Existing swirling combustion technology, which relies on faulty coal, is unable to meet deep peak shaving demands without auxiliary methods. This paper developed a deep peak regulation burner (DPRB) to achieve stable combustion at 15%–30% of the boiler’s rated load without auxiliary support. Gas-particle tests, industrial trials, and transient numerical simulations were conducted to evaluate the burner’s performance. At full rated load, the DPRB formed a central recirculation zone (RZ) with a length of 1.5d and a diameter of 0.58d (where d represents the outlet diameter). At 40%, 20%, and 15% rated loads, the RZ became annular, with diameters of 0.30d, 0.40d, and 0.39d, respectively, with a length of 1.0d. At 20% and 15% rated loads, the recirculation peak and the range of particle volume flux were comparable to those at 40% rated load. The prototype burner demonstrated that, without oil support, the gas temperature within 0 to 1.8 m from the primary air outlet remained below 609 °C, insufficient to ignite faulty coal. As the load rate increased from 20% to 30%, the prototype’s central region temperature remained low, with a maximum of 750 °C between 0 and 2.0 m. In contrast, the DPRB’s central region temperature reached 750 °C at around 0.65–0.70 m. At a 3%·min−1 load-up rate, when the load increased from 20% to 30%, the prototype burner extinguished after 30 s. However, the DPRB maintained stable combustion throughout the process.

To increase the power generated by solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs), multiple cells have to be connected into a stack. Nonuniformity of cell performance is a worldwide concern in the practical application of stack, which is known to be unavoidable and caused by manufacturing and operating conditions. However, the effect of such nonuniformity on SOFCs that are connected in parallel has not been discussed in detail so far. This paper provides detailed experimental data on the current distribution within a stack with nonuniform cells in parallel connection, based on the basics of electricity and electrochemistry. Particular phenomena found in such a parallel system are the “self-discharge effect” in standby mode and the “capacity-proportional-load sharing effect” under normal operating conditions. It is believed that the experimental method and results proposed in this paper can be applied to other types of fuel cell or even other energy systems.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic disease that affects an increasing number of children and adults. The skin is dry and irritated, and the itching can be so severe that it interferes with sleep and daily life. Although AD has been discussed for years, it is only now that scientists are beginning to understand exactly why the disease causes so much itching.

A team of students from the Student Scientific Association and researchers from Wroclaw Medical University and Medical University of Silesia in Katowice described in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences the so-called IL-31/IL-33 axis – a mechanism that drives inflammation and itching in atopic dermatitis.

Florida State University researchers have discovered a pathway within a certain type of molecule that limits chemical reactions by redirecting light energy. The study could help develop more efficient reactions for pharmaceuticals and other products. The researchers examined ligand-to-metal photocatalysts.

Researchers have learned how stingrays adjust for negative lift near the seafloor - being sucked downwards - and the discovery could help build smarter underwater robots that avoid disastrous ground collisions. 

For the ArchaeoSpain research team, it was a day just like any other on their dig at the castle of Zorita de los Canes (Guadalajara). They were working at the Corral de los Condes, where some knights from the Order of Calatrava are buried, when they came across some highly unusual human remains. Accompanying an apparently normal adult skeleton, was an extraordinarily narrow and elongated skull, 23 centimetres long and only 12 centimetres wide. Who was this individual and how did they survive to adulthood? What caused such a severe cranial deformity? What role did they play in the Order of Calatrava? To answer these questions, the team sent the skeleton to the laboratory of Carme Rissech, a researcher in the Department of Basic Medical Sciences at the URV.

The correlation between Arctic wildfires and abnormal snow cover under global warming is of growing concern. A comprehensive quantitative assessment by researchers at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has shown that increasingly frequent seasonal wildland fires across the Arctic in recent years have delayed snow cover formation by at least five days and could lead to a future 18-day reduction of snow cover duration, with implications for global ecosystems. Against the backdrop of the United Nation’s “Decade of Action for Cryospheric Sciences”, this study not only underscores the urgency of addressing climate change, but also provides critical scientific evidence to inform global climate adaptation strategies.

This feature explores how European education systems negotiate tensions between collective ideals and growing competition. Drawing on studies from Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Belarus, it examines shadow education, policy debates over equity, culturally grounded early childhood learning, and enduring post-Soviet public institutions. Together, these perspectives reveal education as a social mirror, continuously balancing public good, cultural identity, historical legacy, and individual ambition across diverse European contexts and shared societal values.

Small interfering RNA (siRNA) has shown promising therapeutic prospects in many major diseases. However, two main reasons limit the application of siRNA: poor endocytosis efficiency and weak endosomal escape ability. Therefore, the development of efficient and safe delivery vectors has always been an important study aspect of RNAi technology. Herein, we designed a self-assembled nanoparticle based on functionalized peptides to deliver siRNA to the down-regulated polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1) gene, which can inhibit tumor cells in the G2 phase. The functional polypeptide consists of cell membrane-penetrating peptide (CPP44) and p16 minimal inhibitory sequence (p16MIS). CPP44 can effectively mediate endocytosis, while p16MIS can inhibit tumor growth in the G1 phase and synergistically promote the apoptosis of tumor cells with siPLK1. In vitro and in vivo studies demonstrate that the developed nanoparticle exhibits high levels of silencing efficiency, antitumor activity, and therapeutic efficacy. Consequently, this study provides a novel approach to cancer treatment by simultaneously disrupting two stages of tumor cell division.