock moving directly away from the well-known, very young, Herbig Be star V380 Ori. The already known Herbig-Haro object HH 35 forms part of this flow. A new Herbig-Haro object, HH 1041, is found precisely in the opposite direction of HH 222 and is likely to form part of a counterflow. The total projected extent of this HH complex is 5.3 pc, making it among the largest HH flows known. A second outflow episode from V380 Ori is identified as a pair of HH objects, HH 1031 to the northwest and the already known HH 130 to the southeast, along an axis that deviates from that of HH 222/HH 1041 by only 3.°7. V380 Ori is a hierarchical quadruple system, including a faint companion of spectral type M5 or M6, which at an age of ∼1 Myr corresponds to an object straddling the stellar-to-brown dwarf boundary. We suggest that the HH 222 giant bow shock is a direct result of the dynamical interactions that led to the conversion from an initial non-hierarchical multiple system into a hierarchical configuration. This event occurred no more than 28,000 yr ago, as derived from the proper motions of the HH 222 giant bow shock.« less

Trans-dimensional inversion of microtremor array dispersion data with hierarchical autoregressive error models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dettmer, Jan; Molnar, Sheri; Steininger, Gavin; Dosso, Stan E.; Cassidy, John F.

2012-02-01

This paper applies a general trans-dimensional Bayesian inference methodology and hierarchical autoregressive data-error models to the inversion of microtremor array dispersion data for shear wave velocity (vs) structure. This approach accounts for the limited knowledge of the optimal earth model parametrization (e.g. the number of layers in the vs profile) and of the data-error statistics in the resulting vs parameter uncertainty estimates. The assumed earth model parametrization influences estimates of parameter values and uncertainties due to different parametrizations leading to different ranges of data predictions. The support of the data for a particular model is often non-unique and several parametrizations may be supported. A trans-dimensional formulation accounts for this non-uniqueness by including a model-indexing parameter as an unknown so that groups of models (identified by the indexing parameter) are considered in the results. The earth model is parametrized in terms of a partition model with interfaces given over a depth-range of interest. In this work, the number of interfaces (layers) in the partition model represents the trans-dimensional model indexing. In addition, serial data-error correlations are addressed by augmenting the geophysical forward model with a hierarchical autoregressive error model that can account for a wide range of error processes with a small number of parameters. Hence, the limited knowledge about the true statistical distribution of data errors is also accounted for in the earth model parameter estimates, resulting in more realistic uncertainties and parameter values. Hierarchical autoregressive error models do not rely on point estimates of the model vector to estimate data-error statistics, and have no requirement for computing the inverse or determinant of a data-error covariance matrix. This approach is particularly useful for trans-dimensional inverse problems, as point estimates may not be representative of the state space that spans multiple subspaces of different dimensionalities. The order of the autoregressive process required to fit the data is determined here by posterior residual-sample examination and statistical tests. Inference for earth model parameters is carried out on the trans-dimensional posterior probability distribution by considering ensembles of parameter vectors. In particular, vs uncertainty estimates are obtained by marginalizing the trans-dimensional posterior distribution in terms of vs-profile marginal distributions. The methodology is applied to microtremor array dispersion data collected at two sites with significantly different geology in British Columbia, Canada. At both sites, results show excellent agreement with estimates from invasive measurements.

Facile method for preparing superoleophobic surfaces with hierarchical microcubic/nanowire structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kwak, Wonshik; Hwang, Woonbong

2016-02-01

To facilitate the fabrication of superoleophobic surfaces having hierarchical microcubic/nanowire structures (HMNS), even for low surface tension liquids including octane (surface tension = 21.1 mN m-1), and to understand the influences of surface structures on the oleophobicity, we developed a convenient method to achieve superoleophobic surfaces on aluminum substrates using chemical acid etching, anodization and fluorination treatment. The liquid repellency of the structured surface was validated through observable experimental results the contact and sliding angle measurements. The etching condition required to ensure high surface roughness was established, and an optimal anodizing condition was determined, as a critical parameter in building the superoleophobicity. The microcubic structures formed by acid etching are essential for achieving the formation of the hierarchical structure, and therefore, the nanowire structures formed by anodization lead to an enhancement of the superoleophobicity for low surface tension liquids. Under optimized morphology by microcubic/nanowire structures with fluorination treatment, the contact angle over 150° and the sliding angle less than 10° are achieved even for octane.

A self-defining hierarchical data system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bailey, J.

1992-01-01

The Self-Defining Data System (SDS) is a system which allows the creation of self-defining hierarchical data structures in a form which allows the data to be moved between different machine architectures. Because the structures are self-defining they can be used for communication between independent modules in a distributed system. Unlike disk-based hierarchical data systems such as Starlink's HDS, SDS works entirely in memory and is very fast. Data structures are created and manipulated as internal dynamic structures in memory managed by SDS itself. A structure may then be exported into a caller supplied memory buffer in a defined external format. This structure can be written as a file or sent as a message to another machine. It remains static in structure until it is reimported into SDS. SDS is written in portable C and has been run on a number of different machine architectures. Structures are portable between machines with SDS looking after conversion of byte order, floating point format, and alignment. A Fortran callable version is also available for some machines.

Higher-Order Item Response Models for Hierarchical Latent Traits

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huang, Hung-Yu; Wang, Wen-Chung; Chen, Po-Hsi; Su, Chi-Ming

2013-01-01

Many latent traits in the human sciences have a hierarchical structure. This study aimed to develop a new class of higher order item response theory models for hierarchical latent traits that are flexible in accommodating both dichotomous and polytomous items, to estimate both item and person parameters jointly, to allow users to specify…

Using Hierarchical Folders and Tags for File Management

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ma, Shanshan

2010-01-01

Hierarchical folders have been widely used for managing digital files. A well constructed hierarchical structure can keep files organized. A parent folder can have several subfolders and one subfolder can only reside in one parent folder. Files are stored in folders or subfolders. Files can be found by traversing a given path, going through…

Robust Real-Time Music Transcription with a Compositional Hierarchical Model.

PubMed

Pesek, Matevž; Leonardis, Aleš; Marolt, Matija

2017-01-01

The paper presents a new compositional hierarchical model for robust music transcription. Its main features are unsupervised learning of a hierarchical representation of input data, transparency, which enables insights into the learned representation, as well as robustness and speed which make it suitable for real-world and real-time use. The model consists of multiple layers, each composed of a number of parts. The hierarchical nature of the model corresponds well to hierarchical structures in music. The parts in lower layers correspond to low-level concepts (e.g. tone partials), while the parts in higher layers combine lower-level representations into more complex concepts (tones, chords). The layers are learned in an unsupervised manner from music signals. Parts in each layer are compositions of parts from previous layers based on statistical co-occurrences as the driving force of the learning process. In the paper, we present the model's structure and compare it to other hierarchical approaches in the field of music information retrieval. We evaluate the model's performance for the multiple fundamental frequency estimation. Finally, we elaborate on extensions of the model towards other music information retrieval tasks.

Template-free fabrication of hierarchically flower-like tungsten trioxide assemblies with enhanced visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity.

PubMed

Yu, Jiaguo; Qi, Lifang

2009-09-30

Hierarchically flower-like tungsten trioxide assemblies were fabricated on a large scale by a simple hydrothermal treatment of sodium tungstate in aqueous solution of nitric acid. The as-prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and N(2) adsorption-desorption measurements. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated by photocatalytic decolorization of rhodamine B aqueous solution under visible-light irradiation. It was found that the three-dimensional tungsten trioxide assemblies were constructed from two-dimensional layers, which were further composed of a large number of interconnected lathy nanoplates with different sizes. Such flower-like assemblies exhibited hierarchically porous structure and higher visible-light photocatalytic activity than the samples without such hierarchical structures due to their specific hierarchical pores that served as the transport paths for light and reactants. After five recycles for the photodegradation of RhB, the catalyst did not exhibit any great loss in activity, confirming hierarchically flower-like tungsten trioxide was stability and not photocorroded. This study may provide new insight into environmentally benign preparation and design of novel photocatalytic materials and enhancement of photocatalytic activity.

Enhanced lithium storage performance of hierarchical CuO nanomaterials with surface fractal characteristics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Ang; He, Renyue; Bian, Zhuo; Song, Huaihe; Chen, Xiaohong; Zhou, Jisheng

2018-06-01

Self-assembled hierarchical CuO nanostructures with fractal structures were prepared by a mild method and exhibited excellent lithium storage properties, certain of which even demonstrated a high reversible capacity of 827 mAh g-1 at a rate of 0.1 C. An interesting phenomenon was observed that the electrochemical performance varies along with the structure complexity, and the products with higher surface factal dimensions exhibited larger capability and better cyclability. Structural and electrochemical analysis methods were used to explore the lithiation kinetics of the samples and the reasons for the outstanding electrochemical performances related to the complexities of hierarchical nanostructures and the irregularities of surface and mass distribution.

Melamine-assisted one-pot synthesis of hierarchical nitrogen-doped carbon@MoS2 nanowalled core-shell microspheres and their enhanced Li-storage performances

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Fugen; Wei, Yanju; Chen, Jianzhuang; Long, Donghui; Ling, Licheng; Li, Yongsheng; Shi, Jianlin

2015-07-01

A facile and scalable one-pot approach has been developed to synthesize carbon@MoS2 core-shell microspheres by a hydrothermal method, which involves the fast formation of melamine-resorcinol-formaldehyde polymeric microspheres in situ, followed by direct growth of the MoS2 nanowalls on them. The results give unequivocal proof that melamine could be the key to forming the core-shell microspherical morphology, and the contents of MoS2 shells can be easily tuned by initial ratios of the precursors. After a simple heat treatment, the obtained carbon@MoS2 microspheres simultaneously integrate the nitrogen-doped carbon cores and the hierarchical shells which consist of few-layered MoS2 nanowalls with an expanded interlayer spacing. Their unique architectures are favourable for high electronic/ionic conductivity and accommodate volume strain during the electrochemical reaction of the MoS2 anodes in lithium-ion batteries. Thus, a very high reversibility capacity of 771 mA h g-1 at 100 mA g-1 after 100 cycles, and a rate capacity of 598 mA h g-1 at 2000 mA g-1 could be achieved for the carbon@MoS2 core-shell microspheres with the optimal composition. Furthermore, a thin carbon coating on the carbon@MoS2 microspheres could further increase the reversible capacity to 856 mA h g-1 after 100 cycles at 100 mA g-1. These encouraging results suggest that such a facile and efficient protocol can provide a new pathway to produce hierarchical core-shell microspheres which integrate the structural, morphological and compositional design rationales for advanced lithium-ion batteries.A facile and scalable one-pot approach has been developed to synthesize carbon@MoS2 core-shell microspheres by a hydrothermal method, which involves the fast formation of melamine-resorcinol-formaldehyde polymeric microspheres in situ, followed by direct growth of the MoS2 nanowalls on them. The results give unequivocal proof that melamine could be the key to forming the core-shell microspherical morphology, and the contents of MoS2 shells can be easily tuned by initial ratios of the precursors. After a simple heat treatment, the obtained carbon@MoS2 microspheres simultaneously integrate the nitrogen-doped carbon cores and the hierarchical shells which consist of few-layered MoS2 nanowalls with an expanded interlayer spacing. Their unique architectures are favourable for high electronic/ionic conductivity and accommodate volume strain during the electrochemical reaction of the MoS2 anodes in lithium-ion batteries. Thus, a very high reversibility capacity of 771 mA h g-1 at 100 mA g-1 after 100 cycles, and a rate capacity of 598 mA h g-1 at 2000 mA g-1 could be achieved for the carbon@MoS2 core-shell microspheres with the optimal composition. Furthermore, a thin carbon coating on the carbon@MoS2 microspheres could further increase the reversible capacity to 856 mA h g-1 after 100 cycles at 100 mA g-1. These encouraging results suggest that such a facile and efficient protocol can provide a new pathway to produce hierarchical core-shell microspheres which integrate the structural, morphological and compositional design rationales for advanced lithium-ion batteries. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr03708e

Hierarchical coordinate systems for understanding complexity and its evolution, with applications to genetic regulatory networks.

PubMed

Egri-Nagy, Attila; Nehaniv, Chrystopher L

2008-01-01

Beyond complexity measures, sometimes it is worthwhile in addition to investigate how complexity changes structurally, especially in artificial systems where we have complete knowledge about the evolutionary process. Hierarchical decomposition is a useful way of assessing structural complexity changes of organisms modeled as automata, and we show how recently developed computational tools can be used for this purpose, by computing holonomy decompositions and holonomy complexity. To gain insight into the evolution of complexity, we investigate the smoothness of the landscape structure of complexity under minimal transitions. As a proof of concept, we illustrate how the hierarchical complexity analysis reveals symmetries and irreversible structure in biological networks by applying the methods to the lac operon mechanism in the genetic regulatory network of Escherichia coli.

Hierarchically mesoporous carbon nanofiber/Mn3O4 coaxial nanocables as anodes in lithium ion batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Seok-Hwan; Lee, Wan-Jin

2015-05-01

Carbon nanofiber/Mn3O4 (CNF/Mn3O4) coaxial nanocables with a three-dimensional (3D) structure are prepared for lithium ion batteries by electrophoretic deposition on an electrospun CNF cathode followed by heat treatment in air. The bark-like Mn3O4 shell with a thickness of 30 nm surrounds the CNFs with a diameter of 200 nm; this hierarchically mesoporous Mn3O4 shell consisted of interconnected nanoparticles grows radially toward the CNF core when viewed from the cross-section of the coaxial cables. The charge transfer resistance of the CNF/Mn3O4 is much smaller than that of the Mn3O4 powder, because of (i) the abundant inner spaces provided via the formation of the 3D coaxial core/shell nanocables, (ii) the high electric pathway for the Mn3O4 nanoparticles attained with the 1D CNFs, and (iii) the structural stability obtained through the cushioning effect created by the CNF/Mn3O4 coaxial morphology. These unique characteristics contribute to achieving a high capacity, excellent cyclic stability, and good rate capability. The CNF/Mn3O4 nanocables deliver an initial capacity of 1690 mAh g-1 at a current density of 100 mA g-1 and maintain a high reversible capacity of 760 mAh g-1 even after 50 charge-discharge cycles without showing any obvious decay.

Biomimetic cellular metals-using hierarchical structuring for energy absorption.

PubMed

Bührig-Polaczek, A; Fleck, C; Speck, T; Schüler, P; Fischer, S F; Caliaro, M; Thielen, M

2016-07-19

Fruit walls as well as nut and seed shells typically perform a multitude of functions. One of the biologically most important functions consists in the direct or indirect protection of the seeds from mechanical damage or other negative environmental influences. This qualifies such biological structures as role models for the development of new materials and components that protect commodities and/or persons from damage caused for example by impacts due to rough handling or crashes. We were able to show how the mechanical properties of metal foam based components can be improved by altering their structure on various hierarchical levels inspired by features and principles important for the impact and/or puncture resistance of the biological role models, rather than by tuning the properties of the bulk material. For this various investigation methods have been established which combine mechanical testing with different imaging methods, as well as with in situ and ex situ mechanical testing methods. Different structural hierarchies especially important for the mechanical deformation and failure behaviour of the biological role models, pomelo fruit (Citrus maxima) and Macadamia integrifolia, were identified. They were abstracted and transferred into corresponding structural principles and thus hierarchically structured bio-inspired metal foams have been designed. A production route for metal based bio-inspired structures by investment casting was successfully established. This allows the production of complex and reliable structures, by implementing and combining different hierarchical structural elements found in the biological concept generators, such as strut design and integration of fibres, as well as by minimising casting defects. To evaluate the structural effects, similar investigation methods and mechanical tests were applied to both the biological role models and the metallic foams. As a result an even deeper quantitative understanding of the form-structure-function relationship of the biological concept generators as well as the bio-inspired metal foams was achieved, on deeper hierarchical levels and overarching different levels.

Hierarchically macro–mesoporous TiO{sub 2} film via self-assembled strategy for enhanced efficiency of dye sensitized solar cells

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, Ping; Wang, Jin; Yu, Huogen, E-mail: yuhuogen@whut.edu.cn

2016-02-15

Highlights: • A new hierarchically macro–mesoporous TiO{sub 2} film is fabricated via TiF{sub 4} hydrolysis. • TiF{sub 4} hydrolysis is accompanied with self-assembled process of TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles. • The hierarchically porous TiO{sub 2} films show higher performance than nonporous film. - Abstract: The hierarchically porous structure of TiO{sub 2} film plays an important role on improved photoelectric conversion efficiency in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). It is highly required to develop a facile strategy to prepare the hierarchical porous photoelectrode. In this study, a novel hierarchically macro–mesoporous TiO{sub 2} film as photoelectrode of DSSCs is fabricated by a self-assembled processmore » of TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles via TiF{sub 4} hydrolysis. The hydrolysis of TiF{sub 4} is accompanied with self-assembled process of TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles on the surface of electrophoretic-deposited titanate nanotube film which provides effective active sites for the deposition of TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles owing to a large amount of hydroxyl groups, resulting in the formation of hierarchically porous structures. The hierarchically porous TiO{sub 2} film is mainly composed of mesopores with a size of 2–50 nm and macropores with a wide range of 0.5–5 μm, which contribute to an obviously higher conversion performance (6.70%) than nonporous P25-TiO{sub 2} film (4.01%). The main reasons for enhanced conversion efficiency of hierarchically porous TiO{sub 2} film can be attributed to adsorption of more dye molecules, rapid diffusion and efficient transport of electrolyte, and longer electron lifetime. This work may provide new insights into preparing porous structure of TiO{sub 2} films in DSSCs for modification of photoelectric conversion efficiency.« less

Growth Mechanism of Pumpkin-Shaped Vaterite Hierarchical Structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ma, Guobin; Xu, Yifei; Wang, Mu

2015-03-01

CaCO3-based biominerals possess sophisticated hierarchical structures and promising mechanical properties. Recent researches imply that vaterite may play an important role in formation of CaCO3-based biominerals. However, as a less common polymorph of CaCO3, the growth mechanism of vaterite remains not very clear. Here we report the growth of a pumpkin-shaped vaterite hierarchical structure with a six-fold symmetrical axis and lamellar microstructure. We demonstrate that the growth is controlled by supersaturation and the intrinsic crystallographic anisotropy of vaterite. For the scenario of high supersaturation, the nucleation rate is higher than the lateral extension rate, favoring the ``double-leaf'' spherulitic growth. Meanwhile, nucleation occurs preferentially in < 11 2 0 > as determined by the crystalline structure of vaterite, modulating the grown products with a hexagonal symmetry. The results are beneficial for an in-depth understanding of the biomineralization of CaCO3. The growth mechanism may also be applicable to interpret the formation of similar hierarchical structures of other materials. The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support from National Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 51172104 and 50972057) and National Key Basic Research Program of China (Grant No. 2010CB630705).

Hierarchical organization of brain functional networks during visual tasks.

PubMed

Zhuo, Zhao; Cai, Shi-Min; Fu, Zhong-Qian; Zhang, Jie

2011-09-01

The functional network of the brain is known to demonstrate modular structure over different hierarchical scales. In this paper, we systematically investigated the hierarchical modular organizations of the brain functional networks that are derived from the extent of phase synchronization among high-resolution EEG time series during a visual task. In particular, we compare the modular structure of the functional network from EEG channels with that of the anatomical parcellation of the brain cortex. Our results show that the modular architectures of brain functional networks correspond well to those from the anatomical structures over different levels of hierarchy. Most importantly, we find that the consistency between the modular structures of the functional network and the anatomical network becomes more pronounced in terms of vision, sensory, vision-temporal, motor cortices during the visual task, which implies that the strong modularity in these areas forms the functional basis for the visual task. The structure-function relationship further reveals that the phase synchronization of EEG time series in the same anatomical group is much stronger than that of EEG time series from different anatomical groups during the task and that the hierarchical organization of functional brain network may be a consequence of functional segmentation of the brain cortex.

Hierarchically structured materials for lithium batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiao, Jie; Zheng, Jianming; Li, Xiaolin; Shao, Yuyan; Zhang, Ji-Guang

2013-10-01

The lithium-ion battery (LIB) is one of the most promising power sources to be deployed in electric vehicles, including solely battery powered vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, and hybrid electric vehicles. With the increasing demand for devices of high-energy densities (>500 Wh kg-1), new energy storage systems, such as lithium-oxygen (Li-O2) batteries and other emerging systems beyond the conventional LIB, have attracted worldwide interest for both transportation and grid energy storage applications in recent years. It is well known that the electrochemical performance of these energy storage systems depends not only on the composition of the materials, but also on the structure of the electrode materials used in the batteries. Although the desired performance characteristics of batteries often have conflicting requirements with the micro/nano-structure of electrodes, hierarchically designed electrodes can be tailored to satisfy these conflicting requirements. This work will review hierarchically structured materials that have been successfully used in LIB and Li-O2 batteries. Our goal is to elucidate (1) how to realize the full potential of energy materials through the manipulation of morphologies, and (2) how the hierarchical structure benefits the charge transport, promotes the interfacial properties and prolongs the electrode stability and battery lifetime.

Development of ultralight, super-elastic, hierarchical metallic meta-structures with i3DP technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Dongxing; Xiao, Junfeng; Moorlag, Carolyn; Guo, Qiuquan; Yang, Jun

2017-11-01

Lightweight and mechanically robust materials show promising applications in thermal insulation, energy absorption, and battery catalyst supports. This study demonstrates an effective method for creation of ultralight metallic structures based on initiator-integrated 3D printing technology (i3DP), which provides a possible platform to design the materials with the best geometric parameters and desired mechanical performance. In this study, ultralight Ni foams with 3D interconnected hollow tubes were fabricated, consisting of hierarchical features spanning three scale orders ranging from submicron to centimeter. The resultant materials can achieve an ultralight density of as low as 5.1 mg cm-3 and nearly recover after significant compression up to 50%. Due to a high compression ratio, the hierarchical structure exhibits superior properties in terms of energy absorption and mechanical efficiency. The relationship of structural parameters and mechanical response was established. The ability of achieving ultralight density <10 mg cm-3 and the stable \\bar{E}˜ {\\bar{ρ }}2 scaling through all range of relative density, indicates an advantage over the previous stochastic metal foams. Overall, this initiator-integrated 3D printing approach provides metallic structures with substantial benefits from the hierarchical design and fabrication flexibility to ultralight applications.

Hierarchically structured catalysts for cascade and selective steam reforming/hydrodeoxygenation reactions.

PubMed

Sun, Junming; Karim, Ayman M; Li, Xiaohong Shari; Rainbolt, James; Kovarik, Libor; Shin, Yongsoon; Wang, Yong

2015-12-04

We report a hierarchically structured catalyst with steam reforming and hydrodeoxygenation functionalities being deposited in the micropores and macropores, respectively. The catalyst is highly efficient to upgrade the pyrolysis vapors of pine forest product residual, resulting in a dramatically decreased acid content and increased hydrocarbon yield without external H2 supply.

Content Consumption and Hierarchical Structures of Web-Supported Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hershkovitz, Arnon; Hardof-Jaffe, Sharon; Nachmias, Rafi

2014-01-01

This study presents an empirical investigation of the relationship between the hierarchical structure of content delivered to students within a Learning Management System (LMS) and its actual consumption. To this end, campus-wide data relating to 1,203 courses were collected from the LMS' servers and were subsequently analyzed using data mining…

Testing Theories of Linguistic Constituency with Configural Learning: The Case of the English Syllable

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kapatsinski, Vsevolod

2009-01-01

This article proposes and tests an experimental method to assess the psychological reality of hierarchical theories of constituent structure in particular domains. I show that a hierarchical theory of constituent structure necessarily makes the prediction that an association between constituents should be easier to learn than an association…

Hierarchically structured catalysts for cascade and selective steam reforming/hydrodeoxygenation reactions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sun, Junming; Karim, Ayman M.; Li, Xiaohong S.

2015-09-29

We report a hierarchically structured catalyst with steam reforming and hydrodeoxygenation functionalities being deposited in the micropores and macropores, respectively. The catalyst is highly efficient to upgrade the pyrolysis vapors of pine forest product residual, resulting in a dramatically decreased acid content and increased hydrocarbon yield without external H2 supply.

Statistical Significance for Hierarchical Clustering

PubMed Central

Kimes, Patrick K.; Liu, Yufeng; Hayes, D. Neil; Marron, J. S.

2017-01-01

Summary Cluster analysis has proved to be an invaluable tool for the exploratory and unsupervised analysis of high dimensional datasets. Among methods for clustering, hierarchical approaches have enjoyed substantial popularity in genomics and other fields for their ability to simultaneously uncover multiple layers of clustering structure. A critical and challenging question in cluster analysis is whether the identified clusters represent important underlying structure or are artifacts of natural sampling variation. Few approaches have been proposed for addressing this problem in the context of hierarchical clustering, for which the problem is further complicated by the natural tree structure of the partition, and the multiplicity of tests required to parse the layers of nested clusters. In this paper, we propose a Monte Carlo based approach for testing statistical significance in hierarchical clustering which addresses these issues. The approach is implemented as a sequential testing procedure guaranteeing control of the family-wise error rate. Theoretical justification is provided for our approach, and its power to detect true clustering structure is illustrated through several simulation studies and applications to two cancer gene expression datasets. PMID:28099990

Overlapping communities detection based on spectral analysis of line graphs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gui, Chun; Zhang, Ruisheng; Hu, Rongjing; Huang, Guoming; Wei, Jiaxuan

2018-05-01

Community in networks are often overlapping where one vertex belongs to several clusters. Meanwhile, many networks show hierarchical structure such that community is recursively grouped into hierarchical organization. In order to obtain overlapping communities from a global hierarchy of vertices, a new algorithm (named SAoLG) is proposed to build the hierarchical organization along with detecting the overlap of community structure. SAoLG applies the spectral analysis into line graphs to unify the overlap and hierarchical structure of the communities. In order to avoid the limitation of absolute distance such as Euclidean distance, SAoLG employs Angular distance to compute the similarity between vertices. Furthermore, we make a micro-improvement partition density to evaluate the quality of community structure and use it to obtain the more reasonable and sensible community numbers. The proposed SAoLG algorithm achieves a balance between overlap and hierarchy by applying spectral analysis to edge community detection. The experimental results on one standard network and six real-world networks show that the SAoLG algorithm achieves higher modularity and reasonable community number values than those generated by Ahn's algorithm, the classical CPM and GN ones.

A top-down approach for fabricating free-standing bio-carbon supercapacitor electrodes with a hierarchical structure.

PubMed

Li, Yingzhi; Zhang, Qinghua; Zhang, Junxian; Jin, Lei; Zhao, Xin; Xu, Ting

2015-09-23

Biomass has delicate hierarchical structures, which inspired us to develop a cost-effective route to prepare electrode materials with rational nanostructures for use in high-performance storage devices. Here, we demonstrate a novel top-down approach for fabricating bio-carbon materials with stable structures and excellent diffusion pathways; this approach is based on carbonization with controlled chemical activation. The developed free-standing bio-carbon electrode exhibits a high specific capacitance of 204 F g(-1) at 1 A g(-1); good rate capability, as indicated by the residual initial capacitance of 85.5% at 10 A g(-1); and a long cycle life. These performance characteristics are attributed to the outstanding hierarchical structures of the electrode material. Appropriate carbonization conditions enable the bio-carbon materials to inherit the inherent hierarchical texture of the original biomass, thereby facilitating effective channels for fast ion transfer. The macropores and mesopores that result from chemical activation significantly increase the specific surface area and also play the role of temporary ion-buffering reservoirs, further shortening the ionic diffusion distance.

Hierarchical organization of functional connectivity in the mouse brain: a complex network approach.

PubMed

Bardella, Giampiero; Bifone, Angelo; Gabrielli, Andrea; Gozzi, Alessandro; Squartini, Tiziano

2016-08-18

This paper represents a contribution to the study of the brain functional connectivity from the perspective of complex networks theory. More specifically, we apply graph theoretical analyses to provide evidence of the modular structure of the mouse brain and to shed light on its hierarchical organization. We propose a novel percolation analysis and we apply our approach to the analysis of a resting-state functional MRI data set from 41 mice. This approach reveals a robust hierarchical structure of modules persistent across different subjects. Importantly, we test this approach against a statistical benchmark (or null model) which constrains only the distributions of empirical correlations. Our results unambiguously show that the hierarchical character of the mouse brain modular structure is not trivially encoded into this lower-order constraint. Finally, we investigate the modular structure of the mouse brain by computing the Minimal Spanning Forest, a technique that identifies subnetworks characterized by the strongest internal correlations. This approach represents a faster alternative to other community detection methods and provides a means to rank modules on the basis of the strength of their internal edges.

Hierarchical organization of functional connectivity in the mouse brain: a complex network approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bardella, Giampiero; Bifone, Angelo; Gabrielli, Andrea; Gozzi, Alessandro; Squartini, Tiziano

2016-08-01

This paper represents a contribution to the study of the brain functional connectivity from the perspective of complex networks theory. More specifically, we apply graph theoretical analyses to provide evidence of the modular structure of the mouse brain and to shed light on its hierarchical organization. We propose a novel percolation analysis and we apply our approach to the analysis of a resting-state functional MRI data set from 41 mice. This approach reveals a robust hierarchical structure of modules persistent across different subjects. Importantly, we test this approach against a statistical benchmark (or null model) which constrains only the distributions of empirical correlations. Our results unambiguously show that the hierarchical character of the mouse brain modular structure is not trivially encoded into this lower-order constraint. Finally, we investigate the modular structure of the mouse brain by computing the Minimal Spanning Forest, a technique that identifies subnetworks characterized by the strongest internal correlations. This approach represents a faster alternative to other community detection methods and provides a means to rank modules on the basis of the strength of their internal edges.

Highly Stable Hierarchical Flower-like β-In2S3 Assembled from 2D Nanosheets with high Adsorption-Photodecolorization Activities for the Treatment of Wastewater

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Yang; Niu, Helin; Chen, Jingshuai; Song, Jiming; Mao, Changjie; Zhang, Shengyi; Chen, Changle; Gao, Yuanhao

2017-05-01

The hierarchical flower-like β-In2S3 catalyst assembled from 2D nanosheets was prepared using an organic-component depletion method utilizing inorganic-organic hybrids indium diethyldithiocarbamate (In-DDTC) as a single-source precursor. The crystallization, morphology and composition of the as-synthesized β-In2S3 were characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM, EDS and XPS, respectively. The β-In2S3 possessed high specific surface area of 134.1 m2 g-1, adsorption capacity of 195.5 mg g-1 for methylene blue, and extreme photodecolorization speed under visible light irradiation for the complete removal of methyl orange (MO) dye within 15 min and tetracycline within 60 min. Although methyl orange concentration decreased quickly, the total organic carbon (TOC) decreased slowly. UV-vis and mass spectrometry (MS) were applied to analyze the intermediates coming from the photodecolorization of MO. In order to estimate the roles of active species during the decolorization of MO, trapping experiments were conducted to determine the main active species during the decolorization process. The results indicated that . O2 - radicals and e-1 were the key intermediates. This enhanced activity was attributed to its unique structures assembled from 2D nanosheets with thickness of ca. 5-7 nm, leading to high specific surface area, wide range of pore size distribution and great efficiency in absorbing light and electron/hole separation. The hierarchical flower-like β-In2S3 demonstrated great advantages in the treatment of various wastewater pollutants including textile dyes and antibiotics.

Stationary Random Metrics on Hierarchical Graphs Via {(min,+)}-type Recursive Distributional Equations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khristoforov, Mikhail; Kleptsyn, Victor; Triestino, Michele

2016-07-01

This paper is inspired by the problem of understanding in a mathematical sense the Liouville quantum gravity on surfaces. Here we show how to define a stationary random metric on self-similar spaces which are the limit of nice finite graphs: these are the so-called hierarchical graphs. They possess a well-defined level structure and any level is built using a simple recursion. Stopping the construction at any finite level, we have a discrete random metric space when we set the edges to have random length (using a multiplicative cascade with fixed law {m}). We introduce a tool, the cut-off process, by means of which one finds that renormalizing the sequence of metrics by an exponential factor, they converge in law to a non-trivial metric on the limit space. Such limit law is stationary, in the sense that glueing together a certain number of copies of the random limit space, according to the combinatorics of the brick graph, the obtained random metric has the same law when rescaled by a random factor of law {m} . In other words, the stationary random metric is the solution of a distributional equation. When the measure m has continuous positive density on {mathbf{R}+}, the stationary law is unique up to rescaling and any other distribution tends to a rescaled stationary law under the iterations of the hierarchical transformation. We also investigate topological and geometric properties of the random space when m is log-normal, detecting a phase transition influenced by the branching random walk associated to the multiplicative cascade.

Self-cleaning efficiency of artificial superhydrophobic surfaces.

PubMed

Bhushan, Bharat; Jung, Yong Chae; Koch, Kerstin

2009-03-03

The hierarchical structured surface of the lotus (Nelumbo nucifera, Gaertn.) leaf provides a model for the development of biomimetic self-cleaning surfaces. On these water-repellent surfaces, water droplets move easily at a low inclination of the leaf and collect dirt particles adhering to the leaf surface. Flat hydrophilic and hydrophobic, nanostructured, microstructured, and hierarchical structured superhydrophobic surfaces were fabricated, and a systematic study of wettability and adhesion properties was carried out. The influence of contact angle hysteresis on self-cleaning by water droplets was studied at different tilt angles (TA) of the specimen surfaces (3 degrees for Lotus wax, 10 degrees for n-hexatriacontane, as well as 45 degrees for both types of surfaces). At 3 degrees and 10 degrees TA, no surfaces were cleaned by moving water applied onto the surfaces with nearly zero kinetic energy, but most particles were removed from hierarchical structured surfaces, and a certain amount of particles were captured between the asperities of the micro- and hierarchical structured surfaces. After an increase of the TA to 45 degrees (larger than the tilt angles of all structured surfaces), as usually used for industrial self-cleaning tests, all nanostructured surfaces were cleaned by water droplets moving over the surfaces followed by hierarchical and microstructures. Droplets applied onto the surfaces with some pressure removed particles residues and led to self-cleaning by a combination of sliding and rolling droplets. Geometrical scale effects were responsible for superior performance of nanostructured surfaces.

Materiomics: biological protein materials, from nano to macro.

PubMed

Cranford, Steven; Buehler, Markus J

2010-11-12

Materiomics is an emerging field of science that provides a basis for multiscale material system characterization, inspired in part by natural, for example, protein-based materials. Here we outline the scope and explain the motivation of the field of materiomics, as well as demonstrate the benefits of a materiomic approach in the understanding of biological and natural materials as well as in the design of de novo materials. We discuss recent studies that exemplify the impact of materiomics - discovering Nature's complexity through a materials science approach that merges concepts of material and structure throughout all scales and incorporates feedback loops that facilitate sensing and resulting structural changes at multiple scales. The development and application of materiomics is illustrated for the specific case of protein-based materials, which constitute the building blocks of a variety of biological systems such as tendon, bone, skin, spider silk, cells, and tissue, as well as natural composite material systems (a combination of protein-based and inorganic constituents) such as nacre and mollusk shells, and other natural multiscale systems such as cellulose-based plant and wood materials. An important trait of these materials is that they display distinctive hierarchical structures across multiple scales, where molecular details are exhibited in macroscale mechanical responses. Protein materials are intriguing examples of materials that balance multiple tasks, representing some of the most sustainable material solutions that integrate structure and function despite severe limitations in the quality and quantity of material building blocks. However, up until now, our attempts to analyze and replicate Nature's materials have been hindered by our lack of fundamental understanding of these materials' intricate hierarchical structures, scale-bridging mechanisms, and complex material components that bestow protein-based materials their unique properties. Recent advances in analytical tools and experimental methods allow a holistic view of such a hierarchical biological material system. The integration of these approaches and amalgamation of material properties at all scale levels to develop a complete description of a material system falls within the emerging field of materiomics. Materiomics is the result of the convergence of engineering and materials science with experimental and computational biology in the context of natural and synthetic materials. Through materiomics, fundamental advances in our understanding of structure-property-process relations of biological systems contribute to the mechanistic understanding of certain diseases and facilitate the development of novel biological, biologically inspired, and completely synthetic materials for applications in medicine (biomaterials), nanotechnology, and engineering.

Template-free synthesis of nitrogen-doped hierarchical porous carbons for CO2 adsorption and supercapacitor electrodes.

PubMed

Bing, Xuefeng; Wei, Yanju; Wang, Mei; Xu, Sheng; Long, Donghui; Wang, Jitong; Qiao, Wenming; Ling, Licheng

2017-02-15

Nitrogen-doped hierarchical porous carbons (NHPCs) with controllable nitrogen content were prepared via a template-free method by direct carbonization of melamine-resorcinol-terephthaldehyde networks. The synthetic approach is facile and gentle, resulting in a hierarchical pore structure with modest micropores and well-developed meso-/macropores, and allowing the easy adjusting of the nitrogen content in the carbon framework. The micropore structure was generated within the highly cross-linked networks of polymer chains, while the mesopore and macropore structure were formed from the interconnected 3D gel network. The as-prepared NHPC has a large specific surface area of 1150m 2 ·g -1 , and a high nitrogen content of 14.5wt.%. CO 2 adsorption performances were measured between 0°C and 75°C, and a high adsorption capacity of 3.96mmol·g -1 was achieved at 1bar and 0°C. Moreover, these nitrogen-doped hierarchical porous carbons exhibit a great potential to act as electrode materials for supercapacitors, which could deliver high specific capacitance of 214.0F·g -1 with an excellent rate capability of 74.7% from 0.1 to 10 A·g -1 . The appropriate nitrogen doping and well-developed hierarchical porosity could accelerate the ion diffusion and the frequency response for excellent capacitive performance. This kind of new nitrogen-doped hierarchical porous carbons with controllable hierarchical porosity and chemical composition may have a good potential in the future applications. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Correlation between Hierarchical Structure and Processing Control of Large-area Spray-coated Polymer Solar Cells toward High Performance

PubMed Central

Huang, Yu-Ching; Tsao, Cheng-Si; Cha, Hou-Chin; Chuang, Chih-Min; Su, Chun-Jen; Jeng, U-Ser; Chen, Charn-Ying

2016-01-01

The formation mechanism of a spray-coated film is different from that of a spin-coated film. This study employs grazing incidence small- and wide-angle X-ray Scattering (GISAXS and GIWAXS, respectively) quantitatively and systematically to investigate the hierarchical structure and phase-separated behavior of a spray-deposited blend film. The formation of PCBM clusters involves mutual interactions with both the P3HT crystal domains and droplet boundary. The processing control and the formed hierarchical structure of the active layer in the spray-coated polymer/fullerene blend film are compared to those in the spin-coated film. How the different post-treatments, such as thermal and solvent vapor annealing, tailor the hierarchical structure of the spray-coated films is quantitatively studied. Finally, the relationship between the processing control and tailored BHJ structures and the performance of polymer solar cell devices is established here, taking into account the evolution of the device area from 1 × 0.3 and 1 × 1 cm2. The formation and control of the special networks formed by the PCBM cluster and P3HT crystallites, respectively, are related to the droplet boundary. These structures are favorable for the transverse transport of electrons and holes. PMID:26817585

Fabrication of hierarchical polymer surfaces with superhydrophobicity by injection molding from nature and function-oriented design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weng, Can; Wang, Fei; Zhou, Mingyong; Yang, Dongjiao; Jiang, Bingyan

2018-04-01

A comparison of processes and wettability characteristics was presented for injection molded superhydrophobic polypropylene surfaces from two fabricating strategies. One is the biomimetic replication of patterns from indocalamus leaf in nature. The contact angle of water sitting on this PP surface was measured as 152 ± 2°, with comparable wetting behavior to natural indocalamus leaf surface. The other strategy is the fabrication of superhydrophobic structure by combining methods that produce structures at different length scales. Regarding both the machinability of mold inserts and function-oriented design, three micro-quadrangular arrays and one hierarchical micro-nano cylinder array were designed with the goal of superhydrophobicity. Particularly, a simple approach to the fabrication of hierarchical structures was proposed by combining the anodized plate and the punching plate. The function-oriented design targets as superhydrophobicity were all reached for the designed four structures. The measured contact angles of droplet for these structures were almost consistent with the calculated equilibrium contact angles from thermodynamic analysis. Among them, the contact angle of droplet on the surface of designed hierarchical structure reached about 163° with the sliding angle of 5°, resulting in self-cleaning characteristic. The superhydrophobicity of function-oriented designed polymer surfaces could be modified and controlled, which is exactly the limitation of replicating from natural organisms.

Hierarchical structures of amorphous solids characterized by persistent homology

PubMed Central

Hiraoka, Yasuaki; Nakamura, Takenobu; Hirata, Akihiko; Escolar, Emerson G.; Matsue, Kaname; Nishiura, Yasumasa

2016-01-01

This article proposes a topological method that extracts hierarchical structures of various amorphous solids. The method is based on the persistence diagram (PD), a mathematical tool for capturing shapes of multiscale data. The input to the PDs is given by an atomic configuration and the output is expressed as 2D histograms. Then, specific distributions such as curves and islands in the PDs identify meaningful shape characteristics of the atomic configuration. Although the method can be applied to a wide variety of disordered systems, it is applied here to silica glass, the Lennard-Jones system, and Cu-Zr metallic glass as standard examples of continuous random network and random packing structures. In silica glass, the method classified the atomic rings as short-range and medium-range orders and unveiled hierarchical ring structures among them. These detailed geometric characterizations clarified a real space origin of the first sharp diffraction peak and also indicated that PDs contain information on elastic response. Even in the Lennard-Jones system and Cu-Zr metallic glass, the hierarchical structures in the atomic configurations were derived in a similar way using PDs, although the glass structures and properties substantially differ from silica glass. These results suggest that the PDs provide a unified method that extracts greater depth of geometric information in amorphous solids than conventional methods. PMID:27298351

Engineering hierarchical Diatom@CuO@MnO2 hybrid for high performance supercapacitor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Yan; Guo, Wan Wan; Zheng, Tian Xu; Zhang, Yu Xin; Fan, Xing

2018-01-01

A rational and hierarchical Diatom@CuO@MnO2 hybrid was fabricated via a facile electroless copper plating technology, following by a one-pot hydrothermal reaction with KMnO4. Such unique architecture acts as a supercapacitor electrode, which exhibits a high specific capacitance (240 F g-1 at a current density of 0.5 A g-1), good rate capability (58.3% retention when the current density increases from 0.5 to 5 A g-1), and excellent electrochemical cycling stability (91.2% retention of the initial specific capacitance after 4000 cycles at a current density of 2 A g-1). The impressive electrochemical performance of this Diatom@CuO@MnO2 electrode ascribed to the synergistic effect between the CuO particles and MnO2 nanosheets. Therefore, it can be expected that this unique Diatom@CuO@MnO2 electrode may have great promise for the application in supercapacitors.

Multi-dimensional construction of a novel active yolk@conductive shell nanofiber web as a self-standing anode for high-performance lithium-ion batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Hao; Chen, Luyi; Liang, Yeru; Fu, Ruowen; Wu, Dingcai

2015-11-01

A novel active yolk@conductive shell nanofiber web with a unique synergistic advantage of various hierarchical nanodimensional objects including the 0D monodisperse SiO2 yolks, the 1D continuous carbon shell and the 3D interconnected non-woven fabric web has been developed by an innovative multi-dimensional construction method, and thus demonstrates excellent electrochemical properties as a self-standing LIB anode.A novel active yolk@conductive shell nanofiber web with a unique synergistic advantage of various hierarchical nanodimensional objects including the 0D monodisperse SiO2 yolks, the 1D continuous carbon shell and the 3D interconnected non-woven fabric web has been developed by an innovative multi-dimensional construction method, and thus demonstrates excellent electrochemical properties as a self-standing LIB anode. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Experimental details and additional information about material characterization. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr06531c

Nanomechanical strength mechanisms of hierarchical biological materials and tissues.

PubMed

Buehler, Markus J; Ackbarow, Theodor

2008-12-01

Biological protein materials (BPMs), intriguing hierarchical structures formed by assembly of chemical building blocks, are crucial for critical functions of life. The structural details of BPMs are fascinating: They represent a combination of universally found motifs such as alpha-helices or beta-sheets with highly adapted protein structures such as cytoskeletal networks or spider silk nanocomposites. BPMs combine properties like strength and robustness, self-healing ability, adaptability, changeability, evolvability and others into multi-functional materials at a level unmatched in synthetic materials. The ability to achieve these properties depends critically on the particular traits of these materials, first and foremost their hierarchical architecture and seamless integration of material and structure, from nano to macro. Here, we provide a brief review of this field and outline new research directions, along with a review of recent research results in the development of structure-property relationships of biological protein materials exemplified in a study of vimentin intermediate filaments.

Chinese Medicine: A Cognitive and Epistemological Review*

PubMed Central

2007-01-01

In spite of the common belief that Chinese natural philosophy and medicine have a unique frame of reference completely foreign to the West, this article argues that they in fact have significant cognitive and epistemic similarities with certain esoteric health beliefs of pre-Christian Europe. From the standpoint of Cognitive Science, Chinese Medicine appears as a proto-scientific system of health observances and practices based on a symptomological classification of disease using two elementary dynamical-processes pattern categorization schemas: a hierarchical and combinatorial inhibiting–activating model (Yin-Yang), and a non-hierarchical and associative five-parameter semantic network (5-Elements/Agents). The concept-map of the five-parameter model amounts to a pentagram, a commonly found geomantic and spell casting sigil in a number of pre-Christian health and safety beliefs in Europe, to include the Pythagorean cult of Hygieia, and the Old Religion of Northern Europe. This non-hierarchical pattern-recognition archetype/prototype was hypothetically added to the pre-existing hierarchical one to form a hybrid nosology that can accommodate for a change in disease perceptions. The selection of five parameters rather than another number might be due to a numerological association between the integer five, the golden ratio, the geometry of the pentagram and the belief in health and wholeness arising from cosmic or divine harmony. In any case, this body of purely empirical knowledge is nowadays widely flourishing in the US and in Europe as an alternative to Western Medicine and with the claim of being a unique, independent and comprehensive medical system, when in reality it is structurally—and perhaps historically—related to the health and safety beliefs of pre-Christian Europe; and without the prospect for an epistemological rupture, it will remain built upon rudimentary cognitive modalities, ancient metaphysics, and a symptomological view of disease. PMID:17965759

Latent Variable Regression 4-Level Hierarchical Model Using Multisite Multiple-Cohorts Longitudinal Data. CRESST Report 801

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Choi, Kilchan

2011-01-01

This report explores a new latent variable regression 4-level hierarchical model for monitoring school performance over time using multisite multiple-cohorts longitudinal data. This kind of data set has a 4-level hierarchical structure: time-series observation nested within students who are nested within different cohorts of students. These…

A Hierarchical Rater Model for Constructed Responses, with a Signal Detection Rater Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeCarlo, Lawrence T.; Kim, YoungKoung; Johnson, Matthew S.

2011-01-01

The hierarchical rater model (HRM) recognizes the hierarchical structure of data that arises when raters score constructed response items. In this approach, raters' scores are not viewed as being direct indicators of examinee proficiency but rather as indicators of essay quality; the (latent categorical) quality of an examinee's essay in turn…

Complex Applications of HLM in Studies of Science and Mathematics Achievement: Cross-Classified Random Effects Models

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moreno, Mario; Harwell, Michael; Guzey, S. Selcen; Phillips, Alison; Moore, Tamara J.

2016-01-01

Hierarchical linear models have become a familiar method for accounting for a hierarchical data structure in studies of science and mathematics achievement. This paper illustrates the use of cross-classified random effects models (CCREMs), which are likely less familiar. The defining characteristic of CCREMs is a hierarchical data structure…

Modelling habitat associations with fingernail clam (Family: Sphaeriidae) counts at multiple spatial scales using hierarchical count models

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gray, B.R.; Haro, R.J.; Rogala, J.T.; Sauer, J.S.

2005-01-01

1. Macroinvertebrate count data often exhibit nested or hierarchical structure. Examples include multiple measurements along each of a set of streams, and multiple synoptic measurements from each of a set of ponds. With data exhibiting hierarchical structure, outcomes at both sampling (e.g. Within stream) and aggregated (e.g. Stream) scales are often of interest. Unfortunately, methods for modelling hierarchical count data have received little attention in the ecological literature. 2. We demonstrate the use of hierarchical count models using fingernail clam (Family: Sphaeriidae) count data and habitat predictors derived from sampling and aggregated spatial scales. The sampling scale corresponded to that of a standard Ponar grab (0.052 m(2)) and the aggregated scale to impounded and backwater regions within 38-197 km reaches of the Upper Mississippi River. Impounded and backwater regions were resampled annually for 10 years. Consequently, measurements on clams were nested within years. Counts were treated as negative binomial random variates, and means from each resampling event as random departures from the impounded and backwater region grand means. 3. Clam models were improved by the addition of covariates that varied at both the sampling and regional scales. Substrate composition varied at the sampling scale and was associated with model improvements, and reductions (for a given mean) in variance at the sampling scale. Inorganic suspended solids (ISS) levels, measured in the summer preceding sampling, also yielded model improvements and were associated with reductions in variances at the regional rather than sampling scales. ISS levels were negatively associated with mean clam counts. 4. Hierarchical models allow hierarchically structured data to be modelled without ignoring information specific to levels of the hierarchy. In addition, information at each hierarchical level may be modelled as functions of covariates that themselves vary by and within levels. As a result, hierarchical models provide researchers and resource managers with a method for modelling hierarchical data that explicitly recognises both the sampling design and the information contained in the corresponding data.

Hierarchical nanorods constructed by Mn2Mo3O8@reduced graphene oxide nanosheet arrays with enhanced lithium storage properties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Lifeng; Shen, Kechao; He, Wenjie; Liu, Yi; Yin, Lixiong; Guo, Shouwu

2018-10-01

3D hierarchical nanorods of Mn2Mo3O8@reduced graphene oxide (rGO) nanohybrid assembled with nanosheet arrays have been fabricated via a facile solvothermal process combined with subsequent anneal. It is identified that the annealing temperature and the input amount of graphene oxide (GO) are critical to form such unique Mn2Mo3O8@rGO nanostructure, whose hierarchical nanorods (ca. 470 nm of diameter) are constructed by vertical nanosheet arrays (30 ± 5 nm average thickness for individual nanosheet). As an anode material for lithium ion batteries, the hierarchical Mn2Mo3O8@rGO electrode delivers superior capability and rate properties to the compared nanostructure synthesized at different annealing temperature. The enhanced electrochemical performance is attributed to the rational combination of 3D nanorods and 2D nanosheets, which is beneficial to the fast penetration of electrolytes and thus provide more reactive facets, shorten the diffusion paths of Li+ and facilitate the electron conduction.

Hierarchically ordered mesoporous Co3O4 materials for high performance Li-ion batteries.

PubMed

Sun, Shijiao; Zhao, Xiangyu; Yang, Meng; Wu, Linlin; Wen, Zhaoyin; Shen, Xiaodong

2016-01-19

Highly ordered mesoporous Co3O4 materials have been prepared via a nanocasting route with three-dimensional KIT-6 and two-dimensional SBA-15 ordered mesoporous silicas as templates and Co(NO3)2 · 6H2O as precursor. Through changing the hydrothermal treating temperature of the silica template, ordered mesoporous Co3O4 materials with hierarchical structures have been developed. The larger pores around 10 nm provide an efficient transport for Li ions, while the smaller pores between 3-5 nm offer large electrochemically active areas. Electrochemical impedance analysis proves that the hierarchical structure contributes to a lower charge transfer resistance in the mesoporous Co3O4 electrode than the mono-sized structure. High reversible capacities around 1141 mAh g(-1) of the hierarchically mesoporous Co3O4 materials are obtained, implying their potential applications for high performance Li-ion batteries.

Hierarchical Tubular Structures Composed of Co3 O4 Hollow Nanoparticles and Carbon Nanotubes for Lithium Storage.

PubMed

Chen, Yu Ming; Yu, Le; Lou, Xiong Wen David

2016-05-10

Hierarchical tubular structures composed of Co3 O4 hollow nanoparticles and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been synthesized by an efficient multi-step route. Starting from polymer-cobalt acetate (Co(Ac)2 ) composite nanofibers, uniform polymer-Co(Ac)2 @zeolitic imidazolate framework-67 (ZIF-67) core-shell nanofibers are first synthesized via partial phase transformation with 2-methylimidazole in ethanol. After the selective dissolution of polymer-Co(Ac)2 cores, the resulting ZIF-67 tubular structures can be converted into hierarchical CNTs/Co-carbon hybrids by annealing in Ar/H2 atmosphere. Finally, the hierarchical CNT/Co3 O4 microtubes are obtained by a subsequent thermal treatment in air. Impressively, the as-prepared nanocomposite delivers a high reversible capacity of 1281 mAh g(-1) at 0.1 A g(-1) with exceptional rate capability and long cycle life over 200 cycles as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Hierarchical CaCO3 chromatography: a stationary phase based on biominerals.

PubMed

Sato, Kosuke; Oaki, Yuya; Takahashi, Daisuke; Toshima, Kazunobu; Imai, Hiroaki

2015-03-23

In biomineralization, acidic macromolecules play important roles for the growth control of crystals through a specific interaction. Inspired by this interaction, we report on an application of the hierarchical structures in CaCO3 biominerals to a stationary phase of chromatography. The separation and purification of acidic small organic molecules are achieved by thin-layer chromatography and flash chromatography using the powder of biominerals as the stationary phase. The unit nanocrystals and their oriented assembly, the hierarchical structure, are suitable for the adsorption site of the target organic molecules and the flow path of the elution solvents, respectively. The separation mode is ascribed to the specific adsorption of the acidic molecules on the crystal face and the coordination of the functional groups to the calcium ions. The results imply that a new family of stationary phase of chromatography can be developed by the fine tuning of hierarchical structures in CaCO3 materials. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Efficiently computing and deriving topological relation matrices between complex regions with broad boundaries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Du, Shihong; Guo, Luo; Wang, Qiao; Qin, Qimin

The extended 9-intersection matrix is used to formalize topological relations between uncertain regions while it is designed to satisfy the requirements at a concept level, and to deal with the complex regions with broad boundaries (CBBRs) as a whole without considering their hierarchical structures. In contrast to simple regions with broad boundaries, CBBRs have complex hierarchical structures. Therefore, it is necessary to take into account the complex hierarchical structure and to represent the topological relations between all regions in CBBRs as a relation matrix, rather than using the extended 9-intersection matrix to determine topological relations. In this study, a tree model is first used to represent the intrinsic configuration of CBBRs hierarchically. Then, the reasoning tables are presented for deriving topological relations between child, parent and sibling regions from the relations between two given regions in CBBRs. Finally, based on the reasoning, efficient methods are proposed to compute and derive the topological relation matrix. The proposed methods can be incorporated into spatial databases to facilitate geometric-oriented applications.

In-plane crashworthiness of bio-inspired hierarchical honeycombs

DOE PAGES

Yin, Hanfeng; Huang, Xiaofei; Scarpa, Fabrizio; ...

2018-03-13

Biological tissues like bone, wood, and sponge possess hierarchical cellular topologies, which are lightweight and feature an excellent energy absorption capability. Here we present a system of bio-inspired hierarchical honeycomb structures based on hexagonal, Kagome, and triangular tessellations. The hierarchical designs and a reference regular honeycomb configuration are subjected to simulated in-plane impact using the nonlinear finite element code LS-DYNA. The numerical simulation results show that the triangular hierarchical honeycomb provides the best performance compared to the other two hierarchical honeycombs, and features more than twice the energy absorbed by the regular honeycomb under similar loading conditions. We also proposemore » a parametric study correlating the microstructure parameters (hierarchical length ratio r and the number of sub cells N) to the energy absorption capacity of these hierarchical honeycombs. The triangular hierarchical honeycomb with N = 2 and r = 1/8 shows the highest energy absorption capacity among all the investigated cases, and this configuration could be employed as a benchmark for the design of future safety protective systems.« less

In-plane crashworthiness of bio-inspired hierarchical honeycombs

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yin, Hanfeng; Huang, Xiaofei; Scarpa, Fabrizio

Biological tissues like bone, wood, and sponge possess hierarchical cellular topologies, which are lightweight and feature an excellent energy absorption capability. Here we present a system of bio-inspired hierarchical honeycomb structures based on hexagonal, Kagome, and triangular tessellations. The hierarchical designs and a reference regular honeycomb configuration are subjected to simulated in-plane impact using the nonlinear finite element code LS-DYNA. The numerical simulation results show that the triangular hierarchical honeycomb provides the best performance compared to the other two hierarchical honeycombs, and features more than twice the energy absorbed by the regular honeycomb under similar loading conditions. We also proposemore » a parametric study correlating the microstructure parameters (hierarchical length ratio r and the number of sub cells N) to the energy absorption capacity of these hierarchical honeycombs. The triangular hierarchical honeycomb with N = 2 and r = 1/8 shows the highest energy absorption capacity among all the investigated cases, and this configuration could be employed as a benchmark for the design of future safety protective systems.« less

Fabrication of free-standing hierarchical carbon nanofiber/graphene oxide/polyaniline films for supercapacitors.

PubMed

Xu, Dongdong; Xu, Qun; Wang, Kaixi; Chen, Jun; Chen, Zhimin

2014-01-08

A hierarchical high-performance electrode with nanoacanthine-style polyaniline (PANI) deposited onto a carbon nanofiber/graphene oxide (CNF/GO) template was successfully prepared via an in situ polymerization process. The morphology analysis shows that introducing one-dimensional (1D) CNF could significantly decrease/inhibit the staking of laminated GO to form an open-porous CNF/GO architecture. Followed with in situ facial deposition of PANI, the as-synthesized PANI modified CNF/GO exhibits three-dimensional (3D) hierarchical layered nanoarchitecture, which favors the diffusion of the electrolyte ions into the inner region of active materials. The hierarchical free-standing electrodes were directly fabricated into sandwich structured supercapacitors using 1 M H2SO4 as the electrolyte showing a significant specific capacitance of 450.2 F/g at the voltage scan rate of 10 mV/s. The electrochemical properties of the hierarchical structure can be further improved by a reduction procedure of GO before the deposition of PANI.

Simultaneous formation of multiscale hierarchical surface morphologies through sequential wrinkling and folding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Yu; Sun, Qingyang; Xiao, Jianliang

2018-02-01

Highly organized hierarchical surface morphologies possess various intriguing properties that could find important potential applications. In this paper, we demonstrate a facile approach to simultaneously form multiscale hierarchical surface morphologies through sequential wrinkling. This method combines surface wrinkling induced by thermal expansion and mechanical strain on a three-layer structure composed of an aluminum film, a hard Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) film, and a soft PDMS substrate. Deposition of the aluminum film on hard PDMS induces biaxial wrinkling due to thermal expansion mismatch, and recovering the prestrain in the soft PDMS substrate leads to wrinkling of the hard PDMS film. In total, three orders of wrinkling patterns form in this process, with wavelength and amplitude spanning 3 orders of magnitude in length scale. By increasing the prestrain in the soft PDMS substrate, a hierarchical wrinkling-folding structure was also obtained. This approach can be easily extended to other thin films for fabrication of multiscale hierarchical surface morphologies with potential applications in different areas.

Graphene--nanotube--iron hierarchical nanostructure as lithium ion battery anode.

PubMed

Lee, Si-Hwa; Sridhar, Vadahanambi; Jung, Jung-Hwan; Karthikeyan, Kaliyappan; Lee, Yun-Sung; Mukherjee, Rahul; Koratkar, Nikhil; Oh, Il-Kwon

2013-05-28

In this study, we report a novel route via microwave irradiation to synthesize a bio-inspired hierarchical graphene--nanotube--iron three-dimensional nanostructure as an anode material in lithium-ion batteries. The nanostructure comprises vertically aligned carbon nanotubes grown directly on graphene sheets along with shorter branches of carbon nanotubes stemming out from both the graphene sheets and the vertically aligned carbon nanotubes. This bio-inspired hierarchical structure provides a three-dimensional conductive network for efficient charge-transfer and prevents the agglomeration and restacking of the graphene sheets enabling Li-ions to have greater access to the electrode material. In addition, functional iron-oxide nanoparticles decorated within the three-dimensional hierarchical structure provides outstanding lithium storage characteristics, resulting in very high specific capacities. The anode material delivers a reversible capacity of ~1024 mA · h · g(-1) even after prolonged cycling along with a Coulombic efficiency in excess of 99%, which reflects the ability of the hierarchical network to prevent agglomeration of the iron-oxide nanoparticles.

A solid with a hierarchical tetramodal micro-meso-macro pore size distribution

PubMed Central

Ren, Yu; Ma, Zhen; Morris, Russell E.; Liu, Zheng; Jiao, Feng; Dai, Sheng; Bruce, Peter G.

2013-01-01

Porous solids have an important role in addressing some of the major energy-related problems facing society. Here we describe a porous solid, α-MnO2, with a hierarchical tetramodal pore size distribution spanning the micro-, meso- and macro pore range, centred at 0.48, 4.0, 18 and 70 nm. The hierarchical tetramodal structure is generated by the presence of potassium ions in the precursor solution within the channels of the porous silica template; the size of the potassium ion templates the microporosity of α-MnO2, whereas their reactivity with silica leads to larger mesopores and macroporosity, without destroying the mesostructure of the template. The hierarchical tetramodal pore size distribution influences the properties of α-MnO2 as a cathode in lithium batteries and as a catalyst, changing the behaviour, compared with its counterparts with only micropores or bimodal micro/mesopores. The approach has been extended to the preparation of LiMn2O4 with a hierarchical pore structure. PMID:23764887

Hierarchical structures of ZnO spherical particles synthesized solvothermally

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saito, Noriko; Haneda, Hajime

2011-12-01

We review the solvothermal synthesis, using a mixture of ethylene glycol (EG) and water as the solvent, of zinc oxide (ZnO) particles having spherical and flower-like shapes and hierarchical nanostructures. The preparation conditions of the ZnO particles and the microscopic characterization of the morphology are summarized. We found the following three effects of the ratio of EG to water on the formation of hierarchical structures: (i) EG restricts the growth of ZnO microcrystals, (ii) EG promotes the self-assembly of small crystallites into spheroidal particles and (iii) the high water content of EG results in hollow spheres.

Preparation of hierarchical structured nano-sized/porous poly(lactic acid) composite fibrous membranes for air filtration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Zhe; Pan, Zhijuan

2015-11-01

Hierarchical structured nano-sized/porous poly(lactic acid) (PLA-N/PLA-P) composite fibrous membranes with excellent air filtration performance were prepared via an electrospinning technique. Firstly, PLA-P fibers with different morphology were fabricated by varying the relative humidity, and the nanopores on fiber surface played a key role in improving the specific surface area and filtration performance of the resultant membranes. Secondly, hierarchical structure of PLA-N/PLA-P interlaced structured membranes and PLA-N/PLA-P double-layer structured membranes with different mass ratios for further enhanced air filtration performance were also successfully prepared by combining PLA-N fibers with PLA-P fibers. Filtration tests by measuring the penetration of sodium chloride (NaCl) aerosol particles with a 260 nm mass median diameter revealed that a moderate mass ratio of PLA-P fibers and PLA-N fibers contributed to improving the filtration performance of the hierarchical structured PLA-N/PLA-P composite membrane, and the double-layer structured PLA-N/PLA-P membrane possessed a higher filtration efficiency and quality factor than that of an interlaced structured PLA-N/PLA-P membrane with the same mass ratio. The as-prepared PLA-N/PLA-P double-layer structured membrane with a mass ratio of 1/5 showed a high filtration efficiency (99.999%) and a relatively low pressure drop (93.3 Pa) at the face velocity of 5.3 cm/s.

Scale-dependent genetic structure of the Idaho giant salamander (Dicamptodon aterrimus) in stream networks.

PubMed

Mullen, Lindy B; Arthur Woods, H; Schwartz, Michael K; Sepulveda, Adam J; Lowe, Winsor H

2010-03-01

The network architecture of streams and rivers constrains evolutionary, demographic and ecological processes of freshwater organisms. This consistent architecture also makes stream networks useful for testing general models of population genetic structure and the scaling of gene flow. We examined genetic structure and gene flow in the facultatively paedomorphic Idaho giant salamander, Dicamptodon aterrimus, in stream networks of Idaho and Montana, USA. We used microsatellite data to test population structure models by (i) examining hierarchical partitioning of genetic variation in stream networks; and (ii) testing for genetic isolation by distance along stream corridors vs. overland pathways. Replicated sampling of streams within catchments within three river basins revealed that hierarchical scale had strong effects on genetic structure and gene flow. amova identified significant structure at all hierarchical scales (among streams, among catchments, among basins), but divergence among catchments had the greatest structural influence. Isolation by distance was detected within catchments, and in-stream distance was a strong predictor of genetic divergence. Patterns of genetic divergence suggest that differentiation among streams within catchments was driven by limited migration, consistent with a stream hierarchy model of population structure. However, there was no evidence of migration among catchments within basins, or among basins, indicating that gene flow only counters the effects of genetic drift at smaller scales (within rather than among catchments). These results show the strong influence of stream networks on population structure and genetic divergence of a salamander, with contrasting effects at different hierarchical scales.

Bayesian models: A statistical primer for ecologists

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hobbs, N. Thompson; Hooten, Mevin B.

2015-01-01

Bayesian modeling has become an indispensable tool for ecological research because it is uniquely suited to deal with complexity in a statistically coherent way. This textbook provides a comprehensive and accessible introduction to the latest Bayesian methods—in language ecologists can understand. Unlike other books on the subject, this one emphasizes the principles behind the computations, giving ecologists a big-picture understanding of how to implement this powerful statistical approach.Bayesian Models is an essential primer for non-statisticians. It begins with a definition of probability and develops a step-by-step sequence of connected ideas, including basic distribution theory, network diagrams, hierarchical models, Markov chain Monte Carlo, and inference from single and multiple models. This unique book places less emphasis on computer coding, favoring instead a concise presentation of the mathematical statistics needed to understand how and why Bayesian analysis works. It also explains how to write out properly formulated hierarchical Bayesian models and use them in computing, research papers, and proposals.This primer enables ecologists to understand the statistical principles behind Bayesian modeling and apply them to research, teaching, policy, and management.Presents the mathematical and statistical foundations of Bayesian modeling in language accessible to non-statisticiansCovers basic distribution theory, network diagrams, hierarchical models, Markov chain Monte Carlo, and moreDeemphasizes computer coding in favor of basic principlesExplains how to write out properly factored statistical expressions representing Bayesian models

Planning deficits in polysubstance dependent users: Differential associations with severity of drug use and intelligence.

PubMed

Valls-Serrano, C; Verdejo-García, A; Caracuel, A

2016-05-01

Polysubstance use is associated with alterations in different components of executive functioning such as working memory and response inhibition. Nevertheless, less attention has been given to executive planning skills, which are required to benefit of low structured interventions. This study examines the association between severity of use of cocaine, heroin, alcohol, fluid and crystallized intelligence and planning tasks varying on degree of structure. Data were collected from 60 polysubstance users and 30 healthy controls. Cognitive assessment consisted of three planning tasks with different structure levels: Stockings of Cambridge, Zoo Map test, and Multiple Errands Test. Polysubstance users had significant planning deficits across the three tasks compared to healthy controls. Hierarchical regression models showed that severity of drug use and fluid and crystallized intelligence significantly explained performance in all the planning tasks. However, these associations were higher for low-structured real world tasks. These low-structured tasks also showed a unique association with crystallized but not fluid intelligence. Drug abuse is negatively associated with planning abilities, and intelligence is positively associated with planning performance in real-world tasks. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wen, Amy M.; Podgornik, Rudolf; Strangi, Giuseppe

Sizing and shaping of mesoscale architectures with nanoscale features is a key opportunity to produce the next generation of higher-performing products and at the same time unveil completely new phenomena. This review article discusses recent advances in the design of novel photonic and plasmonic structures using a biology-inspired design. The proteinaceous capsids from viruses have long been discovered as platform technologies enabling unique applications in nanotechnology, materials, bioengineering, and medicine. In the context of materials applications, the highly organized structures formed by viral capsid proteins provide a 3D scaffold for the precise placement of plasmon and gain materials. Based onmore » their highly symmetrical structures, virus-based nanoparticles have a high propensity to self-assemble into higher-order crystalline structures, yielding hierarchical hybrid materials. Recent advances in the field have led to the development of virus-based light harvesting systems, plasmonic structures for application in high-performance metamaterials, binary nanoparticle lattices, and liquid crystalline arrays for sensing or display technologies. In conclusion, there is still much that could be explored in this area, and we foresee that this is only the beginning of great technological advances in virus-based materials for plasmonics and photonics applications.« less

External validity of a hierarchical dimensional model of child and adolescent psychopathology: Tests using confirmatory factor analyses and multivariate behavior genetic analyses.

PubMed

Waldman, Irwin D; Poore, Holly E; van Hulle, Carol; Rathouz, Paul J; Lahey, Benjamin B

2016-11-01

Several recent studies of the hierarchical phenotypic structure of psychopathology have identified a General psychopathology factor in addition to the more expected specific Externalizing and Internalizing dimensions in both youth and adult samples and some have found relevant unique external correlates of this General factor. We used data from 1,568 twin pairs (599 MZ & 969 DZ) age 9 to 17 to test hypotheses for the underlying structure of youth psychopathology and the external validity of the higher-order factors. Psychopathology symptoms were assessed via structured interviews of caretakers and youth. We conducted phenotypic analyses of competing structural models using Confirmatory Factor Analysis and used Structural Equation Modeling and multivariate behavior genetic analyses to understand the etiology of the higher-order factors and their external validity. We found that both a General factor and specific Externalizing and Internalizing dimensions are necessary for characterizing youth psychopathology at both the phenotypic and etiologic levels, and that the 3 higher-order factors differed substantially in the magnitudes of their underlying genetic and environmental influences. Phenotypically, the specific Externalizing and Internalizing dimensions were slightly negatively correlated when a General factor was included, which reflected a significant inverse correlation between the nonshared environmental (but not genetic) influences on Internalizing and Externalizing. We estimated heritability of the general factor of psychopathology for the first time. Its moderate heritability suggests that it is not merely an artifact of measurement error but a valid construct. The General, Externalizing, and Internalizing factors differed in their relations with 3 external validity criteria: mother's smoking during pregnancy, parent's harsh discipline, and the youth's association with delinquent peers. Multivariate behavior genetic analyses supported the external validity of the 3 higher-order factors by suggesting that the General, Externalizing, and Internalizing factors were correlated with peer delinquency and parent's harsh discipline for different etiologic reasons. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Self-Concepts in Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking: A Multidimensional and Hierarchical Structure and Its Generalizability across Native and Foreign Languages

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arens, A. Katrin; Jansen, Malte

2016-01-01

Academic self-concept has been conceptualized as a multidimensional and hierarchical construct. Previous research has mostly focused on its multidimensionality, distinguishing between verbal and mathematical self-concept domains, and only a few studies have examined the factorial structure within specific self-concept domains. The present study…

A hierarchical linear model for tree height prediction.

Treesearch

Vicente J. Monleon

2003-01-01

Measuring tree height is a time-consuming process. Often, tree diameter is measured and height is estimated from a published regression model. Trees used to develop these models are clustered into stands, but this structure is ignored and independence is assumed. In this study, hierarchical linear models that account explicitly for the clustered structure of the data...

What Is Wrong with ANOVA and Multiple Regression? Analyzing Sentence Reading Times with Hierarchical Linear Models

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Richter, Tobias

2006-01-01

Most reading time studies using naturalistic texts yield data sets characterized by a multilevel structure: Sentences (sentence level) are nested within persons (person level). In contrast to analysis of variance and multiple regression techniques, hierarchical linear models take the multilevel structure of reading time data into account. They…

Physical Self-Concept in Adolescence: Generalizability of a Multidimensional, Hierarchical Model Across Gender and Grade

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hagger, Martin S.; Biddle, Stuart J. H.; John Wang, C. K.

2005-01-01

This study tests the generalizability of the factor pattern, structural parameters, and latent mean structure of a multidimensional, hierarchical model of physical self-concept in adolescents across gender and grade. A children's version of the Physical Self-Perception Profile (C-PSPP) was administered to seventh-, eighth- and ninth-grade high…

ERP Responses to Violations in the Hierarchical Structure of Functional Categories in Japanese Verb Conjugation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kobayashi, Yuki; Sugioka, Yoko; Ito, Takane

2018-01-01

An event-related potential experiment was conducted in order to investigate readers' response to violations in the hierarchical structure of functional categories in Japanese, an agglutinative language where functional heads like Negation (Neg) as well as Tense (Tns) are realized as suffixes. A left-lateralized negativity followed by a P600 was…

The Impact of Adjacent-Dependencies and Staged-Input on the Learnability of Center-Embedded Hierarchical Structures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lai, Jun; Poletiek, Fenna H.

2011-01-01

A theoretical debate in artificial grammar learning (AGL) regards the learnability of hierarchical structures. Recent studies using an A[superscript n]B[superscript n] grammar draw conflicting conclusions ([Bahlmann and Friederici, 2006] and [De Vries et al., 2008]). We argue that 2 conditions crucially affect learning A[superscript…