TY - JOUR A1 - Akimbekov, Nuraly S. A1 - Digel, Ilya A1 - Tastambek, Kuanysh T. A1 - Kozhahmetova, Marzhan A1 - Sherelkhan, Dinara K. A1 - Tauanov, Zhandos T1 - Hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis in coal-bearing environments: Methane production, carbon sequestration, and hydrogen availability JF - International Journal of Hydrogen Energy N2 - Methane is a valuable energy source helping to mitigate the growing energy demand worldwide. However, as a potent greenhouse gas, it has also gained additional attention due to its environmental impacts. The biological production of methane is performed primarily hydrogenotrophically from H2 and CO2 by methanogenic archaea. Hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis also represents a great interest with respect to carbon re-cycling and H2 storage. The most significant carbon source, extremely rich in complex organic matter for microbial degradation and biogenic methane production, is coal. Although interest in enhanced microbial coalbed methane production is continuously increasing globally, limited knowledge exists regarding the exact origins of the coalbed methane and the associated microbial communities, including hydrogenotrophic methanogens. Here, we give an overview of hydrogenotrophic methanogens in coal beds and related environments in terms of their energy production mechanisms, unique metabolic pathways, and associated ecological functions. KW - Coal KW - Methanogenesis KW - Methane KW - Hydrogenotrophic methanogens KW - H2 Y1 - 2024 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2023.09.223 SN - 1879-3487 (online) SN - 0360-3199 (print) VL - 52 IS - Part D SP - 1264 EP - 1277 PB - Elsevier CY - New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Pieronek, Lukas A1 - Kleefeld, Andreas T1 - On trajectories of complex-valued interior transmission eigenvalues JF - Inverse problems and imaging : IPI N2 - This paper investigates the interior transmission problem for homogeneous media via eigenvalue trajectories parameterized by the magnitude of the refractive index. In the case that the scatterer is the unit disk, we prove that there is a one-to-one correspondence between complex-valued interior transmission eigenvalue trajectories and Dirichlet eigenvalues of the Laplacian which turn out to be exactly the trajectorial limit points as the refractive index tends to infinity. For general simply-connected scatterers in two or three dimensions, a corresponding relation is still open, but further theoretical results and numerical studies indicate a similar connection. KW - Interior transmission problem KW - Eigenvalue trajectories KW - Complex-valued eigenvalues Y1 - 2024 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3934/ipi.2023041 SN - 1930-8337 (Print) SN - 1930-8345 (Online) VL - 18 IS - 2 SP - 480 EP - 516 PB - AIMS CY - Springfield, Mo ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Oehlenschläger, Katharina A1 - Volkmar, Marianne A1 - Stiefelmaier, Judith A1 - Langsdorf, Alexander A1 - Holtmann, Dirk A1 - Tippkötter, Nils A1 - Ulber, Roland T1 - New insights into the influence of pre-culture on robust solvent production of C. acetobutylicum JF - Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology N2 - Clostridia are known for their solvent production, especially the production of butanol. Concerning the projected depletion of fossil fuels, this is of great interest. The cultivation of clostridia is known to be challenging, and it is difficult to achieve reproducible results and robust processes. However, existing publications usually concentrate on the cultivation conditions of the main culture. In this paper, the influence of cryo-conservation and pre-culture on growth and solvent production in the resulting main cultivation are examined. A protocol was developed that leads to reproducible cultivations of Clostridium acetobutylicum. Detailed investigation of the cell conservation in cryo-cultures ensured reliable cell growth in the pre-culture. Moreover, a reason for the acid crash in the main culture was found, based on the cultivation conditions of the pre-culture. The critical parameter to avoid the acid crash and accomplish the shift to the solventogenesis of clostridia is the metabolic phase in which the cells of the pre-culture were at the time of inoculation of the main culture; this depends on the cultivation time of the pre-culture. Using cells from the exponential growth phase to inoculate the main culture leads to an acid crash. To achieve the solventogenic phase with butanol production, the inoculum should consist of older cells which are in the stationary growth phase. Considering these parameters, which affect the entire cultivation process, reproducible results and reliable solvent production are ensured. KW - Pre-culture KW - Metabolic shift KW - Acid crash KW - C. acetobutylicum KW - ABE KW - Butanol Y1 - 2024 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-023-12981-8 SN - 1432-0614 VL - 108 PB - Springer CY - Berlin, Heidelberg ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Windmüller, Anna A1 - Schaps, Kristian A1 - Zantis, Frederik A1 - Domgans, Anna A1 - Taklu, Bereket Woldegbreal A1 - Yang, Tingting A1 - Tsai, Chih-Long A1 - Schierholz, Roland A1 - Yu, Shicheng A1 - Kungl, Hans A1 - Tempel, Hermann A1 - Dunin-Borkowski, Rafal E. A1 - Hüning, Felix A1 - Hwang, Bing Joe A1 - Eichel, Rüdiger-A. T1 - Electrochemical activation of LiGaO2: implications for ga-doped garnet solid electrolytes in li-metal batteries JF - ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces N2 - Ga-doped Li7La3Zr2O12 garnet solid electrolytes exhibit the highest Li-ion conductivities among the oxide-type garnet-structured solid electrolytes, but instabilities toward Li metal hamper their practical application. The instabilities have been assigned to direct chemical reactions between LiGaO2 coexisting phases and Li metal by several groups previously. Yet, the understanding of the role of LiGaO2 in the electrochemical cell and its electrochemical properties is still lacking. Here, we are investigating the electrochemical properties of LiGaO2 through electrochemical tests in galvanostatic cells versus Li metal and complementary ex situ studies via confocal Raman microscopy, quantitative phase analysis based on powder X-ray diffraction, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and electron energy loss spectroscopy. The results demonstrate considerable and surprising electrochemical activity, with high reversibility. A three-stage reaction mechanism is derived, including reversible electrochemical reactions that lead to the formation of highly electronically conducting products. The results have considerable implications for the use of Ga-doped Li7La3Zr2O12 electrolytes in all-solid-state Li-metal battery applications and raise the need for advanced materials engineering to realize Ga-doped Li7La3Zr2O12for practical use. KW - LiGaO2 KW - garnet solid electrolyte KW - ga-doping KW - Li7La3Zr2O12 KW - solid-state battery Y1 - 2024 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.4c03729 SN - 39181–3919 VL - 16 IS - 30 PB - ACS Publications CY - Washington, DC ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Eichler, Fabian A1 - Balc, Nicolae A1 - Bremen, Sebastian A1 - Nink, Philipp T1 - Investigation of laser powder bed fusion parameters with respect to their influence on the thermal conductivity of 316L samples JF - Journal of Manufacturing and Materials Processing N2 - The thermal conductivity of components manufactured using Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF), also called Selective Laser Melting (SLM), plays an important role in their processing. Not only does a reduced thermal conductivity cause residual stresses during the process, but it also makes subsequent processes such as the welding of LPBF components more difficult. This article uses 316L stainless steel samples to investigate whether and to what extent the thermal conductivity of specimens can be influenced by different LPBF parameters. To this end, samples are set up using different parameters, orientations, and powder conditions and measured by a heat flow meter using stationary analysis. The heat flow meter set-up used in this study achieves good reproducibility and high measurement accuracy, so that comparative measurements between the various LPBF influencing factors to be tested are possible. In summary, the series of measurements show that the residual porosity of the components has the greatest influence on conductivity. The degradation of the powder due to increased recycling also appears to be detectable. The build-up direction shows no detectable effect in the measurement series. KW - Additive manufacturing KW - LPBF KW - SLM KW - Thermal conductivity KW - 316L Y1 - 2024 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3390/jmmp8040166 SN - 2504-4494 N1 - Corresponding author: Fabian Eichler VL - 8 IS - 4 PB - MDPI CY - Basel ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kohl, Philipp A1 - Krämer, Yoka A1 - Fohry, Claudia A1 - Kraft, Bodo ED - Fred, Ana ED - Hadjali, Allel ED - Gusikhin, Oleg ED - Sansone, Carlo T1 - Scoping review of active learning strategies and their evaluation environments for entity recognition tasks JF - Deep learning theory and applications N2 - We conducted a scoping review for active learning in the domain of natural language processing (NLP), which we summarize in accordance with the PRISMA-ScR guidelines as follows: Objective: Identify active learning strategies that were proposed for entity recognition and their evaluation environments (datasets, metrics, hardware, execution time). Design: We used Scopus and ACM as our search engines. We compared the results with two literature surveys to assess the search quality. We included peer-reviewed English publications introducing or comparing active learning strategies for entity recognition. Results: We analyzed 62 relevant papers and identified 106 active learning strategies. We grouped them into three categories: exploitation-based (60x), exploration-based (14x), and hybrid strategies (32x). We found that all studies used the F1-score as an evaluation metric. Information about hardware (6x) and execution time (13x) was only occasionally included. The 62 papers used 57 different datasets to evaluate their respective strategies. Most datasets contained newspaper articles or biomedical/medical data. Our analysis revealed that 26 out of 57 datasets are publicly accessible. Conclusion: Numerous active learning strategies have been identified, along with significant open questions that still need to be addressed. Researchers and practitioners face difficulties when making data-driven decisions about which active learning strategy to adopt. Conducting comprehensive empirical comparisons using the evaluation environment proposed in this study could help establish best practices in the domain. Y1 - 2024 SN - 978-3-031-66694-0 (online ISBN) SN - 978-3-031-66693-3 (print ISBN) U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-66694-0_6 SP - 84 EP - 106 PB - Springer CY - Cham ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hafidi, Youssef A1 - El Hatka, Hicham A1 - Schmitz, Dominik A1 - Krauss, Manuel A1 - Pettrak, Jürgen A1 - Biel, Markus A1 - Ittobane, Najim T1 - Sustainable soil additives for water and micronutrient supply: swelling and chelating properties of polyaspartic acid hydrogels utilizing newly developed crosslinkers JF - Gels N2 - Drought and water shortage are serious problems in many arid and semi-arid regions. This problem is getting worse and even continues in temperate climatic regions due to climate change. To address this problem, the use of biodegradable hydrogels is increasingly important for the application as water-retaining additives in soil. Furthermore, efficient (micro-)nutrient supply can be provided by the use of tailored hydrogels. Biodegradable polyaspartic acid (PASP) hydrogels with different available (1,6-hexamethylene diamine (HMD) and L-lysine (LYS)) and newly developed crosslinkers based on diesters of glycine (GLY) and (di-)ethylene glycol (DEG and EG, respectively) were synthesized and characterized using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and regarding their swelling properties (kinetic, absorbency under load (AUL)) as well as biodegradability of PASP hydrogel. Copper (II) and zinc (II), respectively, were loaded as micronutrients in two different approaches: in situ with crosslinking and subsequent loading of prepared hydrogels. The results showed successful syntheses of di-glycine-ester-based crosslinkers. Hydrogels with good water-absorbing properties were formed. Moreover, the developed crosslinking agents in combination with the specific reaction conditions resulted in higher water absorbency with increased crosslinker content used in synthesis (10% vs. 20%). The prepared hydrogels are candidates for water-storing soil additives due to the biodegradability of PASP, which is shown in an exemple. The incorporation of Cu(II) and Zn(II) ions can provide these micronutrients for plant growth. KW - micronutrients KW - swelling properties KW - biodegradable polymers KW - hydrogels KW - superabsorbent polymers KW - glycine KW - polyaspartic acid Y1 - 2024 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3390/gels10030170 SN - 2310-2861 VL - 10 IS - 3 SP - Artikel 170 PB - MDPI CY - Basel ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Möhren, Felix A1 - Bergmann, Ole A1 - Janser, Frank A1 - Braun, Carsten T1 - Assessment of structural mechanical effects related to torsional deformations of propellers JF - CEAS Aeronautical Journal N2 - Lifting propellers are of increasing interest for Advanced Air Mobility. All propellers and rotors are initially twisted beams, showing significant extension–twist coupling and centrifugal twisting. Torsional deformations severely impact aerodynamic performance. This paper presents a novel approach to assess different reasons for torsional deformations. A reduced-order model runs large parameter sweeps with algebraic formulations and numerical solution procedures. Generic beams represent three different propeller types for General Aviation, Commercial Aviation, and Advanced Air Mobility. Simulations include solid and hollow cross-sections made of aluminum, steel, and carbon fiber-reinforced polymer. The investigation shows that centrifugal twisting moments depend on both the elastic and initial twist. The determination of the centrifugal twisting moment solely based on the initial twist suffers from errors exceeding 5% in some cases. The nonlinear parts of the torsional rigidity do not significantly impact the overall torsional rigidity for the investigated propeller types. The extension–twist coupling related to the initial and elastic twist in combination with tension forces significantly impacts the net cross-sectional torsional loads. While the increase in torsional stiffness due to initial twist contributes to the overall stiffness for General and Commercial Aviation propellers, its contribution to the lift propeller’s stiffness is limited. The paper closes with the presentation of approximations for each effect identified as significant. Numerical evaluations are necessary to determine each effect for inhomogeneous cross-sections made of anisotropic material. KW - Lifting propeller KW - Extension–twist coupling KW - Trapeze effect KW - Centrifugal twisting moment Y1 - 2024 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s13272-024-00737-7 SN - 1869-5590 (eISSN) SN - 1869-5582 N1 - Corresponding author: Felix Möhren PB - Springer CY - Wien ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Digel, Ilya A1 - Akimbekov, Nuraly S. A1 - Rogachev, Evgeniy A1 - Pogorelova, Natalia T1 - Bacterial cellulose produced by Medusomyces gisevii on glucose and sucrose: biosynthesis and structural properties JF - Cellulose N2 - In this work, the effects of carbon sources and culture media on the production and structural properties of bacterial cellulose (BC) synthesized by Medusomyces gisevii have been studied. The culture medium was composed of different initial concentrations of glucose or sucrose dissolved in 0.4% extract of plain green tea. Parameters of the culture media (titratable acidity, substrate conversion degree etc.) were monitored daily for 20 days of cultivation. The BC pellicles produced on different carbon sources were characterized in terms of biomass yield, crystallinity and morphology by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), atomic force microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Our results showed that Medusomyces gisevii had higher BC yields in media with sugar concentrations close to 10 g L−1 after a 18–20 days incubation period. Glucose in general lead to a higher BC yield (173 g L−1) compared to sucrose (163.5 g L−1). The BC crystallinity degree and surface roughness were higher in the samples synthetized from sucrose. Obtained FE-SEM micrographs show that the BC pellicles synthesized in the sucrose media contained densely packed tangles of cellulose fibrils whereas the BC produced in the glucose media displayed rather linear geometry of the BC fibrils without noticeable aggregates. KW - Bacterial cellulose KW - Medusomyces gisevi KW - Carbon sources KW - Culture media KW - Cellulose nanostructure Y1 - 2023 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-023-05592-z SN - 1572-882X (Online) SN - 0969-0239 (Print) N1 - Corresponding author: Ilya Digel PB - Springer Science + Business Media CY - Dordrecht ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Thoma, Andreas A1 - Thomessen, Karolin A1 - Gardi, Alessandro A1 - Fisher, A. A1 - Braun, Carsten T1 - Prioritising paths: An improved cost function for local path planning for UAV in medical applications JF - The Aeronautical Journal N2 - Even the shortest flight through unknown, cluttered environments requires reliable local path planning algorithms to avoid unforeseen obstacles. The algorithm must evaluate alternative flight paths and identify the best path if an obstacle blocks its way. Commonly, weighted sums are used here. This work shows that weighted Chebyshev distances and factorial achievement scalarising functions are suitable alternatives to weighted sums if combined with the 3DVFH* local path planning algorithm. Both methods considerably reduce the failure probability of simulated flights in various environments. The standard 3DVFH* uses a weighted sum and has a failure probability of 50% in the test environments. A factorial achievement scalarising function, which minimises the worst combination of two out of four objective functions, reaches a failure probability of 26%; A weighted Chebyshev distance, which optimises the worst objective, has a failure probability of 30%. These results show promise for further enhancements and to support broader applicability. KW - Path planning KW - Cost function KW - Multi-objective optimization Y1 - 2023 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1017/aer.2023.68 SN - 0001-9240 (Print) SN - 2059-6464 (Online) IS - First View SP - 1 EP - 18 PB - Cambridge University Press CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Falkenberg, Fabian A1 - Kohn, Sophie A1 - Bott, Michael A1 - Bongaerts, Johannes A1 - Siegert, Petra T1 - Biochemical characterisation of a novel broad pH spectrum subtilisin from Fictibacillus arsenicus DSM 15822ᵀ JF - FEBS Open Bio N2 - Subtilisins from microbial sources, especially from the Bacillaceae family, are of particular interest for biotechnological applications and serve the currently growing enzyme market as efficient and novel biocatalysts. Biotechnological applications include use in detergents, cosmetics, leather processing, wastewater treatment and pharmaceuticals. To identify a possible candidate for the enzyme market, here we cloned the gene of the subtilisin SPFA from Fictibacillus arsenicus DSM 15822ᵀ (obtained through a data mining-based search) and expressed it in Bacillus subtilis DB104. After production and purification, the protease showed a molecular mass of 27.57 kDa and a pI of 5.8. SPFA displayed hydrolytic activity at a temperature optimum of 80 °C and a very broad pH optimum between 8.5 and 11.5, with high activity up to pH 12.5. SPFA displayed no NaCl dependence but a high NaCl tolerance, with decreasing activity up to concentrations of 5 m NaCl. The stability enhanced with increasing NaCl concentration. Based on its substrate preference for 10 synthetic peptide 4-nitroanilide substrates with three or four amino acids and its phylogenetic classification, SPFA can be assigned to the subgroup of true subtilisins. Moreover, SPFA exhibited high tolerance to 5% (w/v) SDS and 5% H₂O₂ (v/v). The biochemical properties of SPFA, especially its tolerance of remarkably high pH, SDS and H₂O₂, suggest it has potential for biotechnological applications. KW - Bacillaceae KW - Biotechnological application KW - Broad pH spectrum KW - Subtilases KW - Subtilisin Y1 - 2023 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/2211-5463.13701 SN - 2211-5463 N1 - Corresponding author: Petra Siegert VL - 13 IS - 11 SP - 2035 EP - 2046 PB - Wiley CY - Hoboken, NJ ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rübbelke, Dirk A1 - Vögele, Stefan A1 - Grajewski, Matthias A1 - Zobel, Luzy T1 - Cross border adjustment mechanism: Initial data for the assessment of hydrogen-based steel production JF - Data in Brief N2 - Ambitious climate targets affect the competitiveness of industries in the international market. To prevent such industries from moving to other countries in the wake of increased climate protection efforts, cost adjustments may become necessary. Their design requires knowledge of country-specific production costs. Here, we present country-specific cost figures for different production routes of steel, paying particular attention to transportation costs. The data can be used in floor price models aiming to assess the competitiveness of different steel production routes in different countries (Rübbelke, 2022). KW - Energy-intensive industry KW - Steel industry KW - Competitiveness KW - Floor prices KW - Cross border adjustment mechanism Y1 - 2023 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dib.2023.108907 SN - 2352-3409 VL - 47 IS - Article 108907 SP - 1 EP - 5 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Cheenakula, Dheeraja A1 - Griebel, Kai A1 - Montag, David A1 - Grömping, Markus ED - Huang, Xiaowu T1 - Concept development of a mainstream deammonification and comparison with conventional process in terms of energy, performance and economical construction perspectives JF - Frontiers in Microbiology N2 - Deammonification for nitrogen removal in municipal wastewater in temperate and cold climate zones is currently limited to the side stream of municipal wastewater treatment plants (MWWTP). This study developed a conceptual model of a mainstream deammonification plant, designed for 30,000 P.E., considering possible solutions corresponding to the challenging mainstream conditions in Germany. In addition, the energy-saving potential, nitrogen elimination performance and construction-related costs of mainstream deammonification were compared to a conventional plant model, having a single-stage activated sludge process with upstream denitrification. The results revealed that an additional treatment step by combining chemical precipitation and ultra-fine screening is advantageous prior the mainstream deammonification. Hereby chemical oxygen demand (COD) can be reduced by 80% so that the COD:N ratio can be reduced from 12 to 2.5. Laboratory experiments testing mainstream conditions of temperature (8–20°C), pH (6–9) and COD:N ratio (1–6) showed an achievable volumetric nitrogen removal rate (VNRR) of at least 50 gN/(m3∙d) for various deammonifying sludges from side stream deammonification systems in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, where m3 denotes reactor volume. Assuming a retained Norganic content of 0.0035 kgNorg./(P.E.∙d) from the daily loads of N at carbon removal stage and a VNRR of 50 gN/(m3∙d) under mainstream conditions, a resident-specific reactor volume of 0.115 m3/(P.E.) is required for mainstream deammonification. This is in the same order of magnitude as the conventional activated sludge process, i.e., 0.173 m3/(P.E.) for an MWWTP of size class of 4. The conventional plant model yielded a total specific electricity demand of 35 kWh/(P.E.∙a) for the operation of the whole MWWTP and an energy recovery potential of 15.8 kWh/(P.E.∙a) through anaerobic digestion. In contrast, the developed mainstream deammonification model plant would require only a 21.5 kWh/(P.E.∙a) energy demand and result in 24 kWh/(P.E.∙a) energy recovery potential, enabling the mainstream deammonification model plant to be self-sufficient. The retrofitting costs for the implementation of mainstream deammonification in existing conventional MWWTPs are nearly negligible as the existing units like activated sludge reactors, aerators and monitoring technology are reusable. However, the mainstream deammonification must meet the performance requirement of VNRR of about 50 gN/(m3∙d) in this case. KW - anammox KW - energy efficiency KW - mainstream deammonification KW - nitrogen elimination KW - wastewater Y1 - 2023 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2023.1155235 SN - 1664-302X VL - 14 IS - 11155235 SP - 1 EP - 15 PB - Frontiers ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ringers, Christa A1 - Bialonski, Stephan A1 - Ege, Mert A1 - Solovev, Anton A1 - Hansen, Jan Niklas A1 - Jeong, Inyoung A1 - Friedrich, Benjamin M. A1 - Jurisch-Yaksi, Nathalie T1 - Novel analytical tools reveal that local synchronization of cilia coincides with tissue-scale metachronal waves in zebrafish multiciliated epithelia JF - eLife N2 - Motile cilia are hair-like cell extensions that beat periodically to generate fluid flow along various epithelial tissues within the body. In dense multiciliated carpets, cilia were shown to exhibit a remarkable coordination of their beat in the form of traveling metachronal waves, a phenomenon which supposedly enhances fluid transport. Yet, how cilia coordinate their regular beat in multiciliated epithelia to move fluids remains insufficiently understood, particularly due to lack of rigorous quantification. We combine experiments, novel analysis tools, and theory to address this knowledge gap. To investigate collective dynamics of cilia, we studied zebrafish multiciliated epithelia in the nose and the brain. We focused mainly on the zebrafish nose, due to its conserved properties with other ciliated tissues and its superior accessibility for non-invasive imaging. We revealed that cilia are synchronized only locally and that the size of local synchronization domains increases with the viscosity of the surrounding medium. Even though synchronization is local only, we observed global patterns of traveling metachronal waves across the zebrafish multiciliated epithelium. Intriguingly, these global wave direction patterns are conserved across individual fish, but different for left and right noses, unveiling a chiral asymmetry of metachronal coordination. To understand the implications of synchronization for fluid pumping, we used a computational model of a regular array of cilia. We found that local metachronal synchronization prevents steric collisions, i.e., cilia colliding with each other, and improves fluid pumping in dense cilia carpets, but hardly affects the direction of fluid flow. In conclusion, we show that local synchronization together with tissue-scale cilia alignment coincide and generate metachronal wave patterns in multiciliated epithelia, which enhance their physiological function of fluid pumping. Y1 - 2023 U6 - https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.77701 SN - 2050-084X VL - 12 PB - eLife Sciences Publications ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Luft, Angela A1 - Bremen, Sebastian A1 - Luft, Nils T1 - A cost/benefit and flexibility evaluation framework for additive technologies in strategic factory planning JF - Processes N2 - There is a growing demand for more flexibility in manufacturing to counter the volatility and unpredictability of the markets and provide more individualization for customers. However, the design and implementation of flexibility within manufacturing systems are costly and only economically viable if applicable to actual demand fluctuations. To this end, companies are considering additive manufacturing (AM) to make production more flexible. This paper develops a conceptual model for the impact quantification of AM on volume and mix flexibility within production systems in the early stages of the factory-planning process. Together with the model, an application guideline is presented to help planners with the flexibility quantification and the factory design process. Following the development of the model and guideline, a case study is presented to indicate the potential impact additive technologies can have on manufacturing flexibility Within the case study, various scenarios with different production system configurations and production programs are analyzed, and the impact of the additive technologies on volume and mix flexibility is calculated. This work will allow factory planners to determine the potential impacts of AM on manufacturing flexibility in an early planning stage and design their production systems accordingly. KW - additive manufacturing KW - factory planning KW - manufacturing flexibility KW - volume flexibility KW - mix flexibility Y1 - 2023 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3390/pr11071968 SN - 2227-9717 VL - 11 IS - 7 PB - MDPI CY - Basel ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hoffstadt, Kevin A1 - Cheenakula, Dheeraja A1 - Nikolausz, Marcell A1 - Krafft, Simone A1 - Harms, Hauke A1 - Kuperjans, Isabel T1 - Design and construction of a new reactor for flexible biomethanation of hydrogen JF - Fermentation N2 - The increasing share of renewable electricity in the grid drives the need for sufficient storage capacity. Especially for seasonal storage, power-to-gas can be a promising approach. Biologically produced methane from hydrogen produced from surplus electricity can be used to substitute natural gas in the existing infrastructure. Current reactor types are not or are poorly optimized for flexible methanation. Therefore, this work proposes a new reactor type with a plug flow reactor (PFR) design. Simulations in COMSOL Multiphysics ® showed promising properties for operation in laminar flow. An experiment was conducted to support the simulation results and to determine the gas fraction of the novel reactor, which was measured to be 29%. Based on these simulations and experimental results, the reactor was constructed as a 14 m long, 50 mm diameter tube with a meandering orientation. Data processing was established, and a step experiment was performed. In addition, a kLa of 1 h−1 was determined. The results revealed that the experimental outcomes of the type of flow and gas fractions are in line with the theoretical simulation. The new design shows promising properties for flexible methanation and will be tested. KW - methanation KW - plug flow reactor KW - bubble column KW - bio-methane KW - power-to-gas Y1 - 2023 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation9080774 SN - 2311-5637 N1 - The article belongs to the Special Issue Fermentation Processes: Modeling, Optimization and Control VL - 9 IS - 8 SP - 1 EP - 16 PB - MDPI CY - Basel ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Berg-Postweiler, Julia A1 - Steuer-Dankert, Linda A1 - Leicht-Scholten, Carmen T1 - One size does not fit all: Applying antibias trainings in academia JF - The International Journal of Organizational Diversity N2 - Antibias training is increasingly demanded and practiced in academia and industry to increase employees’ sensitivity to discrimination, racism, and diversity. Under the heading of “Diversity Management,” antibias trainings are mainly offered as one-off workshops intending to raise awareness of unconscious biases, create a diversity-affirming corporate culture, promote awareness of the potential of diversity, and ultimately enable the reflection of diversity in development processes. However, coming from childhood education, research and scientific articles on the sustainable effectiveness of antibias in adulthood, especially in academia, are very scarce. In order to fill this research gap, the article aims to explore how sustainable the effects of individual antibias trainings on participants’ behavior are. In order to investigate this, participant observation in a qualitative pre–post setting was conducted, analyzing antibias training in an academic context. Two observers actively participated in the training sessions and documented the activities and reflection processes of the participants. Overall, the results question the effectiveness of single antibias trainings and show that a target-group adaptive approach is mandatory owing to the background of the approach in early childhood education. Therefore, antibias work needs to be adapted to the target group’s needs and realities of life. Furthermore, the study reveals that single antibias trainings must be embedded in a holistic diversity management approach to stimulate sustainable reflection processes among the target group. This article is one of the first to scientifically evaluate antibias training effectiveness, especially in engineering sciences and the university context. KW - Antibias KW - Diversity Management KW - Organizational Culture KW - Engineering Habitus Y1 - 2023 U6 - https://doi.org/10.18848/2328-6261/CGP/v24i01/1-23 SN - 2328-6261 (Print) SN - 2328-6229 (Online) VL - 24 IS - 1 SP - 1 EP - 23 PB - Common Ground Research Networks ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Haeger, Gerrit A1 - Grankin, Alina A1 - Wagner, Michaela T1 - Construction of an Aspergillus oryzae triple amylase deletion mutant as a chassis to evaluate industrially relevant amylases using multiplex CRISPR/Cas9 editing technology JF - Applied Research N2 - Aspergillus oryzae is an industrially relevant organism for the secretory production of heterologous enzymes, especially amylases. The activities of potential heterologous amylases, however, cannot be quantified directly from the supernatant due to the high background activity of native α-amylase. This activity is caused by the gene products of amyA, amyB, and amyC. In this study, an in vitro CRISPR/Cas9 system was established in A. oryzae to delete these genes simultaneously. First, pyrG of A. oryzae NSAR1 was mutated by exploiting NHEJ to generate a counter-selection marker. Next, all amylase genes were deleted simultaneously by co-transforming a repair template carrying pyrG of Aspergillus nidulans and flanking sequences of amylase gene loci. The rate of obtained triple knock-outs was 47%. We showed that triple knockouts do not retain any amylase activity in the supernatant. The established in vitro CRISPR/Cas9 system was used to achieve sequence-specific knock-in of target genes. The system was intended to incorporate a single copy of the gene of interest into the desired host for the development of screening methods. Therefore, an integration cassette for the heterologous Fpi amylase was designed to specifically target the amyB locus. The site-specific integration rate of the plasmid was 78%, with exceptional additional integrations. Integration frequency was assessed via qPCR and directly correlated with heterologous amylase activity. Hence, we could compare the efficiency between two different signal peptides. In summary, we present a strategy to exploit CRISPR/Cas9 for gene mutation, multiplex knock-out, and the targeted knock-in of an expression cassette in A. oryzae. Our system provides straightforward strain engineering and paves the way for development of fungal screening systems. KW - aspergillus KW - CRISPR/Cas9 KW - filamentous fungi KW - genome engineering Y1 - 2023 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/appl.202200106 SN - 2702-4288 IS - Early View SP - 1 EP - 15 PB - Wiley-VCH ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Pfaff, Raphael T1 - Braking distance prediction for vehicle consist in low-speed on-sight operation: a Monte Carlo approach JF - Railway Engineering Science N2 - The first and last mile of a railway journey, in both freight and transit applications, constitutes a high effort and is either non-productive (e.g. in the case of depot operations) or highly inefficient (e.g. in industrial railways). These parts are typically managed on-sight, i.e. with no signalling and train protection systems ensuring the freedom of movement. This is possible due to the rather short braking distances of individual vehicles and shunting consists. The present article analyses the braking behaviour of such shunting units. For this purpose, a dedicated model is developed. It is calibrated on published results of brake tests and validated against a high-definition model for low-speed applications. Based on this model, multiple simulations are executed to obtain a Monte Carlo simulation of the resulting braking distances. Based on the distribution properties and established safety levels, the risk of exceeding certain braking distances is evaluated and maximum braking distances are derived. Together with certain parameters of the system, these can serve in the design and safety assessment of driver assistance systems and automation of these processes. KW - Freight rail KW - Shunting KW - Braking curves KW - Brake set-up KW - Driver assistance system Y1 - 2023 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s40534-023-00303-7 SN - 2662-4753 (eISSN) SN - 2662-4745 (Print) VL - 31 IS - 2 SP - 135 EP - 144 PB - SpringerOpen ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Dellmann, Sophia Florence A1 - Glorius, J. A1 - Litvinov, Yu A. A1 - Reifarth, R. A1 - Al-Khasawneh, Kafa A1 - Aliotta, M. A1 - Bott, L. A1 - Brückner, Benjamin A1 - Bruno, C. G. A1 - Chen, Ruijiu A1 - Davinson, T. A1 - Dickel, T. A1 - Dillmann, Iris A1 - Dmytriev, D. A1 - Erbacher, P. A1 - Freire-Fernández, D. A1 - Forstner, Oliver A1 - Geissel, H. A1 - Göbel, K. A1 - Griffin, Christopher J. A1 - Grisenti, R. A1 - Gumberidze, Alexandre A1 - Haettner, Emma A1 - Hagmann, Siegbert A1 - Heil, M. A1 - Heß, R. A1 - Hillenbrand, P.-M. A1 - Joseph, R. A1 - Jurado, B. A1 - Kozhuharov, Christophor A1 - Kulikov, I. A1 - Löher, Bastian A1 - Langer, Christoph A1 - Leckenby, Guy A1 - Lederer-Woods, C. A1 - Lestinsky, M. A1 - Litvinov, S. A. A1 - Lorenz, B. A. A1 - Lorenz, E. A1 - Marsh, J. A1 - Menz, Esther Babette A1 - Morgenroth, T. A1 - Petridis, N. A1 - Pibernat, Jerome A1 - Popp, U. A1 - Psaltis, Athanasios A1 - Sanjari, Shahab A1 - Scheidenberger, C. A1 - Sguazzin, M. A1 - Sidhu, Ragandeep Singh A1 - Spillmann, Uwe A1 - Steck, M. A1 - Stöhlker, T. A1 - Surzhykov, A. A1 - Swartz, J. A. A1 - Törnqvist, H. A1 - Varga, L. A1 - Vescovi, Diego A1 - Weick, H. A1 - Weigand, M. A1 - Woods, P. A1 - Xing, Y. A1 - Yamaguchi, Taiyo T1 - Proton capture on stored radioactive ¹¹⁸Te ions JF - EPJ Web of Conferences N2 - Experimental determination of the cross sections of proton capture on radioactive nuclei is extremely difficult. Therefore, it is of substantial interest for the understanding of the production of the p-nuclei. For the first time, a direct measurement of proton-capture cross sections on stored, radioactive ions became possible in an energy range of interest for nuclear astrophysics. The experiment was performed at the Experimental Storage Ring (ESR) at GSI by making use of a sensitive method to measure (p,γ) and (p,n) reactions in inverse kinematics. These reaction channels are of high relevance for the nucleosyn-thesis processes in supernovae, which are among the most violent explosions in the universe and are not yet well understood. The cross section of the ¹¹⁸Te(p,γ) reaction has been measured at energies of 6 MeV/u and 7 MeV/u. The heavy ions interacted with a hydrogen gas jet target. The radiative recombination process of the fully stripped ¹¹⁸Te ions and electrons from the hydrogen target was used as a luminosity monitor. An overview of the experimental method and preliminary results from the ongoing analysis will be presented. Y1 - 2023 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/epjconf/202327911018 SN - 2100-014X N1 - Volume 279, 2023. Nuclear Physics in Astrophysics – X (NPA-X 2022). VL - 279 IS - Article Number: 11018 SP - 1 EP - 5 PB - EDP Sciences ER -