Search Results (79)

Deep mining operations in metal mines face escalating challenges from high in situ stress environments, where conventional single-method ground control approaches often prove insufficient. This study proposes an innovative combined protection technology integrating four synergistic components: (i) prestressed rock bolt and plate support for immediate roadway reinforcement, (ii) hydraulic fracturing-based shielding to create fracture zones isolating the orebody from surrounding high-stress regimes, (iii) destress blasting at the orebody crown to form a stress-transfer barrier, and (iv) subsequent cemented paste backfill to provide long-term regional stability. Theoretical formulations are derived for each component: a bolt–rock composite bearing model quantifies the confinement provided by prestressed support; a fracture mechanics-based model characterizes the stress-shielding efficiency of hydraulic fracture networks; controlled blasting theory predicts the stress redistribution achieved through crown destressing; and a backfill arching model evaluates the long-term load-bearing capacity of cemented paste fill. A three-dimensional FLAC3D numerical model was established to simulate six working conditions: no protection, support-only, shield-only, pressure relief-only, backfilling-only, and the integrated four-component system combining support, shield, pressure relief and backfilling. The numerical results reveal that the integrated composite protection system reduces roadway subsidence by 86%. Furthermore, the synergistic effect among all components exceeds the sum of individual contributions, which verifies the necessity of adopting the comprehensive protection strategy under deep high in situ stress conditions. The research findings provide theoretical basis and engineering design references for safe and efficient mining in deep metal mines. Full article

Background and Objectives: Acute rhinosinusitis is associated with a substantial deterioration in quality of life, including symptoms such as nasal obstruction, facial pressure, cough, and sleep disruption. Growing interest in non-pharmacological management strategies has been observed, particularly among populations in whom systemic treatments may be limited, such as pediatric patients and pregnant individuals. NESOSPRAY HE-G is a nasal device containing a filmogenic glycerol formulation designed to create a protective barrier and induce an osmotic effect, thereby promoting nasal decongestion and mucosal protection. Materials and Methods: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study was conducted to assess the performance and safety of NESOSPRAY HE-G (n = 20) compared with a saline comparator (n = 20) in patients aged 3 years and older presenting with acute rhinosinusitis and a baseline Rhino-Sinusitis Severity Score (RSSS) of at least 25/50. The investigational product was administered as three sprays per nostril, four times daily, over a maximum period of 15 days or until symptom resolution. Efficacy was primarily evaluated through changes in the total RSSS and in key symptoms, including nasal congestion, facial pain, cough, sleep disturbance, and fever. Safety assessments included monitoring adverse events (AE) and evaluating local tolerability. Results: Baseline characteristics were comparable between groups. Treatment with NESOSPRAY HE-G resulted in a statistically significant reduction in total RSSS from Day 2 onwards, with sustained effects throughout the study period. Improvements were also observed across individual symptoms, including early relief of nasal congestion and reductions in cough and facial pain, with faster onset compared to the comparator. Sleep quality showed progressive improvement. Resolution of fever occurred in both groups, with an earlier effect observed in the NESOSPRAY HE-G arm. No serious adverse events (SAE) or hypersensitivity reactions were reported. The product demonstrated good tolerability. Conclusions: NESOSPRAY HE-G provides rapid and sustained alleviation of symptoms associated with acute rhinosinusitis. Its topical mode of action, based on osmotic activity and barrier formation, represents a suitable non-pharmacological option, particularly for patients seeking alternatives to systemic therapies or presenting contraindications to such treatments. Full article

Improving the flood adaptability of urban waterfront spaces is an essential entry point for enhancing regional stormwater regulation capacity, scientifically preventing flood disasters, and stabilizing urban water security. Existing flood adaptability assessments mostly rely on single weighting methods and individual evaluation models, inevitably causing systematic bias and low result robustness. Against this limitation, this study integrates remote sensing intelligent interpretation, spatiotemporal landscape pattern analysis, and multi-criteria decision theory to construct a comprehensive flood adaptability evaluation system under the pressure–state–response (PSR) framework. Innovatively, a game-theoretic combined weighting scheme integrating the entropy weight method, CRITIC method, and standard deviation method is proposed, and three complementary models including TOPSIS, VIKOR, and EDAS are coupled for cross-verification evaluation, which effectively improves the objectivity and robustness of spatial flood adaptability quantification. Taking Anqing City as a typical case, this study adopts Sentinel-2 time-series remote sensing images from 2016 to 2023 and applies an optimized random forest algorithm to automatically classify land cover. Five underlying surface types, including water bodies, vegetation, farmland, built-up areas, and bare land, are accurately extracted with an overall classification accuracy of around 90% for most years. Core landscape metrics such as Shannon’s diversity index and patch density are selected to systematically analyze the spatiotemporal differentiation characteristics of waterfront landscape patterns during the study period. The results indicate the obvious spatial heterogeneity of flood adaptability in Anqing City. Yingjiang District and Yuexi County present high comprehensive flood adaptability, while Wangjiang County and Huaining County show relatively low performance. Urban areas gain strong flood resistance from complete disaster prevention infrastructures and economic resilience; mountainous areas possess natural advantages in flood retention and drainage due to high vegetation coverage and topographic relief; by contrast, plain districts are severely restricted by low-lying terrain and insufficient drainage systems, resulting in prominent flood vulnerability. The proposed method is helpful for providing reliable scientific support for waterfront landscape optimization, zoned flood disaster management, and resilient water space planning in riverine cities. Full article

High-pressure ethylene relief is a key safety issue in low-density polyethylene production, where ethylene is typically handled under dense real-fluid conditions. Conventional ideal-gas relief equations may lead to significant errors because thermodynamic properties vary strongly with pressure and temperature. In this study, a real-fluid isentropic relief model was developed using thermodynamic properties obtained from the Reference Fluid Thermodynamic and Transport Properties Database (REFPROP). The critical mass flux was determined by searching for the maximum value along the isentropic expansion path, and the equivalence between the maximum-mass-flux condition and the sonic condition was examined. Four industrial relief cases were compared with proprietary design-calculation outputs. The real-fluid model predicted mass flow rates with deviations of −9.9%, −9.1%, −2.3%, and −1.0%, whereas the ideal-gas model produced larger underpredictions, particularly under ultra-high-pressure conditions. The effects of upstream pressure and temperature on critical mass flux, depressurization paths, speed of sound, and critical pressure ratio were analyzed. A response-surface correlation based on 95 calculated states was developed for preliminary estimation, with all deviations within ±10% over the fitted domain. These results demonstrate the importance of accounting for real-fluid thermodynamics when evaluating high-pressure ethylene relief capacity. Full article

Pressure relief valves (PRVs) are key safety components in power transformers, and their discharge performance directly influences pressure mitigation during internal fault events. This study presents a density-based topology optimization approach to improve the internal flow passage of a transformer PRV. Optimization is carried out within a predefined design domain while preserving the original external geometry and functional constraints of the valve. Pressure drop is defined as the objective function, and the Brinkman penalization method is used to model the fluid–solid transition during the optimization process. Based on the optimized topology, a reconstructed valve configuration is developed and evaluated using transient computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. The transient inlet pressure boundary condition is obtained from a 6 MJ transformer arcing experiment to ensure realistic operating conditions. The hydraulic performance of the baseline and optimized designs is compared in terms of cumulative discharged volume, pressure field evolution, velocity distribution, and turbulent kinetic energy. The results indicate that the optimized flow passage reduces internal flow resistance and improves flow organization within the valve chamber under transient conditions. Over a 19 ms discharge period, the cumulative discharged volume increases from 13.219 L to 13.601 L, corresponding to an improvement of approximately 3%. These findings demonstrate that topology optimization can effectively enhance the transient discharge performance of transformer PRVs and provide a basis for improving internal flow design in similar hydraulic safety devices. Full article

Maropitant has been proposed as an adjunct for pain relief in dogs undergoing surgeries like ovariohysterectomy (OVH), but its effectiveness has not yet been definitively proven. This study aimed to assess the intraoperative analgesic effect of intravenously administered maropitant citrate at a constant rate infusion through monitoring parasympathetic tone activity in female dogs undergoing OVH. Thirty healthy females of various breeds, with an average age of 3.8 ± 2.7 years, an average weight of 16.75 ± 10.68 kg, were randomly assigned to two treatment groups. The group receiving maropitant (G_Maro, n = 15) was given a 1 mg kg⁻¹ maropitant bolus intravenously (IV), followed by a continuous infusion of 100 mcg kg⁻¹ min⁻¹. The lidocaine group (G_Lido, n = 15) received a 2 mg/kg lidocaine IV bolus, with subsequent infusion at 50 mcg kg⁻¹ min⁻¹. Cardiorespiratory variables and the PTA index were evaluated at 11 anesthetic time points. Overall, cardiovascular variables such as Heart Rate (HR) and systolic arterial pressure (SAP) significantly decreased during anesthesia induction in the G_Maro (p = 0.0001; p = 0.01, respectively) and in G_Lido (p = 0.01). Differences between groups during induction were observed in HR (p = 0.03), SAP (p = 0.04), and mean arterial pressure (MAP) (p = 0.03). MAP showed significant changes from baseline at the start of surgery and during clamping in both G_Maro (p = 0.03) and G_Lido (p = 0.003). Regarding ventilatory variables—pulse oximetry (SpO₂), respiratory rate (RR), inspired oxygen fraction (FiO₂), end-tidal CO₂ (EtCO₂)—no group differences were found, but RR (G_Maro; p = 0.001, G_Lido; p = 0.0001) and SpO₂ (G_Maro; p = 0.004, G_Lido; p = 0.04) differed significantly from baseline due to the controlled clinical setting. During anesthesia maintenance, end-tidal isoflurane (ET_Iso) increased significantly in the G_Lido (p = 0.009), with no difference between groups (p = 0.94). Finally, only the PTA energy variable showed a significant decrease in the G_Maro (p = 0.0006), and a significant difference in this parameter was observed during right ovarian pedicle manipulation between groups (p = 0.02). In conclusion, continuous intravenous infusion of maropitant citrate at 100 mcg kg⁻¹ h⁻¹ effectively reduced the sympathetic response related to nociception, similar to lidocaine, in healthy female dogs undergoing OVH. Full article

Leakage identification in district heating networks is challenging because leakage-induced transient pressure waves often overlap with pressure disturbances triggered by routine operations such as valve regulation, pump speed variation, and emergency shut-off. In addition, the scarcity of high-quality labeled leakage samples limits the robustness of data-driven models under small-sample conditions. To address these issues, this study proposes a compact and moderately interpretable framework for multi-condition identification from transient pressure-wave signals, integrating signal preprocessing, handcrafted statistical feature extraction, multiclass ReliefF-based feature selection, and class-wise generative adversarial network augmentation in the selected feature space. A dataset containing four representative conditions, namely leakage, valve regulation, pump speed regulation, and emergency valve shut-off, was constructed using an integrated indoor district heating network testbed. After Hampel-based spike suppression and zero-phase Butterworth band-pass filtering within 0.5 to 300 Hz, time- and frequency-domain statistical features were extracted, and a compact subset was selected by multiclass ReliefF. A class-wise generative adversarial network was then used to augment the training set in feature space, while all evaluations were performed strictly on real samples. The results show that feature-space augmentation improves robustness and generalization under operational disturbances and noise. Using random forest as the representative classifier, Accuracy and Macro-F1 increased from 0.960 to 0.985, while leakage recall improved from 0.920 to 0.980. Further comparisons confirmed that the ReliefF-selected subset outperformed representative alternatives such as LASSO and mRMR. Overall, the proposed framework provides an effective solution for distinguishing leakage events from operational disturbances and offers practical support for online monitoring and intelligent operation of district heating networks. Full article

Purpose: To evaluate the safety, technical feasibility, and clinical outcomes of a strict two-step protocol—CT/fluoroscopic-guided thermal ablation followed by Balloon-Assisted Acetabuloplasty (BAA)—for the treatment of painful acetabular metastases, utilized as an immediate mechanical stabilization bridge prior to radiotherapy. Materials and Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on 16 consecutive patients treated for severe mechanical pain (VAS ≥ 6) and impaired mobility due to osteolytic acetabular metastases. The physiological rationale mandated a strict procedural sequence: (1) preliminary thermal devitalization using radiofrequency or microwave ablation to reduce tumor pressure and vascularity, followed subsequently by (2) balloon-assisted cavity compaction and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) cement injection. Clinical outcomes included VAS for pain and the Functional Mobility Scale (FMS) assessed before treatment and up to 6 months post-procedure. Results: Technical success was 100% with a mean procedural time of 58 ± 14 min. No major complications occurred. At a mean follow-up of 8.2 months, all 16 patients were alive. The procedure yielded dramatic acute pain relief: mean baseline VAS dropped from 7.4 ± 0.8 to 2.3 ± 1.0 at 1 week, and to 0.9 ± 0.9 at 1 month (p < 0.001), remaining stable at 6 months. Functional mobility was rapidly restored, with mean FMS improving from 2.9 ± 0.7 pre-procedure to 1.1 ± 0.3 at 1 month (p < 0.001), allowing independent ambulation in 87.5% of patients. Conclusion: The strict “ablation-first” BAA strategy is safe and highly effective. It abolishes load-bearing pain and restores biomechanical stability immediately, allowing previously immobilized patients to rapidly regain independent ambulation and seamlessly transition to necessary consolidative radiotherapy. Full article

Background: Optimizing pain control and anesthesia stability is essential for surgical outcomes in dogs. This study evaluated the effects of preoperative tapentadol on anesthesia depth, recovery, and serotonin levels in dogs undergoing elective spaying. Methods: Sixty-six healthy female dogs were randomly assigned to three groups: standard pain relief, tapentadol alone, or tapentadol combined with standard pain relief. Anesthesia was induced with propofol and maintained with sevoflurane. Intraoperative heart rate, blood pressure, anesthetic depth, postoperative sedation, pain scores, and plasma serotonin concentrations were recorded. Results: Tapentadol-treated dogs showed deeper and more stable anesthesia during surgical stimulation, higher early postoperative sedation that resolved within two hours, and reduced postoperative serotonin levels compared with controls. All analgesic protocols maintained adequate pain control, and biochemical parameters remained within normal limits. Conclusions: Preoperative tapentadol enhances anesthetic stability, supports smoother early recovery, and modulates serotonin levels in dogs, suggesting benefits for perioperative pain management and overall surgical welfare. Full article

Ixora chinensis Lam. has traditionally been used to treat conditions such as acne, high blood pressure, bleeding, tuberculosis, and rheumatism. This study aimed to investigate the methanolic extract of I. chinensis leaves to determine their bioactive compounds and evaluate their effects on both central and peripheral pain using in vivo and in silico approaches. The GC-MS analysis revealed 41 phytochemicals, including 14 phenolics, 4 esters, 12 terpenoids, 8 alkaloids, and 3 sulfur-containing compounds. In the glucose tolerance test, both the chloroform-soluble fraction (CF) and n-hexane fraction (NHF) exhibited p < 0.05 reductions in blood glucose levels at a dosage of 400 mg/kg with decreases of 51.94% and 46.63%, respectively, compared to the positive control (64.02%). The central analgesic evaluation showed significant (p < 0.001) enhancements in tail-flick latency for the fraction (184.94%) and CF (170.51%) following 90 min. In the pain relief assay, NHF showed inhibition (64.33%, p < 0.001) followed by an aqueous fraction (57.35%). These pharmacological findings were supported by in silico analysis. Concerning activity, 5-(dimethylamino)-1- acid phenyl ester (−8.9 kcal/mol) and 9,9-dimethyl-9H-fluoren-3-ol (−8.4 kcal/mol) displayed the strongest binding affinity to AMPK. Additionally, 2,3-diphenyl-2-cyclopropen-1-one exhibited favorable interactions with α-amylase (−8.0 kcal/mol) and α-glucosidase (−8.3 kcal/mol). Similarly, the central analgesic effect correlated with the strong μ-opioid receptor affinity of s-Triazine, 2-amino-4-(piperidinomethyl)-4-piperidino (−8.8 kcal/mol). N-Methyl-N-(4-toluenesulfonyl)-benzamide (−8.6 kcal/mol) and s-Triazine derivative (−8.9 kcal/mol) demonstrated notable COX-1 and COX-2 inhibition potential. Overall, the findings indicate I. chinensis leaves as a promising source of bioactive compounds with significant antihyperglycemic and analgesic properties. Full article

Background: Acute primary angle closure (APAC) is an ophthalmic emergency characterized by abrupt elevation of intraocular pressure (IOP) and severe ocular pain and headache. While acute management prioritizes IOP reduction, supportive analgesic strategies during the preoperative waiting period in medically refractory cases remain insufficiently studied. We evaluated short-term changes in the pain intensity and safety of adjunctive greater occipital nerve block (GONB) in medically refractory APAC. Methods: This retrospective observational study included 34 patients with medically refractory APAC who received GONB during the preoperative waiting period. Headache intensity was measured using an 11-point Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) at baseline, 30 min, and 60 min. Longitudinal changes were analyzed using a linear mixed-effects model. Responder analyses were reported with 95% confidence intervals (Wilson method). No multivariable modeling or NNT estimation was performed in the revised analysis. Results: Baseline NRS was 7.8 ± 1.1, decreasing to 4.1 ± 1.5 at 30 min and 3.6 ± 1.3 at 60 min (both p < 0.001). The mean baseline-to-60 min change was −4.21 (95% CI, −4.88 to −3.54). Clinically meaningful pain relief (≥3-point reduction) at 60 min occurred in 79.4% (95% CI, 63.2–89.7%). In linear mixed-effects modeling, time remained a significant fixed effect (p < 0.001). Conclusions: Adjunctive GONB was associated with a rapid reduction in pain intensity in medically refractory APAC. These findings should be interpreted cautiously, given the uncontrolled design and concurrent treatment. Prospective controlled studies are warranted. Full article

To address the pronounced asymmetric deformation of roadway-surrounding rock under deep multi-dynamic pressure, the N8003 tailgate of the Wuyang Mine was adopted as the engineering background, and the deformation–failure characteristics of the roadway sidewalls and the evolution of deviatoric stress under dynamic loading were analyzed. Based on numerical simulation, the maximum principal deviatoric stress S₁ was employed as the core indicator for evaluating pressure-relief effectiveness, upon which a three–dimensional Pressure Relief Efficiency Index (PREI) considering strength, range, and position was developed. The key parameters of large-diameter hydraulic cavitation pressure–relief boreholes were optimized, and the evolution patterns of deviatoric stress under static and dynamic conditions were further revealed. To overcome the limitations of conventional high-strength bolt–cable combined support in controlling large deformation, a layered support–relief collaborative control technology featuring “external reinforcement fixation (ERF), near-surface modification and grouting (NSMG), and deep targeted destressing (DTD)” was proposed. Field tests demonstrated that this technology can significantly suppress sidewall deformation, maintain support system stability, and exhibit strong adaptability and application potential in deep roadways influenced by multi-dynamic pressure. Full article

Under the combined pressures of dual carbon policy constraints, the integration of intelligent construction technologies, and intensifying market competition, the development of a scientific and robust performance evaluation system has become essential for building construction enterprises seeking to enhance their core competitiveness. Traditional evaluation methods, however, often suffer from incomplete indicator systems and limited capability in addressing high-dimensional and nonlinear problems, rendering them inadequate for the evolving demands of the industry. To address these challenges, this study proposes a performance evaluation model for building construction enterprises based on the least squares support vector machine (LSSVM), optimized by an improved Pied Kingfisher Optimizer (IPKO). Drawing on environment–behavior theory, the model incorporates three environmental and ten behavioral factors. To overcome the limitations of the original PKO algorithm—namely, insufficient exploration capability and weak local search—the exploration phase of PKO is integrated with that of the Marine Predators Algorithm. Empirical results demonstrate that: (1) the proposed IPKO outperforms Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), Whale Optimization Algorithm (WOA), Sparrow Search Algorithm (SSA), Dung Beetle Optimizer (DBO), Ospery Optimization Algorithm (OOA), and the original PKO in most benchmark functions; (2) the ReliefF feature selection algorithm improves the model’s test set accuracy by approximately 2.18%; and (3) the IPKO-LSSVM model achieves 6.53%, 4.16%, and 6.74% higher prediction accuracy than Backpropagation Neural Networks (BPNN), Random Forest (RF), and eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost), respectively. These findings highlight the model’s effectiveness in addressing small-sample, high-dimensional, and nonlinear problems, offering a scientifically sound and practical tool for performance evaluation in building construction enterprises. Full article

Background: Mas-related G-protein-coupled receptor b4 (Mrgprb4)-lineage neurons in the peripheral nervous system are a type of C fibers in hairy skin. Our prior work demonstrated that these neurons respond to both noxious and innocuous mechanical and thermal stimuli. Ablating them eliminates the pleasant sensation elicited by gentle pressure on a mouse’s nape. However, their potential role in mitigating pain and pain-related negative emotions in response to somatic stimuli remains unclear. Methods: A CFA-induced chronic pain and anxiety comorbidity model was established in C57BL/6J mice. In vivo calcium imaging of dorsal root ganglia (DRG) neurons in Mrgprb4-GCaMP6s transgenic mice characterized neuronal responses to transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) at the Zusanli (ST36) acupoint. Optogenetic activation (Mrgprb4-ChR2 mice) and viral ablation of Mrgprb4-lineage neurons were employed to evaluate their role in mediating TENS effects on mechanical pain thresholds and anxiety-like behaviors. Results: In vivo calcium imaging revealed that 0.5 mA TENS preferentially activated Mrgprb4-lineage neurons compared to 2.0 mA TENS. In CFA model mice, 0.5 mA TENS at ST36 significantly increased mechanical pain thresholds and reduced anxiety-like behaviors in the open-field test. Optogenetic activation of Mrgprb4-lineage neurons at ST36 replicated these analgesic and anxiolytic effects, demonstrating the sufficiency of these neurons for therapeutic outcomes. Conversely, viral ablation of L3–L5 Mrgprb4-lineage neurons substantially attenuated the therapeutic effects of 0.5 mA TENS for both pain relief and anxiety reduction, indicating their necessity in mediating TENS efficacy. Conclusions: Mrgprb4-lineage neurons serve as critical peripheral mediators of TENS-induced analgesia and anxiolysis. These findings identify a specific neuronal population underlying the therapeutic effects of somatic stimulation at ST36, providing mechanistic insights that may guide optimization of TENS parameters for treating chronic pain and comorbid anxiety in clinical settings. Full article

Deep underground coal mines are severely threatened by dynamic coal rock disasters such as mine pressure bumps and coal and gas outbursts, and coal seam pressure relief technology is widely recognized as the key measure for mitigating these hazards. To investigate the pressure relief effect of coal seam slot cutting using a diamond beaded wire saw, a combined strategy integrating physical similarity simulation and numerical simulation was applied. The stress distribution characteristics of the coal and rock mass during the wire saw cutting procedure were evaluated, and the influence of beaded wire saw diameter on pressure relief efficiency was further examined. (1) Wire saw cutting can substantially decrease the vertical stress within the coal seam; the average pressure relief rate above the slot can reach as high as 61.70%, and the pressure relief effect is clearly stronger than that below the slot. (2) After slot cutting along the roadway, the fully pressure-relieved zone displays an annular spatial pattern; the pressure relief effect at both ends of the slot and around the roadway is particularly evident, whereas the pressure relief degree in the middle part is comparatively low because of the closure effect. (3) Slot closure causes notable changes in the pressure relief state. Before closure, the pressure relief effect above the slot remains satisfactory; after closure, stress recovery appears in the middle part, but the overall pressure relief rate still stays above 10%, and the pressure relief rate at both ends of the slot and near the roadway exceeds 50%, with the fully pressure-relieved zone still maintaining an annular distribution. (4) A positive correlation exists between the wire saw diameter and the height of the fully pressure-relieved zone. For every 0.5 cm increase in diameter, the height of the fully pressure-relieved zone rises by an average of 0.6 m. When the wire saw diameter reaches 3 cm, the full-thickness and adequate pressure relief of a 3 m thick coal seam can be realized. Full article