[en] In order to increase tacking quality and production efficiency, CANDU-6 fuel sheath automatic tacking system is researched by CNNFC. This system consists of one robot, two tackers, loading and unloading sheath equipment and control system, which achieve loading sheath, bearing pad welding, transferring, spacer welding and unloading sheath automatic action. The following are introduced in this paper: developed an integration technology which consists of robot, loading and unloading sheath equipment and founded a set of automatic production line. Designed the loading and unloading sheath equipment and the robot gripper. Hardware system has been found reasonably, and run smoothly. A set of software system has been formed, whose program logic is reasonable and HMI is friendly. (authors)

[en] Water resources management has been more significant than ever since the official file stipulated ‘three red lines’ to scrupulously control water usage and water pollution, accelerating the promotion of ‘River Chief Policy’ throughout China. The policy launches creative approaches to include people from different administrative levels to participate and distributes power to increase drainage basin management efficiency. Its execution resembles features of distributed leadership theory, a vastly acknowledged western leadership theory with innovative perspective and visions to suit the modern world. This paper intends to analyse the policy from a distributed leadership perspective using Taylor’s critical policy analysis framework. (paper)

[en] This paper studied the optimization of online and offline ET signal processing procedure in oxide layer measurement of fuel rods by utilization of median, interquartile range and on-site inspection experience. Online verification by the calibration signal combined with the oxide layer prediction curve are proposed to assess the effectiveness of the acquisition signal. By this way, the problem of handling fuel assembly frequently can be improved. In addition, it is found that the median statistics can avoid the interference of extreme signal compared with average statistics. And most of the average interquartile range of divided 150 mm parts of three fuel rods is between 0 ∼ 3 μm. The results indicate that the oxide layer thickness level of each part can be represented well by the median. (authors)

[en] As an efficient, safe and clean energy, nuclear energy has already brought us enormous profits. However, the high-level radwaste produced, meanwhile, give birth to potential threatens to man and his environment. It's a world-wide perplexing problem how to dispose these radwastes in a safe, efficient and economical way and how to evaluate the safety and reliability of the disposal system in a time scale of 10 thousand years or longer. Study on the behaviors and intrinsic rules of radioactive nuclide migration are very important to the safety of high-level radwaste disposal. Natural and artificial analogies are considered to be valuable approaches for their high similarity to the actual state of radwaste repository. In this paper, the importance of analogy study on nuclide migration for the long-term safety and feasibility of radwaste repository is discussed, and early studies on nuclide migration in groundwater at the nuclear test site of China are briefly summarized. (authors)

[en] TRPM7, a non-selective cation channel of the TRP channel superfamily, is implicated in diverse physiological and pathological processes including cell proliferation. Recently, TRPM7 has been reported in hepatic stellate cells (HSCs). Here, we investigated the contribution role of TRPM7 in activated HSC-T6 cell (a rat hepatic stellate cell line) proliferation. TRPM7 mRNA and protein were measured by RT-PCR and Western blot in rat model of liver fibrosis in vivo and PDGF-BB-activated HSC-T6 cells in vitro. Both mRNA and protein of TRPM7 were dramatically increased in CCl₄-treated rat livers. Stimulation of HSC-T6 cells with PDGF-BB resulted in a time-dependent increase of TRPM7 mRNA and protein. However, PDGF-BB-induced HSC-T6 cell proliferation was inhibited by non-specific TRPM7 blocker 2-aminoethoxydiphenyl borate (2-APB) or synthetic siRNA targeting TRPM7, and this was accompanied by downregulation of cell cycle proteins, cyclin D1, PCNA and CDK4. Blockade of TRPM7 channels also attenuated PDGF-BB induced expression of myofibroblast markers as measured by the induction of α-SMA and Col1α1. Furthermore, the phosphorylation of ERK and AKT, associated with cell proliferation, decreased in TRPM7 deficient HSC-T6 cells. These observations suggested that TRPM7 channels contribute to perpetuated fibroblast activation and proliferation of PDGF-BB induced HSC-T6 cells via the activation of ERK and PI3K pathways. Therefore, TRPM7 may constitute a useful target for the treatment of liver fibrosis. - Highlights: • Upregulation of TRPM7 mRNA and protein in the fibrotic livers from CCl₄-treated rats. • Increasing expression of TRPM7 mRNA and protein during HSC activation. • Blockade of TRPM7 inhibited the PDGF-BB induced proliferation of HSC-T6 cells. • Blockade of TRPM7 decreased α-SMA and Col1α1 expressions in activated HSC-T6 cells. • TRPM7 up-regulation contributes to the activation of ERK and AKT pathways

[en] A survey of more than 6000 participants from four distinct non-polluted and polluted regions in China was conducted to evaluate the body burden of cadmium (Cd) on the Chinese populations using urinary Cd (UCd) as a biomarker. The findings revealed that the UCd level was 1.24 μg/g creatinine (μg/g cr) for the sample population from non-polluted Shanghai, and the UCd levels exceeded 5 μg/g cr, which is the health-based exposure limit set by the World Health Organization (WHO), in 1.1% of people. The mean UCd levels in moderately polluted (Hubei and Liaoning) and highly polluted areas (Guizhou) were 4.69 μg/g cr, 3.62 μg/g cr and 6.08 μg/g cr, respectively, and these levels were 2.9 to 4.9 times the levels observed in Shanghai. Notably, the UCd levels exceeded the recently updated human biomonitoring II values (i.e., intervention or “action level”) in 44.8%–87.9% of people from these areas compared to only 5.1%–21.4% of people in Shanghai. The corresponding prevalence of elevated UCd levels (> WHO threshold, 5 μg/g cr) was also significantly higher (30.7% to 63.8% vs. 1.1%), which indicates that elevated Cd-induced health risks to residents in these areas. Age and region were significant determinants for UCd levels in a population, whereas gender did not significantly influence UCd. - Highlights: • We performed a Cd exposure survey that involved more than 6000 Chinese subjects. • The body burden of Cd in most of subjects of non-polluted Shanghai is relatively safe. • The UCd levels were much higher in the subjects from polluted areas than from Shanghai. • The UCd levels in the population from Guizhou substantially exceeded the safety limit. • Age and region were significant determinants of UCd

[en] Radionuclide station is the components of International Monitoring System (IMS). Station data quality is the assessment of the station operation and CTBT surveillance ability. Based on the IMS operation manual, the definition and realization of Station Performance Indicator (SPI), one of the indicators in evaluating station quality, is stated. Based on the NDC radionuclide data processing system, an SPI calculating and statistical program is realized, the quality of three IMS station located in China territory in a given time is evaluated. (authors)

[en] We demonstrated a new kind of dual-wavelength mid-infrared optical parametric oscillator (OPO), synchronously pumped by two independent fiber lasers, which were combined in parallel by a wavelength division multiplexer and had central wavelengths located at 1018 nm and 1064 nm separately. With reasonable cavity design and under the maximum pump power of 55.5 W, two idler emissions fixed at 3200 nm and 3704 nm were obtained and the total idler output power reached 2.6 W, indicating a 4.7% pump-to-idler conversion efficiency. Just one signal beam was observed in the experiment, which was around 1493 nm. It was analyzed that two OPO processes existed in the resonant cavity and shared the same signal beam, both which simultaneously met the phase-matching conditions. (paper)

[en] The safety problems related to the occurrence of benzo(a)pyrene in edible oil have been a major threat to human health, and now significant attention has been to remove benzo(a)pyrene. So in this work, cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin biochars were prepared, and then were used to remove benzo(a)pyrene from contaminated oil. Based on the nitrogen adsorption/desorption isotherms and the scanning election micrographs, the modified biochars had a huge specific surface area of 983.50-1915.55 m² /g and a well-developed porous structure. The modified biochars showed higher removal rate for benzo(a)pyrene than unmodified biochars. The highest adsorption (95.79%) of benzo(a)pyrene was achieved using the modified lignin biochar, which was therefore selected for evaluation of adsorptive capacity. The ability of the modified lignin biochar to adsorb benzo(a)pyrene was consistent with the pseudo-second order kinetic equation indicating mainly chemisorption, and it fit the Freundlich isotherm (R² > 0.999), thereby revealing the occurrence of multilayer adsorption. The effect of π-π conjugation interaction and pore-filling together promoted the high adsorption performance of the modified lignin biochar. This work demonstrates that the modified lignin biochar could be a promising adsorbent for the removal of benzo(a)pyrene from edible oils. Practical Application: The effect of ZnCl₂ -modified biochars from cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin obtained from sesame straw on benzo(a)pyrene removal from edible oil was investigated. The removal process, mechanism of benzo(a)pyrene on the biochar was studied. This study provides a promising adsorbent for the removal of benzo(a)pyrene from edible oils. (author)

[en] A microwave-assisted acid pretreatment (MAP) strategy has been developed to enhance hydrogen production via thermophilic fermentation of corn stover. Pretreatment of corn stover by combining microwave irradiation and acidification resulted in the increased release of soluble substances and made the corn stover more accessible to microorganisms when compared to thermal acid pretreatment (TAP). MAP showed obvious advantages in short duration and high efficiency of lignocellulosic hydrolysis. Analysis of the particle size and specific surface area of corn stover as well as observation of its cellular microstructure were used to elucidate the enhancement mechanism of the hydrolysis process by microwave assistance. The cumulative hydrogen volume reached 182.2 ml when corn stover was pretreated by MAP with 0.3 N H₂SO₄ for 45 min, and the corresponding hydrogen yield reached 1.53 mol H₂/mol-glucose equivalents converted to organic end products. The present work demonstrates that MAP has potential to enhance the bioconversion efficiency of lignocellulosic waste to renewable biofuel. (author)