Subprimal purchasing and merchandising decisions for pork: relationship to retail yield and fabrication time.

PubMed

Lorenzen, C L; Griffin, D B; Dockerty, T R; Walter, J P; Johnson, H K; Savell, J W

1996-01-01

Boxed pork was obtained to represent four different purchase specifications (different anatomical separation locations and[or] external fat trim levels) common in the pork industry to conduct a study of retail yields and labor requirements. Bone-in loins (n = 180), boneless loins (n = 94), and Boston butts (n = 148) were assigned randomly to fabrication styles within subprimals. When comparing cutting styles within subprimals, it was evident that cutting style affected percentage of retail yield and cutting time. When more bone-in cuts were prepared from bone-in loin subprimals, retail yields ranged from 92.80 +/- .61 to 95.28 +/- .45%, and processing times ranged from 222.57 +/- 10.13 to 318.99 +/- 7.85 s, from the four suppliers. When more boneless cuts were prepared from bone-in loin subprimals, retail yields ranged from 71.12 +/- 1.10 to 77.92 +/- .77% and processing times ranged from 453.49 +/- 8.95 to 631.09 +/- 15.04 s from the different loins. Comparing boneless to bone-in cuts from bone-in loins resulted in lower yields and required greater processing times. Significant variations in yields and times were found within cutting styles. These differences seemed to have been the result of variation in supplier fat trim level and anatomical separation (primarily scribe length).

The effect of the labile organic fraction in food waste and the substrate/inoculum ratio on anaerobic digestion for a reliable methane yield.

PubMed

Kawai, Minako; Nagao, Norio; Tajima, Nobuaki; Niwa, Chiaki; Matsuyama, Tatsushi; Toda, Tatsuki

2014-04-01

Influence of the labile organic fraction (LOF) on anaerobic digestion of food waste was investigated in different S/I ratio of 0.33, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 and 4.0g-VSsubstrate/g-VSinoculum. Two types of substrate, standard food waste (Substrate 1) and standard food waste with the supernatant (containing LOF) removed (Substrate 2) were used. Highest methane yield of 435ml-CH4g-VS(-1) in Substrate 1 was observed in the lowest S/I ratio, while the methane yield of the other S/I ratios were 38-73% lower than the highest yield due to acidification. The methane yields in Substrate 2 were relatively stable in all S/I conditions, although the maximum methane yield was low compared with Substrate 1. These results showed that LOF in food waste causes acidification, but also contributes to high methane yields, suggesting that low S/I ratio (<0.33) is required to obtain a reliable methane yield from food waste compared to other organic substrates. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Study on paddy rice yield estimation based on multisource data and the Grey system theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deng, Wensheng; Wang, Wei; Liu, Hai; Li, Chen; Ge, Yimin; Zheng, Xianghua

2009-10-01

The paddy rice is our important crops. In study of the paddy rice yield estimation, compared with the scholars who usually only take the remote sensing data or meteorology as the influence factors, we combine the remote sensing and the meteorological data to make the monitoring result closer reality. Although the gray system theory has used in many aspects, it is applied very little in paddy rice yield estimation. This study introduces it to the paddy rice yield estimation, and makes the yield estimation model. This can resolve small data sets problem that can not be solved by deterministic model. It selects some regions in Jianghan plain for the study area. The data includes multi-temporal remote sensing image, meteorological and statistic data. The remote sensing data is the 16-day composite images (250-m spatial resolution) of MODIS. The meteorological data includes monthly average temperature, sunshine duration and rain fall amount. The statistical data is the long-term paddy rice yield of the study area. Firstly, it extracts the paddy rice planting area from the multi-temporal MODIS images with the help of GIS and RS. Then taking the paddy rice yield as the reference sequence, MODIS data and meteorological data as the comparative sequence, computing the gray correlative coefficient, it selects the yield estimation factor based on the grey system theory. Finally, using the factors, it establishes the yield estimation model and does the result test. The result indicated that the method is feasible and the conclusion is credible. It can provide the scientific method and reference value to carry on the region paddy rice remote sensing estimation.

Processing Instruction and Meaning-Based Output Instruction: A Response to Keating and Farley (2008)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

VanPatten, Bill; Farmer, Jeffrey L.; Clardy, Caleb L.

2009-01-01

Research on Processing Instruction (PI) has yielded consistently positive results across a variety of measures. In addition, in comparison to other instructional interventions, PI tends to yield superior results. The one difference is comparative research with Meaning-based Output Instruction (MOI) in which in a number of studies, MOI is seen to…

Precommercial thinning in a northern conifer stand: 18-year results

Treesearch

John C. Brissette; Robert M., Jr. Frank; Timothy L. Stone; Thomas A. Skratt

1999-01-01

Four levels of precommercial thinning were applied with and without fertilization in a young, even-aged stand of northern conifers in east-central Maine. After 18 years, precommercial thinning resulted in longer and wider crowns and greater survival, growth, and yield of selected crop trees compared to untreated controls. Growth and yield were greater with uniform...

Comparative Effectiveness of Frame-based, Frameless and Intraoperative MRI Guided Brain Biopsy Techniques

PubMed Central

Lu, Yi; Yeung, Cecil; Radmanesh, Alireza; Wiemann, Robert; Black, Peter M.; Golby, Alexandra J.

2015-01-01

Objective Intraoperative MRI (IoMRI) guided brain biopsy provides a real time visual feedback of the lesion that is sampled during surgery. The objective of the study is to compare the diagnostic yield and safety profiles of ioMRI needle brain biopsy with two traditional brain biopsy methods: frame-based and frameless stereotactic brain biopsies. Methods A retrospective analysis from 288 consecutive needle brain biopsies in 277 patients undergoing stereotactic brain biopsy with any of the three biopsy methods at Brigham and Women's Hospital from 2000 to 2008 was performed. Variables such as age, sex, history of radiation and previous surgery, pathology results, complications and postoperative stays were analyzed. Results Over the course of eight years, 288 brain biopsies were performed. 253 (87.8%) biopsies yielded positive diagnostic tissue. Young age (<40 years), history of brain radiation or surgery were significant negative predictors for a positive biopsy diagnostic yield. Excluding patients with prior radiation or surgeries, no significant difference in diagnostic yield was detected among the three groups, with frame-based, frameless and ioMRI guided needle biopsies yield 96.9%, 91.8% and 89.9% positive diagnostic yield, respectively. 19 biopsies (6.6%) were complicated by serious adverse events. The ioMRI-guided brain biopsy was associated with less serious adverse events and the shortest postoperative hospital stay. Conclusions Frame-based, frameless stereotactic and ioMRI guided brain needle biopsy have comparable diagnostic yield for patients with no prior treatments (either radiation or surgery). IoMRI guided brain biopsy is associated with fewer serious adverse events and shorter hospital stay. PMID:25088233

Co-pyrolysis behaviors of saw dust and Shenfu coal in drop tube furnace and fixed bed reactor.

PubMed

Li, Shuaidan; Chen, Xueli; Wang, Li; Liu, Aibin; Yu, Guangsuo

2013-11-01

Co-pyrolysis behaviors of saw dust (SD) and Shenfu bituminous coal (SF) were studied in a drop tube furnace and a fixed bed reactor at different temperatures respectively. Six different biomass/coal ratios (B:C) were used. Compared the results with the calculated value obtained by the additional behavior, CO volume yields were lower while H2, CH4, CO2, volume yields were higher. Blend char yields had a good agreement with the calculated values, and their structures remained similar with SD and SF char's. Synergy effect occurred in gaseous phase, which was mainly caused by the secondary reactions. Compared the blend char yields in the drop tube furnace with those in the fixed bed reactor, the results showed the contacting way of biomass and coal particles had little influence on char yield in co-pyrolysis process. The reactivity index of blend char achieved the minimum at B:C=40:60 and the maximum at B:C=80:20. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Straw Mulching Reduces the Harmful Effects of Extreme Hydrological and Temperature Conditions in Citrus Orchards

PubMed Central

Liu, Yi; Wang, Jing; Liu, Dongbi; Li, Zhiguo; Zhang, Guoshi; Tao, Yong; Xie, Juan; Pan, Junfeng; Chen, Fang

2014-01-01

Extreme weather conditions with negative impacts can strongly affect agricultural production. In the Danjiangkou reservoir area, citrus yields were greatly influenced by cold weather conditions and drought stress in 2011. Soil straw mulching (SM) practices have a major effect on soil water and thermal regimes. A two-year field experiment was conducted to evaluate whether the SM practices can help achieve favorable citrus fruit yields. Results showed that the annual total runoff was significantly (P<0.05) reduced with SM as compared to the control (CK). Correspondingly, mean soil water storage in the top 100 cm of the soil profile was increased in the SM as compared to the CK treatment. However, this result was significant only in the dry season (Jan to Mar), and not in the wet season (Jul to Sep) for both years. Interestingly, the SM treatment did not significantly increase citrus fruit yield in 2010 but did so in 2011, when the citrus crop was completely destroyed (zero fruit yield) in the CK treatment plot due to extremely low temperatures during the citrus overwintering stage. The mulch probably acted as an insulator, resulting in smaller fluctuations in soil temperature in the SM than in the CK treatment. The results suggested that the small effects on soil water and temperature changes created by surface mulch had limited impact on citrus fruit yield in a normal year (e.g., in 2010). However, SM practices can positively impact citrus fruit yield in extreme weather conditions. PMID:24489844

Spallation of Cu by. pi. /sup -/ across the T = 1/2 resonances and at high energy

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

Haustein, P.E.

1979-09-01

Relative yields of 11 selected products (/sup 24/Na, /sup 43,44,46,47,48/Sc, /sup 55,56,57,58,60/Co) have been measured for the interaction of 0.6- and 0.9-GeV negative pions with Cu. In addition, the yields of /sup 24/Na and /sup 58/Co from Cu have been measured for 12-GeV ..pi../sup -/. Results at the two lower energies which correspond to the first two isospin T = 1/2 pion-nucleon resonances are compared with earlier studies of Cu spallation by ..pi../sup -/ at energies across the first T = 3/2 resonance, i.e., 50 to 350 MeV. The 12-GeV ..pi../sup -/ results are compared with similar investigations in whichmore » both energetic protons and heavy ions were used. For E/sub ..pi../ > or = 0.5 GeV no evidence of strong resonance effects can be found in the pattern of the spallation yields. As the pion energy is raised a smooth trend of enhanced yields of deep spallation products to near-target yields closely parallels the same trend observed for both high-energy proton and heavy-ion spallation of Cu. These results indicate that at high energy, pi-mesic spallation exhibits the same features of limiting fragmentation and factorization of the isotopic yields that have been observed previously in hadron induced spallation.« less

Blackleg (Leptosphaeria maculans) Severity and Yield Loss in Canola in Alberta, Canada

PubMed Central

Hwang, Sheau-Fang; Strelkov, Stephen E.; Peng, Gary; Ahmed, Hafiz; Zhou, Qixing; Turnbull, George

2016-01-01

Blackleg, caused by Leptosphaeria maculans, is an important disease of oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.) in Canada and throughout the world. Severe epidemics of blackleg can result in significant yield losses. Understanding disease-yield relationships is a prerequisite for measuring the agronomic efficacy and economic benefits of control methods. Field experiments were conducted in 2013, 2014, and 2015 to determine the relationship between blackleg disease severity and yield in a susceptible cultivar and in moderately resistant to resistant canola hybrids. Disease severity was lower, and seed yield was 120%–128% greater, in the moderately resistant to resistant hybrids compared with the susceptible cultivar. Regression analysis showed that pod number and seed yield declined linearly as blackleg severity increased. Seed yield per plant decreased by 1.8 g for each unit increase in disease severity, corresponding to a decline in yield of 17.2% for each unit increase in disease severity. Pyraclostrobin fungicide reduced disease severity in all site-years and increased yield. These results show that the reduction of blackleg in canola crops substantially improves yields. PMID:27447676

Intensification of extraction of curcumin from Curcuma amada using ultrasound assisted approach: Effect of different operating parameters.

PubMed

Shirsath, S R; Sable, S S; Gaikwad, S G; Sonawane, S H; Saini, D R; Gogate, P R

2017-09-01

Curcumin, a dietary phytochemical, has been extracted from rhizomes of Curcuma amada using ultrasound assisted extraction (UAE) and the results compared with the conventional extraction approach to establish the process intensification benefits. The effect of operating parameters such as type of solvent, extraction time, extraction temperature, solid to solvent ratio, particle size and ultrasonic power on the extraction yield have been investigated in details for the approach UAE. The maximum extraction yield as 72% was obtained in 1h under optimized conditions of 35°C temperature, solid to solvent ratio of 1:25, particle size of 0.09mm, ultrasonic power of 250W and ultrasound frequency of 22kHz with ethanol as the solvent. The obtained yield was significantly higher as compared to the batch extraction where only about 62% yield was achieved in 8h of treatment. Peleg's model was used to describe the kinetics of UAE and the model showed a good agreement with the experimental results. Overall, ultrasound has been established to be a green process for extraction of curcumin with benefits of reduction in time as compared to batch extraction and the operating temperature as compared to Soxhlet extraction. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Classifying Multi-Model Wheat Yield Impact Response Surfaces Showing Sensitivity to Temperature and Precipitation Change

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fronzek, Stefan; Pirttioja, Nina; Carter, Timothy R.; Bindi, Marco; Hoffmann, Holger; Palosuo, Taru; Ruiz-Ramos, Margarita; Tao, Fulu; Trnka, Miroslav; Acutis, Marco;

Performance of sorghum cultivars for biomass quality and biomethane yield grown in semi-arid area of Pakistan.

PubMed

Hassan, Muhammad Umair; Chattha, Muhammad Umer; Mahmood, Athar; Sahi, Shahbaz Talib

2018-05-01

Biomass is a promising renewable energy source and its significance is escalating in the context of climate change and depletion of fossil foils. This study was conducted for two consecutive years 2016 and 2017, using five sorghum cultivars, i.e., JS-263, Jawar-2011, Hagari, JS-2002, and YS-2016, in order to determine the best cultivars in terms of dry matter yield, chemical composition, and biomethane yield grown under semi-arid conditions in Pakistan. The results revealed that sorghum cultivars responded differently in terms of growth, biomass yield, chemical composition, and methane yield. Cultivars Jawar-2011 produced maximum leaf area index, leaf area duration, crop growth rate, plant height, and leaves per plant, however, they were comparable with Sorghum-2016, whereas cultivar JS-2002 performed poorly among the tested cultivars. Similarly, cultivar Jawar-2011 produced maximum dry matter yield (16.37 t ha -1 ) similar to that of YS-2016, further cultivar JS-2002 performed poorly and gave lower dry matter yield (12.87 t ha -1 ). The maximum protein concentration (10.95), neutral detergent fibers (61.20), and lignin contents (5.55) found in Jawar-2011 were comparable with those in YS-2016, while the lowest neutral detergent fiber and lignin contents were found in JS-2002. Although JS-2002 produced the highest specific methane yield per kilogram of volatile solids, it was overcompensated by Jawar-2011 owing to higher dry matter yield per hectare. These results suggested that cultivar Jawar-2011 can be grown successfully in semi-arid conditions of Pakistan in order to get good biomass yield along with higher methane yield.

Effects of inorganic and organic amendment on soil chemical properties, enzyme activities, microbial community and soil quality in yellow clayey soil.

PubMed

Liu, Zhanjun; Rong, Qinlei; Zhou, Wei; Liang, Guoqing

2017-01-01

Understanding the effects of external organic and inorganic components on soil fertility and quality is essential for improving low-yielding soils. We conducted a field study over two consecutive rice growing seasons to investigate the effect of applying chemical fertilizer (NPK), NPK plus green manure (NPKG), NPK plus pig manure (NPKM), and NPK plus straw (NPKS) on the soil nutrient status, enzyme activities involved in C, N, P, and S cycling, microbial community and rice yields of yellow clayey soil. Results showed that the fertilized treatments significantly improved rice yields over the first three experimental seasons. Compared with the NPK treatment, organic amendments produced more favorable effects on soil productivity. Notably, the NPKM treatment exhibited the highest levels of nutrient availability, microbial biomass carbon (MBC), activities of most enzymes and the microbial community. This resulted in the highest soil quality index (SQI) and rice yield, indicating better soil fertility and quality. Significant differences in enzyme activities and the microbial community were observed among the treatments, and redundancy analysis showed that MBC and available N were the key determinants affecting the soil enzyme activities and microbial community. The SQI score of the non-fertilized control (0.72) was comparable to that of the NPK (0.77), NPKG (0.81) and NPKS (0.79) treatments but significantly lower compared with NPKM (0.85). The significant correlation between rice yield and SQI suggests that SQI can be a useful to quantify soil quality changes caused by different agricultural management practices. The results indicate that application of NPK plus pig manure is the preferred option to enhance SOC accumulation, improve soil fertility and quality, and increase rice yield in yellow clayey soil.

Effects of inorganic and organic amendment on soil chemical properties, enzyme activities, microbial community and soil quality in yellow clayey soil

PubMed Central

Liu, Zhanjun; Rong, Qinlei; Zhou, Wei; Liang, Guoqing

2017-01-01

Understanding the effects of external organic and inorganic components on soil fertility and quality is essential for improving low-yielding soils. We conducted a field study over two consecutive rice growing seasons to investigate the effect of applying chemical fertilizer (NPK), NPK plus green manure (NPKG), NPK plus pig manure (NPKM), and NPK plus straw (NPKS) on the soil nutrient status, enzyme activities involved in C, N, P, and S cycling, microbial community and rice yields of yellow clayey soil. Results showed that the fertilized treatments significantly improved rice yields over the first three experimental seasons. Compared with the NPK treatment, organic amendments produced more favorable effects on soil productivity. Notably, the NPKM treatment exhibited the highest levels of nutrient availability, microbial biomass carbon (MBC), activities of most enzymes and the microbial community. This resulted in the highest soil quality index (SQI) and rice yield, indicating better soil fertility and quality. Significant differences in enzyme activities and the microbial community were observed among the treatments, and redundancy analysis showed that MBC and available N were the key determinants affecting the soil enzyme activities and microbial community. The SQI score of the non-fertilized control (0.72) was comparable to that of the NPK (0.77), NPKG (0.81) and NPKS (0.79) treatments but significantly lower compared with NPKM (0.85). The significant correlation between rice yield and SQI suggests that SQI can be a useful to quantify soil quality changes caused by different agricultural management practices. The results indicate that application of NPK plus pig manure is the preferred option to enhance SOC accumulation, improve soil fertility and quality, and increase rice yield in yellow clayey soil. PMID:28263999

Resonant vibrations of a submerged beam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Achenbach, J. D.; Qu, J.

1986-03-01

Forced vibration of a simply supported submerged beam of circular cross section is investigated by the use of two mathematical methods. In the first approach the problem formulation is reduced to a singular integro-differential equation for the transverse deflection. In the second approach the method of matched asymptotic expansions is employed. The integro-differential equation is solved numerically, to yield an exact solution for the frequency response. Subsequent use of a representation integral yields the radiated far field acoustic pressure. The exact results for the beam deflection are compared with approximate results that are available in the literature. Next, a matched asymptotic expansion is worked out by constructing "inner" and "outer" expansions for frequencies near and not near resonance frequencies, respectively. The two expansions are matched in an appropriate manner to yield a uniformly valid solution. The leading term of the matched asymptotic solution is compared with exact numerical results.

Yield estimation of corn based on multitemporal LANDSAT-TM data as input for an agrometeorological model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bach, Heike

1998-07-01

In order to test remote sensing data with advanced yield formation models for accuracy and timeliness of yield estimation of corn, a project was conducted for the State Ministry for Rural Environment, Food, and Forestry of Baden-Württemberg (Germany). This project was carried out during the course of the `Special Yield Estimation', a regular procedure conducted for the European Union, to more accurately estimate agricultural yield. The methodology employed uses field-based plant parameter estimation from atmospherically corrected multitemporal/multispectral LANDSAT-TM data. An agrometeorological plant-production-model is used for yield prediction. Based solely on four LANDSAT-derived estimates (between May and August) and daily meteorological data, the grain yield of corn fields was determined for 1995. The modelled yields were compared with results gathered independently within the Special Yield Estimation for 23 test fields in the upper Rhine valley. The agreement between LANDSAT-based estimates (six weeks before harvest) and Special Yield Estimation (at harvest) shows a relative error of 2.3%. The comparison of the results for single fields shows that six weeks before harvest, the grain yield of corn was estimated with a mean relative accuracy of 13% using satellite information. The presented methodology can be transferred to other crops and geographical regions. For future applications hyperspectral sensors show great potential to further enhance the results for yield prediction with remote sensing.

Comparison of Hyperthermal Ground Laboratory Atomic Oxygen Erosion Yields With Those in Low Earth Orbit

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Banks, Bruce A.; Dill, Grace C.; Loftus, Ryan J.; deGroh, Kim K.; Miller, Sharon K.

2013-01-01

The atomic oxygen erosion yields of 26 materials (all polymers except for pyrolytic graphite) were measured in two directed hyperthermal radio frequency (RF) plasma ashers operating at 30 or 35 kHz with air. The hyperthermal asher results were compared with thermal energy asher results and low Earth orbital (LEO) results from the Materials International Space Station Experiment 2 and 7 (MISSE 2 and 7) flight experiments. The hyperthermal testing was conducted to a significant portion of the atomic oxygen fluence similar polymers were exposed to during the MISSE 2 and 7 missions. Comparison of the hyperthermal asher prediction of LEO erosion yields with thermal energy asher erosion yields indicates that except for the fluorocarbon polymers of PTFE and FEP, the hyperthermal energy ashers are a much more reliable predictor of LEO erosion yield than thermal energy asher testing, by a factor of four.

Ethanol and High-Value Terpene Co-Production from Lignocellulosic Biomass of Cymbopogon flexuosus and Cymbopogon martinii.

PubMed

Joyce, Blake L; Zheljazkov, Valtcho D; Sykes, Robert; Cantrell, Charles L; Hamilton, Choo; Mann, David G J; Rodriguez, Miguel; Mielenz, Jonathan R; Astatkie, Tess; Stewart, C Neal

2015-01-01

Cymbopogon flexuosus, lemongrass, and C. martinii, palmarosa, are perennial grasses grown to produce essential oils for the fragrance industry. The objectives of this study were (1) to evaluate biomass and oil yields as a function of nitrogen and sulfur fertilization, and (2) to characterize their utility for lignocellulosic ethanol compared to Panicum virgatum (switchgrass). Mean biomass yields were 12.83 Mg lemongrass ha-1 and 15.11 Mg palmarosa ha-1 during the second harvest year resulting in theoretical biofuel yields of 2541 and 2569 L ethanol ha-1 respectively compared to reported 1749-3691 L ethanol ha-1 for switchgrass. Pretreated lemongrass yielded 198 mL ethanol (g biomass)-1 and pretreated palmarosa yielded 170 mL ethanol (g biomass)-1. Additionally, lemongrass yielded 85.7 kg essential oil ha-1 and palmarosa yielded 67.0 kg ha-1 with an estimated value of USD $857 and $1005 ha-1. These data suggest that dual-use crops such as lemongrass and palmarosa may increase the economic viability of lignocellulosic biofuels.

Ethanol and High-Value Terpene Co-Production from Lignocellulosic Biomass of Cymbopogon flexuosus and Cymbopogon martinii

DOE PAGES

Joyce, Blake L.; Zheljazkov, Valtcho D.; Sykes, Robert; ...

2015-10-05

Cymbopogon flexuosus, lemongrass, and C. martinii, palmarosa, are perennial grasses grown to produce essential oils for the fragrance industry. The objectives of this study were (1) to evaluate biomass and oil yields as a function of nitrogen and sulfur fertilization, and (2) to characterize their utility for lignocellulosic ethanol compared to Panicum virgatum (switchgrass). Mean biomass yields were 12.83 Mg lemongrass ha -1 and 15.11 Mg palmarosa ha -1 during the second harvest year resulting in theoretical biofuel yields of 2541 and 2569 L ethanol ha -1 respectively compared to reported 1749–3691 L ethanol ha -1 for switchgrass. Pretreated lemongrassmore » yielded 198 mL ethanol (g biomass) -1 and pretreated palmarosa yielded 170 mL ethanol (g biomass) -1. Additionally, lemongrass yielded 85.7 kg essential oil ha-1 and palmarosa yielded 67.0 kg ha -1 with an estimated value of USD $857 and $1005 ha -1. These data suggest that dual-use crops such as lemongrass and palmarosa may increase the economic viability of lignocellulosic biofuels.« less

Ethanol and High-Value Terpene Co-Production from Lignocellulosic Biomass of Cymbopogon flexuosus and Cymbopogon martinii

PubMed Central

Joyce, Blake L.; Zheljazkov, Valtcho D.; Sykes, Robert; Cantrell, Charles L.; Hamilton, Choo; Mann, David G. J.; Rodriguez, Miguel; Mielenz, Jonathan R.; Astatkie, Tess; Stewart, C. Neal

2015-01-01

Cymbopogon flexuosus, lemongrass, and C. martinii, palmarosa, are perennial grasses grown to produce essential oils for the fragrance industry. The objectives of this study were (1) to evaluate biomass and oil yields as a function of nitrogen and sulfur fertilization, and (2) to characterize their utility for lignocellulosic ethanol compared to Panicum virgatum (switchgrass). Mean biomass yields were 12.83 Mg lemongrass ha-1 and 15.11 Mg palmarosa ha-1 during the second harvest year resulting in theoretical biofuel yields of 2541 and 2569 L ethanol ha-1 respectively compared to reported 1749–3691 L ethanol ha-1 for switchgrass. Pretreated lemongrass yielded 198 mL ethanol (g biomass)-1 and pretreated palmarosa yielded 170 mL ethanol (g biomass)-1. Additionally, lemongrass yielded 85.7 kg essential oil ha-1 and palmarosa yielded 67.0 kg ha-1 with an estimated value of USD $857 and $1005 ha-1. These data suggest that dual-use crops such as lemongrass and palmarosa may increase the economic viability of lignocellulosic biofuels. PMID:26437026

76 FR 63301 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Generic Clearance...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-10-12

... INFORMATION: Title: Comparative Effectiveness Research Inventory. Abstract: The information collection... will not be used for quantitative information collections that are designed to yield reliably... mechanisms that are designed to yield quantitative results. The Agency received no comments in response to...

Measurement of fission yields and isomeric yield ratios at IGISOL

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pomp, Stephan; Mattera, Andrea; Rakopoulos, Vasileios; Al-Adili, Ali; Lantz, Mattias; Solders, Andreas; Jansson, Kaj; Prokofiev, Alexander V.; Eronen, Tommi; Gorelov, Dimitri; Jokinen, Ari; Kankainen, Anu; Moore, Iain D.; Penttilä, Heikki; Rinta-Antila, Sami

2018-03-01

Data on fission yields and isomeric yield ratios (IYR) are tools to study the fission process, in particular the generation of angular momentum. We use the IGISOL facility with the Penning trap JYFLTRAP in Jyväskylä, Finland, for such measurements on 232Th and natU targets. Previously published fission yield data from IGISOL concern the 232Th(p,f) and 238U(p,f) reactions at 25 and 50 MeV. Recently, a neutron source, using the Be(p,n) reaction, has been developed, installed and tested. We summarize the results for (p,f) focusing on the first measurement of IYR by direct ion counting. We also present first results for IYR and relative yields for Sn and Sb isotopes in the 128-133 mass range from natU(n,f) based on γ-spectrometry. We find a staggering behaviour in the cumulative yields for Sn and a shift in the independent fission yields for Sb as compared to current evaluations. Plans for the future experimental program on fission yields and IYR measurements are discussed.

Relative L-shell X-ray intensities of Pt, Pb and Bi following ionization by 59.54 keV γ-rays

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dhal, B. B.; Padhi, H. C.

1994-12-01

Relative L-shell X-ray intensities of Pt, Pb and Bi have been measured following ionization by 59.54 keV photons from an 241 Am point source. The measured ratios have been compared with the theoretical ratios estimated using the photoionization cross-sections of Scofield and different decay yield data. The comparison shows good agreement for Pb and Bi with the decay yield data of Krause, but the decay yield data of Xu and Xu overestimates the ratios, particularly for the {I γ}/{I α} ratio. Our results for Pb and Bi with improved error limits also agree with the previous experimental results of Shatendra et al. For Pt our present results are found to lie between the two theoretical results obtained by using different sets of decay yield data.

Distributions of neutron yields and doses around a water phantom bombarded with 290-MeV/nucleon and 430-MeV/nucleon carbon ions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Satoh, D.; Kajimoto, T.; Shigyo, N.; Itashiki, Y.; Imabayashi, Y.; Koba, Y.; Matsufuji, N.; Sanami, T.; Nakao, N.; Uozumi, Y.

2016-11-01

Double-differential neutron yields from a water phantom bombarded with 290-MeV/nucleon and 430-MeV/nucleon carbon ions were measured at emission angles of 15°, 30°, 45°, 60°, 75°, and 90°, and angular distributions of neutron yields and doses around the phantom were obtained. The experimental data were compared with results of the Monte-Carlo simulation code PHITS. The PHITS results showed good agreement with the measured data. On the basis of the PHITS simulation, we estimated the angular distributions of neutron yields and doses from 0° to 180° including thermal neutrons.

Determination of relative krypton fission product yields from 14 MeV neutron induced fission of 238U at the National Ignition Facility

DOE PAGES

Edwards, E. R.; Cassata, W. S.; Velsko, C. A.; ...

2016-09-22

Precisely-known fission yield distributions are needed to determine a fissioning isotope and the incident neutron energy in nuclear security applications. 14 MeV neutrons from DT fusion at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) induce fission in depleted uranium (DU) contained in the target assembly hohlraum. The fission yields of Kr isotopes (85m, 87, 88, and 89) are measured relative to the cumulative yield of 88Kr and compared to previously tabulated values. Here, the results from this experiment and England and Rider are in agreement, except for the 85mKr/ 88Kr ratio, which may be the result of incorrect nuclear data.

Average M shell fluorescence yields for elements with 70≤Z≤92

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kahoul, A.; Deghfel, B.; Aylikci, V.; Aylikci, N. K.; Nekkab, M.

2015-03-01

The theoretical, experimental and analytical methods for the calculation of average M-shell fluorescence yield (ω¯M ) of different elements are very important because of the large number of their applications in various areas of physical chemistry and medical research. In this paper, the bulk of the average M-shell fluorescence yield measurements reported in the literature, covering the period 1955 to 2005 are interpolated by using an analytical function to deduce the empirical average M-shell fluorescence yield in the atomic range of 70≤Z≤92. The results were compared with the theoretical and fitted values reported by other authors. Reasonable agreement was typically obtained between our result and other works.

Determination of relative krypton fission product yields from 14 MeV neutron induced fission of 238U at the National Ignition Facility.

PubMed

Edwards, E R; Cassata, W S; Velsko, C A; Yeamans, C B; Shaughnessy, D A

2016-11-01

Precisely-known fission yield distributions are needed to determine a fissioning isotope and the incident neutron energy in nuclear security applications. 14 MeV neutrons from DT fusion at the National Ignition Facility induce fission in depleted uranium contained in the target assembly hohlraum. The fission yields of Kr isotopes (85m, 87, 88, and 89) are measured relative to the cumulative yield of 88 Kr and compared to previously tabulated values. The results from this experiment and England and Rider are in agreement, except for the 85m Kr/ 88 Kr ratio, which may be the result of incorrect nuclear data.

The sensitivity of ecosystem service models to choices of input data and spatial resolution

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bagstad, Kenneth J.; Cohen, Erika; Ancona, Zachary H.; McNulty, Steven; Sun, Ge

2018-01-01

Although ecosystem service (ES) modeling has progressed rapidly in the last 10–15 years, comparative studies on data and model selection effects have become more common only recently. Such studies have drawn mixed conclusions about whether different data and model choices yield divergent results. In this study, we compared the results of different models to address these questions at national, provincial, and subwatershed scales in Rwanda. We compared results for carbon, water, and sediment as modeled using InVEST and WaSSI using (1) land cover data at 30 and 300 m resolution and (2) three different input land cover datasets. WaSSI and simpler InVEST models (carbon storage and annual water yield) were relatively insensitive to the choice of spatial resolution, but more complex InVEST models (seasonal water yield and sediment regulation) produced large differences when applied at differing resolution. Six out of nine ES metrics (InVEST annual and seasonal water yield and WaSSI) gave similar predictions for at least two different input land cover datasets. Despite differences in mean values when using different data sources and resolution, we found significant and highly correlated results when using Spearman's rank correlation, indicating consistent spatial patterns of high and low values. Our results confirm and extend conclusions of past studies, showing that in certain cases (e.g., simpler models and national-scale analyses), results can be robust to data and modeling choices. For more complex models, those with different output metrics, and subnational to site-based analyses in heterogeneous environments, data and model choices may strongly influence study findings.

Incremental yield of dysplasia detection in Barrett's esophagus using volumetric laser endomicroscopy with and without laser marking compared with a standardized random biopsy protocol.

PubMed

Alshelleh, Mohammad; Inamdar, Sumant; McKinley, Matthew; Stewart, Molly; Novak, Jeffrey S; Greenberg, Ronald E; Sultan, Keith; Devito, Bethany; Cheung, Mary; Cerulli, Maurice A; Miller, Larry S; Sejpal, Divyesh V; Vegesna, Anil K; Trindade, Arvind J

2018-02-02

Volumetric laser endomicroscopy (VLE) is a new wide-field advanced imaging technology for Barrett's esophagus (BE). No data exist on incremental yield of dysplasia detection. Our aim is to report the incremental yield of dysplasia detection in BE using VLE. This is a retrospective study from a prospectively maintained database from 2011 to 2017 comparing the dysplasia yield of 4 different surveillance strategies in an academic BE tertiary care referral center. The groups were (1) random biopsies (RB), (2) Seattle protocol random biopsies (SP), (3) VLE without laser marking (VLE), and (4) VLE with laser marking (VLEL). A total of 448 consecutive patients (79 RB, 95 SP, 168 VLE, and 106 VLEL) met the inclusion criteria. After adjusting for visible lesions, the total dysplasia yield was 5.7%, 19.6%, 24.8%, and 33.7%, respectively. When compared with just the SP group, the VLEL group had statistically higher rates of overall dysplasia yield (19.6% vs 33.7%, P = .03; odds ratio, 2.1, P = .03). Both the VLEL and VLE groups had statistically significant differences in neoplasia (high-grade dysplasia and intramucosal cancer) detection compared with the SP group (14% vs 1%, P = .001 and 11% vs 1%, P = .003). A surveillance strategy involving VLEL led to a statistically significant higher yield of dysplasia and neoplasia detection compared with a standard random biopsy protocol. These results support the use of VLEL for surveillance in BE in academic centers. Copyright © 2018 American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Soil Texture and Cultivar Effects on Rice (Oryza sativa, L.) Grain Yield, Yield Components and Water Productivity in Three Water Regimes.

PubMed

Dou, Fugen; Soriano, Junel; Tabien, Rodante E; Chen, Kun

2016-01-01

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of water regime/soil condition (continuous flooding, saturated, and aerobic), cultivar ('Cocodrie' and 'Rondo'), and soil texture (clay and sandy loam) on rice grain yield, yield components and water productivity using a greenhouse trial. Rice grain yield was significantly affected by soil texture and the interaction between water regime and cultivar. Significantly higher yield was obtained in continuous flooding than in aerobic and saturated soil conditions but the latter treatments were comparable to each other. For Rondo, its grain yield has decreased with soil water regimes in the order of continuous flooding, saturated and aerobic treatments. The rice grain yield in clay soil was 46% higher than in sandy loam soil averaged across cultivar and water regime. Compared to aerobic condition, saturated and continuous flooding treatments had greater panicle numbers. In addition, panicle number in clay soil was 25% higher than in sandy loam soil. The spikelet number of Cocodrie was 29% greater than that of Rondo, indicating that rice cultivar had greater effect on spikelet number than soil type and water management. Water productivity was significantly affected by the interaction of water regime and cultivar. Compared to sandy loam soil, clay soil was 25% higher in water productivity. Our results indicated that cultivar selection and soil texture are important factors in deciding what water management option to practice.

Pollination Services Provided by Bees in Pumpkin Fields Supplemented with Either Apis mellifera or Bombus impatiens or Not Supplemented

PubMed Central

Petersen, Jessica D.; Reiners, Stephen; Nault, Brian A.

2013-01-01

Pollinators provide an important service in many crops. Managed honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) are used to supplement pollination services provided by wild bees with the assumption that they will enhance pollination, fruit set and crop yield beyond the levels provided by the wild bees. Recent declines in managed honey bee populations have stimulated interest in finding alternative managed pollinators to service crops. In the eastern U.S., managed hives of the native common eastern bumble bee (Bombus impatiens Cresson) may be an excellent choice. To examine this issue, a comprehensive 2-yr study was conducted to compare fruit yield and bee visits to flowers in pumpkin (Cucurbita pepo L.) fields that were either supplemented with A. mellifera hives, B. impatiens hives or were not supplemented. We compared pumpkin yield, A. mellifera flower visitation frequency and B. impatiens flower visitation frequency between treatments. Results indicated that supplementing pumpkin fields with either A. mellifera or B. impatiens hives did not increase their visitation to pumpkin flowers or fruit yield compared with those that were not supplemented. Next, the relationship between frequency of pumpkin flower visitation by the most prominent bee species (Peponapis pruinosa (Say), B. impatiens and A. mellifera) and fruit yield was determined across all pumpkin fields sampled. Fruit yield increased as the frequency of flower visits by A. mellifera and B. impatiens increased in 2011 and 2012, respectively. These results suggest that supplementation with managed bees may not improve pumpkin production and that A. mellifera and B. impatiens are important pollinators of pumpkin in our system. PMID:23894544

Pollination services provided by bees in pumpkin fields supplemented with either Apis mellifera or Bombus impatiens or not supplemented.

PubMed

Petersen, Jessica D; Reiners, Stephen; Nault, Brian A

2013-01-01

Pollinators provide an important service in many crops. Managed honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) are used to supplement pollination services provided by wild bees with the assumption that they will enhance pollination, fruit set and crop yield beyond the levels provided by the wild bees. Recent declines in managed honey bee populations have stimulated interest in finding alternative managed pollinators to service crops. In the eastern U.S., managed hives of the native common eastern bumble bee (Bombus impatiens Cresson) may be an excellent choice. To examine this issue, a comprehensive 2-yr study was conducted to compare fruit yield and bee visits to flowers in pumpkin (Cucurbita pepo L.) fields that were either supplemented with A. mellifera hives, B. impatiens hives or were not supplemented. We compared pumpkin yield, A. mellifera flower visitation frequency and B. impatiens flower visitation frequency between treatments. Results indicated that supplementing pumpkin fields with either A. mellifera or B. impatiens hives did not increase their visitation to pumpkin flowers or fruit yield compared with those that were not supplemented. Next, the relationship between frequency of pumpkin flower visitation by the most prominent bee species (Peponapis pruinosa (Say), B. impatiens and A. mellifera) and fruit yield was determined across all pumpkin fields sampled. Fruit yield increased as the frequency of flower visits by A. mellifera and B. impatiens increased in 2011 and 2012, respectively. These results suggest that supplementation with managed bees may not improve pumpkin production and that A. mellifera and B. impatiens are important pollinators of pumpkin in our system.

Energy and wood from intensively cultured plantations: research and development program.

Treesearch

USDA FS

1980-01-01

Since 1971 there has been significant progress in greatly increasing yields of wood and energy (biomass) from intensively cultured plantations compared with natural stands. This publication reports the results of studies and summarizes the "maximum-yield" research in progress at the North Central Forest Experiment Station.

The impact exploration of agricultural drought on winter wheat yield in the North China Plain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Jianhua; Wu, Jianjun; Han, Xinyi; Zhou, Hongkui

2017-04-01

Drought is one of the most serious agro-climatic disasters in the North China Plain, which has a great influence on winter wheat yield. Global warming exacerbates the drought trend of this region, so it is important to study the effect of drought on winter wheat yield. In order to assess the drought-induced winter wheat yield losses, SPEI (standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index), the widely used drought index, was selected to quantify the drought from 1981 to 2013. Additionally, the EPIC (Environmental Policy Integrated Climate) crop model was used to simulate winter wheat yield at 47 stations in this region from 1981 to 2013. We analyzed the relationship between winter wheat yield and the SPEI at different time scales in each month during the growing season. The trends of the SPEI and the trends of winter wheat yield at 47 stations over the past 32 years were compared with each other. To further quantify the effect of drought on winter wheat yield, we defined the year that SPEI varied from -0.5 to 0.5 as the normal year, and calculated the average winter wheat yield of the normal years as a reference yield, then calculated the reduction ratios of winter wheat based on the yields mentioned above in severe drought years. As a reference, we compared the results with the reduction ratios calculated from the statistical yield data. The results showed that the 9 to 12-month scales' SPEI in April, May and June had a high correlation with winter wheat yield. The trends of the SPEI and the trends of winter wheat yield over the past 32 years showed a positive correlation (p<0.01) and have similar spatial distributions. The proportion of the stations with the same change trend between the SPEI and winter wheat yield was 70%, indicating that drought was the main factor leading to a decline in winter wheat yield in this region. The reduction ratios based on the simulated yield and the reduction ratios calculated from the statistical yield data have a high positive correlation (p<0.01), which may provide a way to quantitatively evaluate the winter wheat yield losses caused by drought. Key words: drought, winter wheat yield, SPEI, EPIC, the North China Plain

A comparative statistical study of long-term agroclimatic conditions affecting the growth of US winter wheat: Distributions of regional monthly average precipitation on the Great Plains and the state of Maryland and the effect of agroclimatic conditions on yield in the state of Kansas

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Welker, J.

1981-01-01

A histogram analysis of average monthly precipitation over 30 and 84 year periods for both Maryland and Kansas was made and the results compared. A second analysis, a statistical assessment of the effect of average monthly precipitation on Kansas winter wheat yield was made. The data sets covered the three periods of 1941-1970, 1887-1970, and 1887-1921. Analyses of the limited data sets used (only the average monthly precipitation and temperature were correlated against yield) indicated that fall precipitation values, especially those of September and October, were more important to winter wheat yield than were spring values, particularly for the period 1941-1970.

Breeding progress, variation, and correlation of grain and quality traits in winter rye hybrid and population varieties and national on-farm progress in Germany over 26 years.

PubMed

Laidig, Friedrich; Piepho, Hans-Peter; Rentel, Dirk; Drobek, Thomas; Meyer, Uwe; Huesken, Alexandra

2017-05-01

Grain yield of hybrid varieties and population varieties in official German variety trials increased by 23.3 and 18.1%, respectively, over the last 26 years. On-farm gain in grain yield (18.9%) was comparable to that of population varieties in variety trials, yet at a level considerably lower than in variety trials. Rye quality is subject to large year-to-year fluctuation. Increase in grain yield and decline of protein concentration did not negatively influence quality traits. Performance progress of grain and quality traits of 78 winter rye varieties tested in official German trials to assess the value for cultivation and use (VCU) were evaluated during 1989 and 2014. We dissected progress into a genetic and a non-genetic component for hybrid and population varieties by applying mixed models, including regression components to model trends. VCU trial results were compared with grain yield and quality data from a national harvest survey (on-farm data). Yield gain for hybrid varieties was 23.3% (18.9 dt ha -1 ) and for population varieties 18.1% (13.0 dt ha -1 ) relative to 1989. On-farm yield progress of 18.9% (8.7 dt ha -1 ) was considerably lagging behind VCU trials, and mean yield levels were substantially lower than in field trials. Most of the yield progress was generated by genetic improvement. For hybrid varieties, ear density was the determining yield component, whereas for population varieties, it was thousand grain mass. Results for VCU trials showed no statistically significant gains or losses in rye quality traits. For on-farm data, we found a positive but non-significant gain in falling number and amylogram viscosity and temperature. Variation of grain and quality traits was strongly influenced by environments, whereas genotypic variation was less than 19% of total variation. Grain yield was strongly negatively associated with protein concentration, yet was weakly to moderately positively associated with quality traits. In general, our results from VCU trials and on-farm data indicated that increasing grain yield and decreasing protein concentration did not negatively affect rye quality traits.

Average M shell fluorescence yields for elements with 70≤Z≤92

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

Kahoul, A., E-mail: ka-abdelhalim@yahoo.fr; LPMRN laboratory, Department of Materials Science, Faculty of Sciences and Technology, Mohamed El Bachir El Ibrahimi University, Bordj-Bou-Arreridj 34030; Deghfel, B.

2015-03-30

The theoretical, experimental and analytical methods for the calculation of average M-shell fluorescence yield (ω{sup ¯}{sub M}) of different elements are very important because of the large number of their applications in various areas of physical chemistry and medical research. In this paper, the bulk of the average M-shell fluorescence yield measurements reported in the literature, covering the period 1955 to 2005 are interpolated by using an analytical function to deduce the empirical average M-shell fluorescence yield in the atomic range of 70≤Z≤92. The results were compared with the theoretical and fitted values reported by other authors. Reasonable agreement wasmore » typically obtained between our result and other works.« less

Fast pyrolysis of tropical biomass species and influence of water pretreatment on product distributions

DOE PAGES

Morgan, Trevor James; Turn, Scott Q.; Sun, Ning; ...

2016-03-15

Here, the fast pyrolysis behaviour of pretreated banagrass was examined at four temperatures (between 400 and 600 C) and four residence times (between ~1.2 and 12 s). The pretreatment used water washing/leaching to reduce the inorganic content of the banagrass. Yields of bio-oil, permanent gases and char were determined at each reaction condition and compared to previously published results from untreated banagrass. Comparing the bio-oil yields from the untreated and pretreated banagrass shows that the yields were greater from the pretreated banagrass by 4 to 11 wt% (absolute) at all reaction conditions. The effect of pretreatment (i.e. reducing the amountmore » of ash, and alkali and alkali earth metals) on pyrolysis products is: 1) to increase the dry bio-oil yield, 2) to decrease the amount of undetected material, 3) to produce a slight increase in CO yield or no change, 4) to slightly decrease CO 2 yield or no change, and 5) to produce a more stable bio-oil (less aging). Char yield and total gas yield were unaffected by feedstock pretreatment. Four other tropical biomass species were also pyrolyzed under one condition (450°C and 1.4 s residence time) for comparison to the banagrass results. The samples include two hardwoods: leucaena and eucalyptus, and two grasses: sugarcane bagasse and energy-cane. A sample of pretreated energy-cane was also pyrolyzed. Of the materials tested, the best feedstocks for fast pyrolysis were sugarcane bagasse, pretreated energy cane and eucalyptus based on the yields of 'dry bio-oil', CO and CO 2. On the same basis, the least productive feedstocks are untreated banagrass followed by pretreated banagrass and leucaena.« less

Fast pyrolysis of tropical biomass species and influence of water pretreatment on product distributions

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

Morgan, Trevor James; Turn, Scott Q.; Sun, Ning

Here, the fast pyrolysis behaviour of pretreated banagrass was examined at four temperatures (between 400 and 600 C) and four residence times (between ~1.2 and 12 s). The pretreatment used water washing/leaching to reduce the inorganic content of the banagrass. Yields of bio-oil, permanent gases and char were determined at each reaction condition and compared to previously published results from untreated banagrass. Comparing the bio-oil yields from the untreated and pretreated banagrass shows that the yields were greater from the pretreated banagrass by 4 to 11 wt% (absolute) at all reaction conditions. The effect of pretreatment (i.e. reducing the amountmore » of ash, and alkali and alkali earth metals) on pyrolysis products is: 1) to increase the dry bio-oil yield, 2) to decrease the amount of undetected material, 3) to produce a slight increase in CO yield or no change, 4) to slightly decrease CO 2 yield or no change, and 5) to produce a more stable bio-oil (less aging). Char yield and total gas yield were unaffected by feedstock pretreatment. Four other tropical biomass species were also pyrolyzed under one condition (450°C and 1.4 s residence time) for comparison to the banagrass results. The samples include two hardwoods: leucaena and eucalyptus, and two grasses: sugarcane bagasse and energy-cane. A sample of pretreated energy-cane was also pyrolyzed. Of the materials tested, the best feedstocks for fast pyrolysis were sugarcane bagasse, pretreated energy cane and eucalyptus based on the yields of 'dry bio-oil', CO and CO 2. On the same basis, the least productive feedstocks are untreated banagrass followed by pretreated banagrass and leucaena.« less

Fast Pyrolysis of Tropical Biomass Species and Influence of Water Pretreatment on Product Distributions

PubMed Central

Morgan, Trevor James; Turn, Scott Q.; Sun, Ning; George, Anthe

2016-01-01

The fast pyrolysis behaviour of pretreated banagrass was examined at four temperatures (between 400 and 600 C) and four residence times (between ~1.2 and 12 s). The pretreatment used water washing/leaching to reduce the inorganic content of the banagrass. Yields of bio-oil, permanent gases and char were determined at each reaction condition and compared to previously published results from untreated banagrass. Comparing the bio-oil yields from the untreated and pretreated banagrass shows that the yields were greater from the pretreated banagrass by 4 to 11 wt% (absolute) at all reaction conditions. The effect of pretreatment (i.e. reducing the amount of ash, and alkali and alkali earth metals) on pyrolysis products is: 1) to increase the dry bio-oil yield, 2) to decrease the amount of undetected material, 3) to produce a slight increase in CO yield or no change, 4) to slightly decrease CO2 yield or no change, and 5) to produce a more stable bio-oil (less aging). Char yield and total gas yield were unaffected by feedstock pretreatment. Four other tropical biomass species were also pyrolyzed under one condition (450°C and 1.4 s residence time) for comparison to the banagrass results. The samples include two hardwoods: leucaena and eucalyptus, and two grasses: sugarcane bagasse and energy-cane. A sample of pretreated energy-cane was also pyrolyzed. Of the materials tested, the best feedstocks for fast pyrolysis were sugarcane bagasse, pretreated energy cane and eucalyptus based on the yields of 'dry bio-oil', CO and CO2. On the same basis, the least productive feedstocks are untreated banagrass followed by pretreated banagrass and leucaena. PMID:26978265

Fast Pyrolysis of Tropical Biomass Species and Influence of Water Pretreatment on Product Distributions.

PubMed

Morgan, Trevor James; Turn, Scott Q; Sun, Ning; George, Anthe

2016-01-01

The fast pyrolysis behaviour of pretreated banagrass was examined at four temperatures (between 400 and 600 C) and four residence times (between ~1.2 and 12 s). The pretreatment used water washing/leaching to reduce the inorganic content of the banagrass. Yields of bio-oil, permanent gases and char were determined at each reaction condition and compared to previously published results from untreated banagrass. Comparing the bio-oil yields from the untreated and pretreated banagrass shows that the yields were greater from the pretreated banagrass by 4 to 11 wt% (absolute) at all reaction conditions. The effect of pretreatment (i.e. reducing the amount of ash, and alkali and alkali earth metals) on pyrolysis products is: 1) to increase the dry bio-oil yield, 2) to decrease the amount of undetected material, 3) to produce a slight increase in CO yield or no change, 4) to slightly decrease CO2 yield or no change, and 5) to produce a more stable bio-oil (less aging). Char yield and total gas yield were unaffected by feedstock pretreatment. Four other tropical biomass species were also pyrolyzed under one condition (450°C and 1.4 s residence time) for comparison to the banagrass results. The samples include two hardwoods: leucaena and eucalyptus, and two grasses: sugarcane bagasse and energy-cane. A sample of pretreated energy-cane was also pyrolyzed. Of the materials tested, the best feedstocks for fast pyrolysis were sugarcane bagasse, pretreated energy cane and eucalyptus based on the yields of 'dry bio-oil', CO and CO2. On the same basis, the least productive feedstocks are untreated banagrass followed by pretreated banagrass and leucaena.

Predicting paddlefish roe yields using an extension of the Beverton–Holt equilibrium yield-per-recruit model

USGS Publications Warehouse

Colvin, M.E.; Bettoli, Phillip William; Scholten, G.D.

2013-01-01

Equilibrium yield models predict the total biomass removed from an exploited stock; however, traditional yield models must be modified to simulate roe yields because a linear relationship between age (or length) and mature ovary weight does not typically exist. We extended the traditional Beverton-Holt equilibrium yield model to predict roe yields of Paddlefish Polyodon spathula in Kentucky Lake, Tennessee-Kentucky, as a function of varying conditional fishing mortality rates (10-70%), conditional natural mortality rates (cm; 9% and 18%), and four minimum size limits ranging from 864 to 1,016mm eye-to-fork length. These results were then compared to a biomass-based yield assessment. Analysis of roe yields indicated the potential for growth overfishing at lower exploitation rates and smaller minimum length limits than were suggested by the biomass-based assessment. Patterns of biomass and roe yields in relation to exploitation rates were similar regardless of the simulated value of cm, thus indicating that the results were insensitive to changes in cm. Our results also suggested that higher minimum length limits would increase roe yield and reduce the potential for growth overfishing and recruitment overfishing at the simulated cm values. Biomass-based equilibrium yield assessments are commonly used to assess the effects of harvest on other caviar-based fisheries; however, our analysis demonstrates that such assessments likely underestimate the probability and severity of growth overfishing when roe is targeted. Therefore, equilibrium roe yield-per-recruit models should also be considered to guide the management process for caviar-producing fish species.

N* production from pp and p-barp collisions

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

Wu Jiajun; Cao Xu; Theoretical Physics Center for Science Facilities, CAS, Beijing 100049

2011-10-21

With an effective Lagrangian approach, we give a full analysis on the NN{yields}NN{pi}{pi} and pp{yields}pn{pi}{sup +} reactions for proton beam energy from 1 to 1.5 GeV. The results are very consistent with the experiment data from CELSIUS, KEK, COSY, and so on. Based on these results, we consider the N-barN{yields}N-barN{pi}{pi} and p-barp{yields}p-barn{pi}{sup +} for proton beam energy up to 4 GeV. Compare to the pp collisions, there are many benefits to study N* resonances in these two reactions. And for the high proton beam energy up to 15 GeV, we consider some new resonances with hidden charm which are definitelymore » beyond three constituent quarks model in the p-barp{yields}p-barpJ/{psi} and p-barp{yields}p-barp{eta}{sub c}, where there are very nice places to find these new N{sub cc}-bar*. The predicted results about p-barp collisions can be looked for at the forthcoming PANDA/FAIR experiments.« less

Improving rice production sustainability by reducing water demand and greenhouse gas emissions with biodegradable films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yao, Zhisheng; Zheng, Xunhua; Liu, Chunyan; Lin, Shan; Zuo, Qiang; Butterbach-Bahl, Klaus

2017-01-01

In China, rice production is facing unprecedented challenges, including the increasing demand, looming water crisis and on-going climate change. Thus, producing more rice at lower environmental cost is required for future development, i.e., the use of less water and the production of fewer greenhouse gas (GHG) per unit of rice. Ground cover rice production systems (GCRPSs) could potentially address these concerns, although no studies have systematically and simultaneously evaluated the benefits of GCRPS regarding yields and considering water use and GHG emissions. This study reports the results of a 2-year study comparing conventional paddy and various GCRPS practices. Relative to conventional paddy, GCRPSs had greater rice yields and nitrogen use efficiencies (8.5% and 70%, respectively), required less irrigation (-64%) and resulted in less total CH4 and N2O emissions (-54%). On average, annual emission factors of N2O were 1.67% and 2.00% for conventional paddy and GCRPS, respectively. A cost-benefit analysis considering yields, GHG emissions, water demand and labor and mulching costs indicated GCRPSs are an environmentally and economically profitable technology. Furthermore, substituting the polyethylene film with a biodegradable film resulted in comparable benefits of yield and climate. Overall, GCRPSs, particularly with biodegradable films, provide a promising solution for farmers to secure or even increase yields while reducing the environmental footprint.

Comparative performance of hybrid and elite inbred rice varieties with respect to their source-sink relationship.

PubMed

Haque, Md Moinul; Pramanik, Habibur Rahman; Biswas, Jiban Krishna; Iftekharuddaula, K M; Hasanuzzaman, Mirza

2015-01-01

Hybrid rice varieties have higher yield potential over inbred varieties. This improvement is not always translated to the grain yield and its physiological causes are still unclear. In order to clarify it, two field experiments were conducted including two popular indica hybrids (BRRI hybrid dhan2 and Heera2) and one elite inbred (BRRI dhan45) rice varieties. Leaf area index, chlorophyll status, and photosynthetic rate of flag leaf, postheading crop growth rate, shoot reserve translocation, source-sink relation and yield, and its attributes of each variety were comprehensively analyzed. Both hybrid varieties outyielded the inbred. However, the hybrids and inbred varieties exhibited statistically identical yield in late planting. Both hybrids accumulated higher amount of biomass before heading and exhibited greater remobilization of assimilates to the grain in early plantings compared to the inbred variety. Filled grain (%) declined significantly at delayed planting in the hybrids compared to elite inbred due to increased temperature impaired-inefficient transport of assimilates. Flag leaf photosynthesis parameters were higher in the hybrid varieties than those of the inbred variety. Results suggest that greater remobilization of shoot reserves to the grain rendered higher yield of hybrid rice varieties.

Comparison of Online Survey Recruitment Platforms for Hard-to-Reach Pregnant Smoking Populations: Feasibility Study

PubMed Central

Agas, Jessica Marie; Lee, Melissa; Pan, Julia Lily; Buttenheim, Alison Meredith

2018-01-01

Background Recruiting hard-to-reach populations for health research is challenging. Web-based platforms offer one way to recruit specific samples for research purposes, but little is known about the feasibility of online recruitment and the representativeness and comparability of samples recruited through different Web-based platforms. Objective The objectives of this study were to determine the feasibility of recruiting a hard-to-reach population (pregnant smokers) using 4 different Web-based platforms and to compare participants recruited through each platform. Methods A screener and survey were distributed online through Qualtrics Panel, Soapbox Sample, Reddit, and Amazon Mechanical Turk (mTurk). Descriptive statistics were used to summarize results of each recruitment platform, including eligibility yield, quality yield, income, race, age, and gestational age. Results Of the 3847 participants screened for eligibility across all 4 Web-based platforms, 535 were eligible and 308 completed the survey. Amazon mTurk yielded the fewest completed responses (n=9), 100% (9/9) of which passed several quality metrics verifying pregnancy and smoking status. Qualtrics Panel yielded 14 completed responses, 86% (12/14) of which passed the quality screening. Soapbox Sample produced 107 completed surveys, 67% (72/107) of which were found to be quality responses. Advertising through Reddit produced the highest completion rate (n=178), but only 29.2% (52/178) of those surveys passed the quality metrics. We found significant differences in eligibility yield, quality yield, age, number of previous pregnancies, age of smoking initiation, current smokers, race, education, and income (P<.001). Conclusions Although each platform successfully recruited pregnant smokers, results varied in quality, cost, and percentage of complete responses. Moving forward, investigators should pay careful attention to the percentage yield and cost of online recruitment platforms to maximize internal and external validity. PMID:29661751

An analysis of cropland mask choice and ancillary data for annual corn yield forecasting using MODIS data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shao, Yang; Campbell, James B.; Taff, Gregory N.; Zheng, Baojuan

2015-06-01

The Midwestern United States is one of the world's most important corn-producing regions. Monitoring and forecasting of corn yields in this intensive agricultural region are important activities to support food security, commodity markets, bioenergy industries, and formation of national policies. This study aims to develop forecasting models that have the capability to provide mid-season prediction of county-level corn yields for the entire Midwestern United States. We used multi-temporal MODIS NDVI (normalized difference vegetation index) 16-day composite data as the primary input, with digital elevation model (DEM) and parameter-elevation relationships on independent slopes model (PRISM) climate data as additional inputs. The DEM and PRISM data, along with three types of cropland masks were tested and compared to evaluate their impacts on model predictive accuracy. Our results suggested that the use of general cropland masks (e.g., summer crop or cultivated crops) generated similar results compared with use of an annual corn-specific mask. Leave-one-year-out cross-validation resulted in an average R2 of 0.75 and RMSE value of 1.10 t/ha. Using a DEM as an additional model input slightly improved performance, while inclusion of PRISM climate data appeared not to be important for our regional corn-yield model. Furthermore, our model has potential for real-time/early prediction. Our corn yield esitmates are available as early as late July, which is an improvement upon previous corn-yield prediction models. In addition to annual corn yield forecasting, we examined model uncertainties through spatial and temporal analysis of the model's predictive error distribution. The magnitude of predictive error (by county) appears to be associated with the spatial patterns of corn fields in the study area.

(Trans)esterification of mannose catalyzed by lipase B from Candida antarctica in an improved reaction medium using co-solvents and molecular sieve.

PubMed

Nott, Katherine; Brognaux, Alison; Richard, Gaëtan; Laurent, Pascal; Favrelle, Audrey; Jérôme, Christine; Blecker, Christophe; Wathelet, Jean-Paul; Paquot, Michel; Deleu, Magali

2012-01-01

Four co-solvents (dimethylformamide [DMF], formamide, dimethyl sulfoxide [DMSO], and pyridine) were tested with tert-butanol (tBut) to optimize the initial rate (v₀) and yield of mannosyl myristate synthesis by esterification catalyzed by immobilized lipase B from Candida antarctica. Ten percent by volume of DMSO resulted in the best improvement of v₀ and 48-hr yield (respectively 115% and 13% relative gain compared to pure tBut). Use of molecular sieve (5% w/v) enhances the 48-hr yield (55% in tBut/DMSO [9:1, v/v]). Transesterification in tBut/DMSO (9:1, v/v) with vinyl myristate leads to further improvement of v₀ and 48-hr yield: a relative gain of 85% and 65%, respectively, without sieve and 25% and 10%, respectively, with sieve, compared to esterification. No difference in v₀ and 48-hr yield is observed when transesterification is carried out with or without sieve.

Effect of pelleting process variables on physical properties and sugar yields of ammonia fiber expansion pretreated corn stover

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

Amber N. Hoover; Jaya Shankar Tumuluru; Farzaneh Teymouri

Pelletization process variables including grind size (4, 6 mm), die speed (40, 50, 60 Hz), and preheating (none, 70 degrees C) were evaluated to understand their effect on pellet quality attributes and sugar yields of ammonia fiber expansion (AFEX) pretreated biomass. The bulk density of the pelletized AFEX corn stover was three to six times greater compared to untreated and AFEX-treated corn stover. Also the durability of the pelletized AFEX corn stover was >97.5% for all pelletization conditions studied except for preheated pellets. Die speed had no effect on enzymatic hydrolysis sugar yields of pellets. Pellets produced with preheating ormore » a larger grind size (6 mm) had similar or lower sugar yields. Pellets generated with 4 mm AFEX-treated corn stover, a 60 Hz die speed, and no preheating resulted in pellets with similar or greater density, durability, and sugar yields compared to other pelletization conditions.« less

Whole season compared to growth-stage resolved temperature trends: implications for US maize yield

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Butler, E. E.; Mueller, N. D.; Huybers, P. J.

2014-12-01

The effect of temperature on maize yield has generally been considered using a single value for the entire growing season. We compare the effect of temperature trends on yield between two distinct models: a single temperature sensitivity for the whole season and a variable sensitivity across four distinct agronomic development stages. The more resolved variable-sensitivity model indicates roughly a factor of two greater influence of temperature on yield than that implied by the single-sensitivity model. The largest discrepancies occur in silking, which is demonstrated to be the most sensitive stage in the variable-sensitivity model. For instance, whereas median yields are observed to be only 53% of typical values during the hottest 1% of silking-stage temperatures, the single-sensitivity model over predicts median yields of 68% whereas the variable-sensitivity model more correctly predicts median yields of 61%. That the variable sensitivity model is also not capable of capturing the full extent of yield losses suggests that further refinement to represent the non-linear response would be useful. Results from the variable sensitivity model also indicate that management decisions regarding planting times, which have generally shifted toward earlier dates, have led to greater yield benefit than that implied by the single-sensitivity model. Together, the variation of both temperature trends and yield variability within growing stages calls for closer attention to how changes in management interact with changes in climate to ultimately affect yields.

Can plastic mulching replace irrigation in dryland agriculture?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, L.; Daryanto, S.; Jacinthe, P. A.

2017-12-01

Increasing water use efficiency (WUE) is a key strategy to maintaining crops yield without over-exploiting the scarce water resource. Plastic mulching technology for wheat and maize has been commonly used in China, but their effect on yield, soil moisture, evapotranspiration (ET), and WUE has not been compared with traditional irrigation method. Using a meta-analysis approach, we quantitatively examined the efficacy of plastic mulching in comparison with traditional irrigation in dryland agriculture. Our results showed that plastic mulching technique resulted in yield increase comparable to irrigated crops but used 24% less water. By covering the ridges with plastic and channeling rainwater into a very narrow planting zone (furrow), plastic mulching increased WUE and available soil moisture. Higher WUE in plastic-mulched croplands was likely a result of greater proportion of available water being used for transpiration than evaporation. If problems related to production costs and residual plastic pollution could be managed, plastic mulching technology would become a promising strategy for dryland farming in other regions.

ERTS-1 data collection systems used to predict wheat disease severities. [Riley County, Kansas

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kanemasu, E. T.; Schimmelpfenning, H.; Choy, E. C.; Eversmeyer, M. G.; Lenhert, D.

1974-01-01

The author has identified the following significant results. The feasibility of using the data collection system on ERTS-1 to predict wheat leaf rust severity and resulting yield loss was tested. Ground-based data collection platforms (DCP'S), placed in two commercial wheat fields in Riley County, Kansas, transmitted to the satellite such meteorological information as maximum and minimum temperature, relative humidity, and hours of free moisture. Meteorological data received from the two DCP'S from April 23 to 29 were used to estimate the disease progress curve. Values from the curve were used to predict the percentage decrease in wheat yields resulting from leaf rust. Actual decrease in yield was obtained by applying a zinc and maneb spray (5.6 kg/ha) to control leaf rust, then comparing yields of the controlled (healthy) and the noncontrolled (rusted) areas. In each field a 9% decrease in yield was predicted by the DCP-derived data; actual decreases were 12% and 9%.

Effect of sources of calcium salts of fatty acids on production, nutrient digestibility, energy balance, and carryover effects of early lactation grazing dairy cows.

PubMed

de Souza, Jonas; Batistel, Fernanda; Santos, Flávio Augusto Portela

2017-02-01

The objective of our study was to investigate the effects of sources of calcium salts of fatty acids (FA) on production, nutrient digestibility, energy balance, and carryover effects of early lactation grazing dairy cows. Treatment diets were offered from 3 to 16 wk postpartum (the treatment period), in which all cows grazed elephantgrass (Pennisetum purpureum 'Cameroon') and treatments were added to a concentrate supplement. The treatments were (1) control (concentrate without supplemental fat); (2) concentrate with calcium salts of soybean FA (CSSO); and (3) concentrate with calcium salts of palm FA (CSPO). From 17 to 42 wk postpartum (the carryover period), all cows received a common diet fed as a total mixed ration. During the treatment period, CSPO increased milk yield, milk fat yield, 3.5% fat-corrected milk, energy-corrected milk, and cumulative milk yield compared with control and CSSO. Treatment CSSO increased the yield of milk but did not affect 3.5% fat-corrected milk or energy-corrected compared with control. Also, CSSO decreased milk fat yield, dry matter intake, neutral detergent fiber digestibility, and body weight and body condition loss. Compared with control, both CSSO and CSPO increased feed efficiency (3.5% fat-corrected milk:dry matter intake), and CSPO increased feed efficiency compared with CSSO. When considering energy partitioning (as % energy intake), CSPO increased energy partitioning toward milk and increased energy mobilized from body reserves compared with control and CSSO. Furthermore, CSSO tended to reduce the mobilization of energy from body reserves compared with control. In the carryover period, no differences in milk composition were observed among treatments. A treatment by time interaction was observed during the carryover period for milk yield because cows on CSPO maintained higher production compared with control and CSSO cows until 30 wk postpartum; CSSO had a lower carryover effect sustaining higher milk yield compared with control until 25 wk postpartum. In conclusion, supplementation with CSPO was an effective strategy to increase energy intake and yields of milk and milk solids and it had a greater carryover effect. Supplementation with CSSO resulted in lower mobilization of reserves and less variation in body weight and body condition throughout lactation. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Integrated production of cellulosic bioethanol and succinic acid from rapeseed straw after dilute-acid pretreatment.

PubMed

Kuglarz, Mariusz; Alvarado-Morales, Merlin; Dąbkowska, Katarzyna; Angelidaki, Irini

2018-05-29

The aim of this study was to develop an integrated biofuel (cellulosic bioethanol) and biochemical (succinic acid) production process from rapeseed straw after dilute-acid pretreatment. Rapeseed straw pretreatment at 20% (w/v) solid loading and subsequent hydrolysis with Cellic® CTec2 resulted in high glucose yield (80%) and ethanol output (122-125 kg of EtOH/Mg of rapeseed straw). Supplementation the enzymatic process with 10% dosage of endoxylanases (Cellic® HTec2) reduced the hydrolysis time required to achieve the maximum glucan conversion by 44-46% and increased the xylose yield by 10% compared to the process with Cellic® CTec2. Significantly higher amounts of succinic acid were produced after fermentation of pretreatment liquor (48 kg/Mg of rapeseed straw, succinic acid yield: 60%) compared to fermentation of xylose-rich residue after ethanol production (35-37 kg/Mg of rapeseed straw, succinic yield: 68-71%). Results obtained in this study clearly proved the biorefinery potential of rapeseed straw. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Optimization of focused ultrasonic extraction of propellant components determined by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry.

PubMed

Fryš, Ondřej; Česla, Petr; Bajerová, Petra; Adam, Martin; Ventura, Karel

2012-09-15

A method for focused ultrasonic extraction of nitroglycerin, triphenyl amine and acetyl tributyl citrate presented in double-base propellant samples following by the gas chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis was developed. A face-centered central composite design of the experiments and response surface modeling was used for optimization of the time, amplitude and sample amount. The dichloromethane was used as the extractant solvent. The optimal extraction conditions with respect to the maximum yield of the lowest abundant compound triphenyl amine were found at the 20 min extraction time, 35% amplitude of ultrasonic waves and 2.5 g of the propellant sample. The results obtained under optimal conditions were compared with the results achieved with validated Soxhlet extraction method, which is typically used for isolation and pre-concentration of compounds from the samples of explosives. The extraction yields for acetyl tributyl citrate using both extraction methods were comparable; however, the yield of ultrasonic extraction of nitroglycerin and triphenyl amine was lower than using Soxhlet extraction. The possible sources of different extraction yields are estimated and discussed. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Improved calcium sulfate recovery from a reverse osmosis retentate using eutectic freeze crystallization.

PubMed

Randall, D G; Mohamed, R; Nathoo, J; Rossenrode, H; Lewis, A E

2013-01-01

A novel low temperature crystallization process called eutectic freeze crystallization (EFC) can produce both salt(s) and ice from a reverse osmosis (RO) stream by operating at the eutectic temperature of a solution. The EFC reject stream, which is de-supersaturated with respect to the scaling component, can subsequently be recycled back to the RO process for increased water recovery. This paper looks at the feasibility of using EFC to remove calcium sulfate from an RO retentate stream and compares the results to recovery rates at 0 and 20 °C. The results showed that there was a greater yield of calcium sulfate obtained at 0 °C as compared with 20 °C. Operation under eutectic conditions, with only a 20% ice recovery, resulted in an even greater yield of calcium sulfate (48%) when compared with yields obtained at operating temperatures of 0 and 20 °C (15% at 0 °C and 13% at 20 °C). The theoretical calcium recoveries were found to be 75 and 70% at 0 and 20 °C respectively which was higher than the experimentally determined values. The EFC process has the added advantage of producing water along with a salt.

A nonlinear viscoelastic constitutive equation - Yield predictions in multiaxial deformations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shay, R. M., Jr.; Caruthers, J. M.

1987-01-01

Yield stress predictions of a nonlinear viscoelastic constitutive equation for amorphous polymer solids have been obtained and are compared with the phenomenological von Mises yield criterion. Linear viscoelasticity theory has been extended to include finite strains and a material timescale that depends on the instantaneous temperature, volume, and pressure. Results are presented for yield and the correct temperature and strain-rate dependence in a variety of multiaxial deformations. The present nonlinear viscoelastic constitutive equation can be formulated in terms of either a Cauchy or second Piola-Kirchhoff stress tensor, and in terms of either atmospheric or hydrostatic pressure.

Economic weights for genetic improvement of lactation persistency and milk yield.

PubMed

Togashi, K; Lin, C Y

2009-06-01

This study aimed to establish a criterion for measuring the relative weight of lactation persistency (the ratio of yield at 280 d in milk to peak yield) in restricted selection index for the improvement of net merit comprising 3-parity total yield and total lactation persistency. The restricted selection index was compared with selection based on first-lactation total milk yield (I(1)), the first-two-lactation total yield (I(2)), and first-three-lactation total yield (I(3)). Results show that genetic response in net merit due to selection on restricted selection index could be greater than, equal to, or less than that due to the unrestricted index depending upon the relative weight of lactation persistency and the restriction level imposed. When the relative weight of total lactation persistency is equal to the criterion, the restricted selection index is equal to the selection method compared (I(1), I(2), or I(3)). The restricted selection index yielded a greater response when the relative weight of total lactation persistency was above the criterion, but a lower response when it was below the criterion. The criterion varied depending upon the restriction level (c) imposed and the selection criteria compared. A curvilinear relationship (concave curve) exists between the criterion and the restricted level. The criterion increases as the restriction level deviates in either direction from 1.5. Without prior information of the economic weight of lactation persistency, the imposition of the restriction level of 1.5 on lactation persistency would maximize change in net merit. The procedure presented allows for simultaneous modification of multi-parity lactation curves.

Different digestion enzymes used for human pancreatic islet isolation: A mixed treatment comparison (MTC) meta-analysis

PubMed Central

Rheinheimer, Jakeline; Ziegelmann, Patrícia Klarmann; Carlessi, Rodrigo; Reck, Luciana Ross; Bauer, Andrea Carla; Leitão, Cristiane Bauermann; Crispim, Daisy

2014-01-01

Collagenases are critical reagents determining yield and quality of isolated human pancreatic islets and may affect islet transplantation outcome. Some islet transplantation centers have compared 2 or more collagenase blends; however, the results regarding differences in quantity and quality of islets are conflicting. Thus, for the first time, a mixed treatment comparison (MTC) meta-analysis was carried out to compile data about the effect of different collagenases used for human pancreas digestion on islet yield, purity, viability and stimulation index (SI). Pubmed, Embase and Cochrane libraries were searched. Of 755 articles retrieved, a total of 15 articles fulfilled the eligibility criteria and were included in the MTC meta-analysis. Our results revealed that Vitacyte and Liberase MTF were associated with a small increase in islet yield (islet equivalent number/g pancreas) when compared with Sevac enzyme [standardized mean difference (95% credible interval – CrI) = −2.19 (−4.25 to −0.21) and −2.28 (−4.49 to −0.23), respectively]. However, all other enzyme comparisons did not show any significant difference regarding islet yield. Purity and viability percentages were not significantly different among any of the analyzed digestion enzymes. Interestingly, Vitacyte and Serva NB1 were associated with increased SI when compared with Liberase MTF enzyme [unstandardized weighted mean difference (95% CrI) = −1.69 (−2.87 to −0.51) and −1.07 (−1.79 to −0.39), respectively]. In conclusion, our MTC meta-analysis suggests that the digestion enzymes currently being used for islet isolation works with similar efficiency regarding islet yield, purity and viability; however, Vitacyte and Serva NB1 enzymes seem to be associated with an improved SI as compared with Liberase MTF. PMID:25437379

No-tillage effects on grain yield, N use efficiency, and nutrient runoff losses in paddy fields.

PubMed

Liang, Xinqiang; Zhang, Huifang; He, Miaomiao; Yuan, Junli; Xu, Lixian; Tian, Guangming

2016-11-01

The effect of no-tillage (NT) on rice yield and nitrogen (N) behavior often varies considerably from individual studies. A meta-analysis was performed to assess quantitatively the effect of NT on rice yield and N uptake by rice, N use efficiency (NUE, i.e., fertilizer N recovery efficiency), and nutrient runoff losses. We obtained data from 74 rice-field experiments reported during the last three decades (1983-2013). Results showed the NT system brought a reduction of 3.8 % in the rice yield compared with conventional tillage (CT). Soil pH of 6.5-7.5 was favorable for the improvement of rice yield with the NT system, while a significant negative NT effect on rice yield was observed in sandy soils (p < 0.05). N rate, ranging from 120 to 180 kg N ha -1 , for at least 3 years was necessary for NT to enable rice yield comparable with that of CT. Furthermore, the observations indicated NT reduced N uptake and NUE of the rice by 5.4 and 16.9 %, while increased the N and P exports via runoff by 15.4 and 40.1 % compared with CT, respectively. Seedling cast transplantation, N rate within the range 120-180 kg N ha -1 , and employing NT for longer than 3 years should be encouraged to compromise between productivity and environmental effects of NT implementation in rice fields.

The Effects of Plastic Film Mulching on Maize Growth and Water Use in Dry and Rainy Years in Northeast China

PubMed Central

Xu, Jie; Li, Congfeng; Liu, Huitao; Zhou, Peilu; Tao, Zhiqiang; Wang, Pu; Meng, Qingfeng; Zhao, Ming

2015-01-01

Plastic film mulching (PM) has been widely used to improve maize (Zea mays L.) yields and water use efficiency (WUE) in Northeast China, but the effects of PM in a changing climate characterized by highly variable precipitation are not well understood. Six site-year field experiments were conducted in the dry and rainy years to investigate the effects of PM on maize growth, grain yield, and WUE in Northeast China. Compared to crops grown without PM treatment (control, CK), PM significantly increased the grain yield by 15-26% in the dry years, but no significant yield increase was observed in the rainy years. Yield increase in the dry years was mainly due to a large increase in dry matter accumulation pre-silking compared to the CK, which resulted from a greater dry matter accumulation rate due to the higher topsoil temperature and water content. As a result, the WUE of the crops that underwent PM (3.27 kg m-3) treatment was also increased by around 16% compared to the CK, although the overall evapotranspiration was similar between the two treatments. In the rainy years, due to frequent precipitation and scant sunshine, the topsoil temperature and water content in the field that received PM treatment was improved only at some stages and failed to cause higher dry matter accumulation, except at the 8th leaf stage. Consequently, the grain yield and WUE were not improved by PM in the rainy years. In addition, we found that PM caused leaf senescence at the late growth stage in both dry and rainy years. Therefore, in practice, PM should be applied cautiously, especially when in-season precipitation is taken into account. PMID:25970582

Random Forests for Global and Regional Crop Yield Predictions.

PubMed

Jeong, Jig Han; Resop, Jonathan P; Mueller, Nathaniel D; Fleisher, David H; Yun, Kyungdahm; Butler, Ethan E; Timlin, Dennis J; Shim, Kyo-Moon; Gerber, James S; Reddy, Vangimalla R; Kim, Soo-Hyung

2016-01-01

Accurate predictions of crop yield are critical for developing effective agricultural and food policies at the regional and global scales. We evaluated a machine-learning method, Random Forests (RF), for its ability to predict crop yield responses to climate and biophysical variables at global and regional scales in wheat, maize, and potato in comparison with multiple linear regressions (MLR) serving as a benchmark. We used crop yield data from various sources and regions for model training and testing: 1) gridded global wheat grain yield, 2) maize grain yield from US counties over thirty years, and 3) potato tuber and maize silage yield from the northeastern seaboard region. RF was found highly capable of predicting crop yields and outperformed MLR benchmarks in all performance statistics that were compared. For example, the root mean square errors (RMSE) ranged between 6 and 14% of the average observed yield with RF models in all test cases whereas these values ranged from 14% to 49% for MLR models. Our results show that RF is an effective and versatile machine-learning method for crop yield predictions at regional and global scales for its high accuracy and precision, ease of use, and utility in data analysis. RF may result in a loss of accuracy when predicting the extreme ends or responses beyond the boundaries of the training data.

Changing environmental conditions and applying organic fertilizers in Origanum vulgare L.

PubMed Central

Murillo-Amador, Bernardo; Morales-Prado, Luis E.; Troyo-Diéguez, Enrique; Córdoba-Matson, Miguel V.; Hernández-Montiel, Luis G.; Rueda-Puente, Edgar O.; Nieto-Garibay, Alejandra

2015-01-01

Any improvement in agricultural systems that results in higher production should also reduce negative environmental impacts and enhance sustainability. The aim of this research was to investigate the effect of two different production systems, one open-field and the other shade-enclosure with four bocashi doses, in order to find the best environmental option in terms of yield, physiological and morphometric characteristics in one oregano (Origanum vulgare L.) cultivar. In this study a completely randomized block design was used with four replications and evaluated for photosynthetic and transpiration rate, stomatal conductance, chlorophyll, leaf area and temperature, aerial and roots fresh and dry biomass, fresh and dry yield. The results showed that oregano adapted best to the shade-enclosure with increase yield of fresh and dry leaf weight of 165% and 118%, respectively, when compared to open-field. Also, higher doses of bocashi improved yield in both environments but more so in shade-enclosure. Soil moisture retention was higher in shade-enclosure which was reflected in physiological variables for soil matric potential, transpiration, stomatal conductivity, photosynthesis being significantly higher in shade-enclosure compared to open-field, thus improving yield. It seems that oregano plants can be grown and perform better under shade-enclosure than open-field and bocashi is a suitable organic fertilizer. PMID:26257756

Potential Impacts from Using Photoactive Roads as AN Air Quality Mitigation Strategy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toro, C.; Jobson, B. T.; Shen, S.; Chung, S. H.; Haselbach, L.

2013-12-01

Mobile sources are major contributors to photochemical air pollution in urban areas. It has been proposed that the use of TiO2 coated roadways ('photoactive roads') could be an effective approach to reduce mobile source emissions by oxidizing NOx and VOC emissions at the roadway surface. However, studies have shown that formation of HONO and aldehydes can occur from some TiO2 treated surfaces during the photocatalytic oxidation of NOx and VOC, respectively. By changing the NOx-to-VOC ratio and generating photolabile HOx radical precursors, photoactive roads may enhance ozone formation rates in urban areas. In this work we present results that quantify NOx and VOC loss rates onto TiO2 treated asphalt and concrete samples, as well as HONO and aldehydes yields that result from the photocatalytic process. The treatment used a commercially available product. These objectives are relevant considering that the quantification of pollutant loss rates and yields of byproducts have not been determined for asphalt and that in the US more than 90% of the roadway surface is made of this material. Surface reaction probabilities (γ) and byproduct yields were determined using a CSTR photochemical chamber under varying conditions of water vapor and UV-A light intensity. Our results indicate that asphalt surfaces have a significantly higher molar yield of HONO compared to concrete surfaces with similar TiO2 loading. Concrete surfaces have reaction probabilities with NO one order of magnitude higher than asphalt samples. Fresh asphalt samples showed negligible photocatalytic activity, presumably due to absorption of TiO2 into the bitumen substrate. Laboratory-prepared asphalt samples with a higher degree of exposed aggregates showed increased HONO molar yields when compared to real-road asphalt samples, whose HONO molar yield was ~1%. Preliminary results for aldehydes formation showed similar molar yields between aged asphalt and concrete, even though aged asphalt samples had twice the TiO2 loading than concrete samples.

Automatic Exposure Control Systems Designed to Maintain Constant Image Noise: Effects on Computed Tomography Dose and Noise Relative to Clinically Accepted Technique Charts

PubMed Central

Favazza, Christopher P.; Yu, Lifeng; Leng, Shuai; Kofler, James M.; McCollough, Cynthia H.

2015-01-01

Objective To compare computed tomography dose and noise arising from use of an automatic exposure control (AEC) system designed to maintain constant image noise as patient size varies with clinically accepted technique charts and AEC systems designed to vary image noise. Materials and Methods A model was developed to describe tube current modulation as a function of patient thickness. Relative dose and noise values were calculated as patient width varied for AEC settings designed to yield constant or variable noise levels and were compared to empirically derived values used by our clinical practice. Phantom experiments were performed in which tube current was measured as a function of thickness using a constant-noise-based AEC system and the results were compared with clinical technique charts. Results For 12-, 20-, 28-, 44-, and 50-cm patient widths, the requirement of constant noise across patient size yielded relative doses of 5%, 14%, 38%, 260%, and 549% and relative noises of 435%, 267%, 163%, 61%, and 42%, respectively, as compared with our clinically used technique chart settings at each respective width. Experimental measurements showed that a constant noise–based AEC system yielded 175% relative noise for a 30-cm phantom and 206% relative dose for a 40-cm phantom compared with our clinical technique chart. Conclusions Automatic exposure control systems that prescribe constant noise as patient size varies can yield excessive noise in small patients and excessive dose in obese patients compared with clinically accepted technique charts. Use of noise-level technique charts and tube current limits can mitigate these effects. PMID:25938214

Extraction optimization and characterization of gelatine from fish dry skin of Spanish mackerel (Scomberromorus commersoni)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kusumaningrum, I.; Pranoto, Y.; Hadiwiyoto, S.

2018-04-01

This work was to optimized gelatin extraction from dry skin of Spanish mackerel (Scomberromorus commersoni) using Response Surface Methodology (RSM). The aim of this study was to determine the optimal condition of temperature and time for extraction process and properties of the gelatin extracted from dry mackerel skin. The optimal condition for extraction was 59.71°C for 4.25 hours. Results showed that predicted yield by RSM was 13.69% and predicted gel strength was 291.93 Bloom, whereas the actual experiment for yield and gel strength were 13.03% and 291.33 Bloom, respectively. The gelatin extracted from dried skin were analyzed for their proximate composition, yield, gel strength, viscosity, color, and amino acid composition. The results of dried skin gelatin properties compared to the commercial gelatin. Gelatin extracted from the dried skin gave content lower moisture, ash and protein content but higher fat compared to commercial gelatin. This study also shows that the gelatin extracted from the dried skin gave higher gel strength and pH but the lower amino acid composition compared to commercial gelatin.

New procedure for extraction of algal lipids from wet biomass: a green clean and scalable process.

PubMed

Dejoye Tanzi, Celine; Abert Vian, Maryline; Chemat, Farid

2013-04-01

A new procedure, called Simultaneous Distillation and Extraction Process (SDEP), for lipid extraction from wet microalgae (Nannochloropsis oculata and Dunaliella salina) was reported. This method does not require a pre-drying of the biomass and employs alternative solvents such as d-limonene, α-pinene and p-cymene. This procedure has been compared with Soxhlet extraction (Sox) and Bligh & Dyer method (B&D). For N. oculata, results showed that SDEP-cymene provided similar lipid yields to B&D (21.45% and 23.78%), while SDEP-limonene and pinene provided lower yields (18.73% and 18.75% respectively). For D. salina, SDEP-pinene provided the maximum lipid yield (3.29%) compared to the other solvents, which is quite close to B&D result (4.03%). No significant differences in terms of distribution of lipid classes and fatty acid composition have been obtained for different techniques. Evaluation of energy consumption indicates a substantial saving in the extraction cost by SDEP compared to the conventional extraction technique, Soxhlet. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of preservation methods for improving biogas production and enzymatic conversion yields of annual crops

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background The use of energy crops and agricultural residues is expected to increase to fulfil the legislative demands of bio-based components in transport fuels. Ensiling methods, adapted from the feed sector, are suitable storage methods to preserve fresh crops throughout the year for, for example, biogas production. Various preservation methods, namely ensiling with and without acid addition for whole crop maize, fibre hemp and faba bean were investigated. For the drier fibre hemp, alkaline urea treatment was studied as well. These treatments were also explored as mild pretreatment methods to improve the disassembly and hydrolysis of these lignocellulosic substrates. Results The investigated storage treatments increased the availability of the substrates for biogas production from hemp and in most cases from whole maize but not from faba bean. Ensiling of hemp, without or with addition of formic acid, increased methane production by more than 50% compared to fresh hemp. Ensiling resulted in substantially increased methane yields also from maize, and the use of formic acid in ensiling of maize further enhanced methane yields by 16%, as compared with fresh maize. Ensiled faba bean, in contrast, yielded somewhat less methane than the fresh material. Acidic additives preserved and even increased the amount of the valuable water-soluble carbohydrates during storage, which affected most significantly the enzymatic hydrolysis yield of maize. However, preservation without additives decreased the enzymatic hydrolysis yield especially in maize, due to its high content of soluble sugars that were already converted to acids during storage. Urea-based preservation significantly increased the enzymatic hydrolysability of hemp. Hemp, preserved with urea, produced the highest carbohydrate increase of 46% in enzymatic hydrolysis as compared to the fresh material. Alkaline pretreatment conditions of hemp improved also the methane yields. Conclusions The results of the present work show that ensiling and alkaline preservation of fresh crop materials are useful pretreatment methods for methane production. Improvements in enzymatic hydrolysis were also promising. While all three crops still require a more powerful pretreatment to release the maximum amount of carbohydrates, anaerobic preservation is clearly a suitable storage and pretreatment method prior to production of platform sugars from fresh crops. PMID:21771298

Photogeneration of reactive transient species upon irradiation of natural water samples: Formation quantum yields in different spectral intervals, and implications for the photochemistry of surface waters.

PubMed

Marchisio, Andrea; Minella, Marco; Maurino, Valter; Minero, Claudio; Vione, Davide

2015-04-15

Chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) in surface waters is a photochemical source of several transient species such as CDOM triplet states ((3)CDOM*), singlet oxygen ((1)O2) and the hydroxyl radical (OH). By irradiation of lake water samples, it is shown here that the quantum yields for the formation of these transients by CDOM vary depending on the irradiation wavelength range, in the order UVB > UVA > blue. A possible explanation is that radiation at longer wavelengths is preferentially absorbed by the larger CDOM fractions, which show lesser photoactivity compared to smaller CDOM moieties. The quantum yield variations in different spectral ranges were definitely more marked for (3)CDOM* and OH compared to (1)O2. The decrease of the quantum yields with increasing wavelength has important implications for the photochemistry of surface waters, because long-wavelength radiation penetrates deeper in water columns compared to short-wavelength radiation. The average steady-state concentrations of the transients ((3)CDOM*, (1)O2 and OH) were modelled in water columns of different depths, based on the experimentally determined wavelength trends of the formation quantum yields. Important differences were found between such modelling results and those obtained in a wavelength-independent quantum yield scenario. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Towards practical application of sensors for monitoring animal health: the effect of post-calving health problems on rumination duration, activity and milk yield.

PubMed

Steensels, Machteld; Maltz, Ephraim; Bahr, Claudia; Berckmans, Daniel; Antler, Aharon; Halachmi, Ilan

2017-05-01

Three sources of sensory data: cow's individual rumination duration, activity and milk yield were evaluated as possible indicators for clinical diagnosis, focusing on post-calving health problems such as ketosis and metritis. Data were collected from a computerised dairy-management system on a commercial dairy farm with Israeli Holstein cows. In the analysis, 300 healthy and 403 sick multiparous cows were studied during the first 3 weeks after calving. A mixed model with repeated measurements was used to compare healthy cows with sick cows. In the period from 5 d before diagnosis and treatment to 2 d after it, rumination duration and activity were lower in the sick cows compared to healthy cows. The milk yield of sick cows was lower than that of the healthy cows during a period lasting from 5 d before until 5 d after the day of diagnosis and treatment. Differences in the milk yield of sick cows compared with healthy cows became greater from 5 to 1 d before diagnosis and treatment. The greatest significant differences occurred 3 d before diagnosis for rumination duration and 1 d before diagnosis for activity and milk yield. These results indicate that a model can be developed to automatically detect post-calving health problems including ketosis and metritis, based on rumination duration, activity and milk yield.

Primary and Secondary Yield Losses Caused by Pests and Diseases: Assessment and Modeling in Coffee

PubMed Central

Gary, Christian; Tixier, Philippe; Lechevallier, Esther

2017-01-01

The assessment of crop yield losses is needed for the improvement of production systems that contribute to the incomes of rural families and food security worldwide. However, efforts to quantify yield losses and identify their causes are still limited, especially for perennial crops. Our objectives were to quantify primary yield losses (incurred in the current year of production) and secondary yield losses (resulting from negative impacts of the previous year) of coffee due to pests and diseases, and to identify the most important predictors of coffee yields and yield losses. We established an experimental coffee parcel with full-sun exposure that consisted of six treatments, which were defined as different sequences of pesticide applications. The trial lasted three years (2013–2015) and yield components, dead productive branches, and foliar pests and diseases were assessed as predictors of yield. First, we calculated yield losses by comparing actual yields of specific treatments with the estimated attainable yield obtained in plots which always had chemical protection. Second, we used structural equation modeling to identify the most important predictors. Results showed that pests and diseases led to high primary yield losses (26%) and even higher secondary yield losses (38%). We identified the fruiting nodes and the dead productive branches as the most important and useful predictors of yields and yield losses. These predictors could be added in existing mechanistic models of coffee, or can be used to develop new linear mixed models to estimate yield losses. Estimated yield losses can then be related to production factors to identify corrective actions that farmers can implement to reduce losses. The experimental and modeling approaches of this study could also be applied in other perennial crops to assess yield losses. PMID:28046054

Primary and Secondary Yield Losses Caused by Pests and Diseases: Assessment and Modeling in Coffee.

PubMed

Cerda, Rolando; Avelino, Jacques; Gary, Christian; Tixier, Philippe; Lechevallier, Esther; Allinne, Clémentine

2017-01-01

The assessment of crop yield losses is needed for the improvement of production systems that contribute to the incomes of rural families and food security worldwide. However, efforts to quantify yield losses and identify their causes are still limited, especially for perennial crops. Our objectives were to quantify primary yield losses (incurred in the current year of production) and secondary yield losses (resulting from negative impacts of the previous year) of coffee due to pests and diseases, and to identify the most important predictors of coffee yields and yield losses. We established an experimental coffee parcel with full-sun exposure that consisted of six treatments, which were defined as different sequences of pesticide applications. The trial lasted three years (2013-2015) and yield components, dead productive branches, and foliar pests and diseases were assessed as predictors of yield. First, we calculated yield losses by comparing actual yields of specific treatments with the estimated attainable yield obtained in plots which always had chemical protection. Second, we used structural equation modeling to identify the most important predictors. Results showed that pests and diseases led to high primary yield losses (26%) and even higher secondary yield losses (38%). We identified the fruiting nodes and the dead productive branches as the most important and useful predictors of yields and yield losses. These predictors could be added in existing mechanistic models of coffee, or can be used to develop new linear mixed models to estimate yield losses. Estimated yield losses can then be related to production factors to identify corrective actions that farmers can implement to reduce losses. The experimental and modeling approaches of this study could also be applied in other perennial crops to assess yield losses.

Improved sugar yields from biomass sorghum feedstocks: comparing low-lignin mutants and pretreatment chemistries.

PubMed

Godin, Bruno; Nagle, Nick; Sattler, Scott; Agneessens, Richard; Delcarte, Jérôme; Wolfrum, Edward

2016-01-01

For biofuel production processes to be economically efficient, it is essential to maximize the production of monomeric carbohydrates from the structural carbohydrates of feedstocks. One strategy for maximizing carbohydrate production is to identify less recalcitrant feedstock cultivars by performing some type of experimental screening on a large and diverse set of candidate materials, or by identifying genetic modifications (random or directed mutations or transgenic plants) that provide decreased recalcitrance. Economic efficiency can also be increased using additional pretreatment processes such as deacetylation, which uses dilute NaOH to remove the acetyl groups of hemicellulose prior to dilute acid pretreatment. In this work, we used a laboratory-scale screening tool that mimics relevant thermochemical pretreatment conditions to compare the total sugar yield of three near-isogenic brown midrib ( bmr ) mutant lines and the wild-type (WT) sorghum cultivar. We then compared results obtained from the laboratory-scale screening pretreatment assay to a large-scale pretreatment system. After pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis, the bmr mutants had higher total sugar yields than the WT sorghum cultivar. Increased pretreatment temperatures increased reactivity for all sorghum samples reducing the differences observed at lower reaction temperatures. Deacetylation prior to dilute acid pretreatment increased the total sugar yield for all four sorghum samples, and reduced the differences in total sugar yields among them, but solubilized a sizable fraction of the non-structural carbohydrates. The general trends of increased total sugar yield in the bmr mutant compared to the WT seen at the laboratory scale were observed at the large-scale system. However, in the larger reactor system, the measured total sugar yields were lower and the difference in total sugar yield between the WT and bmr sorghum was larger. Sorghum bmr mutants, which have a reduced lignin content showed higher total sugar yields than the WT cultivar after dilute acid pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis. Deacetylation prior to dilute acid pretreatment increased the total sugar yield for all four sorghum samples. However, since deacetylation also solubilizes a large fraction of the non-structural carbohydrates, the ability to derive value from these solubilized sugars will depend greatly on the proposed conversion process.

Improved sugar yields from biomass sorghum feedstocks: comparing low-lignin mutants and pretreatment chemistries

DOE PAGES

Godin, Bruno; Nagle, Nick; Sattler, Scott; ...

2016-11-21

For biofuel production processes to be economically efficient, it is essential to maximize the production of monomeric carbohydrates from the structural carbohydrates of feedstocks. One strategy for maximizing carbohydrate production is to identify less recalcitrant feedstock cultivars by performing some type of experimental screening on a large and diverse set of candidate materials, or by identifying genetic modifications (random or directed mutations or transgenic plants) that provide decreased recalcitrance. Economic efficiency can also be increased using additional pretreatment processes such as deacetylation, which uses dilute NaOH to remove the acetyl groups of hemicellulose prior to dilute acid pretreatment. In thismore » work, we used a laboratory-scale screening tool that mimics relevant thermochemical pretreatment conditions to compare the total sugar yield of three near-isogenic brown midrib (bmr) mutant lines and the wild-type (WT) sorghum cultivar. We then compared results obtained from the laboratory-scale screening pretreatment assay to a large-scale pretreatment system. After pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis, the bmr mutants had higher total sugar yields than the WT sorghum cultivar. Increased pretreatment temperatures increased reactivity for all sorghum samples reducing the differences observed at lower reaction temperatures. Deacetylation prior to dilute acid pretreatment increased the total sugar yield for all four sorghum samples, and reduced the differences in total sugar yields among them, but solubilized a sizable fraction of the non-structural carbohydrates. The general trends of increased total sugar yield in the bmr mutant compared to the WT seen at the laboratory scale were observed at the large-scale system. However, in the larger reactor system, the measured total sugar yields were lower and the difference in total sugar yield between the WT and bmr sorghum was larger. Sorghum bmr mutants, which have a reduced lignin content showed higher total sugar yields than the WT cultivar after dilute acid pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis. In conclusion, deacetylation prior to dilute acid pretreatment increased the total sugar yield for all four sorghum samples. However, since deacetylation also solubilizes a large fraction of the non-structural carbohydrates, the ability to derive value from these solubilized sugars will depend greatly on the proposed conversion process.« less

Improved sugar yields from biomass sorghum feedstocks: comparing low-lignin mutants and pretreatment chemistries

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

Godin, Bruno; Nagle, Nick; Sattler, Scott

For biofuel production processes to be economically efficient, it is essential to maximize the production of monomeric carbohydrates from the structural carbohydrates of feedstocks. One strategy for maximizing carbohydrate production is to identify less recalcitrant feedstock cultivars by performing some type of experimental screening on a large and diverse set of candidate materials, or by identifying genetic modifications (random or directed mutations or transgenic plants) that provide decreased recalcitrance. Economic efficiency can also be increased using additional pretreatment processes such as deacetylation, which uses dilute NaOH to remove the acetyl groups of hemicellulose prior to dilute acid pretreatment. In thismore » work, we used a laboratory-scale screening tool that mimics relevant thermochemical pretreatment conditions to compare the total sugar yield of three near-isogenic brown midrib (bmr) mutant lines and the wild-type (WT) sorghum cultivar. We then compared results obtained from the laboratory-scale screening pretreatment assay to a large-scale pretreatment system. After pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis, the bmr mutants had higher total sugar yields than the WT sorghum cultivar. Increased pretreatment temperatures increased reactivity for all sorghum samples reducing the differences observed at lower reaction temperatures. Deacetylation prior to dilute acid pretreatment increased the total sugar yield for all four sorghum samples, and reduced the differences in total sugar yields among them, but solubilized a sizable fraction of the non-structural carbohydrates. The general trends of increased total sugar yield in the bmr mutant compared to the WT seen at the laboratory scale were observed at the large-scale system. However, in the larger reactor system, the measured total sugar yields were lower and the difference in total sugar yield between the WT and bmr sorghum was larger. Sorghum bmr mutants, which have a reduced lignin content showed higher total sugar yields than the WT cultivar after dilute acid pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis. In conclusion, deacetylation prior to dilute acid pretreatment increased the total sugar yield for all four sorghum samples. However, since deacetylation also solubilizes a large fraction of the non-structural carbohydrates, the ability to derive value from these solubilized sugars will depend greatly on the proposed conversion process.« less

Productive, economic and risk assessment of grazing dairy systems with supplemented cows milked once a day.

PubMed

Lazzarini, B; Lopez-Villalobos, N; Lyons, N; Hendrikse, L; Baudracco, J

2018-05-01

Milking cows once a day (OAD) is a herd management practice that may help to reduce working effort and labour demand in dairy farms. However, a decrease in milk yield per cow occurs in OAD systems compared with twice a day (TAD) systems and this may affect profitability of dairy systems. The objective of this study was to assess productive and economic impact and risk of reducing milking frequency from TAD to OAD for grazing dairy systems, using a whole-farm model. Five scenarios were evaluated by deterministic and stochastic simulations: one scenario under TAD milking (TADAR) and four scenarios under OAD milking. The OAD scenarios assumed that milk yield per cow decreased by 30% (OAD30), 24% (OAD24), 19% (OAD19) and 10% (OAD10), compared with TADAR scenario, based on experimental and commercial farms data. Stocking rate (SR) was increased in all OAD scenarios compared to TADAR and two levels of reduction in labour cost were tested, namely 15% and 30%. Milk and concentrate feeds prices, and pasture and crop yields, were allowed to behave stochastically to account for market and climate variations, respectively, to perform risk analyses. Scenario OAD10 showed similar milk yield per ha compared with TADAR, as the increased SR compensated for the reduction in milk yield per cow. For scenarios OAD30, OAD24 and OAD19 the greater number of cows per ha partially compensated for the reduction of milk yield per cow and milk yield per ha decreased 21%, 15% and 10%, respectively, compared with TADAR. Farm operating profit per ha per year also decreased in all OAD scenarios compared with TADAR, and were US$684, US$161, US$ 303, US$424 and US$598 for TADAR, OAD30, OAD24, OAD19, OAD10, respectively, when labour cost was reduced 15% in OAD scenarios. When labour cost was reduced 30% in OAD scenarios, only OAD10 showed higher profit (US$706) than TADAR. Stochastic simulations showed that exposure to risk would be higher in OAD scenarios compared with TADAR. Results showed that OAD milking systems might be an attractive alternative for farmers who can either afford a reduction in profit to gain better and more flexible working conditions or can minimise milk yield loss and greatly reduce labour cost.

Pyrolysis of Woody Residue Feedstocks: Upgrading of Bio-Oils from Mountain-Pine-Beetle-Killed Trees and Hog Fuel

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

Zacher, Alan H.; Elliott, Douglas C.; Olarte, Mariefel V.

Liquid transportation fuel blend-stocks were produced by pyrolysis and catalytic upgrading of woody residue biomass. Mountain pine beetle killed wood and hog fuel from a saw mill were pyrolyzed in a 1 kg/h fluidized bed reactor and subsequently upgraded to hydrocarbons in a continuous fixed bed hydrotreater. Upgrading was performed by catalytic hydrotreatment in a two-stage bed at 170°C and 405°C with a per bed LHSV between 0.17 and 0.19. The overall yields from biomass to upgraded fuel were similar for both feeds: 24-25% despite the differences in bio-oil (intermediate) mass yield. Pyrolysis bio-oil mass yield was 61% from MPBKmore » wood, and subsequent upgrading of the bio-oil gave an average mass yield of 41% to liquid fuel blend stocks. Hydrogen was consumed at an average of 0.042g/g of bio-oil fed, with final oxygen content in the product fuel ranging from 0.31% to 1.58% over the course of the test. Comparatively for hog fuel, pyrolysis bio-oil mass yield was lower at 54% due to inorganics in the biomass, but subsequent upgrading of that bio-oil had an average mass yield of 45% to liquid fuel, resulting in a similar final mass yield to fuel compared to the cleaner MPBK wood. Hydrogen consumption for the hog fuel upgrading averaged 0.041 g/g of bio-oil fed, and the final oxygen content of the product fuel ranged from 0.09% to 2.4% over the run. While it was confirmed that inorganic laded biomass yields less bio-oil, this work demonstrated that the resultant bio-oil can be upgraded to hydrocarbons at a higher yield than bio-oil from clean wood. Thus the final hydrocarbon yield from clean or residue biomass pyrolysis/upgrading was similar.« less

Performance of Geneva® apple rootstock selections with ‘Brookfield Gala’ and ‘Cripps Pink’ on a tall spindle system

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

High density orchard systems have become the standard for new plantings in many apple production regions due to their earlier yield and higher cumulative yields which results in greater return on investments. Growers in the Mid-Atlantic region have unique challenges compared to northern production r...

[Effects of plastic film mulching and rain harvesting modes on chlorophyll fluorescence characteristics, yield and water use efficiency of dryland maize].

PubMed

Li, Shang-Zhong; Fan, Ting-Lu; Wang, Yong; Zhao, Gang; Wang, Lei; Tang, Xiao-Ming; Dang, Yi; Zhao, Hui

2014-02-01

The differences on chlorophyll fluorescence parameters, yield and water use efficiency of dryland maize were compared among full plastic film mulching on double ridges and planting in catchment furrows (FFDRF), half plastic film mulching on double ridges and planting in catchment furrows (HFDRF), plastic film mulching on ridge and planting in film-side (FS), and flat planting with no plastic film mulching (NM) under field conditions in dry highland of Loess Plateau in 2007-2012. The results showed that fluorescence yield (Fo), the maximum fluorescence yield (Fm), light-adapted fluorescence yield when PS II reaction centers were totally open (F), light-adapted fluorescence yield when PS II reaction centers closed (Fm'), the maximal photochemical efficiency of PS II (Fv/Fm), the actual photochemical efficiency of PS II in the light (Phi PS II), the relative electron transport rate (ETR), photochemical quenching (qP) and non-photochemical quenching (qN) in maize leaves of FFDRF were higher than that of control (NM), and the value of 1-qP was lower than that of control, at 13:00, chlorophyll fluorescence parameters values of FFDRF was significantly higher than control, which were increased by 5.3%, 56.8%, 10.7%, 36.3%, 23.6%, 56.7%, 64.4%, 45.5%, 23.6% and -55.6%, respectively, compared with the control. Yield and water use efficiency of FFDRF were the highest in every year no matter dry year, normal year, humid year and hail disaster year. Average yield and water use efficiency of FFDRF were 12,650 kg x hm(-2) and 40.4 kg x mm(-1) x hm(-2) during 2007-2012, increased by 57.8% and 61.6% compared with the control, respectively, and also significantly higher compared with HFDRF and PS. Therefore, it was concluded that FFDRF had significantly increased the efficiency of light energy conversion and improved the production capacity of dryland maize.

Comparison of PHITS, GEANT4, and HIBRAC simulations of depth-dependent yields of β(+)-emitting nuclei during therapeutic particle irradiation to measured data.

PubMed

Rohling, Heide; Sihver, Lembit; Priegnitz, Marlen; Enghardt, Wolfgang; Fiedler, Fine

2013-09-21

For quality assurance in particle therapy, a non-invasive, in vivo range verification is highly desired. Particle therapy positron-emission-tomography (PT-PET) is the only clinically proven method up to now for this purpose. It makes use of the β(+)-activity produced during the irradiation by the nuclear fragmentation processes between the therapeutic beam and the irradiated tissue. Since a direct comparison of β(+)-activity and dose is not feasible, a simulation of the expected β(+)-activity distribution is required. For this reason it is essential to have a quantitatively reliable code for the simulation of the yields of the β(+)-emitting nuclei at every position of the beam path. In this paper results of the three-dimensional Monte-Carlo simulation codes PHITS, GEANT4, and the one-dimensional deterministic simulation code HIBRAC are compared to measurements of the yields of the most abundant β(+)-emitting nuclei for carbon, lithium, helium, and proton beams. In general, PHITS underestimates the yields of positron-emitters. With GEANT4 the overall most accurate results are obtained. HIBRAC and GEANT4 provide comparable results for carbon and proton beams. HIBRAC is considered as a good candidate for the implementation to clinical routine PT-PET.

Comparison of PHITS, GEANT4, and HIBRAC simulations of depth-dependent yields of β+-emitting nuclei during therapeutic particle irradiation to measured data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rohling, Heide; Sihver, Lembit; Priegnitz, Marlen; Enghardt, Wolfgang; Fiedler, Fine

2013-09-01

For quality assurance in particle therapy, a non-invasive, in vivo range verification is highly desired. Particle therapy positron-emission-tomography (PT-PET) is the only clinically proven method up to now for this purpose. It makes use of the β+-activity produced during the irradiation by the nuclear fragmentation processes between the therapeutic beam and the irradiated tissue. Since a direct comparison of β+-activity and dose is not feasible, a simulation of the expected β+-activity distribution is required. For this reason it is essential to have a quantitatively reliable code for the simulation of the yields of the β+-emitting nuclei at every position of the beam path. In this paper results of the three-dimensional Monte-Carlo simulation codes PHITS, GEANT4, and the one-dimensional deterministic simulation code HIBRAC are compared to measurements of the yields of the most abundant β+-emitting nuclei for carbon, lithium, helium, and proton beams. In general, PHITS underestimates the yields of positron-emitters. With GEANT4 the overall most accurate results are obtained. HIBRAC and GEANT4 provide comparable results for carbon and proton beams. HIBRAC is considered as a good candidate for the implementation to clinical routine PT-PET.

Angular distribution measurements of photo-neutron yields produced by 2.0 GeV electrons incident on thick targets.

PubMed

Lee, Hee-Seock; Ban, Syuichi; Sanami, Toshiya; Takahashi, Kazutoshi; Sato, Tatsuhiko; Shin, Kazuo; Chung, Chinwha

2005-01-01

A study of differential photo-neutron yields by irradiation with 2 GeV electrons has been carried out. In this extension of a previous study in which measurements were made at an angle of 90 degrees relative to incident electrons, the differential photo-neutron yield was obtained at two other angles, 48 degrees and 140 degrees, to study its angular characteristics. Photo-neutron spectra were measured using a pulsed beam time-of-flight method and a BC418 plastic scintillator. The reliable range of neutron energy measurement was 8-250 MeV. The neutron spectra were measured for 10 Xo-thick Cu, Sn, W and Pb targets. The angular distribution characteristics, together with the previous results for 90 degrees, are presented in the study. The experimental results are compared with Monte Carlo calculation results. The yields predicted by MCNPX 2.5 tend to underestimate the measured ones. The same trend holds for the comparison results using the EGS4 and PICA3 codes.

New method to enhance the extraction yield of rutin from Sophora japonica using a novel ultrasonic extraction system by determining optimum ultrasonic frequency.

PubMed

Liao, Jianqing; Qu, Baida; Liu, Da; Zheng, Naiqin

2015-11-01

A new method has been proposed for enhancing extraction yield of rutin from Sophora japonica, in which a novel ultrasonic extraction system has been developed to perform the determination of optimum ultrasonic frequency by a two-step procedure. This study has systematically investigated the influence of a continuous frequency range of 20-92 kHz on rutin yields. The effects of different operating conditions on rutin yields have also been studied in detail such as solvent concentration, solvent to solid ratio, ultrasound power, temperature and particle size. A higher extraction yield was obtained at the ultrasonic frequency of 60-62 kHz which was little affected under other extraction conditions. Comparative studies between existing methods and the present method were done to verify the effectiveness of this method. Results indicated that the new extraction method gave a higher extraction yield compared with existing ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) and soxhlet extraction (SE). Thus, the potential use of this method may be promising for extraction of natural materials on an industrial scale in the future. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Atomic Oxygen Erosion Yield Predictive Tool for Spacecraft Polymers in Low Earth Orbit

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bank, Bruce A.; de Groh, Kim K.; Backus, Jane A.

2008-01-01

A predictive tool was developed to estimate the low Earth orbit (LEO) atomic oxygen erosion yield of polymers based on the results of the Polymer Erosion and Contamination Experiment (PEACE) Polymers experiment flown as part of the Materials International Space Station Experiment 2 (MISSE 2). The MISSE 2 PEACE experiment accurately measured the erosion yield of a wide variety of polymers and pyrolytic graphite. The 40 different materials tested were selected specifically to represent a variety of polymers used in space as well as a wide variety of polymer chemical structures. The resulting erosion yield data was used to develop a predictive tool which utilizes chemical structure and physical properties of polymers that can be measured in ground laboratory testing to predict the in-space atomic oxygen erosion yield of a polymer. The properties include chemical structure, bonding information, density and ash content. The resulting predictive tool has a correlation coefficient of 0.914 when compared with actual MISSE 2 space data for 38 polymers and pyrolytic graphite. The intent of the predictive tool is to be able to make estimates of atomic oxygen erosion yields for new polymers without requiring expensive and time consumptive in-space testing.

Improved yield and Zn accumulation for rice grain by Zn fertilization and optimized water management.

PubMed

Wang, Yu-yan; Wei, Yan-yan; Dong, Lan-xue; Lu, Ling-li; Feng, Ying; Zhang, Jie; Pan, Feng-shan; Yang, Xiao-e

2014-04-01

Zinc (Zn) deficiency and water scarcity are major challenges in rice (Oryza sativa L.) under an intensive rice production system. This study aims to investigate the impact of water-saving management and different Zn fertilization source (ZnSO4 and Zn-EDTA) regimes on grain yield and Zn accumulation in rice grain. Different water managements, continuous flooding (CF), and alternate wetting and drying (AWD) were applied during the rice growing season. Compared with CF, the AWD regime significantly increased grain yield and Zn concentrations in both brown rice and polished rice. Grain yield of genotypes (Nipponbare and Jiaxing27), on the average, was increased by 11.4%, and grain Zn concentration by 3.9% when compared with those under a CF regime. Zn fertilization significantly increased Zn density in polished rice, with a more pronounced effect of ZnSO4 being observed as compared with Zn-EDTA, especially under an AWD regime. Decreased phytic acid content and molar ratio of phytic acid to Zn were also noted in rice grains with Zn fertilization. The above results demonstrated that water management of AWD combined with ZnSO4 fertilization was an effective agricultural practice to elevate grain yield and increase Zn accumulation and bioavailability in rice grains.

Spatial Sampling of Weather Data for Regional Crop Yield Simulations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Van Bussel, Lenny G. J.; Ewert, Frank; Zhao, Gang; Hoffmann, Holger; Enders, Andreas; Wallach, Daniel; Asseng, Senthold; Baigorria, Guillermo A.; Basso, Bruno; Biernath, Christian;

Influence of yield surface curvature on the macroscopic yielding and ductile failure of isotropic porous plastic materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dæhli, Lars Edvard Bryhni; Morin, David; Børvik, Tore; Hopperstad, Odd Sture

2017-10-01

Numerical unit cell models of an approximative representative volume element for a porous ductile solid are utilized to investigate differences in the mechanical response between a quadratic and a non-quadratic matrix yield surface. A Hershey equivalent stress measure with two distinct values of the yield surface exponent is employed as the matrix description. Results from the unit cell calculations are further used to calibrate a heuristic extension of the Gurson model which incorporates effects of the third deviatoric stress invariant. An assessment of the porous plasticity model reveals its ability to describe the unit cell response to some extent, however underestimating the effect of the Lode parameter for the lower triaxiality ratios imposed in this study when compared to unit cell simulations. Ductile failure predictions by means of finite element simulations using a unit cell model that resembles an imperfection band are then conducted to examine how the non-quadratic matrix yield surface influences the failure strain as compared to the quadratic matrix yield surface. Further, strain localization predictions based on bifurcation analyses and imperfection band analyses are undertaken using the calibrated porous plasticity model. These simulations are then compared to the unit cell calculations in order to elucidate the differences between the various modelling strategies. The current study reveals that strain localization analyses using an imperfection band model and a spatially discretized unit cell are in reasonable agreement, while the bifurcation analyses predict higher strain levels at localization. Imperfection band analyses are finally used to calculate failure loci for the quadratic and the non-quadratic matrix yield surface under a wide range of loading conditions. The underlying matrix yield surface is demonstrated to have a pronounced influence on the onset of strain localization.

Effect of enzyme concentration, addition of water and incubation time on increase in yield of starch from potato.

PubMed

Sit, Nandan; Agrawal, U S; Deka, Sankar C

2014-05-01

Enzymatic treatment process for starch extraction from potato was investigated using cellulase enzyme and compared with conventional process. The effects of three parameters, cellulase enzyme concentration, incubation time and addition of water were evaluated for increase in starch yield as compared to the conventional process i.e., without using enzyme. A two-level full factorial design was used to study the process. The results indicated that all the main parameters and their interactions are statistically significant. Enzyme concentration and incubation time had a positive effect on the increase in starch yield while addition of water had a negative effect. The increase in starch yield ranged from 1.9% at low enzyme concentration and incubation time and high addition of water to a maximum of 70% increase from conventional process in starch yield was achieved when enzyme concentration and incubation time were high and addition of water was low suggesting water present in the ground potato meal is sufficient for access to the enzyme with in the slurry ensuring adequate contact with the substrate.

Optimization of dilute sulfuric acid pretreatment to maximize combined sugar yield from sugarcane bagasse for ethanol production.

PubMed

Benjamin, Y; Cheng, H; Görgens, J F

2014-01-01

Increasing fermentable sugar yields per gram of biomass depends strongly on optimal selection of varieties and optimization of pretreatment conditions. In this study, dilute acid pretreatment of bagasse from six varieties of sugarcane was investigated in connection with enzymatic hydrolysis for maximum combined sugar yield (CSY). The CSY from the varieties were also compared with the results from industrial bagasse. The results revealed considerable differences in CSY between the varieties. Up to 22.7 % differences in CSY at the optimal conditions was observed. The combined sugar yield difference between the best performing variety and the industrial bagasse was 34.1 %. High ratio of carbohydrates to lignin and low ash content favored the release of sugar from the substrates. At mild pretreatment conditions, the differences in bioconversion efficiency between varieties were greater than at severe condition. This observation suggests that under less severe conditions the glucose recovery was largely determined by chemical composition of biomass. The results from this study support the possibility of increasing sugar yields or improving the conversion efficiency when pretreatment optimization is performed on varieties with improved properties.

Comparative analysis of vaginal microbiota sampling using 16S rRNA gene analysis

PubMed Central

Kalliala, Ilkka; Nieminen, Pekka; Salonen, Anne

2017-01-01

Background Molecular methods such as next-generation sequencing are actively being employed to characterize the vaginal microbiota in health and disease. Previous studies have focused on characterizing the biological variation in the microbiota, and less is known about how factors related to sampling contribute to the results. Our aim was to investigate the impact of a sampling device and anatomical sampling site on the quantitative and qualitative outcomes relevant for vaginal microbiota research. We sampled 10 Finnish women representing diverse clinical characteristics with flocked swabs, the Evalyn® self-sampling device, sterile plastic spatulas and a cervical brush that were used to collect samples from fornix, vaginal wall and cervix. Samples were compared on DNA and protein yield, bacterial load, and microbiota diversity and species composition based on Illumina MiSeq sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene. We quantified the relative contributions of sampling variables versus intrinsic variables in the overall microbiota variation, and evaluated the microbiota profiles using several commonly employed metrics such as alpha and beta diversity as well as abundance of major bacterial genera and species. Results The total DNA yield was strongly dependent on the sampling device and to a lesser extent on the anatomical site of sampling. The sampling strategy did not affect the protein yield or the bacterial load. All tested sampling methods produced highly comparable microbiota profiles based on MiSeq sequencing. The sampling method explained only 2% (p-value = 0.89) of the overall microbiota variation, markedly surpassed by intrinsic factors such as clinical status (microscopy for bacterial vaginosis 53%, p = 0.0001), bleeding (19%, p = 0.0001), and the variation between subjects (11%, p-value 0.0001). Conclusions The results indicate that different sampling strategies yield comparable vaginal microbiota composition and diversity. Hence, past and future vaginal microbiota studies employing different sampling strategies should be comparable in the absence of other technical confounders. The Evalyn® self-sampling device performed equally well compared to samples taken by a clinician, and hence offers a good-quality microbiota sample without the need for a gynecological examination. The amount of collected sample as well as the DNA and protein yield varied across the sampling techniques, which may have practical implications for study design. PMID:28723942

Anaerobic digestion of spring and winter wheat: Comparison of net energy yields.

PubMed

Rincón, Bárbara; Heaven, Sonia; Salter, Andrew M; Banks, Charles J

2016-10-14

Anaerobic digestion of wheat was investigated under batch conditions. The article compares the potential net energy yield between a winter wheat (sown in the autumn) and a spring wheat (sown in the spring) grown in the same year and harvested at the same growth stage in the same farm. The spring wheat had a slightly higher biochemical methane potential and required lower energy inputs in cultivation, but produced a lower dry biomass yield per hectare, which resulted in winter wheat providing the best overall net energy yield. The difference was small; both varieties gave a good net energy yield. Spring sowing may also offer the opportunity for growing an additional over-winter catch crop for spring harvest, thus increasing the overall biomass yield per hectare, with both crops being potential digester feedstocks.

The production of π±, K±, p and p¯ in p-Pb collisions at sNN = 5.02 TeV

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tabassam, U.; Ali, Y.; Suleymanov, M.; Bhatti, A. S.; Ajaz, M.

2018-06-01

In this study, we are reporting comprehensive results on π±, K±, p and p¯ production in the transverse momentum range of 0 < pT < 4 GeV/c at midrapidity of 0 < y < 0.5 GeV/c, in p-Pb collisions at sNN = 5.02 TeV. HIJING 1.0 and UrQMD 3.4 event generators are used to perform simulations and the results are compared with the ALICE and RHIC data. It is observed from the comparison that the yields for the baryons are more complex compared to the mesons and the complexity in baryons is due to the striping dynamics (spectators, leading particles of projectiles) of inner nucleus protons and neutrons. Though all the mesons could be produced during the interaction, they have maximum longitudinal momentum pL; baryons and mesons could be produced as a result of decay of massive baryon-resonances. Yields for the π± mesons are greater than the yield for the K± mesons. These are the well-known results from the RHIC data, which stated that the Cronin Effect is mainly due to π± mesons that can be produced as a result of multi-particle inner nucleus cascade. There exists the regions where yields for the K± mesons and baryons are same that may be due to the appearance of parton nature. The code used in simulation includes the parton dynamics earlier than it is included in the experiment.

Evaluation and first-year field testing of efficient vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi for inoculation of wetland rice seedlings.

PubMed

Secilia, J; Bagyaraj, D J

1994-07-01

Grain yields of the rice cultivar 'Prakash' were improved upon inoculation with Glomus intraradices and G. fasciculatum, by 11% and 8%, respectively, compared with an uninoculated control. The results indicate that the amount of phosphate fertilizer usually applied to rice may be decreased by 50%, without affecting yield, if G. intraradices is inoculated.

The ultrasound-assisted aqueous extraction of rice bran oil.

PubMed

Khoei, Maryam; Chekin, Fereshteh

2016-03-01

In this work, aqueous extraction of rice bran oil was done without and with ultrasound pretreatment. Key factors controlling the extraction and optimal operating conditions were identified. The highest extraction efficiency was found at pH=12, temperature of 45°C, agitation speed of 800rpm and agitation time of 15min, ultrasound treatment time of 70min and ultrasound treatment temperature of 25°C. Moreover, extraction yields were compared to ultrasound-assisted aqueous extraction and Soxhlet extraction. The results showed that the yield of rice bran oil at ultrasound-assisted aqueous extraction was close to the yield of oil extracted by hexane Soxhlet extraction. This result implied that the yield of rice bran oil was significantly influenced by ultrasound. With regard to quality, the oil extracted by ultrasound-assisted aqueous process had a lower content of free fatty acid and lower color imparting components than the hexane-extracted oil. Also, effect of parboiling of paddy on hexane and ultrasound-assisted aqueous extraction was studied. Both extraction methods gives higher percentage of oil from par boiled rice bran compared with raw rice bran. This may be due to the fact that parboiling releases the oil. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of Controlled-Release Fertilizer on Leaf Area Index and Fruit Yield in High-Density Soilless Tomato Culture Using Low Node-Order Pinching

PubMed Central

Kinoshita, Takafumi; Yano, Takayoshi; Sugiura, Makoto; Nagasaki, Yuji

2014-01-01

To further development of a simplified fertigation system using controlled-release fertilizers (CRF), we investigated the effects of differing levels of fertilizers and plant density on leaf area index (LAI), fruit yields, and nutrient use in soilless tomato cultures with low node-order pinching and high plant density during spring-summer (SS), summer-fall (SF), and fall-winter (FW) seasons. Plants were treated with 1 of 3 levels of CRF in a closed system, or with liquid fertilizer (LF) with constant electrical conductivity (EC) in a drip-draining system. Two plant densities were examined for each fertilizer treatment. In CRF treatments, LAI at pinching increased linearly with increasing nutrient supply for all cropping seasons. In SS, both light interception by plant canopy at pinching and total marketable fruit yield increased linearly with increasing LAI up to 6 m2·m−2; the maximization point was not reached for any of the treatments. In FW, both light interception and yield were maximized at an LAI of approximately 4. These results suggest that maximizing the LAI in SS and FW to the saturation point for light interception is important for increasing yield. In SF, however, the yield maximized at an LAI of approximately 3, although the light interception linearly increased with increasing LAI, up to 4.5. According to our results, the optimal LAI at pinching may be 6 in SS, 3 in SF, and 4 in FW. In comparing LAI values with similar fruit yield, we found that nutrient supply was 32−46% lower with the CRF method than with LF. In conclusion, CRF application in a closed system enables growers to achieve a desirable LAI to maximize fruit yield with a regulated amount of nutrient supply per unit area. Further, the CRF method greatly reduced nutrient use without decreasing fruit yield at similar LAIs, as compared to the LF method. PMID:25402478

Relation of watershed setting and stream nutrient yields at selected sites in central and eastern North Carolina, 1997-2008

USGS Publications Warehouse

Harden, Stephen L.; Cuffney, Thomas F.; Terziotti, Silvia; Kolb, Katharine R.

2013-01-01

Data collected between 1997 and 2008 at 48 stream sites were used to characterize relations between watershed settings and stream nutrient yields throughout central and eastern North Carolina. The focus of the investigation was to identify environmental variables in watersheds that influence nutrient export for supporting the development and prioritization of management strategies for restoring nutrient-impaired streams. Nutrient concentration data and streamflow data compiled for the 1997 to 2008 study period were used to compute stream yields of nitrate, total nitrogen (N), and total phosphorus (P) for each study site. Compiled environmental data (including variables for land cover, hydrologic soil groups, base-flow index, streams, wastewater treatment facilities, and concentrated animal feeding operations) were used to characterize the watershed settings for the study sites. Data for the environmental variables were analyzed in combination with the stream nutrient yields to explore relations based on watershed characteristics and to evaluate whether particular variables were useful indicators of watersheds having relatively higher or lower potential for exporting nutrients. Data evaluations included an examination of median annual nutrient yields based on a watershed land-use classification scheme developed as part of the study. An initial examination of the data indicated that the highest median annual nutrient yields occurred at both agricultural and urban sites, especially for urban sites having large percentages of point-source flow contributions to the streams. The results of statistical testing identified significant differences in annual nutrient yields when sites were analyzed on the basis of watershed land-use category. When statistical differences in median annual yields were noted, the results for nitrate, total N, and total P were similar in that highly urbanized watersheds (greater than 30 percent developed land use) and (or) watersheds with greater than 10 percent point-source flow contributions to streamflow had higher yields relative to undeveloped watersheds (having less than 10 and 15 percent developed and agricultural land uses, respectively) and watersheds with relatively low agricultural land use (between 15 and 30 percent). The statistical tests further indicated that the median annual yields for total P were statistically higher for watersheds with high agricultural land use (greater than 30 percent) compared to the undeveloped watersheds and watersheds with low agricultural land use. The total P yields also were higher for watersheds with low urban land use (between 10 and 30 percent developed land) compared to the undeveloped watersheds. The study data indicate that grouping and examining stream nutrient yields based on the land-use classifications used in this report can be useful for characterizing relations between watershed settings and nutrient yields in streams located throughout central and eastern North Carolina. Compiled study data also were analyzed with four regression tree models as a means of determining which watershed environmental variables or combination of variables result in basins that are likely to have high or low nutrient yields. The regression tree analyses indicated that some of the environmental variables examined in this study were useful for predicting yields of nitrate, total N, and total P. When the median annual nutrient yields for all 48 sites were evaluated as a group (Model 1), annual point-source flow yields had the greatest influence on nitrate and total N yields observed in streams, and annual streamflow yields had the greatest influence on yields of total P. The Model 1 results indicated that watersheds with higher annual point-source flow yields had higher annual yields of nitrate and total N, and watersheds with higher annual streamflow yields had higher annual yields of total P. When sites with high point-source flows (greater than 10 percent of total streamflow) were excluded from the regression tree analyses (Models 2–4), the percentage of forested land in the watersheds was identified as the primary environmental variable influencing stream yields for both total N and total P. Models 2, 3 and 4 did not identify any watershed environmental variables that could adequately explain the observed variability in the nitrate yields among the set of sites examined by each of these models. The results for Models 2, 3, and 4 indicated that watersheds with higher percentages of forested land had lower annual total N and total P yields compared to watersheds with lower percentages of forested land, which had higher median annual total N and total P yields. Additional environmental variables determined to further influence the stream nutrient yields included median annual percentage of point-source flow contributions to the streams, variables of land cover (percentage of forested land, agricultural land, and (or) forested land plus wetlands) in the watershed and (or) in the stream buffer, and drainage area. The regression tree models can serve as a tool for relating differences in select watershed attributes to differences in stream yields of nitrate, total N, and total P, which can provide beneficial information for improving nutrient management in streams throughout North Carolina and for reducing nutrient loads to coastal waters.

[Prediction of the side-cut product yield of atmospheric/vacuum distillation unit by NIR crude oil rapid assay].

PubMed

Wang, Yan-Bin; Hu, Yu-Zhong; Li, Wen-Le; Zhang, Wei-Song; Zhou, Feng; Luo, Zhi

2014-10-01

In the present paper, based on the fast evaluation technique of near infrared, a method to predict the yield of atmos- pheric and vacuum line was developed, combined with H/CAMS software. Firstly, the near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy method for rapidly determining the true boiling point of crude oil was developed. With commercially available crude oil spectroscopy da- tabase and experiments test from Guangxi Petrochemical Company, calibration model was established and a topological method was used as the calibration. The model can be employed to predict the true boiling point of crude oil. Secondly, the true boiling point based on NIR rapid assay was converted to the side-cut product yield of atmospheric/vacuum distillation unit by H/CAMS software. The predicted yield and the actual yield of distillation product for naphtha, diesel, wax and residual oil were compared in a 7-month period. The result showed that the NIR rapid crude assay can predict the side-cut product yield accurately. The near infrared analytic method for predicting yield has the advantages of fast analysis, reliable results, and being easy to online operate, and it can provide elementary data for refinery planning optimization and crude oil blending.

Evaluating the Sensitivity of Agricultural Model Performance to Different Climate Inputs: Supplemental Material

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Glotter, Michael J.; Ruane, Alex C.; Moyer, Elisabeth J.; Elliott, Joshua W.

2015-01-01

Projections of future food production necessarily rely on models, which must themselves be validated through historical assessments comparing modeled and observed yields. Reliable historical validation requires both accurate agricultural models and accurate climate inputs. Problems with either may compromise the validation exercise. Previous studies have compared the effects of different climate inputs on agricultural projections but either incompletely or without a ground truth of observed yields that would allow distinguishing errors due to climate inputs from those intrinsic to the crop model. This study is a systematic evaluation of the reliability of a widely used crop model for simulating U.S. maize yields when driven by multiple observational data products. The parallelized Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (pDSSAT) is driven with climate inputs from multiple sources reanalysis, reanalysis that is bias corrected with observed climate, and a control dataset and compared with observed historical yields. The simulations show that model output is more accurate when driven by any observation-based precipitation product than when driven by non-bias-corrected reanalysis. The simulations also suggest, in contrast to previous studies, that biased precipitation distribution is significant for yields only in arid regions. Some issues persist for all choices of climate inputs: crop yields appear to be oversensitive to precipitation fluctuations but under sensitive to floods and heat waves. These results suggest that the most important issue for agricultural projections may be not climate inputs but structural limitations in the crop models themselves.

Evaluating the sensitivity of agricultural model performance to different climate inputs

PubMed Central

Glotter, Michael J.; Moyer, Elisabeth J.; Ruane, Alex C.; Elliott, Joshua W.

2017-01-01

Projections of future food production necessarily rely on models, which must themselves be validated through historical assessments comparing modeled to observed yields. Reliable historical validation requires both accurate agricultural models and accurate climate inputs. Problems with either may compromise the validation exercise. Previous studies have compared the effects of different climate inputs on agricultural projections, but either incompletely or without a ground truth of observed yields that would allow distinguishing errors due to climate inputs from those intrinsic to the crop model. This study is a systematic evaluation of the reliability of a widely-used crop model for simulating U.S. maize yields when driven by multiple observational data products. The parallelized Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (pDSSAT) is driven with climate inputs from multiple sources – reanalysis, reanalysis bias-corrected with observed climate, and a control dataset – and compared to observed historical yields. The simulations show that model output is more accurate when driven by any observation-based precipitation product than when driven by un-bias-corrected reanalysis. The simulations also suggest, in contrast to previous studies, that biased precipitation distribution is significant for yields only in arid regions. However, some issues persist for all choices of climate inputs: crop yields appear oversensitive to precipitation fluctuations but undersensitive to floods and heat waves. These results suggest that the most important issue for agricultural projections may be not climate inputs but structural limitations in the crop models themselves. PMID:29097985

Enzymatic digestibility and ethanol fermentability of AFEX-treated starch-rich lignocellulosics such as corn silage and whole corn plant

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background Corn grain is an important renewable source for bioethanol production in the USA. Corn ethanol is currently produced by steam liquefaction of starch-rich grains followed by enzymatic saccharification and fermentation. Corn stover (the non-grain parts of the plant) is a potential feedstock to produce cellulosic ethanol in second-generation biorefineries. At present, corn grain is harvested by removing the grain from the living plant while leaving the stover behind on the field. Alternatively, whole corn plants can be harvested to cohydrolyze both starch and cellulose after a suitable thermochemical pretreatment to produce fermentable monomeric sugars. In this study, we used physiologically immature corn silage (CS) and matured whole corn plants (WCP) as feedstocks to produce ethanol using ammonia fiber expansion (AFEX) pretreatment followed by enzymatic hydrolysis (at low enzyme loadings) and cofermentation (for both glucose and xylose) using a cellulase-amylase-based cocktail and a recombinant Saccharomyces cerevisiae 424A (LNH-ST) strain, respectively. The effect on hydrolysis yields of AFEX pretreatment conditions and a starch/cellulose-degrading enzyme addition sequence for both substrates was also studied. Results AFEX-pretreated starch-rich substrates (for example, corn grain, soluble starch) had a 1.5-3-fold higher enzymatic hydrolysis yield compared with the untreated substrates. Sequential addition of cellulases after hydrolysis of starch within WCP resulted in 15-20% higher hydrolysis yield compared with simultaneous addition of hydrolytic enzymes. AFEX-pretreated CS gave 70% glucan conversion after 72 h of hydrolysis for 6% glucan loading (at 8 mg total enzyme loading per gram glucan). Microbial inoculation of CS before ensilation yielded a 10-15% lower glucose hydrolysis yield for the pretreated substrate, due to loss in starch content. Ethanol fermentation of AFEX-treated (at 6% w/w glucan loading) CS hydrolyzate (resulting in 28 g/L ethanol at 93% metabolic yield) and WCP (resulting in 30 g/L ethanol at 89% metabolic yield) is reported in this work. Conclusions The current results indicate the feasibility of co-utilization of whole plants (that is, starchy grains plus cellulosic residues) using an ammonia-based (AFEX) pretreatment to increase bioethanol yield and reduce overall production cost. PMID:20534126

Improved Synthesis of and Nucleophilic Addition to 2-Formyl-2-Cyclohexenone

PubMed Central

Adary, Elan M.; Chang, Chih-wei; Auria, Damian T. D’; Nguyen, Phuc M.; Polewacz, Klaudyna; Reinicke, Justin A.; Seo, Hannah; Berger, Gideon O.

2014-01-01

A preparation of 2-formyl-2-cyclohexenone in nearly quantitative yield and purity of approximately 95% is described. It is scalable and has been extended to the synthesis of the 5- and 7-membered ring homologs with comparable yields. Conditions have also been developed for the successful conjugate addition of dimethylmalonate to 2-formyl-2-cyclohexenone, in good and scalable yield (60%). This result has been extended to 5 other nucleophile classes, and the dimethylmalonate conjugate addition has been demonstrated with 2-formyl-2-cyclopentenone and 2-formyl-2-cycloheptenone. PMID:25593375

An Assessment of the Water Development Project (GAP) of Turkey: Meeting Its Objectives and EU Criteria for Turkey’s Accession

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-12-01

less water supplied to farmers, the less the yield crop will be. In a comparative study of twelve irrigation schemes in the GAP region, relative...Moreover, the study states that the method it uses to yield the performance results of the irrigation schemes in the GAP area requires few climatic...agriculture sector production issued by the GAP - RDA administration mention the yields in production up to the year 2001–02. Few of these published

Electron-induced electron yields of uncharged insulating materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoffmann, Ryan Carl

Presented here are electron-induced electron yield measurements from high-resistivity, high-yield materials to support a model for the yield of uncharged insulators. These measurements are made using a low-fluence, pulsed electron beam and charge neutralization to minimize charge accumulation. They show charging induced changes in the total yield, as much as 75%, even for incident electron fluences of <3 fC/mm2, when compared to an uncharged yield. The evolution of the yield as charge accumulates in the material is described in terms of electron recapture, based on the extended Chung and Everhart model of the electron emission spectrum and the dual dynamic layer model for internal charge distribution. This model is used to explain charge-induced total yield modification measured in high-yield ceramics, and to provide a method for determining electron yield of uncharged, highly insulating, high-yield materials. A sequence of materials with progressively greater charge susceptibility is presented. This series starts with low-yield Kapton derivative called CP1, then considers a moderate-yield material, Kapton HN, and ends with a high-yield ceramic, polycrystalline aluminum oxide. Applicability of conductivity (both radiation induced conductivity (RIC) and dark current conductivity) to the yield is addressed. Relevance of these results to spacecraft charging is also discussed.

Methane potential from municipal biowaste: Insights from six communities in Maharashtra, India.

PubMed

Breitenmoser, Lena; Dhar, Hiya; Gross, Thomas; Bakre, Milan; Huesch, Ragini; Hugi, Christoph; Wintgens, Thomas; Kumar, Rakesh; Kumar, Sunil

2018-04-01

Anaerobic digestion (AD) of biowaste can generate biogas with methane (CH 4 ) as energy source and contribute to sustainable municipal solid waste management in India. Characteristic municipal biowastes sampled seasonally from household, fruit and vegetable market and agricultural waste collection points in villages, towns and cities in Maharashtra were analysed to assess the potential as substrate for AD. The mean biochemical methane potential (BMP, at 37 °C) across seasons and community sizes was between 200-260, 175-240 and 101-286 NL CH4  kg vs -1 for household, market and agricultural biowaste, respectively. CH 4 yields were comparable in villages, towns and cities. Seasonal variations in CH 4 yields were observed for market and agricultural biowaste with highest values during pre-monsoon season. Results underpin that municipal biowaste is a suitable substrate for AD in India. However, low purity of available biowaste resulted in lower CH 4 yields compared to recent studies using source-segregated biowaste. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Effects of flower bud removal and artificial pollination on growth and yield of Tulipa edulis].

PubMed

Miao, Yuan-Yuan; Zhu, Zai-Biao; Guo, Qiao-Sheng; Ma, Hong-Liang; Yang, Ying; Zhu, Li-Fang

2014-06-01

The study was conducted to explore the response of growth and yield of Tulipa edulis to flower bud removal and artificial pollination. And flower bud removal and artificial pollination were carried out in the squaring period and bloom stage respectively. The morphological index and biomass indicators were determined and the yield was counted in harvest time. Result showed that flower bud removal was beneficial to the growth of T. edulis, resulting in increasing growth index, biomass as well as the yield of bulb. The diameter and dry weight of T. edulis fruit by artificial pollination were increased significantly compared with the control. Seed setting percentage increased to 100%, and the number of seed as well as the single grain weight increased by 69.03% and 16.48%, respectively, which did not significantly affect the bulb production. In conclusion, Flower bud removal treatment accelerates bulb biomass increase, so as to improve its yield. Artificial pollination raised significantly seed setting percentage, seed number as well as the single grain weight.

Sputtering of uranium

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gregg, R.; Tombrello, T. A.

1978-01-01

Results are presented for an experimental study of the sputtering of U-235 atoms from foil targets by hydrogen, helium, and argon ions, which was performed by observing tracks produced in mica by fission fragments following thermal-neutron-induced fission. The technique used allowed measurements of uranium sputtering yields of less than 0.0001 atom/ion as well as yields involving the removal of less than 0.01 monolayer of the uranium target surface. The results reported include measurements of the sputtering yields for 40-120-keV protons, 40-120-keV He-4(+) ions, and 40- and 80-keV Ar-40(+) ions, the mass distribution of chunks emitted during sputtering by the protons and 80-keV Ar-40(+) ions, the total chunk yield during He-4(+) sputtering, and some limited data on molecular sputtering by H2(+) and H3(+). The angular distribution of the sputtered uranium is discussed, and the yields obtained are compared with the predictions of collision cascade theory.

[Effects of interaction between vermicompost and probiotics on soil nronerty, yield and quality of tomato].

PubMed

Shen, Fei; Zhu, Tong-bin; Teng, Ming-jiao; Chen, Yue; Liu, Man-qiang; Hu, Feng; Li, Hui-xin

2016-02-01

In this study, we investigated the effects of two strains of probiotic bacteria (Bacillus megaterium BM and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens BA) combined with chemical fertilizers and vermicompost on the soil property, the yield and quality of tomato. The results showed that under the same nutrient level, vermicompost significantly increased the yield, soluble sugar and protein contents of fruit, the soil pH and available phosphorus when compared with chemical fertilizers. Vermicompost combined with probiotics not only increased the tomato yield, soluble sugar, protein and vitamin C contents, sugar/acid ratio of fruit, and reduced the organic acid and nitrate nitrogen contents of fruit, also increased the soil pH and nitrate nitrogen content, and reduced soil electric conductivity when compared with vermicompost treatment. This improved efficiency was better than that by chemical fertilizers combined with probiotics. For BA and BM applied with chemical fertilizers or vermicompost, both stains had no significant effect on tomato quality. When co-applied with vermicompost, BA and BM showed significant difference in tomato yield. High soil available phosphorus content was determined when BM was combined with chemical fertilizers, while high soil available potassium content was obtained when BA was combined with vermicompost. Our results suggested that probiotics and vermicompost could be used as alternatives of chemical fertilizers in tomato production and soil fertility improvement.

Microdosimetry of DNA conformations: relation between direct effect of (60)Co gamma rays and topology of DNA geometrical models in the calculation of A-, B- and Z-DNA radiation-induced damage yields.

PubMed

Semsarha, Farid; Raisali, Gholamreza; Goliaei, Bahram; Khalafi, Hossein

2016-05-01

In order to obtain the energy deposition pattern of ionizing radiation in the nanometric scale of genetic material and to investigate the different sensitivities of the DNA conformations, direct effects of (60)Co gamma rays on the three A, B and Z conformations of DNA have been studied. For this purpose, single-strand breaks (SSB), double-strand breaks (DSB), base damage (BD), hit probabilities and three microdosimetry quantities (imparted energy, mean chord length and lineal energy) in the mentioned DNA conformations have been calculated and compared by using GEometry ANd Tracking 4 (Geant4) toolkit. The results show that A-, B- and Z-DNA conformations have the highest yields of DSB (1.2 Gy(-1) Gbp(-1)), SSB (25.2 Gy(-1) Gbp(-1)) and BD (4.81 Gy(-1) Gbp(-1)), respectively. Based on the investigation of direct effects of radiation, it can be concluded that the DSB yield is largely correlated to the topological characteristics of DNA models, although the SSB yield is not. Moreover, according to the comparative results of the present study, a reliable candidate parameter for describing the relationship between DNA damage yields and geometry of DNA models in the theoretical radiation biology research studies would be the mean chord length (4 V/S) of the models.

Identification of potentially high yielding irradiated cassava ‘Gajah’ genotype with different geographic coordinates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Subekti, I.; Khumaida, N.; Ardie, SW

2017-01-01

Cassava is one of the main and important carbohydrate producing crops in Indonesia. Thus cassava production and its tuber quality need to be improved. ‘Gajah’ genotype is a local genotypes cassava from East Kalimantan, has high potential yield (> 60 ton Ha-1). However, the harvest time of this genotype is quite long (>= 12 months). The objective of this research was to identify the high yielding cassava mutants from the gamma rays irradiated ‘Gajah’ genotype at M1V3 population and potential yield at different location. Several putative cassava mutants (12 mutants) were planted in Cikabayan Experimental Field, IPB from March 2015 to March 2016 and the yields compared with the same genotype grown at different location by seeing its coordinates to observe the potential yield. Our result showed that the fresh tuber weight per plant of some putative mutants could reach more than 8 kg (yield potential of 64 ton Ha-1). The harvested tubers also had sweet flavor, although the tubers of some putative mutants were bitter. Based on previous research study, the different geographic coordinate has resulted variability on fresh tuber yield. It seems that it needs to observe the stability of ‘Gajah’- irradiated mutants in several location in Java Island.

Testing actinide fission yield treatment in CINDER90 for use in MCNP6 burnup calculations

DOE PAGES

Fensin, Michael Lorne; Umbel, Marissa

2015-09-18

Most of the development of the MCNPX/6 burnup capability focused on features that were applied to the Boltzman transport or used to prepare coefficients for use in CINDER90, with little change to CINDER90 or the CINDER90 data. Though a scheme exists for best solving the coupled Boltzman and Bateman equations, the most significant approximation is that the employed nuclear data are correct and complete. Thus, the CINDER90 library file contains 60 different actinide fission yields encompassing 36 fissionable actinides (thermal, fast, high energy and spontaneous fission). Fission reaction data exists for more than 60 actinides and as a result, fissionmore » yield data must be approximated for actinides that do not possess fission yield information. Several types of approximations are used for estimating fission yields for actinides which do not possess explicit fission yield data. The objective of this study is to test whether or not certain approximations of fission yield selection have any impact on predictability of major actinides and fission products. Further we assess which other fission products, available in MCNP6 Tier 3, result in the largest difference in production. Because the CINDER90 library file is in ASCII format and therefore easily amendable, we assess reasons for choosing, as well as compare actinide and major fission product prediction for the H. B. Robinson benchmark for, three separate fission yield selection methods: (1) the current CINDER90 library file method (Base); (2) the element method (Element); and (3) the isobar method (Isobar). Results show that the three methods tested result in similar prediction of major actinides, Tc-99 and Cs-137; however, certain fission products resulted in significantly different production depending on the method of choice.« less

New measurements on isobaric fission product yields and mean kinetic energy for 241Pu thermal neutron-induced fission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Julien-Laferrière, Sylvain; Kessedjian, Grégoire; Serot, Olivier; Chebboubi, Abdelaziz; Bernard, David; Blanc, Aurélien; Köster, Ulli; Litaize, Olivier; Materna, Thomas; Meplan, Olivier; Rapala, Michal; Sage, Christophe

2018-03-01

Nuclear fission yields data measurements for thermal neutron induced fission of 241Pu have been carried out at the Institut Laue Langevin (ILL) in Grenoble, using the Lohengrin mass spectrometer. Mass, isotopic and isomeric yields have been extracted for the last measurements. A focus is given in this document to the mass yield results which are obtained for almost the entire heavy peak and most of the light high yields masses, along with the covariance matrix. The mean kinetic energy as a function of the fission product mass has also been extracted from the measurements. The total mean kinetic energy pre and post neutron emission have been assessed and compared to other works showing a rather good agreement.

MISSE 6 Stressed Polymers Experiment Atomic Oxygen Erosion Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

deGroh, Kim K.; Banks, Bruce A.; Mitchell, Gianna G.; Yi, Grace T.; Guo, Aobo; Ashmeade, Claire C.; Roberts, Lily M.; McCarthy, Catherine E.; Sechkar, Edward A.

2013-01-01

Polymers and other oxidizable materials used on the exterior of spacecraft in the low Earth orbit (LEO) space environment can be eroded away by reaction with atomic oxygen (AO). For spacecraft design, it is important to know the LEO AO erosion yield, Ey (volume loss per incident oxygen atom), of materials susceptible to AO erosion. The Stressed Polymers Experiment was developed and flown as part of the Materials International Space Station Experiment 6 (MISSE 6) to compare the AO erosion yields of stressed and non-stressed polymers to determine if erosion is dependent upon stress while in LEO. The experiment contained 36 thin film polymer samples that were exposed to ram AO for 1.45 years. This paper provides an overview of the Stressed Polymers Experiment with details on the polymers flown, the characterization techniques used, the AO fluence, and the erosion yield results. The MISSE 6 data are compared to data for similar samples flown on previous MISSE missions to determine fluence or solar radiation effects on erosion yield.

Determination of Microbial Growth by Protein Assay in an Air-Cathode Single Chamber Microbial Fuel Cell.

PubMed

Li, Na; Kakarla, Ramesh; Moon, Jung Mi; Min, Booki

2015-07-01

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) have gathered attention as a novel bioenergy technology to simultaneously treat wastewater with less sludge production than the conventional activated sludge system. In two different operations of the MFC and aerobic process, microbial growth was determined by the protein assay method and their biomass yields using real wastewater were compared. The biomass yield on the anode electrode of the MFC was 0.02 g-COD-cell/g- COD-substrate and the anolyte planktonic biomass was 0.14 g-COD-cell/g-COD-substrate. An MFC without anode electrode resulted in the biomass yield of 0.07 ± 0.03 g-COD-cell/g-COD-substrate, suggesting that oxygen diffusion from the cathode possibly supported the microbial growth. In a comparative test, the biomass yield under aerobic environment was 0.46 ± 0.07 g-COD-cell/g-COD-substrate, which was about 3 times higher than the total biomass value in the MFC operation.

Integration process of fermentation and liquid biphasic flotation for lipase separation from Burkholderia cepacia.

PubMed

Sankaran, Revathy; Show, Pau Loke; Lee, Sze Ying; Yap, Yee Jiun; Ling, Tau Chuan

2018-02-01

Liquid Biphasic Flotation (LBF) is an advanced recovery method that has been effectively applied for biomolecules extraction. The objective of this investigation is to incorporate the fermentation and extraction process of lipase from Burkholderia cepacia using flotation system. Initial study was conducted to compare the performance of bacteria growth and lipase production using flotation and shaker system. From the results obtained, bacteria shows quicker growth and high lipase yield via flotation system. Integration process for lipase separation was investigated and the result showed high efficiency reaching 92.29% and yield of 95.73%. Upscaling of the flotation system exhibited consistent result with the lab-scale which are 89.53% efficiency and 93.82% yield. The combination of upstream and downstream processes in a single system enables the acceleration of product formation, improves the product yield and facilitates downstream processing. This integration system demonstrated its potential for biomolecules fermentation and separation that possibly open new opportunities for industrial production. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

RADIATION CHEMISTRY OF HIGH ENERGY CARBON, NEON AND ARGON IONS: INTEGRAL YIELDS FROM FERROUS SULFATE SOLUTIONS

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

Christman, E.A.; Appleby, A.; Jayko, M.

1980-07-01

Chemical yields of Fe{sup 3+} have been measured from FeSO{sub 4} solutions irradiated in the presence and absence of oxygen with carbon, neon, and argon ions from the Berkeley Bevalac facility. G(Fe{sup 3+}) decreases with increasing beam penetration and with increasing atomic number of the incident ion. The results are compared with current theoretical expectations of the behavior of these particles in an aqueous absorber. The chemical yields are consistently higher than theoretically predicted, by amounts varying from <6.2% (carbon ions) to <13.2% (argon ions). The additional yields are possibly attributable to fragmentation of the primary particle beams.

Comparing diagnostic tests on benefit-risk.

PubMed

Pennello, Gene; Pantoja-Galicia, Norberto; Evans, Scott

2016-01-01

Comparing diagnostic tests on accuracy alone can be inconclusive. For example, a test may have better sensitivity than another test yet worse specificity. Comparing tests on benefit risk may be more conclusive because clinical consequences of diagnostic error are considered. For benefit-risk evaluation, we propose diagnostic yield, the expected distribution of subjects with true positive, false positive, true negative, and false negative test results in a hypothetical population. We construct a table of diagnostic yield that includes the number of false positive subjects experiencing adverse consequences from unnecessary work-up. We then develop a decision theory for evaluating tests. The theory provides additional interpretation to quantities in the diagnostic yield table. It also indicates that the expected utility of a test relative to a perfect test is a weighted accuracy measure, the average of sensitivity and specificity weighted for prevalence and relative importance of false positive and false negative testing errors, also interpretable as the cost-benefit ratio of treating non-diseased and diseased subjects. We propose plots of diagnostic yield, weighted accuracy, and relative net benefit of tests as functions of prevalence or cost-benefit ratio. Concepts are illustrated with hypothetical screening tests for colorectal cancer with test positive subjects being referred to colonoscopy.

Potential Impacts of Increased Management Intensities on Planted Pine Growth and Yield and Timber Supply Modeling in the South

Treesearch

Jacek P. Siry; Frederick W. Cubbage; Andy J. Malmquist

1999-01-01

The South can increase pine productivity on its forest lands as increased timber prices make returns from intensified forest management more profitable. We determined the most likely management intensities on industrial lands resulting in five management intensity classes. They are used to estimate the potential growth and yield levels, and compare these to empirical...

Effect of dietary fatty acid supplements, varying in fatty acid composition, on milk fat secretion in dairy cattle fed diets supplemented to less than 3% total fatty acids.

PubMed

Stoffel, C M; Crump, P M; Armentano, L E

2015-01-01

Dietary fatty acids can affect both milk fat yield and fatty acid (FA) composition. This relationship is well established when the dietary level of FA exceeds 3% of diet dry matter (DM). We could find no reports directly examining the effects of dietary FA profile on milk fat at levels below 3%. Twenty-four primiparous and 36 multiparous lactating cows were paired by production (1 high with 1 low, within parity) to form 30 experimental units. Pairs were fed 6 diets in five 6×6 balanced Latin squares with 21-d periods, and data were collected during the last 5d of each period. Two control diets were fed: a corn control diet (CC; 29% corn silage, 16% alfalfa silage, 19% corn grain, and 8% distillers grain on a DM basis) containing 1.8% FA; and a low-oil control diet (LOC; 9% corn silage, 35% alfalfa silage, 20% food-grade corn starch, and 8% corn gluten feed on a DM basis) containing 1.2% FA. A portion of the food-grade corn starch in LOC was replaced with 4 different FA supplements to create the 4 treatment diets. Treatments were 1.7% (DM basis) of a 50:50 blend of corn oil and high-linoleic safflower oil (LO), 1.7% high-oleic sunflower oil (OO), 1.7% palm oil (PO), or 1.8% calcium salts of palm fatty acids (PFA). The resultant diets were thus enriched in linoleic (LO), oleic (OO), or palmitic acid (PO and PFA). Dietary treatments did not affect dry matter intake. Addition of any of the fat sources to LOC resulted in increased milk yield, but milk fat yields and milk FA composition were variable for the different treatments. The LO treatment resulted in lower milk fat yield, fat concentration, and C16:0 yield but increased both trans-10 C18:1 and trans-10,cis-12 C18:2 yields compared with the other added FA treatments. Diets PO and PFA resulted in increased milk C16:0 yield and decreased total milk C18 yield compared with OO. Regression analysis revealed a negative coefficient for dietary linoleic acid content over basal (LOC) for both milk short-chain FA yield and C16:0 yield. Dietary linoleic acid content also had a positive coefficient for milk trans-10 C18:1 and trans-10,cis-12 conjugated linoleic acid yield. These results demonstrate that even when total dietary FA are below 3%, free oils rich in linoleic acid can reduce milk fat yield by reducing secretion of milk FA with fewer than 18 carbons. Fatty acid composition of fat supplements is important even at this low level of total dietary fat. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Climate change impacts on crop yield: evidence from China.

PubMed

Wei, Taoyuan; Cherry, Todd L; Glomrød, Solveig; Zhang, Tianyi

2014-11-15

When estimating climate change impact on crop yield, a typical assumption is constant elasticity of yield with respect to a climate variable even though the elasticity may be inconstant. After estimating both constant and inconstant elasticities with respect to temperature and precipitation based on provincial panel data in China 1980-2008, our results show that during that period, the temperature change contributes positively to total yield growth by 1.3% and 0.4% for wheat and rice, respectively, but negatively by 12% for maize. The impacts of precipitation change are marginal. We also compare our estimates with other studies and highlight the implications of the inconstant elasticities for crop yield, harvest and food security. We conclude that climate change impact on crop yield would not be an issue in China if positive impacts of other socio-economic factors continue in the future. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of treated tannery effluent with domestic wastewater and amendments on growth and yield of cotton.

PubMed

Jagathjothi, N; Amanullah, M Mohamed; Muthukrishnan, P

2013-11-15

Pot culture and field experiments were carried out at the Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP), Dindigul during kharif 2011-12 to investigate the influence of irrigation of treated tannery effluent along with domestic wastewater on growth, yield attributes and yield of cotton. The pot culture was in a factorial completely randomized design and field experiment laid out in factorial randomized block design with four replications. The results revealed that the mixing proportion of 25% Treated Tannery Effluent (TTE)+75% domestic wastewater (DWW) application recorded taller plants, higher dry matter production, number of sympodial branches plant(-1), number of fruiting points plant(-1), number of bolls plant(-1) and seed cotton yield with yield reduction of 15.28 and 16.11% compared to normal water irrigation under pot culture and field experiment, respectively. Regarding amendments, gypsum application registered higher seed cotton yield followed by VAM.

Molecular characterization of freshwater microalgae and nutritional exploration to enhance their lipid yield.

PubMed

Mandal, Madan Kumar; Chaurasia, Neha

2018-05-01

Biomass and lipid yield under nutrient depleted and supplemented conditions of N and Mg in two freshwater isolates, Chlorella sp. NC-MKM and Scenedesmus acutus NC-M2 from Meghalaya were investigated for biodiesel production. Both the strains, Chlorella sp. NC-MKM and Scenedesmus acutus NC-M2 are oleaginous in nature having lipid content of 40.2 ± 1.4 and 37.3 ± 2.6% DCW, respectively. The significant increase (92.8%) in lipid content was found in N-depleted condition while an increase (46.65%) in biomass yield was observed under Mg-supplemented condition in Chlorella sp. NC-MKM. Studying the interactive effects of nutrient depletion and supplementation, combination of N-depleted and Mg-supplemented condition was selected for further investigation to check enhanced lipid yield in Chlorella sp. NC-MKM. The results showed a significant increase in biomass yield, lipid yield and lipid content (30, 66.8, and 28.66%, respectively). Under this condition, accumulation of neutral lipid was also enhanced (47.17% M2 gated cells) compared to control (21.37% M2 gated cells). Further, FAMEs revealed that the relative percentage of saturated and mono-unsaturated fatty acids increased (66.16%) in Chlorella sp. NC-MKM compared to control that improves biodiesel properties.

Oyster mushroom cultivation with rice and wheat straw.

PubMed

Zhang, Ruihong; Li, Xiujin; Fadel, J G

2002-05-01

Cultivation of the oyster mushroom, Pleurotus sajor-caju, on rice and wheat straw without nutrient supplementation was investigated. The effects of straw size reduction method and particle size, spawn inoculation level, and type of substrate (rice straw versus wheat straw) on mushroom yield, biological efficiency, bioconversion efficiency, and substrate degradation were determined. Two size reduction methods, grinding and chopping, were compared. The ground straw yielded higher mushroom growth rate and yield than the chopped straw. The growth cycles of mushrooms with the ground substrate were five days shorter than with the chopped straw for a similar particle size. However, it was found that when the straw was ground into particles that were too small, the mushroom yield decreased. With the three spawn levels tested (12%, 16% and 18%), the 12% level resulted in significantly lower mushroom yield than the other two levels. Comparing rice straw with wheat straw, rice straw yielded about 10% more mushrooms than wheat straw under the same cultivation conditions. The dry matter loss of the substrate after mushroom growth varied from 30.1% to 44.3%. The straw fiber remaining after fungal utilization was not as degradable as the original straw fiber, indicating that the fungal fermentation did not improve the feed value of the straw.

High-Yield Method for Dispersing Simian Kidneys for Cell Cultures

PubMed Central

de Oca, H. Montes; Probst, P.; Grubbs, R.

1971-01-01

A technique for dispersion of animal tissue cells is described. The proposed technique is based on the concomitant use of trypsin and disodium ethylenediamine tetraacetate (EDTA). The use of the two dispersing agents (trypsin and disodium EDTA) markedly enhances cell yield as compared with the standard cell dispersion methods. Moreover, significant reduction in the amount of time required for complete tissue dispersal, presence of a very low number of nonviable cells, less cell clumping, and more uniform monolayer formation upon cultivation compare favorably with the results usually obtained with the standard trypsinization technique. Images PMID:4993235

Comparative role of neem seed extract, moringa leaf extract and imidacloprid in the management of wheat aphids in relation to yield losses in Pakistan

PubMed Central

Shah, Farhan Mahmood; Razaq, Muhammad; Han, Peng; Chen, Julian

2017-01-01

Wheat being staple food of Pakistan is constantly attacked by major wheat aphid species, Schizaphis graminum (R.), Rhopalosiphum padi (L.) and Sitobion avenae (F.). Due to concern on synthetic chemical use in wheat, it is imperative to search for alternative environment- and human- friendly control measures such as botanical pesticides. In the present study, we evaluated the comparative role of neem seed extract (NSE), moringa leaf extract (MLE) and imidacloprid (I) in the management of the aphid as well as the yield losses parameters in late planted wheat fields. Imidacloprid reduced significantly aphids infestation compared to the other treatments, hence resulting in higher yield, particularly when applied with MLE. The percentages of yield increase in I+MLE treated plots over the control were 19.15–81.89% for grains per spike, 5.33–37.62% for thousand grain weight and 27.59–61.12% for yield kg/ha. NSE was the second most effective control measure in suppressing aphid population, but the yield protected by NSE treatment over the control was comparable to that by imidacloprid. Population densities of coccinellids and syrphids in the plots treated with NSE-2 were higher than those treated with imidacloprid in two out of three experiments during 2013–14. Low predator density in imidacloprid-treated plots was attributed to the lower availability of prey aphids. The efficacy of NSE against aphids varied depending on degree of synchronization among the application timing, the activity of aphids, crop variety and environmental conditions. Despite that, we suggested NSE to be a promising alternative botanical insecticide compared to the most commonly recommended imidiacloprid. Further studies should consider the side effects of biopesticides on non-target organisms in order to provide better management practices in the field. PMID:28953894

Comparative role of neem seed extract, moringa leaf extract and imidacloprid in the management of wheat aphids in relation to yield losses in Pakistan.

PubMed

Shah, Farhan Mahmood; Razaq, Muhammad; Ali, Abid; Han, Peng; Chen, Julian

2017-01-01

Wheat being staple food of Pakistan is constantly attacked by major wheat aphid species, Schizaphis graminum (R.), Rhopalosiphum padi (L.) and Sitobion avenae (F.). Due to concern on synthetic chemical use in wheat, it is imperative to search for alternative environment- and human- friendly control measures such as botanical pesticides. In the present study, we evaluated the comparative role of neem seed extract (NSE), moringa leaf extract (MLE) and imidacloprid (I) in the management of the aphid as well as the yield losses parameters in late planted wheat fields. Imidacloprid reduced significantly aphids infestation compared to the other treatments, hence resulting in higher yield, particularly when applied with MLE. The percentages of yield increase in I+MLE treated plots over the control were 19.15-81.89% for grains per spike, 5.33-37.62% for thousand grain weight and 27.59-61.12% for yield kg/ha. NSE was the second most effective control measure in suppressing aphid population, but the yield protected by NSE treatment over the control was comparable to that by imidacloprid. Population densities of coccinellids and syrphids in the plots treated with NSE-2 were higher than those treated with imidacloprid in two out of three experiments during 2013-14. Low predator density in imidacloprid-treated plots was attributed to the lower availability of prey aphids. The efficacy of NSE against aphids varied depending on degree of synchronization among the application timing, the activity of aphids, crop variety and environmental conditions. Despite that, we suggested NSE to be a promising alternative botanical insecticide compared to the most commonly recommended imidiacloprid. Further studies should consider the side effects of biopesticides on non-target organisms in order to provide better management practices in the field.

Identifying critical nitrogen application rate for maize yield and nitrate leaching in a Haplic Luvisol soil using the DNDC model.

PubMed

Zhang, Yitao; Wang, Hongyuan; Liu, Shen; Lei, Qiuliang; Liu, Jian; He, Jianqiang; Zhai, Limei; Ren, Tianzhi; Liu, Hongbin

2015-05-01

Identification of critical nitrogen (N) application rate can provide management supports for ensuring grain yield and reducing amount of nitrate leaching to ground water. A five-year (2008-2012) field lysimeter (1 m × 2 m × 1.2 m) experiment with three N treatments (0, 180 and 240 kg Nha(-1)) was conducted to quantify maize yields and amount of nitrate leaching from a Haplic Luvisol soil in the North China Plain. The experimental data were used to calibrate and validate the process-based model of Denitrification-Decomposition (DNDC). After this, the model was used to simulate maize yield production and amount of nitrate leaching under a series of N application rates and to identify critical N application rate based on acceptable yield and amount of nitrate leaching for this cropping system. The results of model calibration and validation indicated that the model could correctly simulate maize yield and amount of nitrate leaching, with satisfactory values of RMSE-observation standard deviation ratio, model efficiency and determination coefficient. The model simulations confirmed the measurements that N application increased maize yield compared with the control, but the high N rate (240 kg Nha(-1)) did not produce more yield than the low one (120 kg Nha(-1)), and that the amount of nitrate leaching increased with increasing N application rate. The simulation results suggested that the optimal N application rate was in a range between 150 and 240 kg ha(-1), which would keep the amount of nitrate leaching below 18.4 kg NO₃(-)-Nha(-1) and meanwhile maintain acceptable maize yield above 9410 kg ha(-1). Furthermore, 180 kg Nha(-1) produced the highest yields (9837 kg ha(-1)) and comparatively lower amount of nitrate leaching (10.0 kg NO₃(-)-Nha(-1)). This study will provide a valuable reference for determining optimal N application rate (or range) in other crop systems and regions in China. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Ozone dose-response relationships for spring oilseed rape and broccoli

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

De Bock, Maarten; Op de Beeck, Maarten; De Temmerman, Ludwig; Guisez, Yves; Ceulemans, Reinhart; Vandermeiren, Karine

2011-03-01

Tropospheric ozone is an important air pollutant with known detrimental effects for several crops. Ozone effects on seed yield, oil percentage, oil yield and 1000 seed weight were examined for spring oilseed rape ( Brassica napus cv. Ability). For broccoli ( Brassica oleracea L. cv. Italica cv. Monaco) the effects on fresh marketable weight and total dry weight were studied. Current ozone levels were compared with an increase of 20 and 40 ppb during 8 h per day, over the entire growing season. Oilseed rape seed yield was negatively correlated with ozone dose indices calculated from emergence until harvest. This resulted in an R2 of 0.24 and 0.26 ( p < 0.001) for the accumulated hourly O 3 exposure over a threshold of 40 ppb (AOT40) and the phytotoxic ozone dose above a threshold of 6 nmol m -2 s -1 (POD 6) respectively. Estimated critical levels, above which 5% yield reduction is expected, were 3.7 ppm h and 4.4 mmol m -2 respectively. Our results also confirm that a threshold value of 6 nmol s -1 m -2 projected leaf area, as recommended for agricultural crops (UNECE, Mills, 2004), can indeed be applied for spring oilseed rape. The reduction of oilseed rape yield showed the highest correlation with the ozone uptake during the vegetative growth stage: when only the first 47 days after emergence were used to calculate POD 6, R2 values increased up to 0.476 or even 0.545 when the first 23 days were excluded. The highest ozone treatments, corresponding to the future ambient level by 2100 (IPCC, Meehl et al., 2007), led to a reduction of approximately 30% in oilseed rape seed yield in comparison to the current ozone concentrations. Oil percentage was also significantly reduced in response to ozone ( p < 0.001). As a consequence oil yield was even more severely affected by elevated ozone exposure compared to seed yield: critical levels for oil yield dropped to 3.2 ppm h and 3.9 mmol m -2. For broccoli the applied ozone doses had no effect on yield.

Can productivity and profitability be enhanced in intensively managed cereal systems while reducing the environmental footprint of production? Assessing sustainable intensification options in the breadbasket of India.

PubMed

Kumar, Virender; Jat, Hanuman S; Sharma, Parbodh C; Balwinder-Singh; Gathala, Mahesh K; Malik, Ram K; Kamboj, Baldev R; Yadav, Arvind K; Ladha, Jagdish K; Raman, Anitha; Sharma, D K; McDonald, Andrew

2018-01-15

In the most productive area of the Indo-Gangetic Plains in Northwest India where high yields of rice and wheat are commonplace, a medium-term cropping system trial was conducted in Haryana State. The goal of the study was to identify integrated management options for further improving productivity and profitability while rationalizing resource use and reducing environmental externalities (i.e., "sustainable intensification", SI) by drawing on the principles of diversification, precision management, and conservation agriculture. Four scenarios were evaluated: Scenario 1 - "business-as-usual" [conventional puddled transplanted rice (PTR) followed by ( fb ) conventional-till wheat]; Scenario 2 - reduced tillage with opportunistic diversification and precision resource management [PTR fb zero-till (ZT) wheat fb ZT mungbean]; Scenario 3 - ZT for all crops with opportunistic diversification and precision resource management [ZT direct-seeded rice (ZT-DSR) fb ZT wheat fb ZT mungbean]; and Scenario 4 - ZT for all crops with strategic diversification and precision resource management [ZT maize fb ZT wheat fb ZT mungbean]. Results of this five-year study strongly suggest that, compared with business-as-usual practices, SI strategies that incorporate multi-objective yield, economic, and environmental criteria can be more productive when used in these production environments. For Scenarios 2, 3, and 4, system-level increases in productivity (10-17%) and profitability (24-50%) were observed while using less irrigation water (15-71% reduction) and energy (17-47% reduction), leading to 15-30% lower global warming potential (GWP), with the ranges reflecting the implications of specific innovations. Scenario 3, where early wheat sowing was combined with ZT along with no puddling during the rice phase, resulted in a 13% gain in wheat yield compared with Scenario 2. A similar gain in wheat yield was observed in Scenario 4 vis-à-vis Scenario 2. Compared to Scenario 1, wheat yields in Scenarios 3 and 4 were 15-17% higher, whereas, in Scenario 2, yield was either similar in normal years or higher in warmer years. During the rainy ( kharif ) season, ZT-DSR provided yields similar to or higher than those of PTR in the first three years and lower (11-30%) in Years 4 and 5, a result that provides a note of caution for interpreting technology performance through short-term trials or simply averaging results over several years. The resource use and economic and environmental advantages of DSR were more stable through time, including reductions in irrigation water (22-40%), production cost (11-17%), energy inputs (13-34%), and total GWP (14-32%). The integration of "best practices" in PTR in Scenario 2 resulted in reductions of 24% in irrigation water and 21% in GWP, with a positive impact on yield (0.9 t/ha) and profitability compared to conventional PTR, demonstrating the power of simple management changes to generate improved SI outcomes. When ZT maize was used as a diversification option instead of rice in Scenario 4, reductions in resource use jumped to 82-89% for irrigation water and 49-66% for energy inputs, with 13-40% lower GWP, similar or higher rice equivalent yield, and higher profitability (27-73%) in comparison to the rice-based scenarios. Despite these advantages, maize value chains are not robust in this part of India and public procurement is absent. Results do demonstrate that transformative opportunities exist to break the cycle of stagnating yields and inefficient resource use in the most productive cereal-based cropping systems of South Asia. However, these SI entry points need to be placed in the context of the major drivers of change in the region, including market conditions, risks, and declining labor availability, and matching with the needs and interests of different types of farmers.

SU-E-T-399: Evaluation of Selection Criteria for Computational Human Phantoms for Use in Out-Of-Field Organ Dosimetry for Radiotherapy Patients

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

Pelletier, C; Jung, J; Lee, C

2015-06-15

Purpose: To quantify the dosimetric uncertainty due to organ position errors when using height and weight as phantom selection criteria in the UF/NCI Hybrid Phantom Library for the purpose of out-of-field organ dose reconstruction. Methods: Four diagnostic patient CT images were used to create 7-field IMRT plans. For each patient, dose to the liver, right lung, and left lung were calculated using the XVMC Monte Carlo code. These doses were taken to be the ground truth. For each patient, the phantom with the most closely matching height and weight was selected from the body size dependent phantom library. The patientmore » plans were then transferred to the computational phantoms and organ doses were recalculated. Each plan was also run on 4 additional phantoms with reference heights and or weights. Maximum and mean doses for the three organs were computed, and the DVHs were extracted and compared. One sample t-tests were performed to compare the accuracy of the height and weight matched phantoms against the additional phantoms in regards to both maximum and mean dose. Results: For one of the patients, the height and weight matched phantom yielded the most accurate results across all three organs for both maximum and mean doses. For two additional patients, the matched phantom yielded the best match for one organ only. In 13 of the 24 cases, the matched phantom yielded better results than the average of the other four phantoms, though the results were only statistically significant at the .05 level for three cases. Conclusion: Using height and weight matched phantoms does yield better results in regards to out-of-field dosimetry than using average phantoms. Height and weight appear to be moderately good selection criteria, though this selection criteria failed to yield any better results for one patient.« less

Searching the world wide Web

PubMed

Lawrence; Giles

1998-04-03

The coverage and recency of the major World Wide Web search engines was analyzed, yielding some surprising results. The coverage of any one engine is significantly limited: No single engine indexes more than about one-third of the "indexable Web," the coverage of the six engines investigated varies by an order of magnitude, and combining the results of the six engines yields about 3.5 times as many documents on average as compared with the results from only one engine. Analysis of the overlap between pairs of engines gives an estimated lower bound on the size of the indexable Web of 320 million pages.

Mathematical characterization of mechanical behavior of porous frictional granular media

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chung, T. J.; Lee, J. K.

1972-01-01

A new definition of loading and unloading along the yield surface of Roscoe and Burland is introduced. This is achieved by noting that the strain-hardening parameter in the plastic potential function is deduced from the yield locus equation of Roscoe and Burland. The analytical results are compared with the experimental results for plate-bearing and cone-penetrometer problems and close agreements are demonstrated. The wheel-soil interaction is studied under dynamic loading. The rate-dependent plasticity or viscoelastoplastic behavior is considered. This is accomplished by the internal (hidden) variables associated with time-dependent viscous properties directly superimposed with inelastic behavior governed by the yield criteria of Roscoe and Burland. Effects of inertia and energy dissipation are properly accounted for. Example problems are presented.

Structural characteristics of pumpkin pectin extracted by microwave heating.

PubMed

Yoo, Sang-Ho; Lee, Byeong-Hoo; Lee, Heungsook; Lee, Suyong; Bae, In Young; Lee, Hyeon Gyu; Fishman, Marshall L; Chau, Hoa K; Savary, Brett J; Hotchkiss, Arland T

2012-11-01

To improve extraction yield of pumpkin pectin, microwave heating was adopted in this study. Using hot acid extraction, pumpkin pectin yield decreased from 5.7% to 1.0% as pH increased from pH 1.0 to 2.0. At pH 2.5, no pectin was recovered from pumpkin flesh powder. After a pretreatment at pH 1.0 and 25 °C for 1 h, pumpkin powder was microwave-extracted at 120 °C for 3 min resulting in 10.5% of pectin yield. However, premicrowave treatment at 60 °C for 20 min did not improve extraction yield. When microwave heating at 80 °C for 10 min was applied after premicrowave treatment, final pectin yield increased to 11.3%. When pH was adjusted to 2.0, the yield dropped to 7.7% under the same extraction conditions. Molecular shape and properties as well as chemical composition of pumpkin pectin were significantly affected depending on extraction methods. Galacturonic acid content (51% to 58%) of pumpkin pectin was lower than that detected in commercial acid-extracted citrus pectin, while higher content of neutral sugars and acetyl esters existed in pumpkin pectin structure. Molecular weight (M(w) ) and intrinsic viscosity (η(w) ) determined for microwave-extracted pumpkin pectins were substantially lower than acid-extracted pectin, whereas polydispersity was greater. However, microwave-extracted pectin at pH 2.0 had more than 5 times greater M(w) than did the pectin extracted at pH 1.0. The η(w) of microwave-extracted pectin produced at pH 2.0 was almost twice that of other microwave-extracted pectins, which were comparable to that of acid-extracted pectin. These results indicate that extraction yield of pumpkin pectin would be improved by microwave extraction and different pectin structure and properties can be obtained compared to acid extraction. Pumpkin is a promising alternative source for pectin material. Pumpkin pectin has a unique chemical structure and physical properties, presumably providing different functional properties compared to conventional commercial pectin sources. Depending on the conditions to produce pumpkin pectin, diverse molecular structures can be obtained and utilized in various food applications. © 2012 Institute of Food Technologists®

An assessment of irrigation needs and crop yield for the United States under potential climate changes

USGS Publications Warehouse

Brumbelow, Kelly; Georgakakos, Aris P.

2000-01-01

Past assessments of climate change on U.S. agriculture have mostly focused on changes in crop yield. Few studies have included the entire conterminous U.S., and few studies have assessed changing irrigation requirements. None have included the effects of changing soil moisture characteristics as determined by changing climatic forcing. This study assesses changes in irrigation requirements and crop yields for five crops in the areas of the U.S. where they have traditionally been grown. Physiologically-based crop models are used to incorporate inputs of climate, soils, agricultural management, and drought stress tolerance. Soil moisture values from a macroscale hydrologic model run under a future climate scenario are used to initialize soil moisture content at the beginning of each growing season. Historical crop yield data is used to calibrate model parameters and determine locally acceptable drought stress as a management parameter. Changes in irrigation demand and crop yield are assessed for both means and extremes by comparing results for atmospheric forcing close to the present climate with those for a future climate scenario. Assessments using the Canadian Center for Climate Modeling and Analysis General Circulation Model (CGCM1) indicate greater irrigation demands in the southern U.S. and decreased irrigation demands in the northern and western U.S. Crop yields typically increase except for winter wheat in the southern U.S. and corn. Variability in both irrigation demands and crop yields increases in most cases. Assessment results for the CGCM1 climate scenario are compared to those for the Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research GCM (HadCM2) scenario for southwestern Georgia. The comparison shows significant differences in irrigation and yield trends, both in magnitude and direction. The differences reflect the high forecast uncertainty of current GCMs. Nonetheless, both GCMs indicate higher variability in future climatic forcing and, consequently, in the response of agricultural systems.

Yield Behavior of Solution Treated and Aged Ti-6Al-4V

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ring, Andrew J.; Baker, Eric H.; Salem, Jonathan A.; Thesken, John C.

2014-01-01

Post yield uniaxial tension-compression tests were run on a solution treated and aged (STA), titanium 6-percent aluminum 4-percent vanadium (Ti-6Al-4V) alloy to determine the yield behavior on load reversal. The material exhibits plastic behavior almost immediately on load reversal implying a strong Bauschinger effect. The resultant stress-strain data was compared to a 1D mechanics model and a finite element model used to design a composite overwrapped pressure vessel (COPV). Although the models and experimental data compare well for the initial loading and unloading in the tensile regime, agreement is lost in the compressive regime due to the Bauschinger effect and the assumption of perfect plasticity. The test data presented here are being used to develop more accurate cyclic hardening constitutive models for future finite element design analysis of COPVs.

A comparative study of qualitative and quantitative methods for the assessment of adhesive remnant after bracket debonding.

PubMed

Cehreli, S Burcak; Polat-Ozsoy, Omur; Sar, Cagla; Cubukcu, H Evren; Cehreli, Zafer C

2012-04-01

The amount of the residual adhesive after bracket debonding is frequently assessed in a qualitative manner, utilizing the adhesive remnant index (ARI). This study aimed to investigate whether quantitative assessment of the adhesive remnant yields more precise results compared to qualitative methods utilizing the 4- and 5-point ARI scales. Twenty debonded brackets were selected. Evaluation and scoring of the adhesive remnant on bracket bases were made consecutively using: 1. qualitative assessment (visual scoring) and 2. quantitative measurement (image analysis) on digital photographs. Image analysis was made on scanning electron micrographs (SEM) and high-precision elemental maps of the adhesive remnant as determined by energy dispersed X-ray spectrometry. Evaluations were made in accordance with the original 4-point and the modified 5-point ARI scales. Intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs) were calculated, and the data were evaluated using Friedman test followed by Wilcoxon signed ranks test with Bonferroni correction. ICC statistics indicated high levels of agreement for qualitative visual scoring among examiners. The 4-point ARI scale was compliant with the SEM assessments but indicated significantly less adhesive remnant compared to the results of quantitative elemental mapping. When the 5-point scale was used, both quantitative techniques yielded similar results with those obtained qualitatively. These results indicate that qualitative visual scoring using the ARI is capable of generating similar results with those assessed by quantitative image analysis techniques. In particular, visual scoring with the 5-point ARI scale can yield similar results with both the SEM analysis and elemental mapping.

Measurements of fission product yield in the neutron-induced fission of 238U with average energies of 9.35 MeV and 12.52 MeV

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mukerji, Sadhana; Krishnani, Pritam Das; Shivashankar, Byrapura Siddaramaiah; Mulik, Vikas Kaluram; Suryanarayana, Saraswatula Venkat; Naik, Haladhara; Goswami, Ashok

2014-07-01

The yields of various fission products in the neutron-induced fission of 238U with the flux-weightedaveraged neutron energies of 9.35 MeV and 12.52 MeV were determined by using an off-line gammaray spectroscopic technique. The neutrons were generated using the 7Li(p, n) reaction at Bhabha Atomic Research Centre-Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Pelletron facility, Mumbai. The gamma- ray activities of the fission products were counted in a highly-shielded HPGe detector over a period of several weeks to identify the decaying fission products. At both the neutron energies, the fission-yield values are reported for twelve fission product. The results obtained from the present work have been compared with the similar data for mono-energetic neutrons of comparable energy from the literature and are found to be in good agreement. The peak-to-valley (P/V) ratios were calculated from the fission-yield data and were found to decreases for neutron energy from 9.35 to 12.52 MeV, which indicates the role of excitation energy. The effect of the nuclear structure on the fission product-yield is discussed.

Molecular dynamics simulations with electronic stopping can reproduce experimental sputtering yields of metals impacted by large cluster ions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tian, Jiting; Zhou, Wei; Feng, Qijie; Zheng, Jian

2018-03-01

An unsolved problem in research of sputtering from metals induced by energetic large cluster ions is that molecular dynamics (MD) simulations often produce sputtering yields much higher than experimental results. Different from the previous simulations considering only elastic atomic interactions (nuclear stopping), here we incorporate inelastic electrons-atoms interactions (electronic stopping, ES) into MD simulations using a friction model. In this way we have simulated continuous 45° impacts of 10-20 keV C60 on a Ag(111) surface, and found that the calculated sputtering yields can be very close to the experimental results when the model parameter is appropriately assigned. Conversely, when we ignore the effect of ES, the yields are much higher, just like the previous studies. We further expand our research to the sputtering of Au induced by continuous keV C60 or Ar100 bombardments, and obtain quite similar results. Our study indicates that the gap between the experimental and the simulated sputtering yields is probably induced by the ignorance of ES in the simulations, and that a careful treatment of this issue is important for simulations of cluster-ion-induced sputtering, especially for those aiming to compare with experiments.

Object-based classification of earthquake damage from high-resolution optical imagery using machine learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bialas, James; Oommen, Thomas; Rebbapragada, Umaa; Levin, Eugene

2016-07-01

Object-based approaches in the segmentation and classification of remotely sensed images yield more promising results compared to pixel-based approaches. However, the development of an object-based approach presents challenges in terms of algorithm selection and parameter tuning. Subjective methods are often used, but yield less than optimal results. Objective methods are warranted, especially for rapid deployment in time-sensitive applications, such as earthquake damage assessment. Herein, we used a systematic approach in evaluating object-based image segmentation and machine learning algorithms for the classification of earthquake damage in remotely sensed imagery. We tested a variety of algorithms and parameters on post-event aerial imagery for the 2011 earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand. Results were compared against manually selected test cases representing different classes. In doing so, we can evaluate the effectiveness of the segmentation and classification of different classes and compare different levels of multistep image segmentations. Our classifier is compared against recent pixel-based and object-based classification studies for postevent imagery of earthquake damage. Our results show an improvement against both pixel-based and object-based methods for classifying earthquake damage in high resolution, post-event imagery.

Impact of Water Management on Efficacy of Insecticide Seed Treatments Against Rice Water Weevil (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in Mississippi Rice

PubMed Central

Adams, A.; Gore, J.; Musser, F.; Cook, D.; Catchot, A.; Walker, T.; Awuni, G. A.

2015-01-01

Two experiments were conducted at the Delta Research and Extension Center in Stoneville, MS, during 2011 and 2012 to determine the impact of water management practices on the efficacy of insecticidal seed treatments targeting rice water weevil, Lissorhoptrus oryzophilus Kuschel. Larval densities and yield were compared for plots treated with labeled rates of thiamethoxam, chlorantraniliprole, and clothianidin and an untreated control. In the first experiment, plots were subjected to flood initiated at 6 and 8 wk after planting. Seed treatments significantly reduced larval densities with the 8-wk flood timing, but not the 6-wk flood timing. Overall, the treated plots yielded higher than the control plots. In the second experiment, the impact of multiple flushes on the efficacy of insecticidal seed treatments was evaluated. Plots were subjected to zero, one, or two flushes with water. All seed treatments reduced larval densities compared with the untreated control. Significantly fewer larvae were observed in plots that received one or two flushes compared with plots that did not receive a flush. All seed treatments resulted in higher yields compared to the untreated control in the zero and one flush treatments. When two flushes were applied, yield from the thiamethoxam and clothianidin treated plots was not significantly different from those of the control plots, while the chlorantraniliprole treated plots yielded significantly higher than the control. These data suggest that time from planting to flood did not impact the efficacy of seed treatments, but multiple flushes reduced the efficacy of thiamethoxam and clothianidin. PMID:26470232

Photomorphogenesis, photosynthesis, and seed yield of wheat plants grown under red light-emitting diodes (LEDs) with and without supplemental blue lighting

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goins, G. D.; Yorio, N. C.; Sanwo, M. M.; Brown, C. S.; Sager, J. C. (Principal Investigator)

1997-01-01

Red light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are a potential light source for growing plants in spaceflight systems because of their safety, small mass and volume, wavelength specificity, and longevity. Despite these attractive features, red LEDs must satisfy requirements for plant photosynthesis and photomorphogenesis for successful growth and seed yield. To determine the influence of gallium aluminium arsenide (GaAlAs) red LEDs on wheat photomorphogenesis, photosynthesis, and seed yield, wheat (Triticum aestivum L., cv. 'USU-Super Dwarf') plants were grown under red LEDs and compared to plants grown under daylight fluorescent (white) lamps and red LEDs supplemented with either 1% or 10% blue light from blue fluorescent (BF) lamps. Compared to white light-grown plants, wheat grown under red LEDs alone demonstrated less main culm development during vegetative growth through preanthesis, while showing a longer flag leaf at 40 DAP and greater main culm length at final harvest (70 DAP). As supplemental BF light was increased with red LEDs, shoot dry matter and net leaf photosynthesis rate increased. At final harvest, wheat grown under red LEDs alone displayed fewer subtillers and a lower seed yield compared to plants grown under white light. Wheat grown under red LEDs+10% BF light had comparable shoot dry matter accumulation and seed yield relative to wheat grown under white light. These results indicate that wheat can complete its life cycle under red LEDs alone, but larger plants and greater amounts of seed are produced in the presence of red LEDs supplemented with a quantity of blue light.

Nut crop yield records show that budbreak-based chilling requirements may not reflect yield decline chill thresholds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pope, Katherine S.; Dose, Volker; Da Silva, David; Brown, Patrick H.; DeJong, Theodore M.

2015-06-01

Warming winters due to climate change may critically affect temperate tree species. Insufficiently cold winters are thought to result in fewer viable flower buds and the subsequent development of fewer fruits or nuts, decreasing the yield of an orchard or fecundity of a species. The best existing approximation for a threshold of sufficient cold accumulation, the "chilling requirement" of a species or variety, has been quantified by manipulating or modeling the conditions that result in dormant bud breaking. However, the physiological processes that affect budbreak are not the same as those that determine yield. This study sought to test whether budbreak-based chilling thresholds can reasonably approximate the thresholds that affect yield, particularly regarding the potential impacts of climate change on temperate tree crop yields. County-wide yield records for almond ( Prunus dulcis), pistachio ( Pistacia vera), and walnut ( Juglans regia) in the Central Valley of California were compared with 50 years of weather records. Bayesian nonparametric function estimation was used to model yield potentials at varying amounts of chill accumulation. In almonds, average yields occurred when chill accumulation was close to the budbreak-based chilling requirement. However, in the other two crops, pistachios and walnuts, the best previous estimate of the budbreak-based chilling requirements was 19-32 % higher than the chilling accumulations associated with average or above average yields. This research indicates that physiological processes beyond requirements for budbreak should be considered when estimating chill accumulation thresholds of yield decline and potential impacts of climate change.

Global Synthesis of Drought Effects on Food Legume Production

PubMed Central

Daryanto, Stefani; Wang, Lixin; Jacinthe, Pierre-André

2015-01-01

Food legume crops play important roles in conservation farming systems and contribute to food security in the developing world. However, in many regions of the world, their production has been adversely affected by drought. Although water scarcity is a severe abiotic constraint of legume crops productivity, it remains unclear how the effects of drought co-vary with legume species, soil texture, agroclimatic region, and drought timing. To address these uncertainties, we collected literature data between 1980 and 2014 that reported monoculture legume yield responses to drought under field conditions, and analyzed this data set using meta-analysis techniques. Our results showed that the amount of water reduction was positively related with yield reduction, but the extent of the impact varied with legume species and the phenological state during which drought occurred. Overall, lentil (Lens culinaris), groundnut (Arachis hypogaea), and pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan) were found to experience lower drought-induced yield reduction compared to legumes such as cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) and green gram (Vigna radiate). Yield reduction was generally greater when legumes experienced drought during their reproductive stage compared to during their vegetative stage. Legumes grown in soil with medium texture also exhibited greater yield reduction compared to those planted on soil of either coarse or fine texture. In contrast, regions and their associated climatic factors did not significantly affect legume yield reduction. In the face of changing climate, our study provides useful information for agricultural planning and research directions for development of drought-resistant legume species to improve adaptation and resilience of agricultural systems in the drought-prone regions of the world. PMID:26061704

Different Effects of NSF and PCE Superplasticizer on Adsorption, Dynamic Yield Stress and Thixotropy of Cement Pastes

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

This study compares the differences and similarities of two types of superplasticizers—NSF (Naphthalene Sulfonate Formaldehyde) and PCE (PolyCarboxylate Ester)—in fresh cement paste systems, in terms of adsorption, dynamic yield stress, and thixotropic index. Results show that with either NSF or PCE addition, the more superplasticizer is added, the more it is adsorbed and the more it remains in the interstitial pore solution. The dynamic yield stress and thixotropic index also decrease with increasing addition the amount of either superplasticizer. However, NSF is less efficient in decreasing the dynamic yield stress than PCE. More importantly, the decreasing patterns of dynamic yield stress and thixotropic index are different with NSF and PCE additions; this is tied to the adsorption and dispersing mechanisms of these two types of superplasticizers. PMID:29710782

Global Synthesis of Drought Effects on Maize and Wheat Production

PubMed Central

Daryanto, Stefani; Wang, Lixin; Jacinthe, Pierre-André

2016-01-01

Drought has been a major cause of agricultural disaster, yet how it affects the vulnerability of maize and wheat production in combination with several co-varying factors (i.e., phenological phases, agro-climatic regions, soil texture) remains unclear. Using a data synthesis approach, this study aims to better characterize the effects of those co-varying factors with drought and to provide critical information on minimizing yield loss. We collected data from peer-reviewed publications between 1980 and 2015 which examined maize and wheat yield responses to drought using field experiments. We performed unweighted analysis using the log response ratio to calculate the bootstrapped confidence limits of yield responses and calculated drought sensitivities with regards to those co-varying factors. Our results showed that yield reduction varied with species, with wheat having lower yield reduction (20.6%) compared to maize (39.3%) at approximately 40% water reduction. Maize was also more sensitive to drought than wheat, particularly during reproductive phase and equally sensitive in the dryland and non-dryland regions. While no yield difference was observed among regions or different soil texture, wheat cultivation in the dryland was more prone to yield loss than in the non-dryland region. Informed by these results, we discuss potential causes and possible approaches that may minimize drought impacts. PMID:27223810

Unidirectional flow over asymmetric and symmetric ripples

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wiberg, Patricia L.; Nelson, Jonathan M.

1992-08-01

An LDV-equipped flume has yielded detailed measurements of velocity and turbulence over fixed sets of two-dimensional symmetric and asymmetric ripples. The measured velocities over the ripples are compared with the Nelson and Smith (1989)results for flow over larger-scale dunes; the new results are larger in the outer region of the flow, and the velocity profiles exhibit no sharp inflection at the top of the lowest wake. A model for flow over bedforms which has yielded excellent agreement with dune measurements is presently modified to better represent the observed flow over ripples.

Nitrogen partitioning and milk production of dairy cows grazing simple and diverse pastures.

PubMed

Totty, V K; Greenwood, S L; Bryant, R H; Edwards, G R

2013-01-01

Research was conducted to examine the effects of a diverse pasture mix on dry matter intake, milk yield, and N partitioning of lactating dairy cows. A pasture containing only ryegrass and white clover (RG), or high-sugar ryegrass and white clover (HS), was compared with a diverse pasture mix (HSD) including chicory, plantain, lotus, high-sugar ryegrass, and white clover. The experiment was conducted over a 10-d period using 3 groups of 12 cows in late lactation. No difference was observed in dry matter (14.3 kg of dry matter/cow per day) or N (583 g of N/cow per day) intake between treatments. The cows grazing the HSD pasture had an increased milk yield (16.9 kg/d) compared with those grazing the simple RG and HS pastures (15.2 and 14.7 kg/d, respectively). However, no differences were observed in milk solids yield for the 3 treatments. A tendency toward greater milk protein yields in the HSD group resulted in improved N use efficiency for milk of 20.4% from the cows fed HSD, compared with 17.8 and 16.7% from cows in the RG and HS treatments, respectively. Urinary N excretion was lower from the cows fed HSD, at 353.8 g/d, compared with 438.3 and 426.6 g/d for cows fed RG and HS, respectively. These results suggest that the use of pastures containing chicory, lotus, and plantain can contribute to the goal of reducing N losses from cows in late lactation. Copyright © 2013 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Creating Tic Suppression: Comparing the Effects of Verbal Instruction to Differential Reinforcement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Woods, Douglas W.; Himle, Michael B.

2004-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare two methods designed to produce tic reduction in 4 children with Tourette's syndrome. Specifically, a verbal instruction not to engage in tics was compared to a verbal instruction plus differential reinforcement of zero-rate behavior (DRO). Results showed that the DRO-enhanced procedure yielded greater…

Improved ethanol yield and reduced Minimum Ethanol Selling Price (MESP) by modifying low severity dilute acid pretreatment with deacetylation and mechanical refining: 1) Experimental

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Historically, acid pretreatment technology for the production of bio-ethanol from corn stover has required severe conditions to overcome biomass recalcitrance. However, the high usage of acid and steam at severe pretreatment conditions hinders the economic feasibility of the ethanol production from biomass. In addition, the amount of acetate and furfural produced during harsh pretreatment is in the range that strongly inhibits cell growth and impedes ethanol fermentation. The current work addresses these issues through pretreatment with lower acid concentrations and temperatures incorporated with deacetylation and mechanical refining. Results The results showed that deacetylation with 0.1 M NaOH before acid pretreatment improved the monomeric xylose yield in pretreatment by up to 20% while keeping the furfural yield under 2%. Deacetylation also improved the glucose yield by 10% and the xylose yield by 20% during low solids enzymatic hydrolysis. Mechanical refining using a PFI mill further improved sugar yields during both low- and high-solids enzymatic hydrolysis. Mechanical refining also allowed enzyme loadings to be reduced while maintaining high yields. Deacetylation and mechanical refining are shown to assist in achieving 90% cellulose yield in high-solids (20%) enzymatic hydrolysis. When fermentations were performed under pH control to evaluate the effect of deacetylation and mechanical refining on the ethanol yields, glucose and xylose utilizations over 90% and ethanol yields over 90% were achieved. Overall ethanol yields were calculated based on experimental results for the base case and modified cases. One modified case that integrated deacetylation, mechanical refining, and washing was estimated to produce 88 gallons of ethanol per ton of biomass. Conclusion The current work developed a novel bio-ethanol process that features pretreatment with lower acid concentrations and temperatures incorporated with deacetylation and mechanical refining. The new process shows improved overall ethanol yields compared to traditional dilute acid pretreatment. The experimental results from this work support the techno-economic analysis and calculation of Minimum Ethanol Selling Price (MESP) detailed in our companion paper. PMID:22888758

Improving ethanol yield in acetate-reducing Saccharomyces cerevisiae by cofactor engineering of 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase and deletion of ALD6.

PubMed

Papapetridis, Ioannis; van Dijk, Marlous; Dobbe, Arthur P A; Metz, Benjamin; Pronk, Jack T; van Maris, Antonius J A

2016-04-26

Acetic acid, an inhibitor of sugar fermentation by yeast, is invariably present in lignocellulosic hydrolysates which are used or considered as feedstocks for yeast-based bioethanol production. Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains have been constructed, in which anaerobic reduction of acetic acid to ethanol replaces glycerol formation as a mechanism for reoxidizing NADH formed in biosynthesis. An increase in the amount of acetate that can be reduced to ethanol should further decrease acetic acid concentrations and enable higher ethanol yields in industrial processes based on lignocellulosic feedstocks. The stoichiometric requirement of acetate reduction for NADH implies that increased generation of NADH in cytosolic biosynthetic reactions should enhance acetate consumption. Replacement of the native NADP(+)-dependent 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase in S. cerevisiae by a prokaryotic NAD(+)-dependent enzyme resulted in increased cytosolic NADH formation, as demonstrated by a ca. 15% increase in the glycerol yield on glucose in anaerobic cultures. Additional deletion of ALD6, which encodes an NADP(+)-dependent acetaldehyde dehydrogenase, led to a 39% increase in the glycerol yield compared to a non-engineered strain. Subsequent replacement of glycerol formation by an acetate reduction pathway resulted in a 44% increase of acetate consumption per amount of biomass formed, as compared to an engineered, acetate-reducing strain that expressed the native 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase and ALD6. Compared to a non-acetate reducing reference strain under the same conditions, this resulted in a ca. 13% increase in the ethanol yield on glucose. The combination of NAD(+)-dependent 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase expression and deletion of ALD6 resulted in a marked increase in the amount of acetate that was consumed in these proof-of-principle experiments, and this concept is ready for further testing in industrial strains as well as in hydrolysates. Altering the cofactor specificity of the oxidative branch of the pentose-phosphate pathway in S. cerevisiae can also be used to increase glycerol production in wine fermentation and to improve NADH generation and/or generation of precursors derived from the pentose-phosphate pathway in other industrial applications of this yeast.

Automatic exposure control systems designed to maintain constant image noise: effects on computed tomography dose and noise relative to clinically accepted technique charts.

PubMed

Favazza, Christopher P; Yu, Lifeng; Leng, Shuai; Kofler, James M; McCollough, Cynthia H

2015-01-01

To compare computed tomography dose and noise arising from use of an automatic exposure control (AEC) system designed to maintain constant image noise as patient size varies with clinically accepted technique charts and AEC systems designed to vary image noise. A model was developed to describe tube current modulation as a function of patient thickness. Relative dose and noise values were calculated as patient width varied for AEC settings designed to yield constant or variable noise levels and were compared to empirically derived values used by our clinical practice. Phantom experiments were performed in which tube current was measured as a function of thickness using a constant-noise-based AEC system and the results were compared with clinical technique charts. For 12-, 20-, 28-, 44-, and 50-cm patient widths, the requirement of constant noise across patient size yielded relative doses of 5%, 14%, 38%, 260%, and 549% and relative noises of 435%, 267%, 163%, 61%, and 42%, respectively, as compared with our clinically used technique chart settings at each respective width. Experimental measurements showed that a constant noise-based AEC system yielded 175% relative noise for a 30-cm phantom and 206% relative dose for a 40-cm phantom compared with our clinical technique chart. Automatic exposure control systems that prescribe constant noise as patient size varies can yield excessive noise in small patients and excessive dose in obese patients compared with clinically accepted technique charts. Use of noise-level technique charts and tube current limits can mitigate these effects.

Spatial Distribution of Hydrologic Ecosystem Service Estimates: Comparing Two Models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dennedy-Frank, P. J.; Ghile, Y.; Gorelick, S.; Logsdon, R. A.; Chaubey, I.; Ziv, G.

2014-12-01

We compare estimates of the spatial distribution of water quantity provided (annual water yield) from two ecohydrologic models: the widely-used Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) and the much simpler water models from the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST) toolbox. These two models differ significantly in terms of complexity, timescale of operation, effort, and data required for calibration, and so are often used in different management contexts. We compare two study sites in the US: the Wildcat Creek Watershed (2083 km2) in Indiana, a largely agricultural watershed in a cold aseasonal climate, and the Upper Upatoi Creek Watershed (876 km2) in Georgia, a mostly forested watershed in a temperate aseasonal climate. We evaluate (1) quantitative estimates of water yield to explore how well each model represents this process, and (2) ranked estimates of water yield to indicate how useful the models are for management purposes where other social and financial factors may play significant roles. The SWAT and InVEST models provide very similar estimates of the water yield of individual subbasins in the Wildcat Creek Watershed (Pearson r = 0.92, slope = 0.89), and a similar ranking of the relative water yield of those subbasins (Spearman r = 0.86). However, the two models provide relatively different estimates of the water yield of individual subbasins in the Upper Upatoi Watershed (Pearson r = 0.25, slope = 0.14), and very different ranking of the relative water yield of those subbasins (Spearman r = -0.10). The Upper Upatoi watershed has a significant baseflow contribution due to its sandy, well-drained soils. InVEST's simple seasonality terms, which assume no change in storage over the time of the model run, may not accurately estimate water yield processes when baseflow provides such a strong contribution. Our results suggest that InVEST users take care in situations where storage changes are significant.

Field-scale experiments reveal persistent yield gaps in low-input and organic cropping systems

PubMed Central

Kravchenko, Alexandra N.; Snapp, Sieglinde S.; Robertson, G. Philip

2017-01-01

Knowledge of production-system performance is largely based on observations at the experimental plot scale. Although yield gaps between plot-scale and field-scale research are widely acknowledged, their extent and persistence have not been experimentally examined in a systematic manner. At a site in southwest Michigan, we conducted a 6-y experiment to test the accuracy with which plot-scale crop-yield results can inform field-scale conclusions. We compared conventional versus alternative, that is, reduced-input and biologically based–organic, management practices for a corn–soybean–wheat rotation in a randomized complete block-design experiment, using 27 commercial-size agricultural fields. Nearby plot-scale experiments (0.02-ha to 1.0-ha plots) provided a comparison of plot versus field performance. We found that plot-scale yields well matched field-scale yields for conventional management but not for alternative systems. For all three crops, at the plot scale, reduced-input and conventional managements produced similar yields; at the field scale, reduced-input yields were lower than conventional. For soybeans at the plot scale, biological and conventional managements produced similar yields; at the field scale, biological yielded less than conventional. For corn, biological management produced lower yields than conventional in both plot- and field-scale experiments. Wheat yields appeared to be less affected by the experimental scale than corn and soybean. Conventional management was more resilient to field-scale challenges than alternative practices, which were more dependent on timely management interventions; in particular, mechanical weed control. Results underscore the need for much wider adoption of field-scale experimentation when assessing new technologies and production-system performance, especially as related to closing yield gaps in organic farming and in low-resourced systems typical of much of the developing world. PMID:28096409

Field-scale experiments reveal persistent yield gaps in low-input and organic cropping systems.

PubMed

Kravchenko, Alexandra N; Snapp, Sieglinde S; Robertson, G Philip

2017-01-31

Knowledge of production-system performance is largely based on observations at the experimental plot scale. Although yield gaps between plot-scale and field-scale research are widely acknowledged, their extent and persistence have not been experimentally examined in a systematic manner. At a site in southwest Michigan, we conducted a 6-y experiment to test the accuracy with which plot-scale crop-yield results can inform field-scale conclusions. We compared conventional versus alternative, that is, reduced-input and biologically based-organic, management practices for a corn-soybean-wheat rotation in a randomized complete block-design experiment, using 27 commercial-size agricultural fields. Nearby plot-scale experiments (0.02-ha to 1.0-ha plots) provided a comparison of plot versus field performance. We found that plot-scale yields well matched field-scale yields for conventional management but not for alternative systems. For all three crops, at the plot scale, reduced-input and conventional managements produced similar yields; at the field scale, reduced-input yields were lower than conventional. For soybeans at the plot scale, biological and conventional managements produced similar yields; at the field scale, biological yielded less than conventional. For corn, biological management produced lower yields than conventional in both plot- and field-scale experiments. Wheat yields appeared to be less affected by the experimental scale than corn and soybean. Conventional management was more resilient to field-scale challenges than alternative practices, which were more dependent on timely management interventions; in particular, mechanical weed control. Results underscore the need for much wider adoption of field-scale experimentation when assessing new technologies and production-system performance, especially as related to closing yield gaps in organic farming and in low-resourced systems typical of much of the developing world.

Experimental Investigations on Subsequent Yield Surface of Pure Copper by Single-Sample and Multi-Sample Methods under Various Pre-Deformation.

PubMed

Liu, Gui-Long; Huang, Shi-Hong; Shi, Che-Si; Zeng, Bin; Zhang, Ke-Shi; Zhong, Xian-Ci

2018-02-10

Using copper thin-walled tubular specimens, the subsequent yield surfaces under pre-tension, pre-torsion and pre-combined tension-torsion are measured, where the single-sample and multi-sample methods are applied respectively to determine the yield stresses at specified offset strain. The rule and characteristics of the evolution of the subsequent yield surface are investigated. Under the conditions of different pre-strains, the influence of test point number, test sequence and specified offset strain on the measurement of subsequent yield surface and the concave phenomenon for measured yield surface are studied. Moreover, the feasibility and validity of the two methods are compared. The main conclusions are drawn as follows: (1) For the single or multi-sample method, the measured subsequent yield surfaces are remarkably different from cylindrical yield surfaces proposed by the classical plasticity theory; (2) there are apparent differences between the test results from the two kinds of methods: the multi-sample method is not influenced by the number of test points, test order and the cumulative effect of residual plastic strain resulting from the other test point, while those are very influential in the single-sample method; and (3) the measured subsequent yield surface may appear concave, which can be transformed to convex for single-sample method by changing the test sequence. However, for the multiple-sample method, the concave phenomenon will disappear when a larger offset strain is specified.

Development of a biomass torrefaction process integrated with oxy-fuel combustion.

PubMed

Tran, Khanh-Quang; Trinh, Trung Ngoc; Bach, Quang-Vu

2016-01-01

Torrefaction of forest residues was studied under conditions relevant to oxy-fuel combustion flue gases. The results showed that the torrefaction in CO2 had a lower solid mass yield (81.36%) than that (83.06%) in N2. Addition of steam into CO2 (CO2/H2O=1/0.7 mole/mole) resulted in a higher mass yield (83.30%) compared to 81.36% in CO2. The energy yield was consistently increased from 79.17% to 84.12% or 88.32% for the torrefaction in N2, CO2, or the CO2 and steam mixture, respectively. On the other hand, additions of O2 into the mixture of steam and CO2 led to reductions in both mass yield (from 83.30% to 82.57% or 76.44%) and energy yield (from 88.32% to 84.65% or 79.16%, for the torrefaction in steam and CO2 without O2, with 5% v/v, or 10% v/v of O2, respectively). Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Estimation of dew yield from radiative condensers by means of an energy balance model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maestre-Valero, J. F.; Ragab, R.; Martínez-Alvarez, V.; Baille, A.

2012-08-01

SummaryThis paper presents an energy balance modelling approach to predict the nightly water yield and the surface temperature (Tf) of two passive radiative dew condensers (RDCs) tilted 30° from horizontal. One was fitted with a white hydrophilic polyethylene foil recommended for dew harvest and the other with a black polyethylene foil widely used in horticulture. The model was validated in south-eastern Spain by comparing the simulation outputs with field measurements of Tf and dew yield. The results indicate that the model is robust and accurate in reproducing the behaviour of the two RDCs, especially in what refers to Tf, whose estimates were very close to the observations. The results were somewhat less precise for dew yield, with a larger scatter around the 1:1 relationship. A sensitivity analysis showed that the simulated dew yield was highly sensitive to changes in relative humidity and downward longwave radiation. The proposed approach provides a useful tool to water managers for quantifying the amount of dew that could be harvested as a valuable water resource in arid, semiarid and water stressed regions.

Comparison of exciplex generation under optical and X-ray excitation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kipriyanov, A. A.; Melnikov, A. R.; Stass, D. V.; Doktorov, A. B.

2017-09-01

Exciplex generation under optical and X-ray excitation in identical conditions is experimentally compared using a specially chosen model donor-acceptor system, anthracene (electron acceptor) and N,N-dimethylaniline (electron donor) in non-polar solution, and the results are analyzed and interpreted based on analytically calculated luminescence quantum yields. Calculations are performed on the basis of kinetic equations for multistage schemes of bulk exciplex production reaction under optical excitation and combination of bulk and geminate reactions of radical ion pairs under X-ray excitation. These results explain the earlier experimentally found difference in the ratio of the quantum yields of exciplexes and excited electron acceptors (exciplex generation efficiency) and the corresponding change in the exciplex generation efficiency under X-irradiation as compared to the reaction under optical excitation.

Comparison of exciplex generation under optical and X-ray excitation.

PubMed

Kipriyanov, A A; Melnikov, A R; Stass, D V; Doktorov, A B

2017-09-07

Exciplex generation under optical and X-ray excitation in identical conditions is experimentally compared using a specially chosen model donor-acceptor system, anthracene (electron acceptor) and N,N-dimethylaniline (electron donor) in non-polar solution, and the results are analyzed and interpreted based on analytically calculated luminescence quantum yields. Calculations are performed on the basis of kinetic equations for multistage schemes of bulk exciplex production reaction under optical excitation and combination of bulk and geminate reactions of radical ion pairs under X-ray excitation. These results explain the earlier experimentally found difference in the ratio of the quantum yields of exciplexes and excited electron acceptors (exciplex generation efficiency) and the corresponding change in the exciplex generation efficiency under X-irradiation as compared to the reaction under optical excitation.

Optimizing nitrogen application rate and plant density for improving cotton yield and nitrogen use efficiency in the North China Plain

PubMed Central

Dong, Helin; Zheng, Cangsong; Sun, Miao; Liu, Aizhong; Wang, Guoping; Liu, Shaodong; Zhang, Siping; Chen, Jing; Li, Yabing; Pang, Chaoyou; Zhao, Xinhua

2017-01-01

Plant population density (PPD) and nitrogen (N) application rate (NAR) are two controllable factors in cotton production. We conducted field experiments to investigate the effects of PPD, NAR and their interaction (PPD × NAR) on yield, N uptake and N use efficiency (NUE) of cotton using a split-plot design in the North China Plain during 2013 and 2014. The main plots were PPDs (plants m−2) of 3.00 (low), 5.25 (medium) and 7.50 (high) and the subplots were NARs of 0 (N-free), 112.5 (low), 225.0 (moderate) and 337.5 (high). During both 2013 and 2014, biological yield and N uptake of cotton increased significantly, but harvesting index decreased significantly with NAR and PPD increasing. With NAR increasing, internal nitrogen use efficiency(NUE) decreased significantly under three PPDs and agronomical NUE, physiologilal NUE, nitrogen recovery efficiency(NRE) and partial factor productivity from applied nitrogen (PFPN) also decreased significantly under high PPD between two years. Lint yield increment varied during different PPDs and years, but NAR enhancement showed less function under higher PPD than lower PPD in general. Taken together, moderate NAR under medium PPD combined higher lint yield with higher agronomic NUE, physiological NUE, and NRE, while low NAR with high PPD would achieve a comparable yield with superior NRE and PFPN and high NAR under high PPD and medium PPD produced higher biological yield but lower harvest index, lint yield and NUE compared to moderate NAR with medium PPD. Our overall results indicated that, in this region, increasing PPD and decreasing NAR properly would enhance both lint yield and NUE of cotton. PMID:28981538

Statistical Evaluations of Variations in Dairy Cows’ Milk Yields as a Precursor of Earthquakes

PubMed Central

Yamauchi, Hiroyuki; Hayakawa, Masashi; Asano, Tomokazu; Ohtani, Nobuyo; Ohta, Mitsuaki

2017-01-01

Simple Summary There are many reports of abnormal changes occurring in various natural systems prior to earthquakes. Unusual animal behavior is one of these abnormalities; however, there are few objective indicators and to date, reliability has remained uncertain. We found that milk yields of dairy cows decreased prior to an earthquake in our previous case study. In this study, we examined the reliability of decreases in milk yields as a precursor for earthquakes using long-term observation data. In the results, milk yields decreased approximately three weeks before earthquakes. We have come to the conclusion that dairy cow milk yields have applicability as an objectively observable unusual animal behavior prior to earthquakes, and dairy cows respond to some physical or chemical precursors of earthquakes. Abstract Previous studies have provided quantitative data regarding unusual animal behavior prior to earthquakes; however, few studies include long-term, observational data. Our previous study revealed that the milk yields of dairy cows decreased prior to an extremely large earthquake. To clarify whether the milk yields decrease prior to earthquakes, we examined the relationship between earthquakes of various magnitudes and daily milk yields. The observation period was one year. In the results, cross-correlation analyses revealed a significant negative correlation between earthquake occurrence and milk yields approximately three weeks beforehand. Approximately a week and a half beforehand, a positive correlation was revealed, and the correlation gradually receded to zero as the day of the earthquake approached. Future studies that use data from a longer observation period are needed because this study only considered ten earthquakes and therefore does not have strong statistical power. Additionally, we compared the milk yields with the subionospheric very low frequency/low frequency (VLF/LF) propagation data indicating ionospheric perturbations. The results showed that anomalies of VLF/LF propagation data emerged prior to all of the earthquakes following decreases in milk yields; the milk yields decreased earlier than propagation anomalies. We mention how ultralow frequency magnetic fields are a stimulus that could reduce milk yields. This study suggests that dairy cow milk yields decrease prior to earthquakes, and that they might respond to stimuli emerging earlier than ionospheric perturbations. PMID:28282889

Comparison of methods for determining the numbers and species distribution of coliform bacteria in well water samples.

PubMed

Niemi, R M; Heikkilä, M P; Lahti, K; Kalso, S; Niemelä, S I

2001-06-01

Enumeration of coliform bacteria and Escherichia coli is the most widely used method in the estimation of hygienic quality of drinking water. The yield of target bacteria and the species composition of different populations of coliform bacteria may depend on the method.Three methods were compared. Three membrane filtration methods were used for the enumeration of coliform bacteria in shallow well waters. The yield of confirmed coliform bacteria was highest on Differential Coliform agar, followed by LES Endo agar. Differential Coliform agar had the highest proportion of typical colonies, of which 74% were confirmed as belonging to the Enterobacteriaceae. Of the typical colonies on Lactose Tergitol 7 TTC agar, 75% were confirmed as Enterobacteriaceae, whereas 92% of typical colonies on LES Endo agar belonged to the Enterobacteriaceae. LES Endo agar yielded many Serratia strains, Lactose Tergitol 7 TTC agar yielded numerous strains of Rahnella aquatilis and Enterobacter, whereas Differential Coliform agar yielded the widest range of species. The yield of coliform bacteria varied between methods. Each method compared had a characteristic species distribution of target bacteria and a typical level of interference of non-target bacteria. Identification with routine physiological tests to distinct species was hampered by the slight differences between species. High yield and sufficient selectivity are difficult to achieve simultaneously, especially if the target group is diverse. The results showed that several aspects of method performance should be considered, and that the target group must be distinctly defined to enable method comparisons.

Estimating sugarcane yield potential using an in-season determination of normalized difference vegetative index.

PubMed

Lofton, Josh; Tubana, Brenda S; Kanke, Yumiko; Teboh, Jasper; Viator, Howard; Dalen, Marilyn

2012-01-01

Estimating crop yield using remote sensing techniques has proven to be successful. However, sugarcane possesses unique characteristics; such as, a multi-year cropping cycle and plant height-limiting for midseason fertilizer application timing. Our study objective was to determine if sugarcane yield potential could be estimated using an in-season estimation of normalized difference vegetative index (NDVI). Sensor readings were taken using the GreenSeeker® handheld sensor from 2008 to 2011 in St. Gabriel and Jeanerette, LA, USA. In-season estimates of yield (INSEY) values were calculated by dividing NDVI by thermal variables. Optimum timing for estimating sugarcane yield was between 601-750 GDD. In-season estimated yield values improved the yield potential (YP) model compared to using NDVI. Generally, INSEY value showed a positive exponential relationship with yield (r(2) values 0.48 and 0.42 for cane tonnage and sugar yield, respectively). When models were separated based on canopy structure there was an increase the strength of the relationship for the erectophile varieties (r(2) 0.53 and 0.47 for cane tonnage and sugar yield, respectively); however, the model for planophile varieties weakened slightly. Results of this study indicate using an INSEY value for predicting sugarcane yield shows potential of being a valuable management tool for sugarcane producers in Louisiana.

Comparison of 21-Gauge and 22-Gauge Aspiration Needle in Endobronchial Ultrasound-Guided Transbronchial Needle Aspiration

PubMed Central

Akulian, Jason; Lechtzin, Noah; Yasin, Faiza; Kamdar, Biren; Ernst, Armin; Ost, David E.; Ray, Cynthia; Greenhill, Sarah R.; Jimenez, Carlos A.; Filner, Joshua; Feller-Kopman, David

2013-01-01

Background: Endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) is a minimally invasive procedure originally performed using a 22-gauge (22G) needle. A recently introduced 21-gauge (21G) needle may improve the diagnostic yield and sample adequacy of EBUS-TBNA, but prior smaller studies have shown conflicting results. To our knowledge, this is the largest study undertaken to date to determine whether the 21G needle adds diagnostic benefit. Methods: We retrospectively evaluated the results of 1,299 patients from the American College of Chest Physicians Quality Improvement Registry, Education, and Evaluation (AQuIRE) Diagnostic Registry who underwent EBUS-TBNA between February 2009 and September 2010 at six centers throughout the United States. Data collection included patient demographics, sample adequacy, and diagnostic yield. Analysis consisted of univariate and multivariate hierarchical logistic regression comparing diagnostic yield and sample adequacy of EBUS-TBNA specimens by needle gauge. Results: A total of 1,235 patients met inclusion criteria. Sample adequacy was obtained in 94.9% of the 22G needle group and in 94.6% of the 21G needle group (P = .81). A diagnosis was made in 51.4% of the 22G and 51.3% of the 21G groups (P = .98). Multivariate hierarchical logistic regression showed no statistical difference in sample adequacy or diagnostic yield between the two groups. The presence of rapid onsite cytologic evaluation was associated with significantly fewer needle passes per procedure when using the 21G needle (P < .001). Conclusions: There is no difference in specimen adequacy or diagnostic yield between the 21G and 22G needle groups. EBUS-TBNA in conjunction with rapid onsite cytologic evaluation and a 21G needle is associated with fewer needle passes compared with a 22G needle. PMID:23632441

Effect of Crop Rotation on Meloidogyne spp. and Pratylenchus spp. Populations in Strawberry Fields in Taiwan

PubMed Central

Chen, P.; Tsay, T.T.

2006-01-01

Changes in population levels of Meloidogyne hapla, M. incognita, Pratylenchus coffeae, and P. penetrans were studied in 12 strawberry fields in the Dahu region of Taiwan. Ten potential rotation crops and two cultural practices were evaluated for their effect on nematode populations and influence on strawberry yield. Rotation with rice or taro and the cultural practice of flooding and bare fallowing for four months were found to reduce nematode soil populations to two or fewer nematodes per 100 ml soil. Average strawberry yields increased between 2.4% to 6.3% following taro compared to the bare fallow treatment. Corn suppressed M. incognita and M. hapla populations and resulted in an increased in strawberry yield compared to bare fallow. Other phytopathogens also present in these fields limited taro as the rotation choice for nematode management. Results of this research and economic analysis of the input requirements for various rotation crops, corn and bare fallow were recommended as the most appropriate rotation strategies for nematode management in strawberry in this region. PMID:19259538

Climatic variability effects on summer cropping systems of the Iberian Peninsula

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Capa-Morocho, M.; Rodríguez-Fonseca, B.; Ruiz-Ramos, M.

2012-04-01

Climate variability and changes in the frequency of extremes events have a direct impact on crop yield and damages. Climate anomalies projections at monthly and yearly timescale allows us for adapting a cropping system (crops, varieties and management) to take advantage of favorable conditions or reduce the effect of adverse conditions. The objective of this work is to develop indices to evaluate the effect of climatic variability in summer cropping systems of Iberian Peninsula, in an attempt of relating yield variability to climate variability, extending the work of Rodríguez-Puebla (2004). This paper analyses the evolution of the yield anomalies of irrigated maize in several representative agricultural locations in Spain with contrasting temperature and precipitation regimes and compare it to the evolution of different patterns of climate variability, extending the methodology of Porter and Semenov (2005). To simulate maize yields observed daily data of radiation, maximum and minimum temperature and precipitation were used. These data were obtained from the State Meteorological Agency of Spain (AEMET). Time series of simulated maize yields were computed with CERES-maize model for periods ranging from 22 to 49 years, depending on the observed climate data available for each location. The computed standardized anomalies yields were projected on different oceanic and atmospheric anomalous fields and the resulting patterns were compared with a set of documented patterns from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The results can be useful also for climate change impact assessment, providing a scientific basis for selection of climate change scenarios where combined natural and forced variability represent a hazard for agricultural production. Interpretation of impact projections would also be enhanced.

[Effects of postponing nitrogen application on photosynthetic characteristics and grain yield of winter wheat subjected to water stress after heading stage].

PubMed

Yang, Ming-da; Ma, Shou-chen; Yang, Shen-jiao; Zhang, Su-yu; Guan, Xiao-kang; Li, Xue-mei; Wang, Tong-chao; Li, Chun-xi

2015-11-01

A pot culture experiment was conducted to study the effects of postponing nitrogen (N) application on photosynthetic characteristics and grain yield of winter wheat subjected to water stress after heading stage. Equal in the total N rate in winter wheat growth season, N application was split before sowing, and/or at jointing and /or at anthesis at the ratio of 10:0:0 (N1), 6:4:0 (N2) and 4:3:3 (N3), combined with unfavorable water condition (either waterlogged or drought) with the sufficient water condition as control. The results showed that, under each of the water condition, both N2 and N3 treatments significantly improved the leaf photosynthetic rate and the SPAD value of flag leaf compared with N1 treatment during grain filling stage, and also the crop ear number, grain number per spike and above-ground biomass were increased. Although postponing nitrogen application increased water consumption, both grain yield and water use efficiency were increased. Compared with sufficient water supply, drought stress and waterlogging stress significantly reduced the photosynthetic rate of flag leaves at anthesis and grain filling stages, ear number, 1000-grain mass and yield under all of the N application patterns. The decline of photosynthetic rate under either drought stress or waterlogging stress was much less in N2 and N3 than in N1 treatments, just the same as the grain yield. The results indicated that postponing nitrogen application could regulate winter wheat yield as well as its components to alleviate the damages, caused by unfavorable water stress by increasing flag leaf SPAD and maintaining flag leaf photosynthetic rate after anthesis, and promoting above-ground dry matter accumulation.

Energy yields in the prebiotic synthesis of hydrogen cyanide and formaldehyde

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stribling, R.; Miller, S. L.

1986-01-01

Prebiotic experiments are usually reported in terms of carbon yields, i.e., the yield of product based on the total carbon in the system. These experiments usually involve a large input of energy and are designed to maximize the yields of product. However, large inputs of energy result in multiple activation of the reactants and products. A more realistic prebiotic experiment is to remove the products of the activation step so they are not exposed a second time to the energy source. This is equivalent to transporting the products synthesized in the primitive atmosphere to the ocean, and thereby protecting them from destruction by atmospheric energy sources. Experiments of this type, using lower inputs of energy, give energy yields (moles of products/joule) which can be used to estimate the relative importance of the different energy sources on the primitive earth. Simulated prebiotic atmospheres containing either CH4, CO or CO2 with N2, H2O and variable amounts of H2 were subjected to a high frequency Tesla coil. Samples of the aqueous phase were taken at various time intervals from 1 hr to 7 days, and the energy yields were obtained by extrapolation to zero time. The samples were analyzed for HCN with the cyanide electrode and for H2CO by chromotropic acid. The spark energy was estimated by calorimetry. The temperature rise in an insulated discharge flask was compared with the temperature rise from a resistance heater in the same flask. These results will be compared with calculated production rates of HCN and H2CO from lightning and a number of photochemical processes on the primitive Earth.

Quantitative Research on the Relationship between Yield of Winter Wheat and Agroclimatological Resources—the Case Study from Yanzhou District, Shandong Province, China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, Maoling; Liu, Pingzeng; Zhang, Chao; Zheng, Yong; Wang, Xizhi; Zhang, Yan; Chen, Weijie; Zhao, Rui

2018-01-01

Agroclimatological resources provide material and energy for agricultural production. This study is aimed to analyze the impact of selected climate factors change on wheat yield over the different growth period applied quantitatively method, by comparing two different time division modules of wheat growth cycle- monthly empirical-statistical multiple regression models ( From October to June of next year ) and growth stage empirical-statistical multiple regression models (Including sowing stage, seedling stage, tillering stage, overwintering period, regreening period, jointing stage, heading stage, maturity stage) analysis of relationship between agrometeorological data and growth stage records and winter wheat production in Yanzhou, Shandong Province of China. Correlation analysis(CA)was done for 35 years (from 1981 to 2015) between crop yield and corresponding weather parameters including daily mean temperature, sunshine duration, and average daily precipitation selected from 18 different meteorological factors. The results shows that the greatest impact on the winter wheat yield is the precipitation overwintering period in this area, each 1mm increase in daily mean rainfall was associated with 201.64 kg/hm2 lowered output. Moreover, the temperature and sunshine duration in heading period and maturity stage also exert significant influence on the output, every 1°C increase in daily mean temperature was associated with 199.85kg/hm2 adding output, every 1h increase in mean sunshine duration was associated with 130.68kg/hm2 reduced output. Comparing with the results of experiment which using months as step sizes and using farming as step sizes was in better agreement with the fluctuation in meteorological yield, offered a better explanation on the growth mechanism of wheat. Eventually the results indicated that 3 factors affects the yield during different growing periods of wheat in different extent and provided more specific reference to guide the agricultural production management in this area.

The sensitivity of ecosystem service models to choices of input data and spatial resolution

Treesearch

Kenneth J. Bagstad; Erika Cohen; Zachary H. Ancona; Steven. G. McNulty; Ge   Sun

2018-01-01

Although ecosystem service (ES) modeling has progressed rapidly in the last 10–15 years, comparative studies on data and model selection effects have become more common only recently. Such studies have drawn mixed conclusions about whether different data and model choices yield divergent results. In this study, we compared the results of different models to address...

The OsPS1-F gene regulates growth and development in rice by modulating photosynthetic electron transport rate.

PubMed

Ramamoorthy, Rengasamy; Vishal, Bhushan; Ramachandran, Srinivasan; Kumar, Prakash P

2018-02-01

Ds insertion in rice OsPS1-F gene results in semi-dwarf plants with reduced tiller number and grain yield, while genetic complementation with OsPS1-F rescued the mutant phenotype. Photosynthetic electron transport is regulated in the chloroplast thylakoid membrane by multi-protein complexes. Studies about photosynthetic machinery and its subunits in crop plants are necessary, because they could be crucial for yield enhancement in the long term. Here, we report the characterization of OsPS1-F (encoding Oryza sativa PHOTOSYSTEM 1-F subunit) using a single copy Ds insertion rice mutant line. The homozygous mutant (osps1-f) showed striking difference in growth and development compared to the wild type (WT), including, reduction in plant height, tiller number, grain yield as well as pale yellow leaf coloration. Chlorophyll concentration and electron transport rate were significantly reduced in the mutant compared to the WT. OsPS1-F gene was highly expressed in rice leaves compared to other tissues at different developmental stages tested. Upon complementation of the mutant with proUBI::OsPS1-F, the observed mutant phenotypes were rescued. Our results illustrate that OsPS1-F plays an important role in regulating proper growth and development of rice plants.

Biomass pyrolysis for biochar or energy applications? A life cycle assessment.

PubMed

Peters, Jens F; Iribarren, Diego; Dufour, Javier

2015-04-21

The application of biochar as a soil amendment is a potential strategy for carbon sequestration. In this paper, a slow pyrolysis system for generating heat and biochar from lignocellulosic energy crops is simulated and its life-cycle performance compared with that of direct biomass combustion. The use of the char as biochar is also contrasted with alternative use options: cofiring in coal power plants, use as charcoal, and use as a fuel for heat generation. Additionally, the influence on the results of the long-term stability of the biochar in the soil, as well as of biochar effects on biomass yield, is evaluated. Negative greenhouse gas emissions are obtained for the biochar system, indicating a significant carbon abatement potential. However, this is achieved at the expense of lower energy efficiency and higher impacts in the other assessed categories when compared to direct biomass combustion. When comparing the different use options of the pyrolysis char, the most favorable result is obtained for char cofiring substituting fossil coal, even assuming high long-term stability of the char. Nevertheless, a high sensitivity to biomass yield increase is found for biochar systems. In this sense, biochar application to low-quality soils where high yield increases are expected would show a more favorable performance in terms of global warming.

Growth analysis and yield of two varieties of groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) as influenced by different weed control methods.

PubMed

Olayinka, Bolaji U; Etejere, Emmanuel O

Field trials were carried out to evaluate the effects of seven weed management strategies on the growth and yield of two groundnut varieties (Samnut 10 and MK 373) for two successive seasons (2010-2011). The experimental layout was a split plot complete randomized block design with three replications. The two groundnut varieties showed identical pattern of results for leaf area index, dry matter accumulation, relative growth rate, net assimilation rate and crop growth rate as well as yield. All the weed control treatments significantly enhanced the growth and yield compared with the weedy check. The weed free check had the highest growth but the highest yield was recorded from rice straw mulch at 0.1 m depth + one hand weeding at 6 weeks after sowing (WAS) due to increase in number of matured pods per plant, seed weight per plant and 100-seed weight. The results showed that rice straw mulch at 0.1 m depth + one hand weeding at 6 WAS was better agronomical practice for enhancing growth and yield of groundnut. This enhancement could be as a result of its positive influence on physiological parameters such as leaf area index, dry matter accumulation, relative growth rate, net assimilation rate and crop growth rate. Its use is also ecofriendly as it limits the need for synthetic herbicide.

Comparative analysis of vaginal microbiota sampling using 16S rRNA gene analysis.

PubMed

Virtanen, Seppo; Kalliala, Ilkka; Nieminen, Pekka; Salonen, Anne

2017-01-01

Molecular methods such as next-generation sequencing are actively being employed to characterize the vaginal microbiota in health and disease. Previous studies have focused on characterizing the biological variation in the microbiota, and less is known about how factors related to sampling contribute to the results. Our aim was to investigate the impact of a sampling device and anatomical sampling site on the quantitative and qualitative outcomes relevant for vaginal microbiota research. We sampled 10 Finnish women representing diverse clinical characteristics with flocked swabs, the Evalyn® self-sampling device, sterile plastic spatulas and a cervical brush that were used to collect samples from fornix, vaginal wall and cervix. Samples were compared on DNA and protein yield, bacterial load, and microbiota diversity and species composition based on Illumina MiSeq sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene. We quantified the relative contributions of sampling variables versus intrinsic variables in the overall microbiota variation, and evaluated the microbiota profiles using several commonly employed metrics such as alpha and beta diversity as well as abundance of major bacterial genera and species. The total DNA yield was strongly dependent on the sampling device and to a lesser extent on the anatomical site of sampling. The sampling strategy did not affect the protein yield or the bacterial load. All tested sampling methods produced highly comparable microbiota profiles based on MiSeq sequencing. The sampling method explained only 2% (p-value = 0.89) of the overall microbiota variation, markedly surpassed by intrinsic factors such as clinical status (microscopy for bacterial vaginosis 53%, p = 0.0001), bleeding (19%, p = 0.0001), and the variation between subjects (11%, p-value 0.0001). The results indicate that different sampling strategies yield comparable vaginal microbiota composition and diversity. Hence, past and future vaginal microbiota studies employing different sampling strategies should be comparable in the absence of other technical confounders. The Evalyn® self-sampling device performed equally well compared to samples taken by a clinician, and hence offers a good-quality microbiota sample without the need for a gynecological examination. The amount of collected sample as well as the DNA and protein yield varied across the sampling techniques, which may have practical implications for study design.

Isotopic yield measurement in the heavy mass region for 239Pu thermal neutron induced fission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bail, A.; Serot, O.; Mathieu, L.; Litaize, O.; Materna, T.; Köster, U.; Faust, H.; Letourneau, A.; Panebianco, S.

2011-09-01

Despite the huge number of fission yield data available in the different evaluated nuclear data libraries, such as JEFF-3.1.1, ENDF/B-VII.0, and JENDL-4.0, more accurate data are still needed both for nuclear energy applications and for our understanding of the fission process itself. It is within the framework of this that measurements on the recoil mass spectrometer Lohengrin (at the Institut Laue-Langevin, Grenoble, France) was undertaken, to determine isotopic yields for the heavy fission products from the 239Pu(nth,f) reaction. In order to do this, a new experimental method based on γ-ray spectrometry was developed and validated by comparing our results with those performed in the light mass region with completely different setups. Hence, about 65 fission product yields were measured with an uncertainty that has been reduced on average by a factor of 2 compared to that previously available in the nuclear data libraries. In addition, for some fission products, a strongly deformed ionic charge distribution compared to a normal Gaussian shape was found, which was interpreted as being caused by the presence of a nanosecond isomeric state. Finally, a nuclear charge polarization has been observed in agreement, with the one described on other close fissioning systems.

Manipulating plant geometry to improve microclimate, grain yield, and harvest index in grain sorghum.

PubMed

Thapa, Sushil; Stewart, Bob A; Xue, Qingwu; Chen, Yuanquan

2017-01-01

Cultivar selection, planting geometry, and plant population are the key factors determining grain sorghum yields in water deficit areas. The objective of this study was to investigate whether clump geometry (three plants clustered) improves microclimate within crop canopy when plants are grown under varying water levels. In a 2-yr sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) greenhouse study, plants were grown at two geometries (clump and conventional evenly spaced planting, ESP), two water levels (high and low, representing well-watered and water-limited condition, respectively), and three soil surface treatments (lid covered, straw-mulched, and bare). Air temperature and relative humidity (RH) within the plant canopy were measured every five minutes at different growth stages. Mean vapor pressure deficits (VPDs) within the clumps were consistently lower than those for ESPs, indicating that clumps improved the microclimate. Clumps had significantly higher harvest index (HI) compared to ESPs (0.48 vs. 0.43), which was largely due to clumps having an average of 0.4 tillers per plant compared to 1.2 tillers per plant for ESPs. Grain yield in the current study was similar between clumps and ESPs. However, our results suggest that improved microclimate was likely a reason for clumps producing significantly higher grain yields compared to ESPs in previous studies.

Manipulating plant geometry to improve microclimate, grain yield, and harvest index in grain sorghum

PubMed Central

Stewart, Bob A.; Xue, Qingwu; Chen, Yuanquan

2017-01-01

Cultivar selection, planting geometry, and plant population are the key factors determining grain sorghum yields in water deficit areas. The objective of this study was to investigate whether clump geometry (three plants clustered) improves microclimate within crop canopy when plants are grown under varying water levels. In a 2-yr sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) greenhouse study, plants were grown at two geometries (clump and conventional evenly spaced planting, ESP), two water levels (high and low, representing well-watered and water-limited condition, respectively), and three soil surface treatments (lid covered, straw-mulched, and bare). Air temperature and relative humidity (RH) within the plant canopy were measured every five minutes at different growth stages. Mean vapor pressure deficits (VPDs) within the clumps were consistently lower than those for ESPs, indicating that clumps improved the microclimate. Clumps had significantly higher harvest index (HI) compared to ESPs (0.48 vs. 0.43), which was largely due to clumps having an average of 0.4 tillers per plant compared to 1.2 tillers per plant for ESPs. Grain yield in the current study was similar between clumps and ESPs. However, our results suggest that improved microclimate was likely a reason for clumps producing significantly higher grain yields compared to ESPs in previous studies. PMID:28264051

Effect of natural biostimulants on yield and nutritional quality: an example of sweet yellow pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) plants.

PubMed

Parađiković, Nada; Vinković, Tomislav; Vinković Vrček, Ivana; Žuntar, Irena; Bojić, Mirza; Medić-Šarić, Marica

2011-09-01

Modifications in growing techniques can affect the yield and nutritional quality of various cultivated plant species. Owing to its high nutritional value, pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) was used in this study as a model plant to investigate the effect of natural biostimulants on yield and fruit quality parameters under conditions of reduced fertilisation. A positive influence of biostimulant treatment on yield parameters was observed. The overall increase in the pigment content of leaves after biostimulant application agreed well with the higher total and commercial yields of treated pepper cultivars compared with their controls. The results showed that natural biostimulants had a positive effect on the vitamin C and total phenolic contents in pepper fruits during the hot summer season. The 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2'-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonate) (ABTS) antioxidant activities were also significantly higher (P < 0.05) in treated plants and correlated strongly with all measured quality parameters except total phenolic content. Generally, biostimulants improved the antioxidant activity, vitamin C and phenolic contents in fruits as well as the pigment content in leaves of treated compared with non-treated pepper plants grown hydroponically. Thus the application of biostimulants could be considered as a good production strategy for obtaining high yields of nutritionally valuable vegetables with lower impact on the environment. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry.

Mechanical properties of nano and bulk Fe pillars using molecular dynamics and dislocation dynamics simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nath, S. K. Deb

2017-10-01

Using molecular dynamics simulation, tension and bending tests of a Fe nanopillar are carried out to obtain its Young's modulus and yield strength. Then the comparative study of Young's modulus and yield strength of a Fe nanopillar under bending and tension are carried out varying its diameter in the range of diameter 1-15nm. We find out the reasons why bending Young's modulus and yield strength of a Fe nanopillar are higher than those of tension Young's modulus and yield strength of a Fe nanopillar. Using the mobility parameters of bulk Fe from the experimental study [N. Urabe and J. Weertman, Materials Science and Engineering 18, 41 (1975)], its temperature dependent stress-strain relationship, yield strength and strain hardening modulus are obtained from the dislocation dynamics simulations. Strain rate dependent yield strength and strain hardening modulus of bulk Fe pillars under tension are studied. Temperature dependent creep behaviors of bulk Fe pillars under tension are also studied. To verify the soundness of the present dislocation dynamics studies of the mechanical properties of bulk Fe pillars under tension, the stress vs. strain relationship and dislocation density vs. strain of bulk Fe pillars obtained by us are compared with the published results obtained by S. Queyreau, G. Monnet, and B. Devincre, International Journal of Plasticity 25, 361 (2009).

Simulation of nitrous oxide effluxes, crop yields and soil physical properties using the LandscapeDNDC model in managed ecosystem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nyckowiak, Jedrzej; Lesny, Jacek; Haas, Edwin; Juszczak, Radoslaw; Kiese, Ralf; Butterbach-Bahl, Klaus; Olejnik, Janusz

2014-05-01

Modeling of nitrous oxide emissions from soil is very complex. Many different biological and chemical processes take place in soils which determine the amount of emitted nitrous oxide. Additionaly, biogeochemical models contain many detailed factors which may determine fluxes and other simulated variables. We used the LandscapeDNDC model in order to simulate N2O emissions, crop yields and soil physical properties from mineral cultivated soils in Poland. Nitrous oxide emissions from soils were modeled for fields with winter wheat, winter rye, spring barley, triticale, potatoes and alfalfa crops. Simulations were carried out for the plots of the Brody arable experimental station of Poznan University of Life Science in western Poland and covered the period 2003 - 2012. The model accuracy and its efficiency was determined by comparing simulations result with measurements of nitrous oxide emissions (measured with static chambers) from about 40 field campaigns. N2O emissions are strongly dependent on temperature and soil water content, hence we compared also simulated soil temperature at 10cm depth and soil water content at the same depth with the daily measured values of these driving variables. We compared also simulated yield quantities for each individual experimental plots with yield quantities which were measured in the period 2003-2012. We conclude that the LandscapeDNDC model is capable to simulate soil N2O emissions, crop yields and physical properties of soil with satisfactorily good accuracy and efficiency.

Validation of the fission yield and decay data libraries with the 10 s-delayed 235 U fission γ-ray energy spectrum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mendoza, E.; Álvarez-Velarde, F.; Bécares, V.; Cano-Ott, D.; González-Romero, E.; Martínez, T.; Villamarín, D.

2017-10-01

We have measured with a LaCl3 detector the γ-ray spectrum emitted by a 235 U enriched UO2 fuel rod 10 s after being irradiated with thermal neutrons. The experimental results are compared with simulations performed with the fission product yield and radioactive decay data libraries present in the most recent releases of ENDF/B, JEFF and JENDL.

Formaldehyde substitute fixatives: effects on nucleic acid preservation.

PubMed

Moelans, Cathy B; Oostenrijk, Daphne; Moons, Michiel J; van Diest, Paul J

2011-11-01

In surgical pathology, formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues are increasingly being used as a source of DNA and RNA for molecular assays in addition to histopathological evaluation. However, the commonly used formalin fixative is carcinogenic, and its crosslinking impairs DNA and RNA quality. The suitability of three new presumably less toxic, crosslinking (F-Solv) and non-crosslinking (FineFIX, RCL2) alcohol-based fixatives was tested for routine molecular pathology in comparison with neutral buffered formalin (NBF) as gold standard. Size ladder PCR, epidermal growth factor receptor sequence analysis, microsatellite instability (MSI), chromogenic (CISH), fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) and qPCR were performed. The alcohol-based non-crosslinking fixatives (FineFIX and RCL2) resulted in a higher DNA yield and quality compared with crosslinking fixatives (NBF and F-Solv). Size ladder PCR resulted in a shorter amplicon size (300 bp) for both crosslinking fixatives compared with the non-crosslinking fixatives (400 bp). All four fixatives were directly applicable for MSI and epidermal growth factor receptor sequence analysis. All fixatives except F-Solv showed clear signals in CISH and FISH. RNA yield and quality were superior after non-crosslinking fixation. qPCR resulted in lower Ct values for RCL2 and FineFIX. The alcohol-based non-crosslinking fixatives performed better than crosslinking fixatives with regard to DNA and RNA yield, quality and applicability in molecular diagnostics. Given the higher yield, less starting material may be necessary, thereby increasing the applicability of biopsies for molecular studies.

Maximizing RNA yield from archival renal tumors and optimizing gene expression analysis.

PubMed

Glenn, Sean T; Head, Karen L; Teh, Bin T; Gross, Kenneth W; Kim, Hyung L

2010-01-01

Formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues are widely available for gene expression analysis using TaqMan PCR. Five methods, including 4 commercial kits, for recovering RNA from paraffin-embedded renal tumor tissue were compared. The MasterPure kit from Epicentre produced the highest RNA yield. However, the difference in RNA yield between the kit from Epicenter and Invitrogen's TRIzol method was not significant. Using the top 3 RNA isolation methods, the manufacturers' protocols were modified to include an overnight Proteinase K digestion. Overnight protein digestion resulted in a significant increase in RNA yield. To optimize the reverse transcription reaction, conventional reverse transcription with random oligonucleotide primers was compared to reverse transcription using primers specific for genes of interest. Reverse transcription using gene-specific primers significantly increased the quantity of cDNA detectable by TaqMan PCR. Therefore, expression profiling of formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue using TaqMan qPCR can be optimized by using the MasterPure RNA isolation kit modified to include an overnight Proteinase K digestion and gene-specific primers during the reverse transcription.

Combined Screening with Ultrasound and Mammography Compared to Mammography Alone in Women at Elevated Risk of Breast Cancer: Results of the First-Year Screen in ACRIN 6666

PubMed Central

Berg, Wendie A.; Blume, Jeffrey D.; Cormack, Jean B.; Mendelson, Ellen B.; Lehrer, Daniel; Böhm-Vélez, Marcela; Pisano, Etta D.; Jong, Roberta A.; Evans, W. Phil; Morton, Marilyn J.; Mahoney, Mary C.; Larsen, Linda Hovanessian; Barr, Richard G.; Farria, Dione M.; Marques, Helga S.; Boparai, Karan

2008-01-01

Context Screening ultrasound (US) may depict small, node-negative breast cancers not seen on mammography (M). Objective To compare the diagnostic yield (proportion of women with a positive screen test and positive reference standard) and performance of screening with US+M compared to M alone in women at elevated risk of breast cancer. Design, Setting, and Participants From April 2004 to February 2006, 2809 women at elevated risk for breast cancer, with at least heterogeneously dense breast tissue in at least one quadrant, were recruited from 21 IRB-approved sites to undergo mammography (M) and physician-performed ultrasound (US) exams in randomized order by a radiologist masked to the results of the other exam. Reference standard was defined as a combination of pathology and 12 month follow-up, and was available for 2637 out of the 2725 eligible participants. Main Outcome Measure Diagnostic yield, sensitivity, specificity, and AUC of combined M+US compared to M alone; PPV of biopsy recommendations for M+US compared to M alone. Results Forty participants (41 breasts) were diagnosed with cancer: 8 suspicious on both US and M, 12 on US alone, 12 on M alone, and 8 participants (9 breasts) on neither (interval cancers). The diagnostic yield for M was 7.6 per 1000 women screened (20/2637) and increased to 11.8 per 1000 (31/2637) for combined US+M; the supplemental yield was 4.2 per 1000 women screened (95% CI 1.1 to 7.2 per 1000; p = 0.003 that the supplemental yield is zero). The diagnostic accuracy (AUC) for M was 0.78 (95% CI 0.67 to 0.87) and increased to 0.91 (95% CI 0.84 to 0.96) for US+M (p = 0.003 that difference is zero). Of 12 supplemental cancers seen only by US, 11 (92%) were invasive with median size 10 mm (range 5 to 40 mm; mean 12.6, SE 3.0) and 8/9 (89%) reported had negative nodes. PPV of biopsy recommendation after full diagnostic workup (PPV2) was 84/276 for M (22.6%, 95% CI 14.2 to 33%), 21/235 for US (8.9%, 95% CI 5.6 to 13.3%), and 31/276 for combined US+M (11.2%, 95% CI 7.8 to 15.6%). Conclusions Adding a single screening US to M will yield an additional 1.1 to 7.2 cancers per 1000 high-risk women, but will also substantially increase the number of false positives. Evaluation of the role of annual screening US is ongoing in this patient population. [Clinicaltrials.gov registry # NCT00072501] PMID:18477782

Bioleaching of vanadium from barren stone coal and its effect on the transition of vanadium speciation and mineral phase

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Xin; Lin, Hai; Dong, Ying-bo; Li, Gan-yu

2018-03-01

This study determined the optimal conditions required to obtain maximum vanadium extraction and examined the transition of mineral phases and vanadium speciation during the bioleaching process. Parameters including the initial pH value, initial Fe2+ concentration, solid load, and inoculum quantity were examined. The results revealed that 48.92wt% of the vanadium was extracted through bioleaching under optimal conditions. Comparatively, the chemical leaching yield (H2SO4, pH 2.0) showed a slower and milder increase in vanadium yield. The vanadium bioleaching yield was 35.11wt% greater than the chemical leaching yield. The Community Bureau of Reference (BCR) sequential extraction results revealed that 88.62wt% of vanadium existed in the residual fraction. The bacteria substantially changed the distribution of the vanadium speciation during the leaching process, and the residual fraction decreased to 48.44wt%. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) results provided evidence that the crystal lattice structure of muscovite was destroyed by the bacteria.

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

Konobeevski, E. S., E-mail: konobeev@inr.ru; Burmistrov, Yu. M.; Zuyev, S. V.

The first results are obtained in a kinematically complete experiment devoted to measuring the n + d {sup {yields}}p + n + n reaction yield at energies in the range E{sub n} = 40-60 MeV and various angles of divergence of two neutrons ({Delta}{theta} = 4{sup o}, 6{sup o}, and 8{sup o}) in the geometry of neutron-neutron final-state interaction. The {sup 1}S{sub 0} neutron-neutron scattering length a{sub nn} is determined by comparing the experimental energy dependence of the reaction yield with the results of a simulation in the Watson-Migdal approximation, which depend on a{sub nn}. For E{sub n} = 40more » MeV and {Delta}{theta} = 6{sup o} (the best statistics in the experiment), the value a{sub nn} = -17.9 {+-} 1.0 fm was obtained. A further improvement of the experimental accuracy will make it possible to remove the existing disagreement of the results from different experiments.« less

Azimuthally anisotropic emission of low-momentum direct photons in Au + Au collisions at √{sN N}=200 GeV

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adare, A.; Afanasiev, S.; Aidala, C.; Ajitanand, N. N.; Akiba, Y.; Akimoto, R.; Al-Bataineh, H.; Alexander, J.; Alfred, M.; Al-Ta'Ani, H.; Angerami, A.; Aoki, K.; Apadula, N.; Aramaki, Y.; Asano, H.; Aschenauer, E. C.; Atomssa, E. T.; Averbeck, R.; Awes, T. C.; Azmoun, B.; Babintsev, V.; Bai, M.; Baksay, G.; Baksay, L.; Bandara, N. S.; Bannier, B.; Barish, K. N.; Bassalleck, B.; Basye, A. T.; Bathe, S.; Baublis, V.; Baumann, C.; Baumgart, S.; Bazilevsky, A.; Beaumier, M.; Beckman, S.; Belikov, S.; Belmont, R.; Bennett, R.; Berdnikov, A.; Berdnikov, Y.; Bickley, A. A.; Blau, D. S.; Bok, J. S.; Boyle, K.; Brooks, M. L.; Bryslawskyj, J.; Buesching, H.; Bumazhnov, V.; Bunce, G.; Butsyk, S.; Camacho, C. M.; Campbell, S.; Castera, P.; Chen, C.-H.; Chi, C. Y.; Chiu, M.; Choi, I. J.; Choi, J. B.; Choi, S.; Choudhury, R. K.; Christiansen, P.; Chujo, T.; Chung, P.; Chvala, O.; Cianciolo, V.; Citron, Z.; Cole, B. A.; Connors, M.; Constantin, P.; Csanád, M.; Csörgő, T.; Dahms, T.; Dairaku, S.; Danchev, I.; Danley, T. W.; Das, K.; Datta, A.; Daugherity, M. S.; David, G.; Deblasio, K.; Dehmelt, K.; Denisov, A.; Deshpande, A.; Desmond, E. J.; Dharmawardane, K. V.; Dietzsch, O.; Ding, L.; Dion, A.; Diss, P. B.; Do, J. H.; Donadelli, M.; D'Orazio, L.; Drapier, O.; Drees, A.; Drees, K. A.; Durham, J. M.; Durum, A.; Dutta, D.; Edwards, S.; Efremenko, Y. V.; Ellinghaus, F.; Engelmore, T.; Enokizono, A.; En'yo, H.; Esumi, S.; Eyser, K. O.; Fadem, B.; Feege, N.; Fields, D. E.; Finger, M.; Finger, M.; Fleuret, F.; Fokin, S. L.; Fraenkel, Z.; Frantz, J. E.; Franz, A.; Frawley, A. D.; Fujiwara, K.; Fukao, Y.; Fusayasu, T.; Gainey, K.; Gal, C.; Gallus, P.; Garg, P.; Garishvili, A.; Garishvili, I.; Ge, H.; Giordano, F.; Glenn, A.; Gong, H.; Gong, X.; Gonin, M.; Goto, Y.; Granier de Cassagnac, R.; Grau, N.; Greene, S. V.; Grosse Perdekamp, M.; Gunji, T.; Guo, L.; Gustafsson, H.-Å.; Hachiya, T.; Haggerty, J. S.; Hahn, K. I.; Hamagaki, H.; Hamblen, J.; Hamilton, H. F.; Han, R.; Han, S. Y.; Hanks, J.; Hartouni, E. P.; Hasegawa, S.; Haseler, T. O. S.; Hashimoto, K.; Haslum, E.; Hayano, R.; He, X.; Heffner, M.; Hemmick, T. K.; Hester, T.; Hill, J. C.; Hohlmann, M.; Hollis, R. S.; Holzmann, W.; Homma, K.; Hong, B.; Horaguchi, T.; Hori, Y.; Hornback, D.; Hoshino, T.; Hotvedt, N.; Huang, J.; Huang, S.; Ichihara, T.; Ichimiya, R.; Ide, J.; Iinuma, H.; Ikeda, Y.; Imai, K.; Imrek, J.; Inaba, M.; Iordanova, A.; Isenhower, D.; Ishihara, M.; Isobe, T.; Issah, M.; Isupov, A.; Ivanishchev, D.; Jacak, B. V.; Javani, M.; Jezghani, M.; Jia, J.; Jiang, X.; Jin, J.; Johnson, B. M.; Joo, K. S.; Jouan, D.; Jumper, D. S.; Kajihara, F.; Kametani, S.; Kamihara, N.; Kamin, J.; Kanda, S.; Kaneti, S.; Kang, B. H.; Kang, J. H.; Kang, J. S.; Kapustinsky, J.; Karatsu, K.; Kasai, M.; Kawall, D.; Kawashima, M.; Kazantsev, A. V.; Kempel, T.; Key, J. A.; Khachatryan, V.; Khanzadeev, A.; Kijima, K. M.; Kim, B. I.; Kim, C.; Kim, D. H.; Kim, D. J.; Kim, E.; Kim, E.-J.; Kim, G. W.; Kim, H. J.; Kim, K.-B.; Kim, M.; Kim, S. H.; Kim, Y.-J.; Kim, Y. K.; Kimelman, B.; Kinney, E.; Kiriluk, K.; Kiss, Á.; Kistenev, E.; Kitamura, R.; Klatsky, J.; Kleinjan, D.; Kline, P.; Koblesky, T.; Kochenda, L.; Komatsu, Y.; Komkov, B.; Konno, M.; Koster, J.; Kotchetkov, D.; Kotov, D.; Kozlov, A.; Král, A.; Kravitz, A.; Krizek, F.; Kunde, G. J.; Kurita, K.; Kurosawa, M.; Kwon, Y.; Kyle, G. S.; Lacey, R.; Lai, Y. S.; Lajoie, J. G.; Lebedev, A.; Lee, B.; Lee, D. M.; Lee, J.; Lee, K.; Lee, K. B.; Lee, K. S.; Lee, S.; Lee, S. H.; Lee, S. R.; Leitch, M. J.; Leite, M. A. L.; Leitgab, M.; Leitner, E.; Lenzi, B.; Lewis, B.; Li, X.; Liebing, P.; Lim, S. H.; Linden Levy, L. A.; Liška, T.; Litvinenko, A.; Liu, H.; Liu, M. X.; Love, B.; Luechtenborg, R.; Lynch, D.; Maguire, C. F.; Makdisi, Y. I.; Makek, M.; Malakhov, A.; Malik, M. D.; Manion, A.; Manko, V. I.; Mannel, E.; Mao, Y.; Masui, H.; Masumoto, S.; Matathias, F.; McCumber, M.; McGaughey, P. L.; McGlinchey, D.; McKinney, C.; Means, N.; Meles, A.; Mendoza, M.; Meredith, B.; Miake, Y.; Mibe, T.; Mignerey, A. C.; Mikeš, P.; Miki, K.; Milov, A.; Mishra, D. K.; Mishra, M.; Mitchell, J. T.; Miyachi, Y.; Miyasaka, S.; Mizuno, S.; Mohanty, A. K.; Mohapatra, S.; Montuenga, P.; Moon, H. J.; Moon, T.; Morino, Y.; Morreale, A.; Morrison, D. P.; Motschwiller, S.; Moukhanova, T. V.; Murakami, T.; Murata, J.; Mwai, A.; Nagae, T.; Nagamiya, S.; Nagashima, K.; Nagle, J. L.; Naglis, M.; Nagy, M. I.; Nakagawa, I.; Nakagomi, H.; Nakamiya, Y.; Nakamura, K. R.; Nakamura, T.; Nakano, K.; Nattrass, C.; Nederlof, A.; Netrakanti, P. K.; Newby, J.; Nguyen, M.; Nihashi, M.; Niida, T.; Nishimura, S.; Nouicer, R.; Novák, T.; Novitzky, N.; Nyanin, A. S.; O'Brien, E.; Oda, S. X.; Ogilvie, C. A.; Oka, M.; Okada, K.; Onuki, Y.; Orjuela Koop, J. D.; Osborn, J. D.; Oskarsson, A.; Ouchida, M.; Ozawa, K.; Pak, R.; Pantuev, V.; Papavassiliou, V.; Park, B. H.; Park, I. H.; Park, J.; Park, J. S.; Park, S.; Park, S. K.; Park, W. J.; Pate, S. F.; Patel, L.; Patel, M.; Pei, H.; Peng, J.-C.; Pereira, H.; Perepelitsa, D. V.; Perera, G. D. N.; Peresedov, V.; Peressounko, D. Yu.; Perry, J.; Petti, R.; Pinkenburg, C.; Pinson, R.; Pisani, R. P.; Proissl, M.; Purschke, M. L.; Purwar, A. K.; Qu, H.; Rak, J.; Rakotozafindrabe, A.; Ramson, B. J.; Ravinovich, I.; Read, K. F.; Reygers, K.; Reynolds, D.; Riabov, V.; Riabov, Y.; Richardson, E.; Rinn, T.; Roach, D.; Roche, G.; Rolnick, S. D.; Rosati, M.; Rosen, C. A.; Rosendahl, S. S. E.; Rosnet, P.; Rowan, Z.; Rubin, J. G.; Rukoyatkin, P.; Ružička, P.; Sahlmueller, B.; Saito, N.; Sakaguchi, T.; Sakashita, K.; Sako, H.; Samsonov, V.; Sano, M.; Sano, S.; Sarsour, M.; Sato, S.; Sato, T.; Sawada, S.; Schaefer, B.; Schmoll, B. K.; Sedgwick, K.; Seele, J.; Seidl, R.; Semenov, A. Yu.; Sen, A.; Seto, R.; Sett, P.; Sexton, A.; Sharma, D.; Shein, I.; Shibata, T.-A.; Shigaki, K.; Shimomura, M.; Shoji, K.; Shukla, P.; Sickles, A.; Silva, C. L.; Silvermyr, D.; Silvestre, C.; Sim, K. S.; Singh, B. K.; Singh, C. P.; Singh, V.; Slunečka, M.; Snowball, M.; Soltz, R. A.; Sondheim, W. E.; Sorensen, S. P.; Sourikova, I. V.; Sparks, N. A.; Stankus, P. W.; Stenlund, E.; Stepanov, M.; Ster, A.; Stoll, S. P.; Sugitate, T.; Sukhanov, A.; Sumita, T.; Sun, J.; Sziklai, J.; Takagui, E. M.; Takahara, A.; Taketani, A.; Tanabe, R.; Tanaka, Y.; Taneja, S.; Tanida, K.; Tannenbaum, M. J.; Tarafdar, S.; Taranenko, A.; Tarján, P.; Tennant, E.; Themann, H.; Thomas, T. L.; Tieulent, R.; Timilsina, A.; Todoroki, T.; Togawa, M.; Toia, A.; Tomášek, L.; Tomášek, M.; Torii, H.; Towell, C. L.; Towell, R.; Towell, R. S.; Tserruya, I.; Tsuchimoto, Y.; Tsuji, T.; Vale, C.; Valle, H.; van Hecke, H. W.; Vargyas, M.; Vazquez-Zambrano, E.; Veicht, A.; Velkovska, J.; Vértesi, R.; Vinogradov, A. A.; Virius, M.; Vossen, A.; Vrba, V.; Vznuzdaev, E.; Wang, X. R.; Watanabe, D.; Watanabe, K.; Watanabe, Y.; Watanabe, Y. S.; Wei, F.; Wei, R.; Wessels, J.; White, A. S.; White, S. N.; Winter, D.; Wolin, S.; Wood, J. P.; Woody, C. L.; Wright, R. M.; Wysocki, M.; Xia, B.; Xie, W.; Xue, L.; Yalcin, S.; Yamaguchi, Y. L.; Yamaura, K.; Yang, R.; Yanovich, A.; Ying, J.; Yokkaichi, S.; Yoo, J. H.; Yoon, I.; You, Z.; Young, G. R.; Younus, I.; Yu, H.; Yushmanov, I. E.; Zajc, W. A.; Zelenski, A.; Zhang, C.; Zhou, S.; Zolin, L.; Zou, L.; Phenix Collaboration

2016-12-01

The PHENIX experiment at the BNL Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider has measured second- and third-order Fourier coefficients of the azimuthal distributions of direct photons emitted at midrapidity in Au +Au collisions at √{sNN}=200 GeV for various collision centralities. Combining two different analysis techniques, results were obtained in the transverse momentum range of 0.4

Optical cascade pumping of the 7P{sub 3/2} level in cesium atoms

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

Kargapol'tsev, Sergei V; Velichansky, Vladimir L; Yarovitsky, Alexander V

2005-07-31

Doppler-free absorption spectra of resonance laser fields are studied upon two-stage excitation of cesium atoms according to the schemes 6S{sub 1/2{yields}}6P{sub 3/2{yields}}6D{sub 5/2} and 6S{sub 1/2{yields}}6P{sub 3/2{yields}}8S{sub 1/2}. The obtained experimental results are in qualitative agreement with the theory. In the case of weak absorption saturation, the width of resonances is mainly determined by two-photon transitions. The efficiencies of the two variants of two-stage excitation of the 7P{sub 3/2} level are compared. The possibility of fabrication of a gas laser operating on the 455-nm 7P{sub 3/2{yields}}6S{sub 1/2} transition with the optical depopulation of the lower operating level by an additionalmore » laser is discussed. (active media)« less

Cosmogenic neutron production at Daya Bay

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

An, F. P.; Balantekin, A. B.; Band, H. R.; Bishai, M.; Blyth, S.; Cao, D.; Cao, G. F.; Cao, J.; Chan, Y. L.; Chang, J. F.; Chang, Y.; Chen, H. S.; Chen, S. M.; Chen, Y.; Chen, Y. X.; Cheng, J.; Cheng, Z. K.; Cherwinka, J. J.; Chu, M. C.; Chukanov, A.; Cummings, J. P.; Ding, Y. Y.; Diwan, M. V.; Dolgareva, M.; Dove, J.; Dwyer, D. A.; Edwards, W. R.; Gill, R.; Gonchar, M.; Gong, G. H.; Gong, H.; Grassi, M.; Gu, W. Q.; Guo, L.; Guo, X. H.; Guo, Y. H.; Guo, Z.; Hackenburg, R. W.; Hans, S.; He, M.; Heeger, K. M.; Heng, Y. K.; Higuera, A.; Hsiung, Y. B.; Hu, B. Z.; Hu, T.; Huang, H. X.; Huang, X. T.; Huang, Y. B.; Huber, P.; Huo, W.; Hussain, G.; Jaffe, D. E.; Jen, K. L.; Ji, X. L.; Ji, X. P.; Jiao, J. B.; Johnson, R. A.; Jones, D.; Kang, L.; Kettell, S. H.; Khan, A.; Koerner, L. W.; Kohn, S.; Kramer, M.; Kwok, M. W.; Langford, T. J.; Lau, K.; Lebanowski, L.; Lee, J.; Lee, J. H. C.; Lei, R. T.; Leitner, R.; Leung, J. K. C.; Li, C.; Li, D. J.; Li, F.; Li, G. S.; Li, Q. J.; Li, S.; Li, S. C.; Li, W. D.; Li, X. N.; Li, X. Q.; Li, Y. F.; Li, Z. B.; Liang, H.; Lin, C. J.; Lin, G. L.; Lin, S.; Lin, S. K.; Lin, Y.-C.; Ling, J. J.; Link, J. M.; Littenberg, L.; Littlejohn, B. R.; Liu, J. C.; Liu, J. L.; Loh, C. W.; Lu, C.; Lu, H. Q.; Lu, J. S.; Luk, K. B.; Ma, X. B.; Ma, X. Y.; Ma, Y. Q.; Malyshkin, Y.; Martinez Caicedo, D. A.; McDonald, K. T.; McKeown, R. D.; Mitchell, I.; Nakajima, Y.; Napolitano, J.; Naumov, D.; Naumova, E.; Ochoa-Ricoux, J. P.; Olshevskiy, A.; Pan, H.-R.; Park, J.; Patton, S.; Pec, V.; Peng, J. C.; Pinsky, L.; Pun, C. S. J.; Qi, F. Z.; Qi, M.; Qian, X.; Qiu, R. M.; Raper, N.; Ren, J.; Rosero, R.; Roskovec, B.; Ruan, X. C.; Steiner, H.; Sun, J. L.; Tang, W.; Taychenachev, D.; Treskov, K.; Tsang, K. V.; Tse, W.-H.; Tull, C. E.; Viaux, N.; Viren, B.; Vorobel, V.; Wang, C. H.; Wang, M.; Wang, N. Y.; Wang, R. G.; Wang, W.; Wang, X.; Wang, Y. F.; Wang, Z.; Wang, Z.; Wang, Z. M.; Wei, H. Y.; Wen, L. J.; Whisnant, K.; White, C. G.; Wise, T.; Wong, H. L. H.; Wong, S. C. F.; Worcester, E.; Wu, C.-H.; Wu, Q.; Wu, W. J.; Xia, D. M.; Xia, J. K.; Xing, Z. Z.; Xu, J. L.; Xu, Y.; Xue, T.; Yang, C. G.; Yang, H.; Yang, L.; Yang, M. S.; Yang, M. T.; Yang, Y. Z.; Ye, M.; Ye, Z.; Yeh, M.; Young, B. L.; Yu, Z. Y.; Zeng, S.; Zhan, L.; Zhang, C.; Zhang, C. C.; Zhang, H. H.; Zhang, J. W.; Zhang, Q. M.; Zhang, R.; Zhang, X. T.; Zhang, Y. M.; Zhang, Y. M.; Zhang, Y. X.; Zhang, Z. J.; Zhang, Z. P.; Zhang, Z. Y.; Zhao, J.; Zhou, L.; Zhuang, H. L.; Zou, J. H.; Daya Bay Collaboration

2018-03-01

Neutrons produced by cosmic ray muons are an important background for underground experiments studying neutrino oscillations, neutrinoless double beta decay, dark matter, and other rare-event signals. A measurement of the neutron yield in the three different experimental halls of the Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment at varying depth is reported. The neutron yield in Daya Bay's liquid scintillator is measured to be Yn=(10.26 ±0.86 )×10-5 , (10.22 ±0.87 )×10-5 , and (17.03 ±1.22 )×10-5 μ-1 g-1 cm2 at depths of 250, 265, and 860 meters-water-equivalent. These results are compared to other measurements and the simulated neutron yield in Fluka and Geant4. A global fit including the Daya Bay measurements yields a power law coefficient of 0.77 ±0.03 for the dependence of the neutron yield on muon energy.

Investment risk in bioenergy crops

DOE PAGES

Skevas, Theodoros; Swinton, Scott M.; Tanner, Sophia; ...

2015-11-18

Here, perennial, cellulosic bioenergy crops represent a risky investment. The potential for adoption of these crops depends not only on mean net returns, but also on the associated probability distributions and on the risk preferences of farmers. Using 6-year observed crop yield data from highly productive and marginally productive sites in the southern Great Lakes region and assuming risk neutrality, we calculate expected breakeven biomass yields and prices compared to corn ( Zea mays L.) as a benchmark. Next we develop Monte Carlo budget simulations based on stochastic crop prices and yields. The crop yield simulations decompose yield risk intomore » three components: crop establishment survival, time to maturity, and mature yield variability. Results reveal that corn with harvest of grain and 38% of stover (as cellulosic bioenergy feedstock) is both the most profitable and the least risky investment option. It dominates all perennial systems considered across a wide range of farmer risk preferences. Although not currently attractive for profit-oriented farmers who are risk neutral or risk averse, perennial bioenergy crops.« less

Investment risk in bioenergy crops

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

Skevas, Theodoros; Swinton, Scott M.; Tanner, Sophia

Here, perennial, cellulosic bioenergy crops represent a risky investment. The potential for adoption of these crops depends not only on mean net returns, but also on the associated probability distributions and on the risk preferences of farmers. Using 6-year observed crop yield data from highly productive and marginally productive sites in the southern Great Lakes region and assuming risk neutrality, we calculate expected breakeven biomass yields and prices compared to corn ( Zea mays L.) as a benchmark. Next we develop Monte Carlo budget simulations based on stochastic crop prices and yields. The crop yield simulations decompose yield risk intomore » three components: crop establishment survival, time to maturity, and mature yield variability. Results reveal that corn with harvest of grain and 38% of stover (as cellulosic bioenergy feedstock) is both the most profitable and the least risky investment option. It dominates all perennial systems considered across a wide range of farmer risk preferences. Although not currently attractive for profit-oriented farmers who are risk neutral or risk averse, perennial bioenergy crops.« less

Skylab study of water quality. [Kansas reservoirs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yarger, H. L. (Principal Investigator); Mccauley, J. R.

1974-01-01

The author has identified the following significant results. Analysis of S-190A imagery from 1 EREP pass over 3 reservoirs in Kansas establishes a strong linear correlation between the red/green radiance ratio and suspended solids. This result compares quite favorably to ERTS MSS CCT results. The linear fits RMS for Skylab is 6 ppm as compared to 12 ppm for ERTS. All of the ERTS satellite passes yielded fairly linear results with typical RMS values of 12 ppm. However, a few of the individual passes did yield RMS values of 5 or 6 ppm which is comparable to the one Skylab pass analyzed. In view of the cloudy conditions in the Skylab photos, yet good results, the indications are that S-190A may do somewhat better than the ERTS MSS in determining suspended load. More S-190A data is needed to confirm this. As was the case with the ERTS MSS, the Skylab S-190A showed no strong correlation with other water quality parameters. S-190B photos because of their high resolution can provide much first look information regarding relative degrees of turbidity within various parts of large lakes and among smaller bodies of water.

Comparison of hadron production models for π±, k±, protons and antiprotons production in proton-carbon interactions at 60 GeV/c

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ajaz, M.; Ullah, S.; Ali, Y.; Younis, H.

2018-02-01

In this research paper, the comprehensive results on the double differential yield of π± and k± mesons, protons and antiprotons as a function of laboratory momentum are reported. These hadrons are produced in proton-carbon interaction at 60 GeV/c. EPOS 1.99, EPOS-LHC and QGSJETII-04 models are used to perform simulations. Comparing the predictions of these models show that QGSJETII-04 model predicts higher yields of all the hadrons in most of the cases at the peak of the distribution. In this interval, the EPOS 1.99 and EPOS-LHC produce similar results. In most of the cases at higher momentum of the hadrons, all the three models are in good agreement. For protons, all models are in good agreement. EPOS-LHC gives high yield of antiprotons at high momentum values as compared to the other two models. EPOS-LHC gives higher prediction at the peak value for π+ mesons and protons at higher polar angle intervals of 100 < 𝜃 < 420 and 100 < 𝜃 < 360, respectively, and EPOS 1.99 gives higher prediction at the peak value for π- mesons for 140 < 𝜃 < 420. The model predictions, except for antiprotons, are compared with the data obtained by the NA61/SHINE experiment at 31 GeV/c proton-carbon collision, which clearly shows that the behavior of the distributions in models are similar to the ones from the data but the yield in data is low because of lower beam energy.

Vermicompost Improves Tomato Yield and Quality and the Biochemical Properties of Soils with Different Tomato Planting History in a Greenhouse Study

PubMed Central

Wang, Xin-Xin; Zhao, Fengyan; Zhang, Guoxian; Zhang, Yongyong; Yang, Lijuan

2017-01-01

A greenhouse pot test was conducted to study the impacts of replacing mineral fertilizer with organic fertilizers for one full growing period on soil fertility, tomato yield and quality using soils with different tomato planting history. Four types of fertilization regimes were compared: (1) conventional fertilizer with urea, (2) chicken manure compost, (3) vermicompost, and (4) no fertilizer. The effects on plant growth, yield and fruit quality and soil properties (including microbial biomass carbon and nitrogen, NH4+-N, NO3--N, soil water-soluble organic carbon, soil pH and electrical conductivity) were investigated in samples collected from the experimental soils at different tomato growth stages. The main results showed that: (1) vermicompost and chicken manure compost more effectively promoted plant growth, including stem diameter and plant height compared with other fertilizer treatments, in all three types of soil; (2) vermicompost improved fruit quality in each type of soil, and increased the sugar/acid ratio, and decreased nitrate concentration in fresh fruit compared with the CK treatment; (3) vermicompost led to greater improvements in fruit yield (74%), vitamin C (47%), and soluble sugar (71%) in soils with no tomato planting history compared with those in soils with long tomato planting history; and (4) vermicompost led to greater improvements in soil quality than chicken manure compost, including higher pH (averaged 7.37 vs. averaged 7.23) and lower soil electrical conductivity (averaged 204.1 vs. averaged 234.6 μS/cm) at the end of experiment in each type of soil. We conclude that vermicompost can be recommended as a fertilizer to improve tomato fruit quality and yield and soil quality, particularly for soils with no tomato planting history. PMID:29209343

Vermicompost Improves Tomato Yield and Quality and the Biochemical Properties of Soils with Different Tomato Planting History in a Greenhouse Study.

PubMed

Wang, Xin-Xin; Zhao, Fengyan; Zhang, Guoxian; Zhang, Yongyong; Yang, Lijuan

2017-01-01

A greenhouse pot test was conducted to study the impacts of replacing mineral fertilizer with organic fertilizers for one full growing period on soil fertility, tomato yield and quality using soils with different tomato planting history. Four types of fertilization regimes were compared: (1) conventional fertilizer with urea, (2) chicken manure compost, (3) vermicompost, and (4) no fertilizer. The effects on plant growth, yield and fruit quality and soil properties (including microbial biomass carbon and nitrogen, [Formula: see text]-N, [Formula: see text]-N, soil water-soluble organic carbon, soil pH and electrical conductivity) were investigated in samples collected from the experimental soils at different tomato growth stages. The main results showed that: (1) vermicompost and chicken manure compost more effectively promoted plant growth, including stem diameter and plant height compared with other fertilizer treatments, in all three types of soil; (2) vermicompost improved fruit quality in each type of soil, and increased the sugar/acid ratio, and decreased nitrate concentration in fresh fruit compared with the CK treatment; (3) vermicompost led to greater improvements in fruit yield (74%), vitamin C (47%), and soluble sugar (71%) in soils with no tomato planting history compared with those in soils with long tomato planting history; and (4) vermicompost led to greater improvements in soil quality than chicken manure compost, including higher pH (averaged 7.37 vs. averaged 7.23) and lower soil electrical conductivity (averaged 204.1 vs. averaged 234.6 μS/cm) at the end of experiment in each type of soil. We conclude that vermicompost can be recommended as a fertilizer to improve tomato fruit quality and yield and soil quality, particularly for soils with no tomato planting history.

Plasma extraction rate enhancement scheme for a real-time and continuous blood plasma separation device using a sheathless cell concentrator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kang, Dong-Hyun; Kim, Kyongtae; Kim, Yong-Jun

2018-02-01

Microfluidic devices for plasma extraction are popular because they offer the advantage of smaller reagent consumption compared to conventional centrifugations. The plasma yield (volume percentage of plasma that can be extracted) is an important factor for diagnoses in microdevices with small reagent consumptions. However, recently designed microfluidic devices tend to have a low plasma yield because they have been optimized to improve the purity of extracted plasma. Thus, these devices require large amounts of reagents, and this complexity has eliminated the advantage of microfluidic devices that can operate with only small amounts of reagents. We therefore propose a continuous, real-time, blood plasma separation device, for plasma extraction rate enhancements. Moreover, a blood plasma separation device was designed to achieve improved plasma yields with high-purity efficiency. To obtain a high plasma yield, microstructures were placed on the bottom side of the channel to increase the concentration of blood cells. Plasma separation was then accomplished via microfluidic networks based on the Zweifach-Fung effect. The proposed device was fabricated based on the polydimethylsiloxane molding process using the SU-8 microfluidic channel for the fabrication of the mold and bottom structures. Human blood diluted in a phosphate buffered saline solution (25% hematocrit) was injected into the inlet of the device. The purity efficiencies were approximately equal to 96% with a maximum of 96.75% at a flow rate of 2 µl min-1, while the plasma yield was approximately 59% with a maximum of 59.92% at a flow rate of 4 µl min-1. Compared to results obtained using other devices, our proposed device could obtain comparable or higher plasma purity and a high plasma yield.

Effect of enzymatic mash treatment and storage on phenolic composition, antioxidant activity, and turbidity of cloudy apple juice.

PubMed

Oszmiański, Jan; Wojdylo, Aneta; Kolniak, Joanna

2009-08-12

The effects of different commercial enzymatic mash treatments on yield, turbidity, color, and polyphenolic and sediment of procyanidins content of cloudy apple juice were studied. Addition of pectolytic enzymes to mash treatment had positive effect on the production of cloud apple juices by improving polyphenolic contents, especially procyanidins and juice yields (68.3% in control samples to 77% after Pectinex Yield Mash). As summary of the effect of enzymatic mash treatment, polyphenol contents in cloudy apple juices significantly increased after Pectinex Yield Mash, Pectinex Smash XXL, and Pectinex XXL maceration were applied but no effect was observed after Pectinex Ultra-SPL I Panzym XXL use, compared to the control samples. The content of polymeric procyanidins represented 50-70% of total polyphenols, but in the present study, polymeric procyanidins were significantly lower in juices than in fruits and also affected by enzymatic treatment (Pectinex AFP L-4 and Panzym Yield Mash) compared to the control samples. The enzymatic treatment decreased procyanidin content in most sediment with the exception of Pectinex Smash XXL and Pectinex AFP L-4. Generally in samples that were treated by pectinase, radical scavenging activity of cloudy apple juices was increased compared to the untreated reference samples. The highest radical scavenging activity was associated with Pectinex Yield Mash, Pectinex Smash XXL, and Pectinex XXL enzyme and the lowest activity with Pectinex Ultra SP-L and Pectinex APFL-4. However, in the case of enzymatic mash treatment cloudy apple juices showed instability of turbidity and low viscosity. These results must be ascribed to the much higher hydrolysis of pectin by enzymatic preparation which is responsible for viscosity. During 6 months of storage at 4 degrees C small changes in analyzed parameters of apple juices were observed.

Responses of Nitrogen Utilization and Apparent Nitrogen Loss to Different Control Measures in the Wheat and Maize Rotation System

PubMed Central

Peng, Zhengping; Liu, Yanan; Li, Yingchun; Abawi, Yahya; Wang, Yanqun; Men, Mingxin; An-Vo, Duc-Anh

2017-01-01

Nitrogen (N) is an essential macronutrient for plant growth and excessive application rates can decrease crop yield and increase N loss into the environment. Field experiments were carried out to understand the effects of N fertilizers on N utilization, crop yield and net income in wheat and maize rotation system of the North China Plain (NCP). Compared to farmers’ N rate (FN), the yield of wheat and maize in reduction N rate by 21–24% based on FN (RN) was improved by 451 kg ha-1, N uptakes improved by 17 kg ha-1 and net income increased by 1671 CNY ha-1, while apparent N loss was reduced by 156 kg ha-1. The controlled-release fertilizer with a 20% reduction of RN (CRF80%), a 20% reduction of RN together with dicyandiamide (RN80%+DCD) and a 20% reduction of RN added with nano-carbon (RN80%+NC) all resulted in an improvement in crop yield and decreased the apparent N losses compared to RN. Contrasted with RN80%+NC, the total crop yield in RN80%+DCD improved by 1185 kg ha-1, N uptake enhanced by 9 kg ha-1 and net income increased by 3929 CNY ha-1, while apparent N loss was similar. Therefore, a 37–39% overall decrease in N rate compared to farmers plus the nitrification inhibitor, DCD, was effective N control measure that increased crop yields, enhanced N efficiencies, and improved economic benefits, while mitigating apparent N loss. There is considerable scope for improved N use effieincy in the intensive wheat -maize rotation of the NCP. PMID:28228772

Comparison of Online Survey Recruitment Platforms for Hard-to-Reach Pregnant Smoking Populations: Feasibility Study.

PubMed

Ibarra, Jose Luis; Agas, Jessica Marie; Lee, Melissa; Pan, Julia Lily; Buttenheim, Alison Meredith

2018-04-16

Recruiting hard-to-reach populations for health research is challenging. Web-based platforms offer one way to recruit specific samples for research purposes, but little is known about the feasibility of online recruitment and the representativeness and comparability of samples recruited through different Web-based platforms. The objectives of this study were to determine the feasibility of recruiting a hard-to-reach population (pregnant smokers) using 4 different Web-based platforms and to compare participants recruited through each platform. A screener and survey were distributed online through Qualtrics Panel, Soapbox Sample, Reddit, and Amazon Mechanical Turk (mTurk). Descriptive statistics were used to summarize results of each recruitment platform, including eligibility yield, quality yield, income, race, age, and gestational age. Of the 3847 participants screened for eligibility across all 4 Web-based platforms, 535 were eligible and 308 completed the survey. Amazon mTurk yielded the fewest completed responses (n=9), 100% (9/9) of which passed several quality metrics verifying pregnancy and smoking status. Qualtrics Panel yielded 14 completed responses, 86% (12/14) of which passed the quality screening. Soapbox Sample produced 107 completed surveys, 67% (72/107) of which were found to be quality responses. Advertising through Reddit produced the highest completion rate (n=178), but only 29.2% (52/178) of those surveys passed the quality metrics. We found significant differences in eligibility yield, quality yield, age, number of previous pregnancies, age of smoking initiation, current smokers, race, education, and income (P<.001). Although each platform successfully recruited pregnant smokers, results varied in quality, cost, and percentage of complete responses. Moving forward, investigators should pay careful attention to the percentage yield and cost of online recruitment platforms to maximize internal and external validity. ©Jose Luis Ibarra, Jessica Marie Agas, Melissa Lee, Julia Lily Pan, Alison Meredith Buttenheim. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (http://www.researchprotocols.org), 16.04.2018.

Soil mulching significantly enhances yields and water and nitrogen use efficiencies of maize and wheat: a meta-analysis

PubMed Central

Qin, Wei; Hu, Chunsheng; Oenema, Oene

2015-01-01

Global crop yields are limited by water and nutrient availability. Soil mulching (with plastic or straw) reduces evaporation, modifies soil temperature and thereby affects crop yields. Reported effects of mulching are sometimes contradictory, likely due to differences in climatic conditions, soil characteristics, crop species, and also water and nitrogen (N) input levels. Here we report on a meta-analysis of the effects of mulching on wheat and maize, using 1310 yield observations from 74 studies conducted in 19 countries. Our results indicate that mulching significantly increased yields, WUE (yield per unit water) and NUE (yield per unit N) by up to 60%, compared with no-mulching. Effects were larger for maize than wheat, and larger for plastic mulching than straw mulching. Interestingly, plastic mulching performed better at relatively low temperature while straw mulching showed the opposite trend. Effects of mulching also tended to decrease with increasing water input. Mulching effects were not related to soil organic matter content. In conclusion, soil mulching can significantly increase maize and wheat yields, WUE and NUE, and thereby may contribute to closing the yield gap between attainable and actual yields, especially in dryland and low nutrient input agriculture. The management of soil mulching requires site-specific knowledge. PMID:26586114

Soil mulching significantly enhances yields and water and nitrogen use efficiencies of maize and wheat: a meta-analysis.

PubMed

Qin, Wei; Hu, Chunsheng; Oenema, Oene

2015-11-20

Global crop yields are limited by water and nutrient availability. Soil mulching (with plastic or straw) reduces evaporation, modifies soil temperature and thereby affects crop yields. Reported effects of mulching are sometimes contradictory, likely due to differences in climatic conditions, soil characteristics, crop species, and also water and nitrogen (N) input levels. Here we report on a meta-analysis of the effects of mulching on wheat and maize, using 1310 yield observations from 74 studies conducted in 19 countries. Our results indicate that mulching significantly increased yields, WUE (yield per unit water) and NUE (yield per unit N) by up to 60%, compared with no-mulching. Effects were larger for maize than wheat, and larger for plastic mulching than straw mulching. Interestingly, plastic mulching performed better at relatively low temperature while straw mulching showed the opposite trend. Effects of mulching also tended to decrease with increasing water input. Mulching effects were not related to soil organic matter content. In conclusion, soil mulching can significantly increase maize and wheat yields, WUE and NUE, and thereby may contribute to closing the yield gap between attainable and actual yields, especially in dryland and low nutrient input agriculture. The management of soil mulching requires site-specific knowledge.

Soil mulching significantly enhances yields and water and nitrogen use efficiencies of maize and wheat: a meta-analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qin, Wei; Hu, Chunsheng; Oenema, Oene

2015-11-01

Global crop yields are limited by water and nutrient availability. Soil mulching (with plastic or straw) reduces evaporation, modifies soil temperature and thereby affects crop yields. Reported effects of mulching are sometimes contradictory, likely due to differences in climatic conditions, soil characteristics, crop species, and also water and nitrogen (N) input levels. Here we report on a meta-analysis of the effects of mulching on wheat and maize, using 1310 yield observations from 74 studies conducted in 19 countries. Our results indicate that mulching significantly increased yields, WUE (yield per unit water) and NUE (yield per unit N) by up to 60%, compared with no-mulching. Effects were larger for maize than wheat, and larger for plastic mulching than straw mulching. Interestingly, plastic mulching performed better at relatively low temperature while straw mulching showed the opposite trend. Effects of mulching also tended to decrease with increasing water input. Mulching effects were not related to soil organic matter content. In conclusion, soil mulching can significantly increase maize and wheat yields, WUE and NUE, and thereby may contribute to closing the yield gap between attainable and actual yields, especially in dryland and low nutrient input agriculture. The management of soil mulching requires site-specific knowledge.

Tensile Properties of 17-7 PH and 12 MoV Stainless-Steel Sheet under Rapid-Heating and Constant-Temperature Conditions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Manning, Charles R., Jr.; Price, Howard L.

1961-01-01

Results are presented of rapid-heating tests of 17-7 PH and 12 MoV stainless-steel sheet heated to failure at temperature rates from about 1 F to 170 F per second under constant-load conditions. Yield and rupture strengths obtained from rapid-heating tests are compared with yield and tensile strengths obtained from short-time elevated-temperature tensile tests (30-minute exposure). A rate-temperature parameter was used to construct master curves from which yield and rupture stresses or temperatures can be predicted. A method for measuring strain by optical means is described.

Ion Yields in the Coupled Chemical and Physical Dynamics Model of Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knochenmuss, Richard

2015-08-01

The Coupled Chemical and Physical Dynamics (CPCD) model of matrix assisted laser desorption ionization has been restricted to relative rather than absolute yield comparisons because the rate constant for one step in the model was not accurately known. Recent measurements are used to constrain this constant, leading to good agreement with experimental yield versus fluence data for 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid. Parameters for alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic acid are also estimated, including contributions from a possible triplet state. The results are compared with the polar fluid model, the CPCD is found to give better agreement with the data.

Tensile properties of HK31XA-H24 magnesium-alloy sheet under rapid-heating conditions and constant elevated temperatures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gibbs, Thomas W

1956-01-01

Specimens of HK31XA-H24 magnesium-alloy sheet from an experimental batch were heated to failure at nominal temperature rates from 0.2 F to 100 F per second under constant-load conditions. Rapid-heating yield and rupture stresses are presented and compared with the yield and ultimate stresses from elevated-temperature tensile stress-strain tests for 1/2-hour exposure. Linear temperature-rate parameters were used to correlate rapid-heating results by constructing master curves which can be used for predicting yield stresses and temperatures and for estimating rupture stresses and temperatures.

Drought effects on composition and yield for corn stover, mixed grasses, and Miscanthus as bioenergy feedstocks

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

Emerson, Rachel; Hoover, Amber; Ray, Allison

Drought conditions in 2012 were some of the most severe in recent history. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of drought on quality, quantity, and theoretical ethanol yield (TEY) of three bioenergy feedstocks, corn stover, mixed grasses from Conservation Reserve Program lands, and Miscanthus × giganteus. To assess drought effects on these feedstocks, samples from 2010 (minimal to no drought) and 2012 (severe drought) were compared from multiple locations in the US. In all feedstocks, drought significantly increased extractives and reduced structural sugars and lignin; subsequently, TEYs were reduced 10–15%. Biomass yields were significantly reduced formore » M. × giganteus and mixed grasses. When reduction in quality and quantity were combined, TEYs decreased 26–59%. Drought negatively affected biomass quality and quantity that resulted in significant TEY reductions. As a result, such fluctuations in biomass quality and yield may have significant consequences for developing lignocellulosic biorefineries.« less

Improvement of enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol production from corn stalk by alkali and N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide pretreatments.

PubMed

Cai, Ling-Yan; Ma, Yu-Long; Ma, Xiao-Xia; Lv, Jun-Min

2016-07-01

A combinative technology of alkali and N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide (NMMO) was used to pretreat corn stalk (CS) for improving the efficiencies of subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol fermentation. The results showed that this strategy could not only remove hemicellulose and lignin but also decrease the crystallinity of cellulose. About 98.0% of enzymatic hydrolysis yield was obtained from the pretreated CS as compared with 46.9% from the untreated sample. The yield for corresponding ethanol yield was 64.6% while untreated CS was only 18.8%. Besides, xylose yield obtained from the untreated CS was only 11.1%, while this value was 93.8% for alkali with NMMO pretreated sample. These results suggest that a combination of alkali with 50% (wt/wt) NMMO solution may be a promising alternative for pretreatment of lignocellulose, which can increase the productions of subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol fermentation. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Drought effects on composition and yield for corn stover, mixed grasses, and Miscanthus as bioenergy feedstocks

DOE PAGES

Emerson, Rachel; Hoover, Amber; Ray, Allison; ...

2014-07-04

Drought conditions in 2012 were some of the most severe in recent history. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of drought on quality, quantity, and theoretical ethanol yield (TEY) of three bioenergy feedstocks, corn stover, mixed grasses from Conservation Reserve Program lands, and Miscanthus × giganteus. To assess drought effects on these feedstocks, samples from 2010 (minimal to no drought) and 2012 (severe drought) were compared from multiple locations in the US. In all feedstocks, drought significantly increased extractives and reduced structural sugars and lignin; subsequently, TEYs were reduced 10–15%. Biomass yields were significantly reduced formore » M. × giganteus and mixed grasses. When reduction in quality and quantity were combined, TEYs decreased 26–59%. Drought negatively affected biomass quality and quantity that resulted in significant TEY reductions. As a result, such fluctuations in biomass quality and yield may have significant consequences for developing lignocellulosic biorefineries.« less

Bacterial impregnation of mineral fertilizers improves yield and nutrient use efficiency of wheat.

PubMed

Ahmad, Shakeel; Imran, Muhammad; Hussain, Sabir; Mahmood, Sajid; Hussain, Azhar; Hasnain, Muhammad

2017-08-01

The fertilizer use efficiency (FUE) of agricultural crops is generally low, which results in poor crop yields and low economic benefits to farmers. Among the various approaches used to enhance FUE, impregnation of mineral fertilizers with plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) is attracting worldwide attention. The present study was aimed to improve growth, yield and nutrient use efficiency of wheat by bacterially impregnated mineral fertilizers. Results of the pot study revealed that impregnation of diammonium phosphate (DAP) and urea with PGPB was helpful in enhancing the growth, yield, photosynthetic rate, nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) and phosphorus use efficiency (PUE) of wheat. However, the plants treated with F8 type DAP and urea, prepared by coating a slurry of PGPB (Bacillus sp. strain KAP6) and compost on DAP and urea granules at the rate of 2.0 g 100 g -1 fertilizer, produced better results than other fertilizer treatments. In this treatment, growth parameters including plant height, root length, straw yield and root biomass significantly (P ≤ 0.05) increased from 58.8 to 70.0 cm, 41.2 to 50.0 cm, 19.6 to 24.2 g per pot and 1.8 to 2.2 g per pot, respectively. The same treatment improved grain yield of wheat by 20% compared to unimpregnated DAP and urea (F0). Likewise, the maximum increase in photosynthetic rate, grain NP content, grain NP uptake, NUE and PUE of wheat were also recorded with F8 treatment. The results suggest that the application of bacterially impregnated DAP and urea is highly effective for improving growth, yield and FUE of wheat. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

Products and yields from O3 photodissociation at 1576 A

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Taherian, M. R.; Slanger, T. G.

1985-01-01

An analysis has been made of the primary atomic and molecular products arising from O3 photodissociation at 1576 A. The yield of oxygen atoms is 1.90 + or - 0.30, of which 71 percent are O(3P) and 29 percent are O(1D). Since a primary yield greater than unity can only be a consequence of three-fragment dissociation, these results suggest that fragmentation into three O(3P) atoms, and production of O(1D) plus a singlet oxygen molecule, have comparable yields. Observation of prompt emission in the 7300-8100 A spectral region indicates that the singlet O2 is O2(b 1Sigma + g). Vibrational levels in the range v = 0-6 have been detected, the distribution corresponding to a vibrational temperature of 1000 K.

Engineering of the glycerol decomposition pathway and cofactor regulation in an industrial yeast improves ethanol production.

PubMed

Zhang, Liang; Tang, Yan; Guo, Zhongpeng; Shi, Guiyang

2013-10-01

Glycerol is a major by-product of industrial ethanol production and its formation consumes up to 4 % of the sugar substrate. This study modified the glycerol decomposition pathway of an industrial strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae to optimize the consumption of substrate and yield of ethanol. This study is the first to couple glycerol degradation with ethanol formation, to the best of our knowledge. The recombinant strain overexpressing GCY1 and DAK1, encoding glycerol dehydrogenase and dihydroxyacetone kinase, respectively, in glycerol degradation pathway, exhibited a moderate increase in ethanol yield (2.9 %) and decrease in glycerol yield (24.9 %) compared to the wild type with the initial glucose concentration of 15 % under anaerobic conditions. However, when the mhpF gene, encoding acetylating NAD⁺-dependent acetaldehyde dehydrogenase from Escherichia coli, was co-expressed in the aforementioned recombinant strain, a further increase in ethanol yield by 5.5 % and decrease in glycerol yield by 48 % were observed for the resultant recombinant strain GDMS1 when acetic acid was added into the medium prior to inoculation compared to the wild type. The process outlined in this study which enhances glycerol consumption and cofactor regulation in an industrial yeast is a promising metabolic engineering strategy to increase ethanol production by reducing the formation of glycerol.

Use of textile waste water along with liquid NPK fertilizer for production of wheat on saline sodic soils.

PubMed

Yaseen, Muhammad; Aziz, Muhammad Zahir; Jafar, Abdul Aleem; Naveed, Muhammad; Saleem, Muhammad

2016-01-01

A field experiment in collaboration with a private textile industry (Noor Fatima Fabrics Private (Ltd.), Faisalabad) was conducted to evaluate the effect of disposed water from bleaching unit, printing unit and end drain for improving growth and yield of wheat under saline sodic soil. Textile waste water along with canal water (control) was applied with and without liquid NPK fertilizer. The application of liquid NPK fertilizer with end drain waste water increased plant height, spike length, flag leaf length, root length, number of tillers (m(-2)), number of fertile tillers (m(-2)), 1000 grain weight, grain yield, straw yield and biological yield up to 21, 20, 20, 44, 17, 20, 14, 44, 40 and 41%, respectively compared to canal water (control). Similarly, the NPK uptake in grain was increased up to 15, 30 and 28%, respectively by liquid fertilizer treated end drain water as compare to canal water with liquid fertilizer. Moreover, concentration of different heavy metals particularly Cu, Cr, Pb and Cd was decreased in grains by application of waste water along with liquid NPK. The result may imply that waste water application along with liquid-NPK could be a novel approach for improving growth and yield of wheat in saline sodic soils.

Development of a Cadaveric Model for Arthrocentesis.

PubMed

MacIver, Melissa A; Johnson, Matthew

2015-01-01

This article reports the development of a novel cadaveric model for future use in teaching arthrocentesis. In the clinical setting, animal safety is essential and practice is thus limited. Objectives of the study were to develop and compare a model to an unmodified cadaver by injecting one of two types of fluids to increase yield. The two fluids injected, mineral oil (MO) and hypertonic saline (HS), were compared to determine any difference on yield. Lastly, aspiration immediately after (T1) or three hours after (T2) injection were compared to determine any effect on diagnostic yield. Joints used included the stifle, elbow, and carpus in eight medium dog cadavers. Arthrocentesis was performed before injection (control) and yield measured. Test joints were injected with MO or HS and yield measured after range of motion (T1) and three hours post injection to simulate lab preparation (T2). Both models had statistically significantly higher yield compared with the unmodified cadaver in all joints at T1 and T2 (p<.05) with the exception of HST2 carpus. T2 aspiration had a statistically significant lower yield when compared to T1HS carpus, T1HS elbow, and T1MO carpus. Overall, irrespective of fluid volume or type, percent yield was lower in T2 compared to T1. No statistically significant difference was seen between HS and MO in most joints with the exception of MOT1 stifle and HST2 elbow. Within the time frame assessed, both models were acceptable. However, HS arthrocentesis models proved appropriate for student trial due to the difficult aspirations with MO.

Numerical Approach for Goaf-Side Entry Layout and Yield Pillar Design in Fractured Ground Conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jiang, Lishuai; Zhang, Peipeng; Chen, Lianjun; Hao, Zhen; Sainoki, Atsushi; Mitri, Hani S.; Wang, Qingbiao

2017-11-01

Entry driven along goaf-side (EDG), which is the development of an entry of the next longwall panel along the goaf-side and the isolation of the entry from the goaf with a small-width yield pillar, has been widely employed in China over the past several decades . The width of such a yield pillar has a crucial effect on EDG layout in terms of the ground control, isolation effect and resource recovery rate. Based on a case study, this paper presents an approach for evaluating, designing and optimizing EDG and yield pillar by considering the results from numerical simulations and field practice. To rigorously analyze the ground stability, the numerical study begins with the simulation of goaf-side stress and ground conditions. Four global models with identical conditions, except for the width of the yield pillar, are built, and the effect of pillar width on ground stability is investigated by comparing aspects of stress distribution, failure propagation, and displacement evolution during the entire service life of the entry. Based on simulation results, the isolation effect of the pillar acquired from field practice is also considered. The suggested optimal yield pillar design is validated using a field test in the same mine. Thus, the presented numerical approach provides references and can be utilized for the evaluation, design and optimization of EDG and yield pillars under similar geological and geotechnical circumstances.

Biogas and methane yield in response to co- and separate digestion of biomass wastes.

PubMed

Adelard, Laetitia; Poulsen, Tjalfe G; Rakotoniaina, Volana

2015-01-01

The impact of co-digestion as opposed to separate digestion, on biogas and methane yield (apparent synergetic effects) was investigated for three biomass materials (pig manure, cow manure and food waste) under mesophilic conditions over a 36 day period. In addition to the three biomass materials (digested separately), 13 biomass mixtures (co-digested) were used. Two approaches for modelling biogas and methane yield during co-digestion, based on volatile solids concentration and ultimate gas and methane potentials, were evaluated. The dependency of apparent synergetic effects on digestion time and biomass mixture composition was further assessed using measured cumulative biogas and methane yields and specific biogas and methane generation rates. Results indicated that it is possible, based on known volatile solids concentration and ultimate biogas or methane yields for a set of biomass materials digested separately, to accurately estimate gas yields for biomass mixtures made from these materials using calibrated models. For the biomass materials considered here, modelling indicated that the addition of pig manure is the main cause of synergetic effects. Co-digestion generally resulted in improved ultimate biogas and methane yields compared to separate digestion. Biogas and methane production was furthermore significantly higher early (0-7 days) and to some degree also late (above 20 days) in the digestion process during co-digestion. © The Author(s) 2014.

Early selection of novel triploid hybrids of shrub willow with improved biomass yield relative to diploids

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Genetic improvement of shrub willow (Salix), a perennial energy crop common to temperate climates, has led to the development of new cultivars with improved biomass yield, pest and disease resistance, and biomass composition suitable for bioenergy applications. These improvements have largely been associated with species hybridization, yet little is known about the genetic mechanisms responsible for improved yield and performance of certain willow species hybrids. Results The top performing genotypes in this study, representing advanced pedigrees compared with those in previous studies, were mostly triploid in nature and outperformed current commercial cultivars. Of the genotypes studied, the diploids had the lowest mean yield of 8.29 oven dry Mg ha−1 yr−1, while triploids yielded 12.65 Mg ha−1 yr−1, with the top five producing over 16 Mg ha−1 yr−1. Triploids had high stem area and height across all three years of growth in addition to greatest specific gravity. The lowest specific gravity was observed among the tetraploid genotypes. Height was the early trait most correlated with and the best predictor of third-year yield. Conclusions These results establish a paradigm for future breeding and improvement of Salix bioenergy crops based on the development of triploid species hybrids. Stem height and total stem area are effective traits for early prediction of relative yield performance. PMID:24661804

Root Traits Enhancing Rice Grain Yield under Alternate Wetting and Drying Condition

PubMed Central

Sandhu, Nitika; Subedi, Sushil R.; Yadaw, Ram B.; Chaudhary, Bedanand; Prasai, Hari; Iftekharuddaula, Khandakar; Thanak, Tho; Thun, Vathany; Battan, Khushi R.; Ram, Mangat; Venkateshwarlu, Challa; Lopena, Vitaliano; Pablico, Paquito; Maturan, Paul C.; Cruz, Ma. Teresa Sta.; Raman, K. Anitha; Collard, Bertrand; Kumar, Arvind

2017-01-01

Reducing water requirements and lowering environmental footprints require attention to minimize risks to food security. The present study was conducted with the aim to identify appropriate root traits enhancing rice grain yield under alternate wetting and drying conditions (AWD) and identify stable, high-yielding genotypes better suited to the AWD across variable ecosystems. Advanced breeding lines, popular rice varieties and drought-tolerant lines were evaluated in a series of 23 experiments conducted in the Philippines, India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Cambodia in 2015 and 2016. A large variation in grain yield under AWD conditions enabled the selection of high-yielding and stable genotypes across locations, seasons and years. Water savings of 5.7–23.4% were achieved without significant yield penalty across different ecosystems. The mean grain yield of genotypes across locations ranged from 3.5 to 5.6 t/ha and the mean environment grain yields ranged from 3.7 (Cambodia) to 6.6 (India) t/ha. The best-fitting Finlay-Wilkinson regression model identified eight stable genotypes with mean grain yield of more than 5.0 t/ha across locations. Multidimensional preference analysis represented the strong association of root traits (nodal root number, root dry weight at 22 and 30 days after transplanting) with grain yield. The genotype IR14L253 outperformed in terms of root traits and high mean grain yield across seasons and six locations. The 1.0 t/ha yield advantage of IR14L253 over the popular cultivar IR64 under AWD shall encourage farmers to cultivate IR14L253 and also adopt AWD. The results suggest an important role of root architectural traits in term of more number of nodal roots and root dry weight at 10–20 cm depth on 22–30 days after transplanting (DAT) in providing yield stability and preventing yield reduction under AWD compared to continuous flooded conditions. Genotypes possessing increased number of nodal roots provided higher yield over IR64 as well as no yield reduction under AWD compared to flooded irrigation. The identification of appropriate root architecture traits at specific depth and specific growth stage shall help breeding programs develop better rice varieties for AWD conditions. PMID:29163604

Impact of Thiamethoxam Seed Treatment on Growth and Yield of Rice, Oryza sativa.

PubMed

Lanka, S K; Senthil-Nathan, S; Blouin, D J; Stout, M J

2017-04-01

Neonicotinoid seed treatments are widely used in agriculture. In rice, Oryza sativa L., in the southern United States, neonicotinoid seed treatments are used to manage early-season populations of the rice water weevil, Lissorhoptrus oryzophilus Kuschel. In addition to their effects on pests, neonicotinoid seed treatments may benefit crop plants directly by increasing plant growth or altering plant responses to stresses. As part of an effort to assess the overall benefits of thiamethoxam seed treatment in rice, rice emergence, growth, and yield were evaluated. In a growth chamber, rice emergence from the soil was 1-2 d more rapid from treated than untreated seeds. These laboratory results were supported by field experiments that revealed higher stand counts from thiamethoxam-treated plots than from untreated plots. Yields from thiamethoxam treatments were no higher than those from untreated plots under conditions in which weevil larvae were absent, a result inconsistent with the hypothesis that thiamethoxam imparts direct yield benefits. In a series of field experiments conducted to compare the relationship between weevil larval densities and rice yields in plots treated with several rates of thiamethoxam or chlorantraniliprole (another widely used seed treatment insecticide), the relationship between weevil density and yield did not differ markedly among both seed treatments. Overall yields from both seed treatments did not differ significantly, despite more effective control in chlorantraniliprole-treated plots. These results provide strong support for effect of thiamethoxam on early-season growth of rice, but only weak support for its direct effect on rice yields. © The Authors 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Comparison of the Results of MISSE 6 Atomic Oxygen Erosion Yields of Layered Kapton H Films with Monte Carlo Computational Predictions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Banks, Bruce A.; Groh, Kim De; Kneubel, Christian A.

2014-01-01

A space experiment flown as part of the Materials International Space Station Experiment 6B (MISSE 6B) was designed to compare the atomic oxygen erosion yield (Ey) of layers of Kapton H polyimide with no spacers between layers with that of layers of Kapton H with spacers between layers. The results were compared to a solid Kapton H (DuPont, Wilmington, DE) sample. Monte Carlo computational modeling was performed to optimize atomic oxygen interaction parameter values to match the results of both the MISSE 6B multilayer experiment and the undercut erosion profile from a crack defect in an aluminized Kapton H sample flown on the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF). The Monte Carlo modeling produced credible agreement with space results of increased Ey for all samples with spacers as well as predicting the space-observed enhancement in erosion near the edges of samples due to scattering from the beveled edges of the sample holders.

Characterizing bias correction uncertainty in wheat yield predictions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ortiz, Andrea Monica; Jones, Julie; Freckleton, Robert; Scaife, Adam

2017-04-01

Farming systems are under increased pressure due to current and future climate change, variability and extremes. Research on the impacts of climate change on crop production typically rely on the output of complex Global and Regional Climate Models, which are used as input to crop impact models. Yield predictions from these top-down approaches can have high uncertainty for several reasons, including diverse model construction and parameterization, future emissions scenarios, and inherent or response uncertainty. These uncertainties propagate down each step of the 'cascade of uncertainty' that flows from climate input to impact predictions, leading to yield predictions that may be too complex for their intended use in practical adaptation options. In addition to uncertainty from impact models, uncertainty can also stem from the intermediate steps that are used in impact studies to adjust climate model simulations to become more realistic when compared to observations, or to correct the spatial or temporal resolution of climate simulations, which are often not directly applicable as input into impact models. These important steps of bias correction or calibration also add uncertainty to final yield predictions, given the various approaches that exist to correct climate model simulations. In order to address how much uncertainty the choice of bias correction method can add to yield predictions, we use several evaluation runs from Regional Climate Models from the Coordinated Regional Downscaling Experiment over Europe (EURO-CORDEX) at different resolutions together with different bias correction methods (linear and variance scaling, power transformation, quantile-quantile mapping) as input to a statistical crop model for wheat, a staple European food crop. The objective of our work is to compare the resulting simulation-driven hindcasted wheat yields to climate observation-driven wheat yield hindcasts from the UK and Germany in order to determine ranges of yield uncertainty that result from different climate model simulation input and bias correction methods. We simulate wheat yields using a General Linear Model that includes the effects of seasonal maximum temperatures and precipitation, since wheat is sensitive to heat stress during important developmental stages. We use the same statistical model to predict future wheat yields using the recently available bias-corrected simulations of EURO-CORDEX-Adjust. While statistical models are often criticized for their lack of complexity, an advantage is that we are here able to consider only the effect of the choice of climate model, resolution or bias correction method on yield. Initial results using both past and future bias-corrected climate simulations with a process-based model will also be presented. Through these methods, we make recommendations in preparing climate model output for crop models.

Growth, yield and quality attributes of a tropical potato variety (Solanum tuberosum L. cv Kufri chandramukhi) under ambient and elevated carbon dioxide and ozone and their interactions.

PubMed

Kumari, Sumita; Agrawal, Madhoolika

2014-03-01

The present study was designed to study the growth and yield responses of a tropical potato variety (Solanum tuberosum L. cv. Kufri chandramukhi) to different levels of carbon dioxide (382 and 570ppm) and ozone (50 and 70ppb) in combinations using open top chambers (OTCs). Plants were exposed to three ozone levels in combination with ambient CO2 and two ozone levels at elevated CO2. Significant increments in leaf area and total biomass were observed under elevated CO2 in combination with ambient O3 (ECO2+AO3) and elevated O3 (ECO2+EO3), compared to the plants grown under ambient concentrations (ACO2+AO3). Yield measured as fresh weight of potato also increased significantly under ECO2+AO3 and ECO2+EO3. Yield, however, reduced under ambient (ACO2+AO3) and elevated ozone (ACO2+EO3) compared to ACO2 (filtered chamber). Number, fresh and dry weights of tubers of size 35-50mm and>50mm used for direct consumption and industrial purposes, respectively increased maximally under ECO2+AO3. Ambient as well as elevated levels of O3 negatively affected the growth parameters and yield mainly due to reductions in number and weight of tubers of sizes >35mm. The quality of potato tubers was also modified under different treatments. Starch content increased and K, Zn and Fe concentrations decreased under ECO2+AO3 and ECO2+EO3 compared to ACO2+AO3. Starch content reduced under ACO2+AO3 and ACO2+EO3 treatments compared to ACO2. These results clearly suggest that elevated CO2 has provided complete protection to ambient O3 as the potato yield was higher under ECO2+AO3 compared to ACO2. However, ambient CO2 is not enough to protect the plants under ambient O3 levels. Elevated CO2 also provided protection against elevated O3 by improving the yield. Quality of tubers is modified by both CO2 and O3, which have serious implications on human health at present and in future. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genetic improvement of total milk yield and total lactation persistency of the first three lactations in dairy cattle.

PubMed

Togashi, K; Lin, C Y

2008-07-01

The objective of this study was to compare 6 selection criteria in terms of 3-parity total milk yield and 9 selection criteria in terms of total net merit (H) comprising 3-parity total milk yield and total lactation persistency. The 6 selection criteria compared were as follows: first-parity milk estimated breeding value (EBV; M1), first 2-parity milk EBV (M2), first 3-parity milk EBV (M3), first-parity eigen index (EI(1)), first 2-parity eigen index (EI(2)), and first 3-parity eigen index (EI(3)). The 9 selection criteria compared in terms of H were M1, M2, M3, EI(1), EI(2), EI(3), and first-parity, first 2-parity, and first 3-parity selection indices (I(1), I(2), and I(3), respectively). In terms of total milk yield, selection on M3 or EI(3) achieved the greatest genetic response, whereas selection on EI(1) produced the largest genetic progress per day. In terms of total net merit, selection on I(3) brought the largest response, whereas selection EI(1) yielded the greatest genetic progress per day. A multiple-lactation random regression test-day model simultaneously yields the EBV of the 3 lactations for all animals included in the analysis even though the younger animals do not have the opportunity to complete the first 3 lactations. It is important to use the first 3 lactation EBV for selection decision rather than only the first lactation EBV in spite of the fact that the first-parity selection criteria achieved a faster genetic progress per day than the 3-parity selection criteria. Under a multiple-lactation random regression animal model analysis, the use of the first 3 lactation EBV for selection decision does not prolong the generation interval as compared with the use of only the first lactation EBV. Thus, it is justified to compare genetic response on a lifetime basis rather than on a per-day basis. The results suggest the use of M3 or EI(3) for genetic improvement of total milk yield and the use of I(3) for genetic improvement of total net merit H. Although this study deals with selection for 3-parity milk production, the same principle applies to selection for lifetime milk production.

Two-photon decay in gold atoms

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

Dunford, R. W.; Kanter, E. P.; Kraessig, B.

2006-07-15

We have measured the energy differential transition probabilities for the two-photon decay of K vacancies in gold atoms (nuclear charge Z=79). This is the heaviest atom for which this information has been obtained, and so is most sensitive to relativistic effects. The experiment determined the shape of the continuum radiation for the transitions 2s{yields}1s, 3s{yields}1s, 3d{yields}1s, and (4s+4d){yields}1s at an emission pair opening angle {theta}={pi}/2. Our results for 3d{yields}1s and (4s+4d){yields}1s extend to energies above and below the region of the intermediate state resonances. No relativistic calculations exist for Au, so we compare with calculations by Mu and Crasemann andmore » Tong et al. for Ag (Z=47) and Xe (Z=54). For equal-energy, back-to-back two-photon decay, the calculations show an increase in transition probability with Z for the 2s{yields}1s and 3d{yields}1s transitions. In contrast, our data, at Z=79, corrected for the angular distribution, give a smaller transition probability than the lower-Z experimental results of Ilakovac et al. and Mokler et al. for Ag and Xe. The shapes of the two-photon continua in our data are in general agreement with theory except that we find anomalously high values for the differential two-photon transition probability for the 3s{yields}1s transition near y=0.35, where y is the fraction of the transition energy carried by the lower-energy photon.« less

Postpartum endocrine activities, metabolic attributes and milk yield are influenced by thermal stress in crossbred dairy cows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ihsanullah; Qureshi, Muhammad Subhan; Suhail, Syed Muhammad; Akhtar, Sohail; Khan, Rifat Ullah

2017-09-01

This study was conducted on 30 freshly parturated multiparous crossbred dairy cows possessing three levels of Holstein Frisian genetic makeup (62.5, 75.0, and 87.5%). Data on temperature humidity index (THI) were classified into comfortable (≤ 71), mild stress (72-79), moderate stress (80-89), and stressful (≥90) zone. Results showed that serum cortisol concentration increased significantly ( P < 0.05) in cows during stressful condition irrespective of genetic makeup compared to the other zones. Daily milk yield (DMY) was significantly ( P < 0.05) lower in cows during stressful condition. Triglyceride was significantly higher in cows with genetic makeup 87.5% compared to the others, while total serum protein was significantly ( P < 0.05) higher in cows during both moderate and stressful conditions. The mean concentration of cortisol and protein increased linearly from comfort to the stressful condition, while mean serum triglyceride, glucose, progesterone (P4), and luteinizing hormone (LH) decreased by moving from comfort to stressful conditions. Results also indicated that higher cortisol level in higher grade crossbred cows was adversely associated with LH concentration and milk yield under thermal stress conditions. Greater triglyceride in high-grade crossbred (87.5%) cows indicates higher fat mobilization reflecting a negative energy balance. We concluded that heat stress increased blood cortisol and protein, and reduced milk yield in dairy cows irresptive of the genetic makeup. In addition, there was no significant difference in blood metabolites and daily milk yield in the different levels of genetic makeup cows.

Recent Developments in the Formability of Aluminum Alloys

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Banabic, Dorel; Cazacu, Oana; Paraianu, Liana; Jurco, Paul

2005-08-01

The paper presents a few recent contributions brought by the authors in the field of the formability of aluminum alloys. A new concept for calculating Forming Limit Diagrams (FLD) using the finite element method is presented. The article presents a new strategy for calculating both branches of an FLD, using a Hutchinson - Neale model implemented in a finite element code. The simulations have been performed with Abaqus/Standard. The constitutive model has been implemented using a UMAT subroutine. The plastic anisotropy of the sheet metal is described by the Cazacu-Barlat and the BBC2003 yield criteria. The theoretical predictions have been compared with the results given by the classical Hutchinson - Neale method and also with experimental data for different aluminum alloys. The comparison proves the capability of the finite element method to predict the strain localization. A computer program used for interactive calculation and graphical representation of different Yield Loci and Forming Limit Diagrams has also been developed. The program is based on a Hutchinson-Neale model. Different yield criteria (Hill 1948, Barlat-Lian and BBC 2003) are implemented in this model. The program consists in three modules: a graphical interface for input, a module for the identification and visualization of the yield surfaces, and a module for calculating and visualizing the forming limit curves. A useful facility offered by the program is the possibility to perform the sensitivity analysis both for the yield surface and the forming limit curves. The numerical results can be compared with experimental data, using the import/export facilities included in the program.

Recent Developments in the Formability of Aluminum Alloys

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

Banabic, Dorel; Paraianu, Liana; Jurco, Paul

The paper presents a few recent contributions brought by the authors in the field of the formability of aluminum alloys. A new concept for calculating Forming Limit Diagrams (FLD) using the finite element method is presented. The article presents a new strategy for calculating both branches of an FLD, using a Hutchinson - Neale model implemented in a finite element code. The simulations have been performed with Abaqus/Standard. The constitutive model has been implemented using a UMAT subroutine. The plastic anisotropy of the sheet metal is described by the Cazacu-Barlat and the BBC2003 yield criteria. The theoretical predictions have beenmore » compared with the results given by the classical Hutchinson - Neale method and also with experimental data for different aluminum alloys. The comparison proves the capability of the finite element method to predict the strain localization. A computer program used for interactive calculation and graphical representation of different Yield Loci and Forming Limit Diagrams has also been developed. The program is based on a Hutchinson-Neale model. Different yield criteria (Hill 1948, Barlat-Lian and BBC 2003) are implemented in this model. The program consists in three modules: a graphical interface for input, a module for the identification and visualization of the yield surfaces, and a module for calculating and visualizing the forming limit curves. A useful facility offered by the program is the possibility to perform the sensitivity analysis both for the yield surface and the forming limit curves. The numerical results can be compared with experimental data, using the import/export facilities included in the program.« less

Postpartum endocrine activities, metabolic attributes and milk yield are influenced by thermal stress in crossbred dairy cows.

PubMed

Ihsanullah; Qureshi, Muhammad Subhan; Suhail, Syed Muhammad; Akhtar, Sohail; Khan, Rifat Ullah

2017-09-01

This study was conducted on 30 freshly parturated multiparous crossbred dairy cows possessing three levels of Holstein Frisian genetic makeup (62.5, 75.0, and 87.5%). Data on temperature humidity index (THI) were classified into comfortable (≤ 71), mild stress (72-79), moderate stress (80-89), and stressful (≥90) zone. Results showed that serum cortisol concentration increased significantly (P < 0.05) in cows during stressful condition irrespective of genetic makeup compared to the other zones. Daily milk yield (DMY) was significantly (P < 0.05) lower in cows during stressful condition. Triglyceride was significantly higher in cows with genetic makeup 87.5% compared to the others, while total serum protein was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in cows during both moderate and stressful conditions. The mean concentration of cortisol and protein increased linearly from comfort to the stressful condition, while mean serum triglyceride, glucose, progesterone (P 4 ), and luteinizing hormone (LH) decreased by moving from comfort to stressful conditions. Results also indicated that higher cortisol level in higher grade crossbred cows was adversely associated with LH concentration and milk yield under thermal stress conditions. Greater triglyceride in high-grade crossbred (87.5%) cows indicates higher fat mobilization reflecting a negative energy balance. We concluded that heat stress increased blood cortisol and protein, and reduced milk yield in dairy cows irresptive of the genetic makeup. In addition, there was no significant difference in blood metabolites and daily milk yield in the different levels of genetic makeup cows.

The Comparability of Focus Group and Survey Results: Three Case Studies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ward, Victoria M.; And Others

1991-01-01

Focus group findings were compared with survey findings for three studies in which both methods were used. Studies conducted on voluntary sterilization in Guatemala, Honduras, and Zaire with over 2,000 subjects confirm that focus groups yield information similar to that obtained from surveys and are useful in program planning. (SLD)

Does Occupational Mobility Influence Health among Working Women? Comparing Objective and Subjective Measures of Work Trajectories

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilkinson, Lindsay R.; Shippee, Tetyana P.; Ferraro, Kenneth F.

2012-01-01

Occupational mobility is highly valued in American society, but is it consequential to women's health? Previous studies have yielded inconsistent results, but most measured occupational mobility by identifying transitions across occupational categories. Drawing from cumulative inequality theory, this study (1) compares objective and subjective…

Catalytic supercritical water gasification of primary paper sludge using a homogeneous and heterogeneous catalyst: Experimental vs thermodynamic equilibrium results.

PubMed

Louw, Jeanne; Schwarz, Cara E; Burger, Andries J

2016-02-01

H2, CH4, CO and CO2 yields were measured during supercritical water gasification (SCWG) of primary paper waste sludge (PWS) at 450°C. Comparing these yields with calculated thermodynamic equilibrium values offer an improved understanding of conditions required to produce near-equilibrium yields. Experiments were conducted at different catalyst loads (0-1g/gPWS) and different reaction times (15-120min) in a batch reactor, using either K2CO3 or Ni/Al2O3-SiO2 as catalyst. K2CO3 up to 1g/gPWS increased the H2 yield significantly to 7.5mol/kgPWS. However, these yields and composition were far from equilibrium values, with carbon efficiency (CE) and energy recovery (ER) of only 29% and 20%, respectively. Addition of 0.5-1g/gPWS Ni/Al2O3-SiO2 resulted in high H2 and CH4 yields (6.8 and 14.8mol/kgPWS), CE of 84-90%, ER of 83% and a gas composition relatively close to the equilibrium values (at hold times of 60-120min). Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

{lambda}{sub b}{yields}p, {lambda} transition form factors from QCD light-cone sum rules

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

Wang Yuming; Lue Caidian; Shen Yuelong

2009-10-01

Light-cone sum rules for the {lambda}{sub b}{yields}p, {lambda} transition form factors are derived from the correlation functions expanded by the twist of the distribution amplitudes of the {lambda}{sub b} baryon. In terms of the {lambda}{sub b} three-quark distribution amplitude models constrained by the QCD theory, we calculate the form factors at small momentum transfers and compare the results with those estimated in the conventional light-cone sum rules (LCSR) and perturbative QCD approaches. Our results indicate that the two different versions of sum rules can lead to the consistent numbers of form factors responsible for {lambda}{sub b}{yields}p transition. The {lambda}{sub b}{yields}{lambda}more » transition form factors from LCSR with the asymptotic {lambda} baryon distribution amplitudes are found to be almost 1 order larger than those obtained in the {lambda}{sub b}-baryon LCSR, implying that the preasymptotic corrections to the baryonic distribution amplitudes are of great importance. Moreover, the SU(3) symmetry breaking effects between the form factors f{sub 1}{sup {lambda}{sub b}}{sup {yields}}{sup p} and f{sub 1}{sup {lambda}{sub b}}{sup {yields}}{sup {lambda}} are computed as 28{sub -8}{sup +14}% in the framework of {lambda}{sub b}-baryon LCSR.« less

Spathaspora passalidarum selected for resistance to AFEX hydrolysate shows decreased cell yield.

PubMed

Su, Yi-Kai; Willis, Laura B; Rehmann, Lars; Smith, David; Jeffries, Thomas W

2018-06-21

This study employed cell recycling, batch adaptation, cell mating and high throughput screening to select adapted Spathaspora passalidarum strains with improved fermentative ability.The most promising candidate, YK208-E11 (E11) showed a 3-fold increase in specific fermentation rate compared to the parental strain and an ethanol yield greater than 0.45 g/g substrate while co-utilizing cellobiose, glucose, and xylose. Further characterization showed that strain E11 also makes 40% less biomass compared to the parental strain when cultivated in rich media under aerobic conditions. A tetrazolium agar overlay assay in the presence of respiration inhibitors, including rotenone, antimycin A, KCN, and salicylhydroxamic acid elucidated the nature of the mutational events. Results indicated that E11 has a deficiency in its respiration system that could contribute to its low cell yield. Strain E11 was subjected to whole genome sequencing and a ∼11 kb deletion was identified; the open reading frames absent in strain E11 code for proteins with predicted functions in respiration, cell division and the actin cytoskeleton, and may contribute to the observed physiology of the adapted strain. Results of the tetrazolium overlay also suggest that cultivation on xylose affects the respiration capacity in the wild-type strain, which could account for its faster fermentation of xylose as compared to glucose. These results support our previous finding that S. passalidarum has highly unusual physiological responses to xylose under oxygen limitation.

Effect of Anisotropic Yield Function Evolution on Estimation of Forming Limit Diagram

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bandyopadhyay, K.; Basak, S.; Choi, H. J.; Panda, S. K.; Lee, M. G.

2017-09-01

In case of theoretical prediction of the FLD, the variations in yield stress and R-values along different material directions, were long been implemented to enhance the accuracy. Although influences of different yield models and hardening laws on formability were well addressed, anisotropic evolution of yield loci under monotonic loading with different deformation modes is yet to be explored. In the present study, Marciniak-Kuckzinsky (M-K) model was modified to incorporate the change in the shape of the initial yield function with evolution due to anisotropic hardening. Swift’s hardening law along with two different anisotropic yield criteria, namely Hill48 and Yld2000-2d were implemented in the model. The Hill48 yield model was applied with non-associated flow rule to comprehend the effect of variations in both yield stress and R-values. The numerically estimated FLDs were validated after comparing with FLD evaluated through experiments. A low carbon steel was selected, and hemispherical punch stretching test was performed for FLD evaluation. Additionally, the numerically estimated FLDs were incorporated in FE simulations to predict limiting dome heights for validation purpose. Other formability performances like strain distributions over the deformed cup surface were validated with experimental results.

Anomalous effects in the aluminum oxide sputtering yield

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schelfhout, R.; Strijckmans, K.; Depla, D.

2018-04-01

The sputtering yield of aluminum oxide during reactive magnetron sputtering has been quantified by a new and fast method. The method is based on the meticulous determination of the reactive gas consumption during reactive DC magnetron sputtering and has been deployed to determine the sputtering yield of aluminum oxide. The accuracy of the proposed method is demonstrated by comparing its results to the common weight loss method excluding secondary effects such as redeposition. Both methods exhibit a decrease in sputtering yield with increasing discharge current. This feature of the aluminum oxide sputtering yield is described for the first time. It resembles the discrepancy between published high sputtering yield values determined by low current ion beams and the low deposition rate in the poisoned mode during reactive magnetron sputtering. Moreover, the usefulness of the new method arises from its time-resolved capabilities. The evolution of the alumina sputtering yield can now be measured up to a resolution of seconds. This reveals the complex dynamical behavior of the sputtering yield. A plausible explanation of the observed anomalies seems to originate from the balance between retention and out-diffusion of implanted gas atoms, while other possible causes are commented.

PAY1 improves plant architecture and enhances grain yield in rice.

PubMed

Zhao, Lei; Tan, Lubin; Zhu, Zuofeng; Xiao, Langtao; Xie, Daoxin; Sun, Chuanqing

2015-08-01

Plant architecture, a complex of the important agronomic traits that determine grain yield, is a primary target of artificial selection of rice domestication and improvement. Some important genes affecting plant architecture and grain yield have been isolated and characterized in recent decades; however, their underlying mechanism remains to be elucidated. Here, we report genetic identification and functional analysis of the PLANT ARCHITECTURE AND YIELD 1 (PAY1) gene in rice, which affects plant architecture and grain yield in rice. Transgenic plants over-expressing PAY1 had twice the number of grains per panicle and consequently produced nearly 38% more grain yield per plant than control plants. Mechanistically, PAY1 could improve plant architecture via affecting polar auxin transport activity and altering endogenous indole-3-acetic acid distribution. Furthermore, introgression of PAY1 into elite rice cultivars, using marker-assisted background selection, dramatically increased grain yield compared with the recipient parents. Overall, these results demonstrated that PAY1 could be a new beneficial genetic resource for shaping ideal plant architecture and breeding high-yielding rice varieties. © 2015 The Authors The Plant Journal published by Society for Experimental Biology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The POPOP4 library and codes for preparing secondary gamma-ray production cross sections

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ford, W. E., III

1972-01-01

The POPOP4 code for converting secondary gamma ray yield data to multigroup secondary gamma ray production cross sections and the POPOP4 library of secondary gamma ray yield data are described. Recent results of the testing of uranium and iron data sets from the POPOP4 library are given. The data sets were tested by comparing calculated secondary gamma ray pulse height spectra measured at the ORNL TSR-II reactor.

Efficient Generation of Chemiluminescence during the reduction of manganese(IV) ions with lactic acid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsaplev, Yu. B.

2016-12-01

The kinetics and mechanism of chemiluminescence during the reduction of manganese(IV) ions with lactic acid in an H2SO4-AcOH medium are studied. Kinetic spectrophotometric measurements are used to determine the profiles of change in the concentrations of Mn(IV) and Mn(III) ions during the reaction. The results from kinetic spectrophotometric measurements are compared to the light yield kinetics. The quantum chemiluminescence and chemiexcitation yields reach record values.

Methods of analysis by the U.S. Geological Survey National Water Quality Laboratory; comparison of a nitric acid in-bottle digestion procedure to other whole-water digestion procedures

USGS Publications Warehouse

Garbarino, John R.; Hoffman, Gerald L.

1999-01-01

A hydrochloric acid in-bottle digestion procedure is used to partially digest wholewater samples prior to determining recoverable elements by various analytical methods. The use of hydrochloric acid is problematic for some methods of analysis because of spectral interference. The inbottle digestion procedure has been modified to eliminate such interference by using nitric acid instead of hydrochloric acid in the digestion. Implications of this modification are evaluated by comparing results for a series of synthetic whole-water samples. Results are also compared with those obtained by using U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (1994) (USEPA) Method 200.2 total-recoverable digestion procedure. Percentage yields that use the nitric acid inbottle digestion procedure are within 10 percent of the hydrochloric acid in-bottle yields for 25 of the 26 elements determined in two of the three synthetic whole-water samples tested. Differences in percentage yields for the third synthetic whole-water sample were greater than 10 percent for 16 of the 26 elements determined. The USEPA method was the most rigorous for solubilizing elements from particulate matter in all three synthetic whole-water samples. Nevertheless, the variability in the percentage yield by using the USEPA digestion procedure was generally greater than the in-bottle digestion procedure, presumably because of the difficulty in controlling the digestion conditions accurately.

Yield of glyphosate-resistant sugar beets and efficiency of weed management systems with glyphosate and conventional herbicides under German and Polish crop production.

PubMed

Nichterlein, Henrike; Matzk, Anja; Kordas, Leszek; Kraus, Josef; Stibbe, Carsten

2013-08-01

In sugar beet production, weed control is one of the most important and most expensive practices to ensure yield. Since glyphosate-resistant sugar beets are not yet approved for cultivation in the EU, little commercial experience exists with these sugar beets in Europe. Experimental field trials were conducted at five environments (Germany, Poland, 2010, 2011) to compare the effects of glyphosate with the effects of conventional weed control programs on the development of weeds, weed control efficiency and yield. The results show that the glyphosate weed control programs compared to the conventional methods decreased not only the number of herbicide applications but equally in magnitude decreased the dosage of active ingredients. The results also showed effective weed control with glyphosate when the weed covering was greater and sugar beets had a later growth stage of four true leaves. Glyphosate-resistant sugar beets applied with the glyphosate herbicide two or three times had an increase in white sugar yield from 4 to 18 % in comparison to the high dosage conventional herbicide systems. In summary, under glyphosate management sugar beets can positively contribute to the increasingly demanding requirements regarding efficient sugar beet cultivation and to the demands by society and politics to reduce the use of chemical plant protection products in the environment.

Heat tolerance around flowering in wheat identified as a key trait for increased yield potential in Europe under climate change

PubMed Central

Stratonovitch, Pierre; Semenov, Mikhail A.

2015-01-01

To deliver food security for the 9 billon population in 2050, a 70% increase in world food supply will be required. Projected climatic and environmental changes emphasize the need for breeding strategies that delivers both a substantial increase in yield potential and resilience to extreme weather events such as heat waves, late frost, and drought. Heat stress around sensitive stages of wheat development has been identified as a possible threat to wheat production in Europe. However, no estimates have been made to assess yield losses due to increased frequency and magnitude of heat stress under climate change. Using existing experimental data, the Sirius wheat model was refined by incorporating the effects of extreme temperature during flowering and grain filling on accelerated leaf senescence, grain number, and grain weight. This allowed us, for the first time, to quantify yield losses resulting from heat stress under climate change. The model was used to optimize wheat ideotypes for CMIP5-based climate scenarios for 2050 at six sites in Europe with diverse climates. The yield potential for heat-tolerant ideotypes can be substantially increased in the future (e.g. by 80% at Seville, 100% at Debrecen) compared with the current cultivars by selecting an optimal combination of wheat traits, e.g. optimal phenology and extended duration of grain filling. However, at two sites, Seville and Debrecen, the grain yields of heat-sensitive ideotypes were substantially lower (by 54% and 16%) and more variable compared with heat-tolerant ideotypes, because the extended grain filling required for the increased yield potential was in conflict with episodes of high temperature during flowering and grain filling. Despite much earlier flowering at these sites, the risk of heat stress affecting yields of heat-sensitive ideotypes remained high. Therefore, heat tolerance in wheat is likely to become a key trait for increased yield potential and yield stability in southern Europe in the future. PMID:25750425

Identifying Effective Enzyme Activity Targets for Recombinant Class I and Class II Collagenase for Successful Human Islet Isolation.

PubMed

Balamurugan, Appakalai N; Green, Michael L; Breite, Andrew G; Loganathan, Gopalakrishnan; Wilhelm, Joshua J; Tweed, Benjamin; Vargova, Lenka; Lockridge, Amber; Kuriti, Manikya; Hughes, Michael G; Williams, Stuart K; Hering, Bernhard J; Dwulet, Francis E; McCarthy, Robert C

2016-01-01

Isolation following a good manufacturing practice-compliant, human islet product requires development of a robust islet isolation procedure where effective limits of key reagents are known. The enzymes used for islet isolation are critical but little is known about the doses of class I and class II collagenase required for successful islet isolation. We used a factorial approach to evaluate the effect of high and low target activities of recombinant class I (rC1) and class II (rC2) collagenase on human islet yield. Consequently, 4 different enzyme formulations with divergent C1:C2 collagenase mass ratios were assessed, each supplemented with the same dose of neutral protease. Both split pancreas and whole pancreas models were used to test enzyme targets (n = 20). Islet yield/g pancreas was compared with historical enzymes (n = 42). Varying the Wunsch (rC2) and collagen degradation activity (CDA, rC1) target dose, and consequently the C1:C2 mass ratio, had no significant effect on tissue digestion. Digestions using higher doses of Wunsch and CDA resulted in comparable islet yields to those obtained with 60% and 50% of those activities, respectively. Factorial analysis revealed no significant main effect of Wunsch activity or CDA for any parameter measured. Aggregate results from 4 different collagenase formulations gave 44% higher islet yield (>5000 islet equivalents/g) in the body/tail of the pancreas (n = 12) when compared with those from the same segment using a standard natural collagenase/protease mixture (n = 6). Additionally, islet yields greater than 5000 islet equivalents/g pancreas were also obtained in whole human pancreas. A broader C1:C2 ratio can be used for human islet isolation than has been used in the past. Recombinant collagenase is an effective replacement for the natural enzyme and we have determined that high islet yield can be obtained even with low doses of rC1:rC2, which is beneficial for the survival of islets.

Total lipid extraction of homogenized and intact lean fish muscles using pressurized fluid extraction and batch extraction techniques.

PubMed

Isaac, Giorgis; Waldebäck, Monica; Eriksson, Ulla; Odham, Göran; Markides, Karin E

2005-07-13

The reliability and efficiency of pressurized fluid extraction (PFE) technique for the extraction of total lipid content from cod and the effect of sample treatment on the extraction efficiency have been evaluated. The results were compared with two liquid-liquid extraction methods, traditional and modified methods according to Jensen. Optimum conditions were found to be with 2-propanol/n-hexane (65:35, v/v) as a first and n-hexane/diethyl ether (90:10, v/v) as a second solvent, 115 degrees C, and 10 min of static time. PFE extracts were cleaned up using the same procedure as in the methods according to Jensen. When total lipid yields obtained from homogenized cod muscle using PFE were compared yields obtained with original and modified Jensen methods, PFE gave significantly higher yields, approximately 10% higher (t test, P < 0.05). Infrared and NMR spectroscopy suggested that the additional material that inflates the gravimetric results is rather homogeneous and is primarily consists of phospholipid with headgroups of inositidic and/or glycosidic nature. The comparative study demonstrated that PFE is an alternative suitable technique to extract total lipid content from homogenized cod (lean fish) and herring (fat fish) muscle showing a precision comparable to that obtained with the traditional and modified Jensen methods. Despite the necessary cleanup step, PFE showed important advantages in the solvent consumption was cut by approximately 50% and automated extraction was possible.

Photosensitized electron transfer processes in SiO2 colloids and sodium lauryl sulfate micellar systems: Correlation of quantum yields with interfacial surface potentials

PubMed Central

Laane, Colja; Willner, Itamar; Otvos, John W.; Calvin, Melvin

1981-01-01

The effectiveness of negatively charged colloidal SiO2 particles in controlling photosensitized electron transfer reactions has been studied and compared with that of the negatively charged sodium lauryl sulfate (NaLauSO4) micellar system. In particular, the photosensitized reduction of the zwitterionic electron acceptor propylviologen sulfonate (PVS0) with tris(2,2′-bipyridinium)ruthenium(II) [Ru(bipy)32+] as the sensitizer and triethanolamine as the electron donor is found to have a quantum yield of 0.033 for formation of the radical anion (PVS[unk]) in the SiO2 colloid compared with 0.005 in the homogeneous system and 0.0086 in a NaLauSO4 micellar solution. The higher quantum yields obtained with the SiO2 colloidal system are attributed to substantial stabilization against back reaction of the intermediate photoproducts—i.e., Ru(bipy)33+ and PVS[unk]—by electrostatic repulsion of the reduced electron acceptor from the negatively charged particle surface. The binding properties of the SiO2 particles and NaLauSO4 micelles were investigated by flow dialysis. The results show that the sensitizer binds to both interfaces and that the SiO2 interface is characterized by a much higher surface potential than the micellar interface (≈-170 mV vs. -85 mV). The effect of ionic strength on the surface potential was estimated from the Gouy-Chapman theory, and the measured quantum yields of photosensitized electron transfer were correlated with surface potential at different ionic strengths. This correlation shows that the quantum yield is not affected by surface potentials smaller than ≈-40 mV. At larger potentials, the quantum yield increases rapidly. The quantum yield obtained in the micellar system at different strengths fits nicely on the correlation curve for the colloid SiO2 system. These results indicate that the surface potential is the dominant factor in the quantum yield improvement for PVS0 reduction. PMID:16593095

Relative fission product yield determination in the USGS TRIGA Mark I reactor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koehl, Michael A.

Fission product yield data sets are one of the most important and fundamental compilations of basic information in the nuclear industry. This data has a wide range of applications which include nuclear fuel burnup and nonproliferation safeguards. Relative fission yields constitute a major fraction of the reported yield data and reduce the number of required absolute measurements. Radiochemical separations of fission products reduce interferences, facilitate the measurement of low level radionuclides, and are instrumental in the analysis of low-yielding symmetrical fission products. It is especially useful in the measurement of the valley nuclides and those on the extreme wings of the mass yield curve, including lanthanides, where absolute yields have high errors. This overall project was conducted in three stages: characterization of the neutron flux in irradiation positions within the U.S. Geological Survey TRIGA Mark I Reactor (GSTR), determining the mass attenuation coefficients of precipitates used in radiochemical separations, and measuring the relative fission products in the GSTR. Using the Westcott convention, the Westcott flux, modified spectral index, neutron temperature, and gold-based cadmium ratios were determined for various sampling positions in the USGS TRIGA Mark I reactor. The differential neutron energy spectrum measurement was obtained using the computer iterative code SAND-II-SNL. The mass attenuation coefficients for molecular precipitates were determined through experiment and compared to results using the EGS5 Monte Carlo computer code. Difficulties associated with sufficient production of fission product isotopes in research reactors limits the ability to complete a direct, experimental assessment of mass attenuation coefficients for these isotopes. Experimental attenuation coefficients of radioisotopes produced through neutron activation agree well with the EGS5 calculated results. This suggests mass attenuation coefficients of molecular precipitates can be approximated using EGS5, especially in the instance of radioisotopes produced predominantly through uranium fission. Relative fission product yields were determined for three sampling positions in the USGS TRIGA Mark I reactor through radiochemical analysis. The relative mass yield distribution for valley nuclides decreases with epithermal neutrons compared to thermal neutrons. Additionally, a proportionality constant which related the measured beta activity of a fission product to the number of fissions that occur in a sample of irradiated uranium was determined for the detector used in this study and used to determine the thermal and epithermal flux. These values agree well with a previous study which used activation foils to determine the flux. The results of this project clearly demonstrate that R-values can be measured in the GSTR.

Wildlife-friendly farming increases crop yield: evidence for ecological intensification.

PubMed

Pywell, Richard F; Heard, Matthew S; Woodcock, Ben A; Hinsley, Shelley; Ridding, Lucy; Nowakowski, Marek; Bullock, James M

2015-10-07

Ecological intensification has been promoted as a means to achieve environmentally sustainable increases in crop yields by enhancing ecosystem functions that regulate and support production. There is, however, little direct evidence of yield benefits from ecological intensification on commercial farms growing globally important foodstuffs (grains, oilseeds and pulses). We replicated two treatments removing 3 or 8% of land at the field edge from production to create wildlife habitat in 50-60 ha patches over a 900 ha commercial arable farm in central England, and compared these to a business as usual control (no land removed). In the control fields, crop yields were reduced by as much as 38% at the field edge. Habitat creation in these lower yielding areas led to increased yield in the cropped areas of the fields, and this positive effect became more pronounced over 6 years. As a consequence, yields at the field scale were maintained--and, indeed, enhanced for some crops--despite the loss of cropland for habitat creation. These results suggested that over a 5-year crop rotation, there would be no adverse impact on overall yield in terms of monetary value or nutritional energy. This study provides a clear demonstration that wildlife-friendly management which supports ecosystem services is compatible with, and can even increase, crop yields. © 2015 The Authors.

Wildlife-friendly farming increases crop yield: evidence for ecological intensification

PubMed Central

Pywell, Richard F.; Heard, Matthew S.; Woodcock, Ben A.; Hinsley, Shelley; Ridding, Lucy; Nowakowski, Marek; Bullock, James M.

2015-01-01

Ecological intensification has been promoted as a means to achieve environmentally sustainable increases in crop yields by enhancing ecosystem functions that regulate and support production. There is, however, little direct evidence of yield benefits from ecological intensification on commercial farms growing globally important foodstuffs (grains, oilseeds and pulses). We replicated two treatments removing 3 or 8% of land at the field edge from production to create wildlife habitat in 50–60 ha patches over a 900 ha commercial arable farm in central England, and compared these to a business as usual control (no land removed). In the control fields, crop yields were reduced by as much as 38% at the field edge. Habitat creation in these lower yielding areas led to increased yield in the cropped areas of the fields, and this positive effect became more pronounced over 6 years. As a consequence, yields at the field scale were maintained—and, indeed, enhanced for some crops—despite the loss of cropland for habitat creation. These results suggested that over a 5-year crop rotation, there would be no adverse impact on overall yield in terms of monetary value or nutritional energy. This study provides a clear demonstration that wildlife-friendly management which supports ecosystem services is compatible with, and can even increase, crop yields. PMID:26423846

A TEM quantitative evaluation of strengthening in an Mg-RE alloy reinforced with SiC

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

Cabibbo, Marcello, E-mail: m.cabibbo@univpm.it; Spigarelli, Stefano

2011-10-15

Magnesium alloys containing rare earth elements are known to have high specific strength, good creep and corrosion resistance up to 523 K. The addition of SiC ceramic particles strengthens the metal matrix composite resulting in better wear and creep resistance while maintaining good machinability. The role of the reinforcement particles in enhancing strength can be quantitatively evaluated using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). This paper presents a quantitative evaluation of the different strengthening contributions, determined through TEM inspections, in an SiC Mg-RE composite alloy containing yttrium, neodymium, gadolinium and dysprosium. Compression tests at temperatures ranging between 290 and 573 K weremore » carried out. The microstructure strengthening mechanism was studied for all the compression conditions. Strengthening was compared to the mechanical results and the way the different contributions were combined is also discussed and justified. - Research Highlights: {yields} TEM yield strengthening terms evaluation on a Mg-RE SiC alloy. {yields} The evaluation has been extended to different compression temperature conditions. {yields} Linear and Quadratic sum has been proposed and validated. {yields} Hall-Petch was found to be the most prominent strengthening contributions.« less

Sputum color: potential implications for clinical practice.

PubMed

Johnson, Allen L; Hampson, David F; Hampson, Neil B

2008-04-01

Respiratory infections with sputum production are a major reason for physician visits, diagnostic testing, and antibiotic prescription in the United States. We sought to determine whether the simple characteristic of sputum color provides information that impacts resource utilization such as laboratory testing and prescription of antibiotics. Out-patient sputum samples submitted to the microbiology laboratory for routine analysis were assigned to one of 8 color categories (green, yellow-green, rust, yellow, red, cream, white, and clear), based on a key made from paint chip color samples. Subsequent Gram stain and culture results were compared to sputum color. Of 289 consecutive samples, 144 (50%) met standard Gram-stain criteria for being acceptable lower-respiratory-tract specimens. In the acceptable Gram-stain group, 60 samples had a predominant organism on Gram stain, and the culture yielded a consistent result in 42 samples (15% of the 289 total specimens). Yield at each level of analysis differed greatly by color. The yield from sputum colors green, yellow-green, yellow, and rust was much higher than the yield from cream, white, or clear. If out-patient sputum is cream, white, or clear, the yield from bacteriologic analysis is extremely low. This information can reduce laboratory processing costs and help minimize unnecessary antibiotic prescription.

Evaluation of microtiter-plate enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for the analysis of triazine and chloroacetanilide herbicides in rainfall

USGS Publications Warehouse

Pomes, M.L.; Thurman, E.M.; Aga, D.S.; Goolsby, D.A.

1998-01-01

Triazine and chloroacetanilide concentrations in rainfall samples collected from a 23-state region of the United States were analyzed with microtiter-plate enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Thirty-six percent of rainfall samples (2072 out of 5691) were confirmed using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) to evaluate the operating performance of ELISA as a screening test. Comparison of ELISA to GC/MS results showed that the two ELISA methods accurately reported GC/MS results (m = 1), but with more variability evident with the triazine than with the chloroacetanilide ELISA. Bayes's rule, a standardized method to report the results of screening tests, indicated that the two ELISA methods yielded comparable predictive values (80%), but the triazine ELISA yielded a false- positive rate of 11.8% and the chloroacetanilide ELISA yielded a false- negative rate of 23.1%. The false-positive rate for the triazine ELISA may arise from cross reactivity with an unknown triazine or metabolite. The false-negative rate of the chloroacetanilide ELISA probably resulted from a combination of low sensitivity at the reporting limit of 0.15 ??g/L and a distribution characterized by 75% of the samples at or below the reporting limit of 0.15 ??g/L.Triazine and chloroacetanilide concentrations in rainfall samples collected from a 23-state region of the United States were analyzed with microtiter-plate enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Thirty-six percent of rainfall samples (2072 out of 5691) were confirmed using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) to evaluate the operating performance of ELISA as a screening test. Comparison of ELISA to GC/MS results showed that the two ELISA methods accurately reported GC/MS results (m = 1), but with more variability evident with the triazine than with the chloroacetanilide ELISA. Bayes's rule, a standardized method to report the results of screening tests, indicated that the two ELISA methods yielded comparable predictive values (80%), but the triazine ELISA yielded a false-positive rate of 11.8% and the chloroacetanilide ELISA yielded a false-negative rate of 23.1%. The false-positive rate for the triazine ELISA may arise from cross reactivity with an unknown triazine or metabolite. The false-negative rate of the chloroacetanilide ELISA probably resulted from a combination of low sensitivity at the reporting limit of 0.15 ??g/L and a distribution characterized by 75% of the samples at or below the reporting limit of 0.15 ??g/L.

Correlation studies on nitrogen for sunflower crop across the agroclimatic variability.

PubMed

Nasim, Wajid; Belhouchette, Hatem; Tariq, Muhammad; Fahad, Shah; Hammad, Hafiz Mohkum; Mubeen, Muhammad; Munis, Muhammad Farooq Hussain; Chaudhary, Hassan Javed; Khan, Imran; Mahmood, Faisal; Abbas, Tauqeer; Rasul, Fahd; Nadeem, Muhammad; Bajwa, Ali Ahsan; Ullah, Najeeb; Alghabari, Fahad; Saud, Shah; Mubarak, Hussani; Ahmad, Rafiq

2016-02-01

Nitrogen (N) fertilizer is an important yield limiting factor for sunflower production. The correlation between yield components and growth parameters of three sunflower hybrids (Hysun-33, Hysun-38, Pioneer-64A93) were studied with five N rates (0, 60, 120, 180, 240 kg ha(-1)) at three different experimental sites during the two consecutive growing seasons 2008 and 2009. The results revealed that total dry matter (TDM) production and grain yield were positively and linearly associated with leaf area index (LAI), leaf area duration (LAD), and crop growth rate (CGR) at all three sites of the experiments. The significant association of yield with growth components indicated that the humid climate was most suitable for sunflower production. Furthermore, the association of these components can be successfully used to predict the grain yield under diverse climatic conditions. The application of N at increased rate of 180 kg ha(-1) resulted in maximum yield as compared to standard rate (120 kg ha(-1)) at all the experimental sites. In this way, N application rate was significantly correlated with growth and development of sunflower under a variety of climatic conditions. Keeping in view such relationship, the N dose can be optimized for sunflower crop in a particular region to maximize the productivity. Multilocation trails help to predict the input rates precisely while taking climatic variations into account also. In the long run, results of this study provides basis for sustainable sunflower production under changing climate.

Comparison of two apheresis systems for the collection of CD14+ cells intended to be used in dendritic cell culture.

PubMed

Strasser, Erwin F; Berger, Thomas G; Weisbach, Volker; Zimmermann, Robert; Ringwald, Jürgen; Schuler-Thurner, Beatrice; Zingsem, Jürgen; Eckstein, Reinhold

2003-09-01

Monocytes collected by leukapheresis are increasingly used for dendritic cell (DC) culture in cell factories suitable for DC vaccination in cancer. Using modified MNC programs on two apheresis systems (Cobe Spectra and Fresenius AS.TEC204), leukapheresis components collected from 84 patients with metastatic malignant melanoma and from 31 healthy male donors were investigated. MNCs, monocytes, RBCs, and platelets (PLTs) in donors and components were analyzed by cell counters, WBC differential counts, and flow cytometry. In 5-L collections, Astec showed better results regarding monocyte collection rates (11.0 vs. 7.4 x 10(6)/min, p = 0.04) and efficiencies (collection efficiency, 51.9 vs. 31.9%; p < 0.001). Both devices resulted in monocyte yields at an average of 1 x 10(9) (donors) and 2.5 x 10(9) (patients), whereas Astec components contained high residual RBCs. Compared to components with low residual PLTs, high PLT concentration resulted in higher monocyte loss (48 vs. 20%, p < 0.0001) before DC culture. The Astec is more efficient in 5-L MNC collections compared to the Spectra. Components with high residual PLTs result in high MNC loss by purification procedures. Thus, optimizing MNC programs is essential to obtain components with high MNC yields and low residual cells as prerequisite for high DC yields.

Yield and size of oyster mushroom grown on rice/wheat straw basal substrate supplemented with cotton seed hull.

PubMed

Yang, Wenjie; Guo, Fengling; Wan, Zhengjie

2013-10-01

Oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) was cultivated on rice straw basal substrate, wheat straw basal substrate, cotton seed hull basal substrate, and wheat straw or rice straw supplemented with different proportions (15%, 30%, and 45% in rice straw substrate, 20%, 30%, and 40% in wheat straw substrate) of cotton seed hull to find a cost effective substrate. The effect of autoclaved sterilized and non-sterilized substrate on growth and yield of oyster mushroom was also examined. Results indicated that for both sterilized substrate and non-sterilized substrate, oyster mushroom on rice straw and wheat basal substrate have faster mycelial growth rate, comparatively poor surface mycelial density, shorter total colonization period and days from bag opening to primordia formation, lower yield and biological efficiency, lower mushroom weight, longer stipe length and smaller cap diameter than that on cotton seed hull basal substrate. The addition of cotton seed hull to rice straw and wheat straw substrate slowed spawn running, primordial development and fruit body formation. However, increasing the amount of cotton seed hull can increase the uniformity and white of mycelium, yield and biological efficiency, and increase mushroom weight, enlarge cap diameter and shorten stipe length. Compared to the sterilized substrate, the non-sterilized substrate had comparatively higher mycelial growth rate, shorter total colonization period and days from bag opening to primordia formation. However, the non-sterilized substrate did not gave significantly higher mushroom yield and biological efficiency than the sterilized substrate, but some undesirable characteristics, i.e. smaller mushroom cap diameter and relatively long stipe length.

Vessel-Specific Reintroduction of CINNAMOYL-COA REDUCTASE1 (CCR1) in Dwarfed ccr1 Mutants Restores Vessel and Xylary Fiber Integrity and Increases Biomass1[OPEN

PubMed Central

Özparpucu, Merve

2018-01-01

Lignocellulosic biomass is recalcitrant toward deconstruction into simple sugars due to the presence of lignin. To render lignocellulosic biomass a suitable feedstock for the bio-based economy, plants can be engineered to have decreased amounts of lignin. However, engineered plants with the lowest amounts of lignin exhibit collapsed vessels and yield penalties. Previous efforts were not able to fully overcome this phenotype without settling in sugar yield upon saccharification. Here, we reintroduced CINNAMOYL-COENZYME A REDUCTASE1 (CCR1) expression specifically in the protoxylem and metaxylem vessel cells of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) ccr1 mutants. The resulting ccr1 ProSNBE:CCR1 lines had overcome the vascular collapse and had a total stem biomass yield that was increased up to 59% as compared with the wild type. Raman analysis showed that monolignols synthesized in the vessels also contribute to the lignification of neighboring xylary fibers. The cell wall composition and metabolome of ccr1 ProSNBE:CCR1 still exhibited many similarities to those of ccr1 mutants, regardless of their yield increase. In contrast to a recent report, the yield penalty of ccr1 mutants was not caused by ferulic acid accumulation but was (largely) the consequence of collapsed vessels. Finally, ccr1 ProSNBE:CCR1 plants had a 4-fold increase in total sugar yield when compared with wild-type plants. PMID:29158331

Production response to corn silage produced from normal, brown midrib, or waxy corn hybrids.

PubMed

Barlow, J S; Bernard, J K; Mullis, N A

2012-08-01

The objective was to evaluate the nutrient intake and digestibility and milk production response of lactating dairy cows fed diets based on corn silage produced from 3 different types of corn hybrids. Experimental diets contained 36.4% of the dietary dry matter (DM) from corn silage produced from normal (Agratech 1021, AgraTech Seeds Inc., Atlanta, GA), brown midrib (BMR; Mycogen F2F797, Mycogen Seeds, Indianapolis, IN), or waxy (Master's Choice 590, Master's Choice Hybrids, Ullin, IL) hybrids. Thirty-six multiparous and primiparous Holstein cows (66 ± 22 d in milk, 41 ± 8 kg/d of milk) were used in an 11-wk completely randomized design trial during the fall of 2009. All cows were fed a diet containing normal corn silage during the first 2wk of the trial before being assigned to 1 of 3 treatments for the following 9 wk. Data collected during the first 2 wk were used as a covariate in the statistical analysis. No difference was observed in dry matter intake (DMI) among treatments, which averaged 22.6 kg/d. Milk yield was higher for cows fed BMR (37.6 kg/d) compared with waxy (35.2 kg/d) but was similar to that of cows fed control (36.2 kg/d). Milk fat percentage tended to be lower for cows fed control (3.28%) compared with those fed BMR (3.60%) or waxy (3.55%) corn silage. Milk protein percentage tended to be lower for cows fed control (2.79%) compared with waxy (2.89%) but similar to that of those fed BMR (2.85%). No differences were observed in yield of milk components. Energy-corrected milk (ECM) yield and dairy efficiency (ECM:DMI) did not differ among treatments. Cows fed BMR tended to gain more body weight compared with those fed control and waxy. Results of this trial are consistent with previous reports in which cows fed diets based on corn silage produced from BMR hybrids have higher milk yield compared with those fed other hybrids. Corn silage produced from the waxy hybrid supported a similar yield of ECM because of higher milk components, but milk yield was not improved compared with the control. Copyright © 2012 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effects of enhancing soil organic carbon sequestration in the topsoil by fertilization on crop productivity and stability: Evidence from long-term experiments with wheat-maize cropping systems in China.

PubMed

Zhang, Xubo; Sun, Nan; Wu, Lianhai; Xu, Minggang; Bingham, Ian J; Li, Zhongfang

2016-08-15

Although organic carbon sequestration in agricultural soils has been recommended as a 'win-win strategy' for mitigating climate change and ensuring food security, great uncertainty still remains in identifying the relationships between soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration and crop productivity. Using data from 17 long-term experiments in China we determined the effects of fertilization strategies on SOC stocks at 0-20cm depth in the North, North East, North West and South. The impacts of changes in topsoil SOC stocks on the yield and yield stability of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and maize (Zea mays L.) were determined. Results showed that application of inorganic fertilizers (NPK) plus animal manure over 20-30years significantly increased SOC stocks to 20-cm depth by 32-87% whilst NPK plus wheat/maize straw application increased it by 26-38% compared to controls. The efficiency of SOC sequestration differed between regions with 7.4-13.1% of annual C input into the topsoil being retained as SOC over the study periods. In the northern regions, application of manure had little additional effect on yield compared to NPK over a wide range of topsoil SOC stocks (18->50MgCha(-1)). In the South, average yield from manure applied treatments was 2.5 times greater than that from NPK treatments. Moreover, the yield with NPK plus manure increased until SOC stocks (20-cm depth) increased to ~35MgCha(-1). In the northern regions, yield stability was not increased by application of NPK plus manure compared to NPK, whereas in the South there was a significant improvement. We conclude that manure application and straw incorporation could potentially lead to SOC sequestration in topsoil in China, but beneficial effects of this increase in SOC stocks to 20-cm depth on crop yield and yield stability may only be achieved in the South. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Validation of the Unthinned Loblolly Pine Plantation Yield Model-USLYCOWG

Treesearch

V. Clark Baldwin; D.P. Feduccia

1982-01-01

Yield and stand structure predictions from an unthinned loblolly pine plantation yield prediction system (USLYCOWG computer program) were compared with observations from 80 unthinned loblolly pine plots. Overall, the predicted estimates were reasonable when compared to observed values, but predictions based on input data at or near the system's limits may be in...

Photonuclear reactions on the cadmium isotopes {sup 106,108}Cd at the bremsstrahlung endpoint energy of 55.5 MeV

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

Belyshev, S. S.; Kuznetsov, A. A.; Stopani, K. A., E-mail: hatta@depni.sinp.msu.ru

The gamma-activation technique was used to measure the absolute yields of photonuclear reactions on the cadmium isotopes {sup 106,108}Cd. The results obtained in this way were compared with the results of the calculations based on the statistical model. For reactions on the isotope {sup 108}Cd, agreement between these theoretical and experimental results is good, but the experimental ratio of the yields of photoproton and photoneutron reactions on the isotope {sup 106}Cd differs substantially from its theoretical counterpart. The results of our present study are discussed from the point of view of the production of bypassed nuclei in the p-process ofmore » nucleosynthesis.« less

Impact of cultivar selection and process optimization on ethanol yield from different varieties of sugarcane

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background The development of ‘energycane’ varieties of sugarcane is underway, targeting the use of both sugar juice and bagasse for ethanol production. The current study evaluated a selection of such ‘energycane’ cultivars for the combined ethanol yields from juice and bagasse, by optimization of dilute acid pretreatment optimization of bagasse for sugar yields. Method A central composite design under response surface methodology was used to investigate the effects of dilute acid pretreatment parameters followed by enzymatic hydrolysis on the combined sugar yield of bagasse samples. The pressed slurry generated from optimum pretreatment conditions (maximum combined sugar yield) was used as the substrate during batch and fed-batch simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) processes at different solid loadings and enzyme dosages, aiming to reach an ethanol concentration of at least 40 g/L. Results Significant variations were observed in sugar yields (xylose, glucose and combined sugar yield) from pretreatment-hydrolysis of bagasse from different cultivars of sugarcane. Up to 33% difference in combined sugar yield between best performing varieties and industrial bagasse was observed at optimal pretreatment-hydrolysis conditions. Significant improvement in overall ethanol yield after SSF of the pretreated bagasse was also observed from the best performing varieties (84.5 to 85.6%) compared to industrial bagasse (74.5%). The ethanol concentration showed inverse correlation with lignin content and the ratio of xylose to arabinose, but it showed positive correlation with glucose yield from pretreatment-hydrolysis. The overall assessment of the cultivars showed greater improvement in the final ethanol concentration (26.9 to 33.9%) and combined ethanol yields per hectare (83 to 94%) for the best performing varieties with respect to industrial sugarcane. Conclusions These results suggest that the selection of sugarcane variety to optimize ethanol production from bagasse can be achieved without adversely affecting juice ethanol and cane yield, thus maintaining first generation ethanol production levels while maximizing second generation ethanol production. PMID:24725458

Comparison of statistical models for analyzing wheat yield time series.

PubMed

Michel, Lucie; Makowski, David

2013-01-01

The world's population is predicted to exceed nine billion by 2050 and there is increasing concern about the capability of agriculture to feed such a large population. Foresight studies on food security are frequently based on crop yield trends estimated from yield time series provided by national and regional statistical agencies. Various types of statistical models have been proposed for the analysis of yield time series, but the predictive performances of these models have not yet been evaluated in detail. In this study, we present eight statistical models for analyzing yield time series and compare their ability to predict wheat yield at the national and regional scales, using data provided by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and by the French Ministry of Agriculture. The Holt-Winters and dynamic linear models performed equally well, giving the most accurate predictions of wheat yield. However, dynamic linear models have two advantages over Holt-Winters models: they can be used to reconstruct past yield trends retrospectively and to analyze uncertainty. The results obtained with dynamic linear models indicated a stagnation of wheat yields in many countries, but the estimated rate of increase of wheat yield remained above 0.06 t ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ in several countries in Europe, Asia, Africa and America, and the estimated values were highly uncertain for several major wheat producing countries. The rate of yield increase differed considerably between French regions, suggesting that efforts to identify the main causes of yield stagnation should focus on a subnational scale.

Land use change analysis using spectral similarity and vegetation indices and its effect on runoff and sediment yield in tropical environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Christanto, N.; Sartohadi, J.; Setiawan, M. A.; Shrestha, D. B. P.; Jetten, V. G.

2018-04-01

Land use change influences the hydrological as well as landscape processes such as runoff and sediment yields. The main objectives of this study are to assess the land use change and its impact on the runoff and sediment yield of the upper Serayu Catchment. Land use changes of 1991 to 2014 have been analyzed. Spectral similarity and vegetation indices were used to classify the old image. Therefore, the present and the past images are comparable. The influence of the past and present land use on runoff and sediment yield has been compared with field measurement. The effect of land use changes shows the increased surface runoff which is the result of change in the curve number (CN) values. The study shows that it is possible to classify previously obtained image based on spectral characteristics and indices of major land cover types derived from recently obtained image. This avoids the necessity of having training samples which will be difficult to obtain. On the other hand, it also demonstrates that it is possible to link land cover changes with land degradation processes and finally to sedimentation in the reservoir. The only condition is the requirement for having the comparable dataset which should not be difficult to generate. Any variation inherent in the data which are other than surface reflectance has to be corrected.

Ternary ionic liquid–water pretreatment systems of an agave bagasse and municipal solid waste blend

DOE PAGES

Perez-Pimienta, Jose A.; Sathitsuksanoh, Noppadon; Thompson, Vicki S.; ...

2017-03-21

Background: Pretreatment is necessary to reduce biomass recalcitrance and enhance the enzymatic saccharification for biofuel production. Ionic liquid (IL) pretreatment has gained a significant interest as a pretreatment process that can reduce biomass crystallinity, remove lignin, and thus obtain higher enzymatic saccharification yields. However, there are several challenges that need to be overcome for the IL pretreatment to become viable for commercialization, including IL cost and recyclability. In addition to maintain process performance by blending high quality (e.g. agave bagasse) and low cost biomass feedstocks such as municipal solid waste (MSW) which is readily available in high quantities. One approachmore » to potentially reduce IL cost is to use a blend of ILs at different concentrations in aqueous mixtures. Herein, we describe 14 IL-water systems with mixtures of 1-ethyl-3-ethylimidazolium acetate ([C2C1Im][OAc]) and 1-butyl-3-ethylimidazolium acetate ([C4C1Im][OAc]) used to pretreat MSW blended with agave bagasse (AGB). The detailed analysis of IL recycling in terms of sugar yields of pretreated biomass and IL stability was examined. Results: Both biomass types (AGB and MSW) were efficiently disrupted by IL pretreatment. The pretreatment efficiency of [C2C1Im][OAc] and [C4C1Im][OAc] decreased when mixed with water above 40%. The AGB/MSW (1:1) blend demonstrated a glucan conversion of 94.1% and 83.0% using IL systems with ~10% and ~40% water content, respectively. Chemical structures of fresh ILs and recycle ILs presented strong similarities observed by FTIR and 1H-NMR spectroscopy. The glucan and xylan hydrolysis yields obtained from recycled IL exhibited a slight decrease in pretreatment efficiency (less than 10% in terms of hydrolysis yields compared to that of fresh IL), and a decrease in cellulose crystallinity trend was observed. Conclusions: Our results demonstrated the mixing ILs such as [C2C1Im][OAc] and [C4C1Im][OAc] and blending MSW with agricultural residues, such as AGB, may help lower the production costs while maintaining high sugar yields. Recycled IL-water mixtures provided comparable results to that of fresh ILs. Both of these results offer the potential of reducing the production costs of sugars and biofuels at biorefineries as compared to more conventional IL conversion technologies.« less

Ternary ionic liquid–water pretreatment systems of an agave bagasse and municipal solid waste blend

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

Perez-Pimienta, Jose A.; Sathitsuksanoh, Noppadon; Thompson, Vicki S.

Background: Pretreatment is necessary to reduce biomass recalcitrance and enhance the enzymatic saccharification for biofuel production. Ionic liquid (IL) pretreatment has gained a significant interest as a pretreatment process that can reduce biomass crystallinity, remove lignin, and thus obtain higher enzymatic saccharification yields. However, there are several challenges that need to be overcome for the IL pretreatment to become viable for commercialization, including IL cost and recyclability. In addition to maintain process performance by blending high quality (e.g. agave bagasse) and low cost biomass feedstocks such as municipal solid waste (MSW) which is readily available in high quantities. One approachmore » to potentially reduce IL cost is to use a blend of ILs at different concentrations in aqueous mixtures. Herein, we describe 14 IL-water systems with mixtures of 1-ethyl-3-ethylimidazolium acetate ([C2C1Im][OAc]) and 1-butyl-3-ethylimidazolium acetate ([C4C1Im][OAc]) used to pretreat MSW blended with agave bagasse (AGB). The detailed analysis of IL recycling in terms of sugar yields of pretreated biomass and IL stability was examined. Results: Both biomass types (AGB and MSW) were efficiently disrupted by IL pretreatment. The pretreatment efficiency of [C2C1Im][OAc] and [C4C1Im][OAc] decreased when mixed with water above 40%. The AGB/MSW (1:1) blend demonstrated a glucan conversion of 94.1% and 83.0% using IL systems with ~10% and ~40% water content, respectively. Chemical structures of fresh ILs and recycle ILs presented strong similarities observed by FTIR and 1H-NMR spectroscopy. The glucan and xylan hydrolysis yields obtained from recycled IL exhibited a slight decrease in pretreatment efficiency (less than 10% in terms of hydrolysis yields compared to that of fresh IL), and a decrease in cellulose crystallinity trend was observed. Conclusions: Our results demonstrated the mixing ILs such as [C2C1Im][OAc] and [C4C1Im][OAc] and blending MSW with agricultural residues, such as AGB, may help lower the production costs while maintaining high sugar yields. Recycled IL-water mixtures provided comparable results to that of fresh ILs. Both of these results offer the potential of reducing the production costs of sugars and biofuels at biorefineries as compared to more conventional IL conversion technologies.« less

Improved diagnostic yield compared with targeted gene sequencing panels suggests a role for whole-genome sequencing as a first-tier genetic test

PubMed Central

Lionel, Anath C; Costain, Gregory; Monfared, Nasim; Walker, Susan; Reuter, Miriam S; Hosseini, S Mohsen; Thiruvahindrapuram, Bhooma; Merico, Daniele; Jobling, Rebekah; Nalpathamkalam, Thomas; Pellecchia, Giovanna; Sung, Wilson W L; Wang, Zhuozhi; Bikangaga, Peter; Boelman, Cyrus; Carter, Melissa T; Cordeiro, Dawn; Cytrynbaum, Cheryl; Dell, Sharon D; Dhir, Priya; Dowling, James J; Heon, Elise; Hewson, Stacy; Hiraki, Linda; Inbar-Feigenberg, Michal; Klatt, Regan; Kronick, Jonathan; Laxer, Ronald M; Licht, Christoph; MacDonald, Heather; Mercimek-Andrews, Saadet; Mendoza-Londono, Roberto; Piscione, Tino; Schneider, Rayfel; Schulze, Andreas; Silverman, Earl; Siriwardena, Komudi; Snead, O Carter; Sondheimer, Neal; Sutherland, Joanne; Vincent, Ajoy; Wasserman, Jonathan D; Weksberg, Rosanna; Shuman, Cheryl; Carew, Chris; Szego, Michael J; Hayeems, Robin Z; Basran, Raveen; Stavropoulos, Dimitri J; Ray, Peter N; Bowdin, Sarah; Meyn, M Stephen; Cohn, Ronald D; Scherer, Stephen W; Marshall, Christian R

2018-01-01

Purpose Genetic testing is an integral diagnostic component of pediatric medicine. Standard of care is often a time-consuming stepwise approach involving chromosomal microarray analysis and targeted gene sequencing panels, which can be costly and inconclusive. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) provides a comprehensive testing platform that has the potential to streamline genetic assessments, but there are limited comparative data to guide its clinical use. Methods We prospectively recruited 103 patients from pediatric non-genetic subspecialty clinics, each with a clinical phenotype suggestive of an underlying genetic disorder, and compared the diagnostic yield and coverage of WGS with those of conventional genetic testing. Results WGS identified diagnostic variants in 41% of individuals, representing a significant increase over conventional testing results (24% P = 0.01). Genes clinically sequenced in the cohort (n = 1,226) were well covered by WGS, with a median exonic coverage of 40 × ±8 × (mean ±SD). All the molecular diagnoses made by conventional methods were captured by WGS. The 18 new diagnoses made with WGS included structural and non-exonic sequence variants not detectable with whole-exome sequencing, and confirmed recent disease associations with the genes PIGG, RNU4ATAC, TRIO, and UNC13A. Conclusion WGS as a primary clinical test provided a higher diagnostic yield than conventional genetic testing in a clinically heterogeneous cohort. PMID:28771251

Comparing risk in conventional and organic dairy farming in the Netherlands: an empirical analysis.

PubMed

Berentsen, P B M; Kovacs, K; van Asseldonk, M A P M

2012-07-01

This study was undertaken to contribute to the understanding of why most dairy farmers do not convert to organic farming. Therefore, the objective of this research was to assess and compare risks for conventional and organic farming in the Netherlands with respect to gross margin and the underlying price and production variables. To investigate the risk factors a farm accountancy database was used containing panel data from both conventional and organic representative Dutch dairy farms (2001-2007). Variables with regard to price and production risk were identified using a gross margin analysis scheme. Price risk variables were milk price and concentrate price. The main production risk variables were milk yield per cow, roughage yield per hectare, and veterinary costs per cow. To assess risk, an error component implicit detrending method was applied and the resulting detrended standard deviations were compared between conventional and organic farms. Results indicate that the risk included in the gross margin per cow is significantly higher in organic farming. This is caused by both higher price and production risks. Price risks are significantly higher in organic farming for both milk price and concentrate price. With regard to production risk, only milk yield per cow poses a significantly higher risk in organic farming. Copyright © 2012 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Improved diagnostic yield compared with targeted gene sequencing panels suggests a role for whole-genome sequencing as a first-tier genetic test.

PubMed

Lionel, Anath C; Costain, Gregory; Monfared, Nasim; Walker, Susan; Reuter, Miriam S; Hosseini, S Mohsen; Thiruvahindrapuram, Bhooma; Merico, Daniele; Jobling, Rebekah; Nalpathamkalam, Thomas; Pellecchia, Giovanna; Sung, Wilson W L; Wang, Zhuozhi; Bikangaga, Peter; Boelman, Cyrus; Carter, Melissa T; Cordeiro, Dawn; Cytrynbaum, Cheryl; Dell, Sharon D; Dhir, Priya; Dowling, James J; Heon, Elise; Hewson, Stacy; Hiraki, Linda; Inbar-Feigenberg, Michal; Klatt, Regan; Kronick, Jonathan; Laxer, Ronald M; Licht, Christoph; MacDonald, Heather; Mercimek-Andrews, Saadet; Mendoza-Londono, Roberto; Piscione, Tino; Schneider, Rayfel; Schulze, Andreas; Silverman, Earl; Siriwardena, Komudi; Snead, O Carter; Sondheimer, Neal; Sutherland, Joanne; Vincent, Ajoy; Wasserman, Jonathan D; Weksberg, Rosanna; Shuman, Cheryl; Carew, Chris; Szego, Michael J; Hayeems, Robin Z; Basran, Raveen; Stavropoulos, Dimitri J; Ray, Peter N; Bowdin, Sarah; Meyn, M Stephen; Cohn, Ronald D; Scherer, Stephen W; Marshall, Christian R

2018-04-01

PurposeGenetic testing is an integral diagnostic component of pediatric medicine. Standard of care is often a time-consuming stepwise approach involving chromosomal microarray analysis and targeted gene sequencing panels, which can be costly and inconclusive. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) provides a comprehensive testing platform that has the potential to streamline genetic assessments, but there are limited comparative data to guide its clinical use.MethodsWe prospectively recruited 103 patients from pediatric non-genetic subspecialty clinics, each with a clinical phenotype suggestive of an underlying genetic disorder, and compared the diagnostic yield and coverage of WGS with those of conventional genetic testing.ResultsWGS identified diagnostic variants in 41% of individuals, representing a significant increase over conventional testing results (24%; P = 0.01). Genes clinically sequenced in the cohort (n = 1,226) were well covered by WGS, with a median exonic coverage of 40 × ±8 × (mean ±SD). All the molecular diagnoses made by conventional methods were captured by WGS. The 18 new diagnoses made with WGS included structural and non-exonic sequence variants not detectable with whole-exome sequencing, and confirmed recent disease associations with the genes PIGG, RNU4ATAC, TRIO, and UNC13A.ConclusionWGS as a primary clinical test provided a higher diagnostic yield than conventional genetic testing in a clinically heterogeneous cohort.

Evolution of the characteristics of Parametric X-ray Radiation from textured polycrystals under different observation angles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alekseev, V. I.; Eliseyev, A. N.; Irribarra, E.; Kishin, I. A.; Klyuev, A. S.; Kubankin, A. S.; Nazhmudinov, R. M.; Zhukova, P. N.

2018-02-01

The Parametric X-Ray radiation (PXR) spectra and yield dependencies on the orientation angle are measured during the interaction of 7 MeV electrons with a tungsten textured polycrystalline foil for different observation angles. The effects of PXR spectral density increase and PXR yield orientation dependence broadening in the backward direction is shown experimentally for the first time. The experimental results are compared with PXR kinematical theories for both mosaic crystals and polycrystals.

Use of refinery computer model to predict fuel production

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Flores, F. J.

1979-01-01

Several factors (crudes, refinery operation and specifications) that affect yields and properties of broad specification jet fuel were parameterized using the refinery simulation model which can simulate different types of refineries were used to make the calculations. Results obtained from the program are used to correlate yield as a function of final boiling point, hydrogen content and freezing point for jet fuels produced in two refinery configurations, each one processing a different crude mix. Refinery performances are also compared in terms of energy consumption.

M shell X-ray production cross sections and fluorescence yields for the elements with 71 <= Z <= 92 using 5.96 keV photons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Puri, S.; Mehta, D.; Chand, B.; Singh, Nirmal; Mangal, P. C.; Trehan, P. N.

1993-03-01

Total M X-ray production (XRP) cross sections for ten elements in the atomic number region 71 ≤ Z ≤ 92 were measured at 5.96 keV incident photon energy. The average M shell fluorescence yields < overlineωM> have also been computed using the present measured cross section values and the theoretical M shell photoionisation cross sections. The results are compared with theoretical values.

Disassembly time of deuterium-cluster-fusion plasma irradiated by an intense laser pulse.

PubMed

Bang, W

2015-07-01

Energetic deuterium ions from large deuterium clusters (>10nm diameter) irradiated by an intense laser pulse (>10(16)W/cm(2)) produce DD fusion neutrons for a time interval determined by the geometry of the resulting fusion plasma. We present an analytical solution of this time interval, the plasma disassembly time, for deuterium plasmas that are cylindrical in shape. Assuming a symmetrically expanding deuterium plasma, we calculate the expected fusion neutron yield and compare with an independent calculation of the yield using the concept of a finite confinement time at a fixed plasma density. The calculated neutron yields agree quantitatively with the available experimental data. Our one-dimensional simulations indicate that one could expect a tenfold increase in total neutron yield by magnetically confining a 10-keV deuterium fusion plasma for 10ns.

A comparison between corn and grain sorghum fermentation rates, Distillers Dried Grains with Solubles composition, and lipid profiles.

PubMed

Johnston, David J; Moreau, Robert A

2017-02-01

The aim of this study was to determine if the compositional difference between grain sorghum and corn impact ethanol yields and coproduct value when grain sorghum is incorporated into existing corn ethanol facilities. Fermentation properties of corn and grain sorghum were compared utilizing two fermentation systems (conventional thermal starch liquefaction and native starch hydrolysis). Fermentation results indicated that protease addition influenced the fermentation rate and yield for grain sorghum, improving yields by 1-2% over non-protease treated fermentations. Distillers Dried Grains with Solubles produced from sorghum had a statistically significant higher yields and significantly higher protein content relative to corn. Lipid analysis of the Distillers Dried Grains with Solubles showed statistically significant differences between corn and sorghum in triacylglycerol, diacylglycerol and free fatty acid levels. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Production of Σ(1385)± and Ξ(1530)0 measured by ALICE in pp, p-Pb and Pb-Pb collisions at the LHC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Jihye; Alice Collaboration

2017-11-01

The measurement of resonances in ultra-relativistic heavy-ion collisions allows one to study the properties of the hadronic medium. Resonances with short lifetimes compared to the duration of the time span between chemical and kinetic freeze out are good candidates to probe the interplay of particle re-scattering and regeneration in the hadronic phase, which result in a modification of their measured yields. Measurements of Σ(1385) ± and Ξ(1530) 0 have been performed with the ALICE detector in pp, p-Pb and Pb-Pb collisions at LHC energies. We report on pT-integrated yield ratios as function of charged-particle multiplicity density, 〈 dNch / dηlab 〉, which is used as a proxy for the size of collision system. These results complement the information derived from the measurement of other resonances such as K*(892) 0 and ϕ (1020). The system size dependence of the yield ratio of short-lived resonances to longer-lived particles with the same strangeness content is discussed and compared to predictions from pQCD-inspired models, statistical hadronization models and EPOS.

Calculating the nutrient composition of recipes with computers.

PubMed

Powers, P M; Hoover, L W

1989-02-01

The objective of this research project was to compare the nutrient values computed by four commonly used computerized recipe calculation methods. The four methods compared were the yield factor, retention factor, summing, and simplified retention factor methods. Two versions of the summing method were modeled. Four pork entrée recipes were selected for analysis: roast pork, pork and noodle casserole, pan-broiled pork chops, and pork chops with vegetables. Assumptions were made about changes expected to occur in the ingredients during preparation and cooking. Models were designed to simulate the algorithms of the calculation methods using a microcomputer spreadsheet software package. Identical results were generated in the yield factor, retention factor, and summing-cooked models for roast pork. The retention factor and summing-cooked models also produced identical results for the recipe for pan-broiled pork chops. The summing-raw model gave the highest value for water in all four recipes and the lowest values for most of the other nutrients. A superior method or methods was not identified. However, on the basis of the capabilities provided with the yield factor and retention factor methods, more serious consideration of these two methods is recommended.

The source of stratospheric NO and N2O

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Slanger, T. G.

1984-01-01

The photodissociation of O3 was investigated as a possible sources of N2O production in the stratosphere. Photolysis was conducted at 1576 A to generate the excited O2 states that react with N2 to form N2O. At this wavelength, there is a quantum yield of two for prompt production of oygen atoms, which is a consequence of the existence of two photodissociative channels giving comparable yields. One of these channels gives O(D1) and O2(b1sigma(+)subg), with a quantum yield of 0.6, whereas the other results in fragmentation of the O3, with production of three ground state oxygen atoms. The O2(b) is generated with vibrational excitation, and there are comparable populations in levels O to 3. These observations are the first to show O2(b) production from any photodissociative process, and were made under conditions in which the kinetics of vibrationally excited O2(b) can be studied. It appears that O3 photodissociation at 1576 A is not a good system for generating the higher electronic states of O2; it is likely that better results will be obtained at 1930 A.

Genotypic Variation in Yield, Yield Components, Root Morphology and Architecture, in Soybean in Relation to Water and Phosphorus Supply.

PubMed

He, Jin; Jin, Yi; Du, Yan-Lei; Wang, Tao; Turner, Neil C; Yang, Ru-Ping; Siddique, Kadambot H M; Li, Feng-Min

2017-01-01

Water shortage and low phosphorus (P) availability limit yields in soybean. Roots play important roles in water-limited and P-deficient environment, but the underlying mechanisms are largely unknown. In this study we determined the responses of four soybean [ Glycine max (L.) Merr.] genotypes [Huandsedadou (HD), Bailudou (BLD), Jindou 21 (J21), and Zhonghuang 30 (ZH)] to three P levels [applied 0 (P0), 60 (P60), and 120 (P120) mg P kg -1 dry soil to the upper 0.4 m of the soil profile] and two water treatment [well-watered (WW) and water-stressed (WS)] with special reference to root morphology and architecture, we compared yield and its components, root morphology and root architecture to find out which variety and/or what kind of root architecture had high grain yield under P and drought stress. The results showed that water stress and low P, respectively, significantly reduced grain yield by 60 and 40%, daily water use by 66 and 31%, P accumulation by 40 and 80%, and N accumulation by 39 and 65%. The cultivar ZH with the lowest daily water use had the highest grain yield at P60 and P120 under drought. Increased root length was positively associated with N and P accumulation in both the WW and WS treatments, but not with grain yield under water and P deficits. However, in the WS treatment, high adventitious and lateral root densities were associated with high N and P uptake per unit root length which in turn was significantly and positively associated with grain yield. Our results suggest that (1) genetic variation of grain yield, daily water use, P and N accumulation, and root morphology and architecture were observed among the soybean cultivars and ZH had the best yield performance under P and water limited conditions; (2) water has a major influence on nutrient uptake and grain yield, while additional P supply can modestly increase yields under drought in some soybean genotypes; (3) while conserved water use plays an important role in grain yield under drought, root traits also contribute to high nutrient uptake efficiency and benefit yield under drought.

An Analysis of the Selected Materials Used in Step Measurements During Pre-Fits of Thermal Protection System Tiles and the Accuracy of Measurements Made Using These Selected Materials

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kranz, David William

2010-01-01

The goal of this research project was be to compare and contrast the selected materials used in step measurements during pre-fits of thermal protection system tiles and to compare and contrast the accuracy of measurements made using these selected materials. The reasoning for conducting this test was to obtain a clearer understanding to which of these materials may yield the highest accuracy rate of exacting measurements in comparison to the completed tile bond. These results in turn will be presented to United Space Alliance and Boeing North America for their own analysis and determination. Aerospace structures operate under extreme thermal environments. Hot external aerothermal environments in high Mach number flights lead to high structural temperatures. The differences between tile heights from one to another are very critical during these high Mach reentries. The Space Shuttle Thermal Protection System is a very delicate and highly calculated system. The thermal tiles on the ship are measured to within an accuracy of .001 of an inch. The accuracy of these tile measurements is critical to a successful reentry of an orbiter. This is why it is necessary to find the most accurate method for measuring the height of each tile in comparison to each of the other tiles. The test results indicated that there were indeed differences in the selected materials used in step measurements during prefits of Thermal Protection System Tiles and that Bees' Wax yielded a higher rate of accuracy when compared to the baseline test. In addition, testing for experience level in accuracy yielded no evidence of difference to be found. Lastly the use of the Trammel tool over the Shim Pack yielded variable difference for those tests.

Survival analysis of cancer risk reduction strategies for BRCA1/2 mutation carriers.

PubMed

Kurian, Allison W; Sigal, Bronislava M; Plevritis, Sylvia K

2010-01-10

Women with BRCA1/2 mutations inherit high risks of breast and ovarian cancer; options to reduce cancer mortality include prophylactic surgery or breast screening, but their efficacy has never been empirically compared. We used decision analysis to simulate risk-reducing strategies in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers and to compare resulting survival probability and causes of death. We developed a Monte Carlo model of breast screening with annual mammography plus magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) from ages 25 to 69 years, prophylactic mastectomy (PM) at various ages, and/or prophylactic oophorectomy (PO) at ages 40 or 50 years in 25-year-old BRCA1/2 mutation carriers. With no intervention, survival probability by age 70 is 53% for BRCA1 and 71% for BRCA2 mutation carriers. The most effective single intervention for BRCA1 mutation carriers is PO at age 40, yielding a 15% absolute survival gain; for BRCA2 mutation carriers, the most effective single intervention is PM, yielding a 7% survival gain if performed at age 40 years. The combination of PM and PO at age 40 improves survival more than any single intervention, yielding 24% survival gain for BRCA1 and 11% for BRCA2 mutation carriers. PM at age 25 instead of age 40 offers minimal incremental benefit (1% to 2%); substituting screening for PM yields a similarly minimal decrement in survival (2% to 3%). Although PM at age 25 plus PO at age 40 years maximizes survival probability, substituting mammography plus MRI screening for PM seems to offer comparable survival. These results may guide women with BRCA1/2 mutations in their choices between prophylactic surgery and breast screening.

Organic Biochar Based Fertilization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmidt, Hans-Peter; Pandit, Bishnu Hari; Cornelissen, Gerard; Kammann, Claudia

2017-04-01

Biochar produced in cost-efficient flame curtain kilns (Kon-Tiki) was nutrient enriched either with cow urine or with dissolved mineral (NPK) fertilizer to produce biochar-based fertilizers containing between 60-100 kg N, 5-60 kg P2O5 and 60-100 kg K2O, respectively, per ton of biochar. In 21 field trials nutrient-enriched biochars were applied at rates of 0.5 to 2 t ha-1 into the root zone of 13 different annual and perennial crops. Treatments combining biochar, compost and organic or chemical fertilizer were evaluated; control treatments contained the same amounts of nutrients but without biochar. All nutrient-enriched biochar substrates improved yields compared to their respective no-biochar controls. Biochar enriched with dissolved NPK produced on average 20% ± 5.1% (N=4) higher yields than standard NPK fertilization without biochar. Cow urine-enriched biochar blended with compost resulted on average in 123% ± 76.7% (N=13) higher yields compared to the organic farmer practice with cow urine-blended compost and outcompeted NPK-enriched biochar (same nutrient dose) by 103% ± 12.4% (N=4) on average. 21 field trials robustly revealed that low-dosage root zone application of organic biochar-based fertilizers caused substantial yield increases in rather fertile silt loam soils compared to traditional organic fertilization and to mineral NPK- or NPK-biochar fertilization. This can likely be explained by the nutrient carrier effect of biochar causing a slow nutrient release behavior, more balanced nutrient fluxes and reduced nutrient losses especially when liquid organic nutrients are used for the biochar enrichment. The results promise new pathways for optimizing organic farming and improving on-farm nutrient cycling.

Formation temperatures of thermogenic and biogenic methane

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stolper, D.A.; Lawson, M.; Davis, C.L.; Ferreira, A.A.; Santos Neto, E. V.; Ellis, G.S.; Lewan, M.D.; Martini, Anna M.; Tang, Y.; Schoell, M.; Sessions, A.L.; Eiler, J.M.

2014-01-01

Methane is an important greenhouse gas and energy resource generated dominantly by methanogens at low temperatures and through the breakdown of organic molecules at high temperatures. However, methane-formation temperatures in nature are often poorly constrained. We measured formation temperatures of thermogenic and biogenic methane using a “clumped isotope” technique. Thermogenic gases yield formation temperatures between 157° and 221°C, within the nominal gas window, and biogenic gases yield formation temperatures consistent with their comparatively lower-temperature formational environments (<50°C). In systems where gases have migrated and other proxies for gas-generation temperature yield ambiguous results, methane clumped-isotope temperatures distinguish among and allow for independent tests of possible gas-formation models.

Spallation yield of neutrons produced in thick lead target bombarded with 250 MeV protons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, L.; Ma, F.; Zhanga, X. Y.; Ju, Y. Q.; Zhang, H. B.; Ge, H. L.; Wang, J. G.; Zhou, B.; Li, Y. Y.; Xu, X. W.; Luo, P.; Yang, L.; Zhang, Y. B.; Li, J. Y.; Xu, J. K.; Liang, T. J.; Wang, S. L.; Yang, Y. W.; Gu, L.

2015-01-01

The neutron yield from thick target of Pb irradiated with 250 MeV protons has been studied experimentally. The neutron production was measured with the water-bath gold method. The thermal neutron distributions in the water were determined according to the measured activities of Au foils. Corresponding results calculated with the Monte Carlo code MCNPX were compared with the experimental data. It was found out that the Au foils with cadmium cover significantly changed the spacial distribution of the thermal neutron field. The corrected neutron yield was deduced to be 2.23 ± 0.19 n/proton by considering the influence of the Cd cover on the thermal neutron flux.

High-Impact Practices and Student-Faculty Interactions for Students across Sexual Orientations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garvey, Jason C.; BrckaLorenz, Allison; Latopolski, Keely; Hurtado, Sarah S.

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between high-impact practices and student--faculty interactions for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and questioning (LGBQ) students. Results yield few differences in participation of high-impact practices for LGBQ students compared to heterosexual students. Results also demonstrate the…

Obesity and the Unbalanced Energy Equation: Exercise versus Eating Habit Change.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

And Others; Dahlkoetter, JoAnn

1979-01-01

Compared relative effectiveness of exercise and eating habit change individually and in combination for weight loss and physical conditioning. Results indicated significant improvement for all treatment groups. Groups who exercised showed most improvement in physical fitness. Combining exercise and eating habit change yielded best results in…

Teacher Turnover in Organizational Context: Staffing Stability in Los Angeles Charter, Magnet, and Regular Public Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Newton, Xiaoxia A.; Rivero, Rosario; Fuller, Bruce; Dauter, Luke

2018-01-01

Background/Context: Studies that compare the achievement benefits of charter public schools versus traditional public schools (TPSs) yield quite uneven results. The quality and long-term commitment of teachers represent related mediators that may help to explain effective and ineffective charter schools. Early findings on the comparative rates of…

Hydroxyl Radical Fluorescence and Quantum Yield Following Lyman-α Photoexcitation of Water Vapor in a Room Temperature Cell and Cooled in a Supersonic Expansion.

PubMed

Young, Justin W; Booth, Ryan S; Vogelhuber, Kristen M; Stearns, Jaime A; Annesley, Christopher J

2018-06-28

Photoexcitation of water by Lyman-α (121.6 nm) induces a dissociation reaction that produces OH(A 2 Σ + ) + H. Despite this reaction being part of numerous studies, a combined understanding of the product and fluorescence yields is still lacking. Here, the rotational and vibrational distributions of OH(A) are determined from dispersed fluorescence following photoexcitation of both room-temperature and jet-cooled water vapor, for the first time in the same experiment. This work compares new data of state-resolved fluorescence with literature molecular branching ratios and brings previous studies into agreement through careful consideration of OH(A) fluorescent and predissociation lifetimes and confirms a fluorescent quantum yield of 8%. Comparison of the room-temperature and jet-cooled OH(A) populations indicate the temperature of H 2 O prior to excitation has subtle effects on the OH(A) population distribution, such as altering the rotational distribution in the ν' = 0 population and affecting the population in the ν' = 1 state. These results indicate jet-cooled water vapor may have a 1% higher fluorescence quantum yield compared to room-temperature water vapor.

Rootstock Effects on Pistachio Trees Grown in Verticillium dahliae-Infested Soil.

PubMed

Epstein, L; Beede, R; Kaur, S; Ferguson, L

2004-04-01

ABSTRACT In a field trial in soil infested with Verticillium dahliae, we compared the yield, growth, incidence of symptoms of Verticillium wilt, and mortality of two interspecific hybrid pistachio tree rootstocks (UCBI and PGII) with the standard rootstocks: the V. dahliae-resistant and susceptible Pistacia integerrima and P. atlantica, respectively. After 10 years, the trees were destructively sampled for V. dahliae in the xylem at the graft union. The results indicate that trees on the (P. atlantica 'KAC' x P. integerrima) hybrid UCBI rootstock grew and yielded as well as those on P. integerrima. Trees on the hybrid PGII yielded the least. Analysis of variance and log-linear models indicate that in soil infested with V. dahliae, three associations significantly affect pistachio nut yield. Rootstock affects scion vigor and extent of infection. Third, the extent of infection and scion vigor are inversely associated. Although trees on the P. integerrima rootstock had the highest ratings in a visual assessment of vigor, 65% were infected with V. dahliae in the trunk in the graft region compared with 73% in P. atlantica and 25% in UCBI. Thus, P. integerrima and UCBI have at least one different mechanism for resistance to V. dahliae.

[Effects of applying controlled-release fertilizer blended with conventional nitrogen fertilizer on Chinese cabbage yield and quality as well as nitrogen losses].

PubMed

Yang, Jun-gang; Xu, Kai; Tong, Er-jian; Cao, Bing; Ni, Xiao-hui; Xu, Jun-xiang

2010-12-01

An open field experiment was conducted to study the effects of applying controlled-release fertilizer blended with rapidly available chemical N fertilizer on Chinese cabbage yield and quality as well as nitrogen losses, including ammonia volatilization and NO3- -N accumulation and leaching in Beijing suburb. The results showed that a combined application of 2:1 controlled-release fertilizer and urea fertilizer (total N rate 150 kg x hm(-2)) did not induce the reduction of Chinese cabbage yield, and decreased the leaf nitrate and organic acid contents significantly, compared with conventional urea N application (300 kg x hm(-2)), and had no significant difference in the cabbage yield and leaf nitrate content, compared with applying 150 kg x hm(-2) of urea N. The combined application of 2:1 controlled-release fertilizer and urea fertilizer improved the N use efficiency of Chinese cabbage, and reduced the ammonia volatilization and NO3- -N leaching. At harvest, the NO3- -N concentrations in 20-40, 60-80 and 80-100 cm soil layers were significantly lower in the combined application treatment than in urea N treatment.

Effect of Emamectin Benzoate on Root-Knot Nematodes and Tomato Yield

PubMed Central

Cheng, Xingkai; Liu, Xiumei; Wang, Hongyan; Ji, Xiaoxue; Wang, Kaiyun; Wei, Min; Qiao, Kang

2015-01-01

Southern root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) is an obligate, sedentary endoparasite of more than 3000 plant species, that causes heavy economic losses and limit the development of protected agriculture of China. As a biological pesticide, emamectin benzoate has effectively prevented lepidopteran pests; however, its efficacy to control M. incognita remains unknown. The purpose of the present study was to test soil application of emamectin benzoate for management of M. incognita in laboratory, greenhouse and field trials. Laboratory results showed that emamectin benzoate exhibited high toxicity to M. incognita, with LC50 and LC90 values 3.59 and 18.20 mg L-1, respectively. In greenhouse tests, emamectin benzoate soil application offered good efficacy against M. incognita while maintaining excellent plant growth. In field trials, emamectin benzoate provided control efficacy against M. incognita and resulted in increased tomato yields. Compared with the untreated control, there was a 36.5% to 81.3% yield increase obtained from all treatments and the highest yield was received from the highest rate of emamectin benzoate. The results confirmed that emamectin benzoate has enormous potential for the control of M. incognita in tomato production in China. PMID:26509680

Effect of Emamectin Benzoate on Root-Knot Nematodes and Tomato Yield.

PubMed

Cheng, Xingkai; Liu, Xiumei; Wang, Hongyan; Ji, Xiaoxue; Wang, Kaiyun; Wei, Min; Qiao, Kang

2015-01-01

Southern root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) is an obligate, sedentary endoparasite of more than 3000 plant species, that causes heavy economic losses and limit the development of protected agriculture of China. As a biological pesticide, emamectin benzoate has effectively prevented lepidopteran pests; however, its efficacy to control M. incognita remains unknown. The purpose of the present study was to test soil application of emamectin benzoate for management of M. incognita in laboratory, greenhouse and field trials. Laboratory results showed that emamectin benzoate exhibited high toxicity to M. incognita, with LC50 and LC90 values 3.59 and 18.20 mg L(-1), respectively. In greenhouse tests, emamectin benzoate soil application offered good efficacy against M. incognita while maintaining excellent plant growth. In field trials, emamectin benzoate provided control efficacy against M. incognita and resulted in increased tomato yields. Compared with the untreated control, there was a 36.5% to 81.3% yield increase obtained from all treatments and the highest yield was received from the highest rate of emamectin benzoate. The results confirmed that emamectin benzoate has enormous potential for the control of M. incognita in tomato production in China.

Measurement of Workability of Fresh Concrete Using a Mixing Truck

PubMed Central

Amziane, Sofiane; Ferraris, Chiara F.; Koehler, Eric P.

2005-01-01

The main objective of this study is to evaluate the workability of fresh portland cement concrete while it is still in the mixing truck by determining fundamental rheological parameters (plastic viscosity and yield stress). Nine concrete mixtures with different values of yield stress and plastic viscosity were tested in a concrete truck. The measurements made with the truck were based on the typical method of determining the flow behavior in a traditional fluid rheometer; that is, the shear rate in the mixing truck was swept from high to low by varying the rotation speed of the drum. The results of these experiments are discussed and compared with data provided by the ICAR rheometer, a portable rheometer designed for measuring concrete rheology. The test results indicate that the mixing truck equipment is sufficiently sensitive to detect differences in yield stress, slump, and plastic viscosity. However, the plastic viscosity determined by the truck measurement did not correlate with plastic viscosity as measured by the ICAR rheometer, while the yield stress determined by the truck measurement did correlate well with the measured slump and the ICAR rheometer results Suggestions are given on how to improve the mixing truck for better use as a rheometer. PMID:27308103

Whole Genome Sequencing Increases Molecular Diagnostic Yield Compared with Current Diagnostic Testing for Inherited Retinal Disease.

PubMed

Ellingford, Jamie M; Barton, Stephanie; Bhaskar, Sanjeev; Williams, Simon G; Sergouniotis, Panagiotis I; O'Sullivan, James; Lamb, Janine A; Perveen, Rahat; Hall, Georgina; Newman, William G; Bishop, Paul N; Roberts, Stephen A; Leach, Rick; Tearle, Rick; Bayliss, Stuart; Ramsden, Simon C; Nemeth, Andrea H; Black, Graeme C M

2016-05-01

To compare the efficacy of whole genome sequencing (WGS) with targeted next-generation sequencing (NGS) in the diagnosis of inherited retinal disease (IRD). Case series. A total of 562 patients diagnosed with IRD. We performed a direct comparative analysis of current molecular diagnostics with WGS. We retrospectively reviewed the findings from a diagnostic NGS DNA test for 562 patients with IRD. A subset of 46 of 562 patients (encompassing potential clinical outcomes of diagnostic analysis) also underwent WGS, and we compared mutation detection rates and molecular diagnostic yields. In addition, we compared the sensitivity and specificity of the 2 techniques to identify known single nucleotide variants (SNVs) using 6 control samples with publically available genotype data. Diagnostic yield of genomic testing. Across known disease-causing genes, targeted NGS and WGS achieved similar levels of sensitivity and specificity for SNV detection. However, WGS also identified 14 clinically relevant genetic variants through WGS that had not been identified by NGS diagnostic testing for the 46 individuals with IRD. These variants included large deletions and variants in noncoding regions of the genome. Identification of these variants confirmed a molecular diagnosis of IRD for 11 of the 33 individuals referred for WGS who had not obtained a molecular diagnosis through targeted NGS testing. Weighted estimates, accounting for population structure, suggest that WGS methods could result in an overall 29% (95% confidence interval, 15-45) uplift in diagnostic yield. We show that WGS methods can detect disease-causing genetic variants missed by current NGS diagnostic methodologies for IRD and thereby demonstrate the clinical utility and additional value of WGS. Copyright © 2016 American Academy of Ophthalmology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of Fifteen Cultivars of Cool-Season Perennial Grasses as Biofuel Feedstocks Using Near-Infrared

DOE PAGES

Payne, Courtney E.; Wolfrum, Edward J.; Nagle, Nicholas J.; ...

2017-06-22

Cool-season (C3) perennial grasses have a long history of cultivation and use as animal forage. This study evaluated 15 cultivars of C3 grasses, when harvested in late June for increased biomass yield, as biofuel feedstocks using near- infrared spectroscopy (NIR) based partial least square (PLS) analysis. These grasses were grown near Iliff, CO, for three growing seasons (2009-2011). The carbohydrate composition and released carbohydrates (total glucose and xylose released from dilute acid pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis [EH]) were predicted for samples from the study using NIR/PLS. The results were analyzed from a biofuels perspective, where composition combined with harvest yieldmore » provided information on the carbohydrate yield available for biomass conversion processes, and released carbohydrate yield provided information on the accessibility of those carbohydrates to conversion methods. The range in harvest yields varied more among cultivars (2900 kg ha-1) than did the range in carbohydrate composition (56.0 g kg-1) or released carbohydrates (60.0 g kg-1). When comparing carbohydrate yield to released carbohydrate yield between cultivars, an efficiency as high as 87% release of available carbohydrates was obtained for pubescent wheatgrass [ Thinopyrum intermedium (Host) Barkworth & D.R. Dewey 'Mansaka'], with a low of 71% for hybrid wheatgrass [Elytrigia repens (L.) nevski pseudoroegneria spicata (PURSH) A. Love 'Newhy']. Though hybrid wheatgrass had the lowest release efficiency, its high harvest yield resulted in release of more total carbohydrates than half the other cultivars analyzed. Furthermore, this suggested that harvest yield, carbohydrate release, and carbohydrate composition, together play significant roles in biofuel feedstock evaluation.« less

Evaluation of Fifteen Cultivars of Cool-Season Perennial Grasses as Biofuel Feedstocks Using Near-Infrared

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

Payne, Courtney E.; Wolfrum, Edward J.; Nagle, Nicholas J.

Cool-season (C3) perennial grasses have a long history of cultivation and use as animal forage. This study evaluated 15 cultivars of C3 grasses, when harvested in late June for increased biomass yield, as biofuel feedstocks using near- infrared spectroscopy (NIR) based partial least square (PLS) analysis. These grasses were grown near Iliff, CO, for three growing seasons (2009-2011). The carbohydrate composition and released carbohydrates (total glucose and xylose released from dilute acid pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis [EH]) were predicted for samples from the study using NIR/PLS. The results were analyzed from a biofuels perspective, where composition combined with harvest yieldmore » provided information on the carbohydrate yield available for biomass conversion processes, and released carbohydrate yield provided information on the accessibility of those carbohydrates to conversion methods. The range in harvest yields varied more among cultivars (2900 kg ha-1) than did the range in carbohydrate composition (56.0 g kg-1) or released carbohydrates (60.0 g kg-1). When comparing carbohydrate yield to released carbohydrate yield between cultivars, an efficiency as high as 87% release of available carbohydrates was obtained for pubescent wheatgrass [ Thinopyrum intermedium (Host) Barkworth & D.R. Dewey 'Mansaka'], with a low of 71% for hybrid wheatgrass [Elytrigia repens (L.) nevski pseudoroegneria spicata (PURSH) A. Love 'Newhy']. Though hybrid wheatgrass had the lowest release efficiency, its high harvest yield resulted in release of more total carbohydrates than half the other cultivars analyzed. Furthermore, this suggested that harvest yield, carbohydrate release, and carbohydrate composition, together play significant roles in biofuel feedstock evaluation.« less

Comparison of particle production in quark and gluon fragmentation at s˜10GeV

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Briere, R. A.; Ferguson, T.; Tatishvili, G.; Vogel, H.; Watkins, M. E.; Rosner, J. L.; Adam, N. E.; Alexander, J. P.; Cassel, D. G.; Duboscq, J. E.; Ehrlich, R.; Fields, L.; Galik, R. S.; Gibbons, L.; Gray, R.; Gray, S. W.; Hartill, D. L.; Heltsley, B. K.; Hertz, D.; Jones, C. D.; Kandaswamy, J.; Kreinick, D. L.; Kuznetsov, V. E.; Mahlke-Krüger, H.; Onyisi, P. U. E.; Patterson, J. R.; Peterson, D.; Pivarski, J.; Riley, D.; Ryd, A.; Sadoff, A. J.; Schwarthoff, H.; Shi, X.; Stroiney, S.; Sun, W. M.; Wilksen, T.; Weinberger, M.; Athar, S. B.; Patel, R.; Potlia, V.; Yelton, J.; Rubin, P.; Cawlfield, C.; Eisenstein, B. I.; Karliner, I.; Kim, D.; Lowrey, N.; Naik, P.; Selen, M.; White, E. J.; Wiss, J.; Mitchell, R. E.; Shepherd, M. R.; Besson, D.; Swift, H. K.; Pedlar, T. K.; Cronin-Hennessy, D.; Gao, K. Y.; Hietala, J.; Kubota, Y.; Klein, T.; Lang, B. W.; Poling, R.; Scott, A. W.; Smith, A.; Zweber, P.; Dobbs, S.; Metreveli, Z.; Seth, K. K.; Tomaradze, A.; Ernst, J.; Ecklund, K. M.; Severini, H.; Love, W.; Savinov, V.; Aquines, O.; Li, Z.; Lopez, A.; Mehrabyan, S.; Mendez, H.; Ramirez, J.; Huang, G. S.; Miller, D. H.; Pavlunin, V.; Sanghi, B.; Shipsey, I. P. J.; Xin, B.; Adams, G. S.; Anderson, M.; Cummings, J. P.; Danko, I.; Hu, D.; Moziak, B.; Napolitano, J.; He, Q.; Insler, J.; Muramatsu, H.; Park, C. S.; Thorndike, E. H.; Yang, F.; Coan, T. E.; Gao, Y. S.; Artuso, M.; Blusk, S.; Butt, J.; Li, J.; Menaa, N.; Moneti, G. C.; Mountain, R.; Nisar, S.; Randrianarivony, K.; Sia, R.; Skwarnicki, T.; Stone, S.; Wang, J. C.; Zhang, K.; Bonvicini, G.; Cinabro, D.; Dubrovin, M.; Lincoln, A.; Asner, D. M.; Edwards, K. W.

2007-07-01

Using e+e-→hadrons data collected with the CLEO-III detector at the Cornell Electron Storage Ring, we study the inclusive production of baryons/antibaryons (p,Λ) and mesons (ϕ and f2(1270)) in gluon-fragmentation and quark-fragmentation processes. We first corroborate previous per-event total particle yields in Υ(1S)→ggg compared with nearby continuum (e+e-→qq¯) indicating greater (˜×2) per-event yields of baryons in 3-gluon fragmentation. We find similar results when we extend that comparison to include the Υ(2S) and Υ(3S) resonances. With higher statistics, we now also probe the momentum dependence of these per-event particle yields. Next, we compare particle production in the photon-tagged process Υ(1S)→ggγ with that in e+e-→qq¯γ events, to allow comparison of two-parton with three-parton particle-specific fragmentation. For each particle, we determine the “enhancement” ratio, defined as the ratio of particle yields per gluon-fragmentation event compared to quark-fragmentation event. Thus defined, an enhancement of 1.0 implies equal per-event production in gluon and quark fragmentation. In the photon-tagged analysis (Υ(1S)→ggγ compared to e+e-→qq¯γ), we find almost no enhancement for protons (˜1.2±0.1), but a significant enhancement (˜1.9±0.3) for Λ’s. This small measured proton enhancement rate is supported by a study of baryon production in χb2→gg→p+X relative to χb1→qq¯g→p+X. Overall, per-event baryon production in radiative two-gluon fragmentation is somewhat smaller than that observed in three-gluon decays of the Υ(1S). Our results for baryon production are inconsistent with the predictions of the JETSET (7.3) fragmentation model.

Improvement of FK506 Production in the High-Yielding Strain Streptomyces sp. RM7011 by Engineering the Supply of Allylmalonyl-CoA Through a Combination of Genetic and Chemical Approach.

PubMed

Mo, SangJoon; Lee, Sung-Kwon; Jin, Ying-Yu; Suh, Joo-Won

2016-02-01

FK506, a widely used immunosuppressant, is a 23-membered polyketide macrolide that is produced by several Streptomyces species. FK506 high-yielding strain Streptomyces sp. RM7011 was developed from the discovered Streptomyces sp. KCCM 11116P by random mutagenesis in our previous study. The results of transcript expression analysis showed that the transcription levels of tcsA, B, C, and D were increased in Streptomyces sp. RM7011 by 2.1-, 3.1-, 3.3-, and 4.1- fold, respectively, compared with Streptomyces sp. KCCM 11116P. The overexpression of tcsABCD genes in Streptomyces sp. RM7011 gave rise to approximately 2.5-fold (238.1 μg/ml) increase in the level of FK506 production compared with that of Streptomyces sp. RM7011. When vinyl pentanoate was added into the culture broth of Streptomyces sp. RM7011, the level of FK506 production was approximately 2.2-fold (207.7 μg/ml) higher than that of the unsupplemented fermentation. Furthermore, supplementing the culture broth of Streptomyces sp. RM7011 expressing tcsABCD genes with vinyl pentanoate resulted in an additional 1.7-fold improvement in the FK506 titer (498.1 μg/ml) compared with that observed under nonsupplemented condition. Overall, the level of FK506 production was increased approximately 5.2-fold by engineering the supply of allylmalonyl-CoA in the high-yielding strain Streptomyces sp. RM7011, using a combination of overexpressing tcsABCD genes and adding vinyl pentanoate, as compared with Streptomyces sp. RM7011 (95.3 μg/ml). Moreover, among the three precursors analyzed, pentanoate was the most effective precursor, supporting the highest titer of FK506 in the FK506 high-yielding strain Streptomyces sp. RM7011.

Genome-Wide Identification of Differentially Expressed Genes Associated with the High Yielding of Oleoresin in Secondary Xylem of Masson Pine (Pinus massoniana Lamb) by Transcriptomic Analysis

PubMed Central

Liu, Qinghua; Zhou, Zhichun; Wei, Yongcheng; Shen, Danyu; Feng, Zhongping; Hong, Shanping

2015-01-01

Masson pine is an important timber and resource for oleoresin in South China. Increasing yield of oleoresin in stems can raise economic benefits and enhance the resistance to bark beetles. However, the genetic mechanisms for regulating the yield of oleoresin were still unknown. Here, high-throughput sequencing technology was used to investigate the transcriptome and compare the gene expression profiles of high and low oleoresin-yielding genotypes. A total of 40,690,540 reads were obtained and assembled into 137,499 transcripts from the secondary xylem tissues. We identified 84,842 candidate unigenes based on sequence annotation using various databases and 96 unigenes were candidates for terpenoid backbone biosynthesis in pine. By comparing the expression profiles of high and low oleoresin-yielding genotypes, 649 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. GO enrichment analysis of DEGs revealed that multiple pathways were related to high yield of oleoresin. Nine candidate genes were validated by QPCR analysis. Among them, the candidate genes encoding geranylgeranyl diphosphate synthase (GGPS) and (-)-alpha/beta-pinene synthase were up-regulated in the high oleoresin-yielding genotype, while tricyclene synthase revealed lower expression level, which was in good agreement with the GC/MS result. In addition, DEG encoding ABC transporters, pathogenesis-related proteins (PR5 and PR9), phosphomethylpyrimidine synthase, non-specific lipid-transfer protein-like protein and ethylene responsive transcription factors (ERFs) were also confirmed to be critical for the biosynthesis of oleoresin. The next-generation sequencing strategy used in this study has proven to be a powerful means for analyzing transcriptome variation related to the yield of oleoresin in masson pine. The candidate genes encoding GGPS, (-)-alpha/beta-pinene, tricyclene synthase, ABC transporters, non-specific lipid-transfer protein-like protein, phosphomethylpyrimidine synthase, ERFs and pathogen responses may play important roles in regulating the yield of oleoresin. These DEGs are worthy of special attention in future studies. PMID:26167875

Mutation Breeding of Extracellular Polysaccharide-Producing Microalga Crypthecodinium cohnii by a Novel Mutagenesis with Atmospheric and Room Temperature Plasma

PubMed Central

Liu, Bin; Sun, Zheng; Ma, Xiaonian; Yang, Bo; Jiang, Yue; Wei, Dong; Chen, Feng

2015-01-01

Extracellular polysaccharides (EPS) produced by marine microalgae have the potential to be used as antioxidants, antiviral agents, immunomodulators, and anti-inflammatory agents. Although the marine microalga Crypthecodinium cohnii releases EPS during the process of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) production, the yield of EPS remains relatively low. To improve the EPS production, a novel mutagenesis of C. cohnii was conducted by atmospheric and room temperature plasma (ARTP). Of the 12 mutants obtained, 10 mutants exhibited significantly enhanced EPS yield on biomass as compared with the wild type strain. Among them, mutant M7 was the best as it could produce an EPS volumetric yield of 1.02 g/L, EPS yield on biomass of 0.39 g/g and EPS yield on glucose of 94 mg/g, which were 33.85%, 85.35% and 57.17% higher than that of the wild type strain, respectively. Results of the present study indicated that mutagenesis of the marine microalga C. cohnii by ARTP was highly effective leading to the high-yield production of EPS. PMID:25872142

Influence of biochemical composition during hydrothermal liquefaction of algae on product yields and fuel properties.

PubMed

Shakya, Rajdeep; Adhikari, Sushil; Mahadevan, Ravishankar; Shanmugam, Saravanan R; Nam, Hyungseok; Hassan, El Barbary; Dempster, Thomas A

2017-11-01

Hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) of nine algae species were performed at two reaction temperatures (280 and 320°C) to compare the effect of their biomass composition on product yields and properties. Results obtained after HTL indicate large variations in terms of bio-oil yields and its properties. The maximum bio-oil yield (66wt%) was obtained at 320°C with a high lipid containing algae Nannochloropsis. The higher heating value of bio-oils ranged from 31 to 36MJ/kg and around 50% of the bio-oils was in the vacuum gas oil range while high lipid containing algae Nannochloropsis contained a significant portion (33-42%) in the diesel range. A predictive relationship between bio-oil yields and biochemical compositions was developed and showed a broad agreement between predictive and experimental yields. The aqueous phases obtained had high amount of TOC (12-43g/L), COD (35-160g/L), TN (1-18g/L), ammonium (0.34-12g/L) and phosphate (0.7-12g/L). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Asymmetric Yield Function Based on the Stress Invariants for Pressure Sensitive Metals

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

Jeong Wahn Yoon; Yanshan Lou; Jong Hun Yoon

A general asymmetric yield function is proposed with dependence on the stress invariants for pressure sensitive metals. The pressure sensitivity of the proposed yield function is consistent with the experimental result of Spitzig and Richmond (1984) for steel and aluminum alloys while the asymmetry of the third invariant is preserved to model strength differential (SD) effect of pressure insensitive materials. The proposed yield function is transformed in the space of the stress triaxaility, the von Mises stress and the normalized invariant to theoretically investigate the possible reason of the SD effect. The proposed plasticity model is further extended to characterizemore » the anisotropic behavior of metals both in tension and compression. The extension of the yield function is realized by introducing two distinct fourth-order linear transformation tensors of the stress tensor for the second and third invariants, respectively. The extended yield function reasonably models the evolution of yield surfaces for a zirconium clock-rolled plate during in-plane and through-thickness compression reported by Plunkett et al. (2007). The extended yield function is also applied to describe the orthotropic behavior of a face-centered cubic metal of AA 2008-T4 and two hexagonal close-packed metals of high-purity-titanium and AZ31 magnesium alloy. The orthotropic behavior predicted by the generalized model is compared with experimental results of these metals. The comparison validates that the proposed yield function provides sufficient predictability on SD effect and anisotropic behavior both in tension and compression. When it is necessary to consider r-value anisotropy, the proposed function is efficient to be used with nonassociated flow plasticity by introducing a separate plastic potential for the consideration of r-values as shown in Stoughton & Yoon (2004, 2009).« less

Kr-86 Ion-Beam Irradiation of Hydrated DNA: Free Radical and Unaltered Base Yields

PubMed Central

Becker, David; Adhikary, Amitava; Tetteh, Smedley T.; Bull, Arthur W.; Sevilla, Michael D.

2012-01-01

This work reports an ESR and product analysis investigation of Kr-86 ion-beam irradiation of hydrated DNA at 77 K. The irradiation results in the formation and trapping of both base radicals and sugar phosphate radicals (DNA backbone radicals). The absolute yields (G, μmol/J) of the base radicals are smaller than the yields found in similarly prepared γ-irradiated DNA samples, and the relative yields of backbone radicals relative to base radicals are much higher than that found in γ-irradiated samples. From these results, we have elaborated our radiation chemical model of the track structure for ion-beam irradiated DNA as it applies to krypton ion-beams. The base radicals, which are trapped as ion radicals or reversibly protonated or deprotonated ion radicals, are formed almost entirely in the track penumbra, a region in which radiation chemical effects are similar to those found in γ-irradiated samples. By comparing the yields of base radicals in ion-beam samples to the yields of the same radicals in γ-irradiated samples, the partition of energy between the low-LET region (penumbra) and the core is experimentally determined. The neutral sugar and other backbone radicals, which are not as susceptible to recombination as are ion radicals, are formed largely in the track core. The backbone radicals show a linear dose response up to very high doses. Unaltered base release yields in Kr-86 irradiated hydrated DNA are equal to sugar radical yields within experimental error limits, consistent with radiation-chemical processes in which all base release originates with sugar radicals. Two phosphorus-centered radicals from fragmentation of the DNA backbone are found in low yields. PMID:23106211

Kr-86 ion-beam irradiation of hydrated DNA: free radical and unaltered base yields.

PubMed

Becker, David; Adhikary, Amitava; Tetteh, Smedley T; Bull, Arthur W; Sevilla, Michael D

2012-12-01

This work reports an ESR and product analysis investigation of Kr-86 ion-beam irradiation of hydrated DNA at 77 K. The irradiation results in the formation and trapping of both base radicals and sugar phosphate radicals (DNA backbone radicals). The absolute yields (G, μmol/J) of the base radicals are smaller than the yields found in similarly prepared γ-irradiated DNA samples, and the relative yields of backbone radicals relative to base radicals are much higher than that found in γ-irradiated samples. From these results, we have elaborated our radiation chemical model of the track structure for ion-beam irradiated DNA as it applies to krypton ion-beams. The base radicals, which are trapped as ion radicals or reversibly protonated or deprotonated ion radicals, are formed almost entirely in the track penumbra, a region in which radiation chemical effects are similar to those found in γ-irradiated samples. By comparing the yields of base radicals in ion-beam samples to the yields of the same radicals in γ-irradiated samples, the partition of energy between the low-LET region (penumbra) and the core is experimentally determined. The neutral sugar and other backbone radicals, which are not as susceptible to recombination as are ion radicals, are formed largely in the track core. The backbone radicals show a linear dose response up to very high doses. Unaltered base release yields in Kr-86 irradiated hydrated DNA are equal to sugar radical yields within experimental error limits, consistent with radiation-chemical processes in which all base release originates with sugar radicals. Two phosphorus-centered radicals from fragmentation of the DNA backbone are found in low yields.

Enhancing USDA's Retrospective Analog Year Analyses Using NASA Satellite Precipitation and Soil Moisture Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Teng, W. L.; Shannon, H. D.

2013-12-01

The USDA World Agricultural Outlook Board (WAOB) is responsible for monitoring weather and climate impacts on domestic and foreign crop development. One of WAOB's primary goals is to determine the net cumulative effect of weather and climate anomalies on final crop yields. To this end, a broad array of information is consulted, including maps, charts, and time series of recent weather, climate, and crop observations; numerical output from weather and crop models; and reports from the press, USDA attachés, and foreign governments. The resulting agricultural weather assessments are published in the Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin, to keep farmers, policy makers, and commercial agricultural interests informed of weather and climate impacts on agriculture. Because both the amount and timing of precipitation significantly affect crop yields, WAOB has often, as part of its operational process, used historical time series of surface-based precipitation observations to visually identify growing seasons with similar (analog) weather patterns as, and help estimate crop yields for, the current growing season. As part of a larger effort to improve WAOB estimates by integrating NASA remote sensing observations and research results into WAOB's decision-making environment, a more rigorous, statistical method for identifying analog years was developed. This method, termed the analog index (AI), is based on the Nash-Sutcliffe model efficiency coefficient. The AI was computed for five study areas and six growing seasons of data analyzed (2003-2007 as potential analog years and 2008 as the target year). Previously reported results compared the performance of AI for time series derived from surface-based observations vs. satellite-retrieved precipitation data. Those results showed that, for all five areas, crop yield estimates derived from satellite-retrieved precipitation data are closer to measured yields than are estimates derived from surface-based precipitation observations. Subsequent work has compared the relative performance of AI for time series derived from satellite-retrieved surface soil moisture data and from root zone soil moisture derived from the assimilation of surface soil moisture data into a land surface model. These results, which also showed the potential benefits of satellite data for analog year analyses, will be presented.

Surface Stabilized InP/GaP/ZnS Quantum Dots with Mg Ions for WLED Application.

PubMed

Park, Joong Pill; Kim, Sang-Wook

2016-05-01

One of the most highlighted cadmium-free quantum dots (QDs), InP-based QDs, have improved their optical properties. However, InP-based QDs have some practical drawbacks, for example, stability, compared with CdSe-based QDs. Poor stability of InP-based QDs yields critical problems, such as agglomeration and photoluminescence quenching in light emitting diode (LED). It has to be solved for applications and most research has focused on thick outer shells as an effective solution. We introduced magnesium cations for improving stability of InP-based QDs. We applied very small amounts of Mg cations as surface stabilizers, as a result, stability of QDs is clearly improved. Then, QD based LED chips also yield improved values including RA of 84.4, CCT of 3799 K, and luminous efficiency of 129.57 Im/W, which are highly improved data compared with our previous results.

Operational modelling: the mechanisms influencing TB diagnostic yield in an Xpert® MTB/RIF-based algorithm.

PubMed

Dunbar, R; Naidoo, P; Beyers, N; Langley, I

2017-04-01

Cape Town, South Africa. To compare the diagnostic yield for smear/culture and Xpert® MTB/RIF algorithms and to investigate the mechanisms influencing tuberculosis (TB) yield. We developed and validated an operational model of the TB diagnostic process, first with the smear/culture algorithm and then with the Xpert algorithm. We modelled scenarios by varying TB prevalence, adherence to diagnostic algorithms and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) status. This enabled direct comparisons of diagnostic yield in the two algorithms to be made. Routine data showed that diagnostic yield had decreased over the period of the Xpert algorithm roll-out compared to the yield when the smear/culture algorithm was in place. However, modelling yield under identical conditions indicated a 13.3% increase in diagnostic yield from the Xpert algorithm compared to smear/culture. The model demonstrated that the extensive use of culture in the smear/culture algorithm and the decline in TB prevalence are the main factors contributing to not finding an increase in diagnostic yield in the routine data. We demonstrate the benefits of an operational model to determine the effect of scale-up of a new diagnostic algorithm, and recommend that policy makers use operational modelling to make appropriate decisions before new diagnostic algorithms are scaled up.

Spatial variability in nutrient transport by HUC8, state, and subbasin based on Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin SPARROW models

USGS Publications Warehouse

Robertson, Dale M.; Saad, David A.; Schwarz, Gregory E.

2014-01-01

Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) loading from the Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin (MARB) has been linked to hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico. With geospatial datasets for 2002, including inputs from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), and monitored loads throughout the MARB, SPAtially Referenced Regression On Watershed attributes (SPARROW) watershed models were constructed specifically for the MARB, which reduced simulation errors from previous models. Based on these models, N loads/yields were highest from the central part (centered over Iowa and Indiana) of the MARB (Corn Belt), and the highest P yields were scattered throughout the MARB. Spatial differences in yields from previous studies resulted from different descriptions of the dominant sources (N yields are highest with crop-oriented agriculture and P yields are highest with crop and animal agriculture and major WWTPs) and different descriptions of downstream transport. Delivered loads/yields from the MARB SPARROW models are used to rank subbasins, states, and eight-digit Hydrologic Unit Code basins (HUC8s) by N and P contributions and then rankings are compared with those from other studies. Changes in delivered yields result in an average absolute change of 1.3 (N) and 1.9 (P) places in state ranking and 41 (N) and 69 (P) places in HUC8 ranking from those made with previous national-scale SPARROW models. This information may help managers decide where efforts could have the largest effects (highest ranked areas) and thus reduce hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico.

Effects of reduced nitrogen inputs on crop yield and nitrogen use efficiency in a long-term maize-soybean relay strip intercropping system.

PubMed

Chen, Ping; Du, Qing; Liu, Xiaoming; Zhou, Li; Hussain, Sajad; Lei, Lu; Song, Chun; Wang, Xiaochun; Liu, Weiguo; Yang, Feng; Shu, Kai; Liu, Jiang; Du, Junbo; Yang, Wenyu; Yong, Taiwen

2017-01-01

The blind pursuit of high yields via increased fertilizer inputs increases the environmental costs. Relay intercropping has advantages for yield, but a strategy for N management is urgently required to decrease N inputs without yield loss in maize-soybean relay intercropping systems (IMS). Experiments were conducted with three levels of N and three planting patterns, and dry matter accumulation, nitrogen uptake, nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), competition ratio (CR), system productivity index (SPI), land equivalent ratio (LER), and crop root distribution were investigated. Our results showed that the CR of soybean was greater than 1, and that the change in root distribution in space and time resulted in an interspecific facilitation in IMS. The maximum yield of maize under monoculture maize (MM) occurred with conventional nitrogen (CN), whereas under IMS, the maximum yield occurred with reduced nitrogen (RN). The yield of monoculture soybean (MS) and of soybean in IMS both reached a maximum under RN. The LER of IMS varied from 1.85 to 2.36, and the SPI peaked under RN. Additionally, the NUE of IMS increased by 103.7% under RN compared with that under CN. In conclusion, the separation of the root ecological niche contributed to a positive interspecific facilitation, which increased the land productivity. Thus, maize-soybean relay intercropping with reduced N input provides a very useful approach to increase land productivity and avert environmental pollution.

A comparison of microbial characteristics between the thermophilic and mesophilic anaerobic digesters exposed to elevated food waste loadings.

PubMed

Guo, Xiaohui; Wang, Cheng; Sun, Faqian; Zhu, Weijing; Wu, Weixiang

2014-01-01

Thermophilic and mesophilic anaerobic digestion reactors (TR and MR) using food waste as substrate were compared with emphasis on microbial responses to increasing organic loading rate (OLR). At OLR ranging from 1.0 to 2.5 g VS L(-1) d(-1), MR exhibited more stable performance compared to TR in terms of methane yield. Amplicons pyrosequencing results revealed the distinct microbial dynamics in the two reactors. Primarily, MR had greater richness and evenness of bacteria species. With OLR elevated, larger shifts of bacterial phylogeny were observed in MR; Methanosaeta dominated in archaeal community in MR while Methanothermobacter and Methanoculleus were favored in TR. The high functional redundancy in bacterial community integrated with acetoclastic methanogenesis in MR resulted in its better performance; whereas delicate interactions between hydrogen-producer and hydrogenotrophic methanogens in TR were much more prone to disruption. These results are conductive to understanding the microbial mechanisms of low methane yield during food waste anaerobic digestion. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Correlation Between Precipitation and Crop Yield for Corn and Cotton Produced in Alabama

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hayes, Carol E.; Perkey, Donald J.

1998-01-01

In this study, variations in precipitation during the time of corn silking are compared to Alabama corn yields. Also, this study compares precipitation variations during bloom to Alabama cotton yield. The goal is to obtain mathematical correlations between rainfall during the crop's critical period and the crop amount harvested per acre.

Ohmic Heating Assisted Lye Peeling of Pears.

PubMed

Gupta, Sarvesh; Sastry, Sudhir K

2018-05-01

Currently, high concentrations (15% to 18%) of lye (sodium hydroxide) are used in peeling pears, constituting a wastewater handling and disposal problem for fruit processors. In this study, the effect of ohmic heating on lye peeling of pears was investigated. Pears were peeled using 0.5%, 1%, 2%, and 3% NaOH under different electric field strengths at two run times and their peeled yields were compared to that obtained at 2% and 18% NaOH with conventional heating. Results revealed that ohmic heating results in greater than 95% peeled yields and the best peel quality at much lower concentrations of lye (2% NaOH at 532 V/m and 3% NaOH at 426 and 479 V/m) than those obtained under conventional heating conditions. Treatment times of 30 and 60 s showed no significant differences. Within the studied range, the effects of increasing field strength yielded no significant additional benefits. These results confirm that the concentration of lye can be significantly lowered in the presence of ohmic heating to achieve high peeled yields and quality. Our work shows that lye concentrations can be greatly reduced while peeling pears, resulting in significant savings in use of caustic chemicals, reduced costs for effluent treatment and waste disposal. © 2018 Institute of Food Technologists®.

All-inkjet-printed thin-film transistors: manufacturing process reliability by root cause analysis.

PubMed

Sowade, Enrico; Ramon, Eloi; Mitra, Kalyan Yoti; Martínez-Domingo, Carme; Pedró, Marta; Pallarès, Jofre; Loffredo, Fausta; Villani, Fulvia; Gomes, Henrique L; Terés, Lluís; Baumann, Reinhard R

2016-09-21

We report on the detailed electrical investigation of all-inkjet-printed thin-film transistor (TFT) arrays focusing on TFT failures and their origins. The TFT arrays were manufactured on flexible polymer substrates in ambient condition without the need for cleanroom environment or inert atmosphere and at a maximum temperature of 150 °C. Alternative manufacturing processes for electronic devices such as inkjet printing suffer from lower accuracy compared to traditional microelectronic manufacturing methods. Furthermore, usually printing methods do not allow the manufacturing of electronic devices with high yield (high number of functional devices). In general, the manufacturing yield is much lower compared to the established conventional manufacturing methods based on lithography. Thus, the focus of this contribution is set on a comprehensive analysis of defective TFTs printed by inkjet technology. Based on root cause analysis, we present the defects by developing failure categories and discuss the reasons for the defects. This procedure identifies failure origins and allows the optimization of the manufacturing resulting finally to a yield improvement.

[Effects of salt and waterlogging stress at post-anthesis stage on wheat grain yield and quality].

PubMed

Zheng, Chun-Fang; Jiang, Dong; Dai, Ting-Bo; Jing, Qi; Cao, Wei-Xing

2009-10-01

A pot experiment was conducted to study the effects of salt (ST), waterlogging (WL), and their combination (SW) at post-anthesis on the grain yield and its starch and protein components of wheat cultivars Yangmai 12 and Huaimai 17. Comparing with the control, treatments ST, WL, and SW, especially ST and SW, decreased the allocation of nitrogen and carbon assimilates at pre- and post-anthesis to the grains significantly, resulting in an obvious decrease of grain yield and its protein and starch contents. Both ST and SW had significant negative effects on the glutenin/gliadin and amylase/amylopectin ratios in the grains, compared to CK and WL. Yangmai 12 was more sensitive to ST than SW, while Huaimai 17 was in adverse. WL decreased the accumulation of protein and starch in the grains of the two cultivars. Except that the glutenin and albumin in Huaimai 17 had some increase, the globulin and gliadin in Huaimai 17 and all protein components in Yangmai 12 were decreased under WL.

The recursive maximum likelihood proportion estimator: User's guide and test results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vanrooy, D. L.

1976-01-01

Implementation of the recursive maximum likelihood proportion estimator is described. A user's guide to programs as they currently exist on the IBM 360/67 at LARS, Purdue is included, and test results on LANDSAT data are described. On Hill County data, the algorithm yields results comparable to the standard maximum likelihood proportion estimator.

Polariton-Assisted Singlet Fission in Acene Aggregates.

PubMed

Martínez-Martínez, Luis A; Du, Matthew; F Ribeiro, Raphael; Kéna-Cohen, Stéphane; Yuen-Zhou, Joel

2018-04-19

Singlet fission is an important candidate to increase energy conversion efficiency in organic photovoltaics by providing a pathway to increase the quantum yield of excitons per photon absorbed in select materials. We investigate the dependence of exciton quantum yield for acenes in the strong light-matter interaction (polariton) regime, where the materials are embedded in optical microcavities. Starting from an open-quantum-systems approach, we build a kinetic model for time-evolution of species of interest in the presence of singlet quenchers and show that polaritons can decrease or increase exciton quantum yields compared to the cavity-free case. In particular, we find that hexacene, under the conditions of our model, can feature a higher yield than cavity-free pentacene when assisted by polaritonic effects. Similarly, we show that pentacene yield can be increased when assisted by polariton states. Finally, we address how various relaxation processes between bright and dark states in lossy microcavities affect polariton photochemistry. Our results also provide insights on how to choose microcavities to enhance similarly related chemical processes.

Yield modeling of acoustic charge transport transversal filters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kenney, J. S.; May, G. S.; Hunt, W. D.

1995-01-01

This paper presents a yield model for acoustic charge transport transversal filters. This model differs from previous IC yield models in that it does not assume that individual failures of the nondestructive sensing taps necessarily cause a device failure. A redundancy in the number of taps included in the design is explained. Poisson statistics are used to describe the tap failures, weighted over a uniform defect density distribution. A representative design example is presented. The minimum number of taps needed to realize the filter is calculated, and tap weights for various numbers of redundant taps are calculated. The critical area for device failure is calculated for each level of redundancy. Yield is predicted for a range of defect densities and redundancies. To verify the model, a Monte Carlo simulation is performed on an equivalent circuit model of the device. The results of the yield model are then compared to the Monte Carlo simulation. Better than 95% agreement was obtained for the Poisson model with redundant taps ranging from 30% to 150% over the minimum.

[Effects of increased planting density with reduced nitrogen fertilizer application on rice yield, N use efficiency and greenhouse gas emission in Northeast China].

PubMed

Zhu, Xiang-cheng; Zhang, Zhen-ping; Zhang, Jun; Deng, Ai-xing; Zhang, Wei-jian

2016-02-01

The traditional rice growing practice has to change to save resource and protect environment, and it' s necessary to develop new technology in rice cultivation. Therefore, a two-year field experiment of Japonica rice (Liaoxing 1) was conducted in Northeast China in 2012 and 2013 to investigate the integrated effects of dense planting with less basal nitrogen (N) and unchanged top-dressing N (IR) on rice yield, N use efficiency (NUE) and greenhouse gas emissions. Compared with traditional practice (CK), we increased the rice seedling density by 33.3% and reduced the basal N rate by 20%. The results showed that the average N agronomy efficiency and partial factor productivity were improved by 49.6% (P<0.05) and 20.4% (P<0.05), respectively, while the area and yield-scaled greenhouse gas emissions were reduced by 9.9% and 12.7% (P<0.05), respectively. Although IR cropping mode decreased panicle number and biomass production, it significantly enhanced rice seed setting rate and harvest index, resulting in an unchanged or even highei yield. NH4+-N and NO3(-)-N concentrations in rice rhizosphere soil were reduced, resulting in an increment of N recovery efficiency. Generally, proper dense planting with less basal N applicatior could be a good approach for the trade-off between rice yield, NUE and greenhouse gas emission.

Economic impacts of climate change on agriculture: a comparison of process-based and statistical yield models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moore, Frances C.; Baldos, Uris Lantz C.; Hertel, Thomas

2017-06-01

A large number of studies have been published examining the implications of climate change for agricultural productivity that, broadly speaking, can be divided into process-based modeling and statistical approaches. Despite a general perception that results from these methods differ substantially, there have been few direct comparisons. Here we use a data-base of yield impact studies compiled for the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report (Porter et al 2014) to systematically compare results from process-based and empirical studies. Controlling for differences in representation of CO2 fertilization between the two methods, we find little evidence for differences in the yield response to warming. The magnitude of CO2 fertilization is instead a much larger source of uncertainty. Based on this set of impact results, we find a very limited potential for on-farm adaptation to reduce yield impacts. We use the Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) global economic model to estimate welfare consequences of yield changes and find negligible welfare changes for warming of 1 °C-2 °C if CO2 fertilization is included and large negative effects on welfare without CO2. Uncertainty bounds on welfare changes are highly asymmetric, showing substantial probability of large declines in welfare for warming of 2 °C-3 °C even including the CO2 fertilization effect.

Comparison of spot esculin hydrolysis with the PathoTec strip test for rapid differentiation of anaerobic bacteria.

PubMed Central

Qadri, S M; Johnson, S; Smith, J C; Zubairi, S; Gillum, R L

1981-01-01

The ability of several anaerobic bacteria to hydrolyze esculin to esculetin is used by clinical microbiologists and taxonomists in the differentiation and identification of both gram-positive and gram-negative microorganisms. Conventional methods used for determining esculin hydrolysis by anaerobic bacteria require 24 to 48 h for completion. In this paper we evaluate two procedures which yield rapid results. A total of 738 anaerobic bacteria were used in this study. A total of 99% of the esculin-hydrolyzing anaerobic bacteria gave positive results with the spot test in 1 h, whereas the other test method, the PathoTec strip test (General Diagnostics, Morris Plains, N.J.), required 4 h for 96% of the strains tested to yield positive reactions. Both tests showed a 100% specificity when compared with the standard broth test and are easy to perform, accurate, and economical. The spot test is superior to the PathoTec strip test in yielding results more rapidly. PMID:7016896

Azimuthally anisotropic emission of low-momentum direct photons in Au + Au collisions at s N N = 200 GeV

DOE PAGES

Adare, A.; Afanasiev, S.; Aidala, C.; ...

2016-12-06

Inmore » this paper, the PHENIX experiment at the BNL Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider has measured second- and third-order Fourier coefficients of the azimuthal distributions of direct photons emitted at midrapidity in Au + Au collisions at s N N = 200 GeV for various collision centralities. Combining two different analysis techniques, results were obtained in the transverse momentum range of 0.4 < p T < 4.0 GeV/c. At low p T the second-order coefficients, v 2, are similar to the ones observed in hadrons. Third-order coefficients, v 3, are nonzero and almost independent of centrality. These new results on v 2 and v 3, combined with previously published results on yields, are compared to model calculations that provide yields and asymmetries in the same framework. Finally, those models are challenged to explain simultaneously the observed large yield and large azimuthal anisotropies.« less

A study on tensile deformation at room temperature and 650 °C in the directional solidified Ni-base superalloy GTD-111

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pauzi, AA; Ghaffar, MH Abdul; Chang, SY; Ng, GP; Husin, S.

2017-10-01

GTD-111 DS generally used for gas turbine blades is a high performance Ni-base superalloy. This alloy, with high volume of γ’ phase, has excellent tensile properties at high temperature. The effect of temperature on the tensile deformation of GTD-111 DS was investigated by using tensile test and microstructure evaluation of the fractured specimens. The tensile behaviour of GTD-111 DS was studied in the room temperature (RT) and 650 °C. From the yield strength results, the yield strength decreases from the average of 702.72 MPa to the average of 645.62 MPa with the increase of temperature from RT to 650 °C. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) results on fractured specimens confirmed that the tensile behaviour affected by deformation of the surface at 650 °C compared to fractured surface at RT. Based on the laboratory testing results, the correlation between tensile deformation of fractured surface and yield strength were discussed.

Effects of Tropical Rotation Crops on Meloidogyne arenaria Population Densities and Vegetable Yields in Microplots.

PubMed

McSorley, R; Dickson, D W; de Brito, J A; Hewlett, T E; Frederick, J J

1994-06-01

The effects of 12 summer crop rotation treatments on population densities of Meloidogyne arenaria race 1 and on yields of subsequent spring vegetable crops were determined in microplots. The crop sequence was: (i) rotation crops during summer 1991 ; (ii) cover crop of rye (Secale cereale) during winter 1991-92; (iii) squash (Cucurbita pepo) during spring 1992; (iv) rotation crops during summer 1992; (v) rye during winter 1992-93; (vi) eggplant (Solanum melongena) during spring 1993. The 12 rotation treatments were castor (Ricinus communis), cotton (Gossypium hirsutum), velvetbean (Mucuna deeringiana), crotalaria (Crotalaria spectabilis), fallow, hairy indigo (Indigofera hirsuta), American jointvetch (Aeschynomene americana), sorghum-sudangrass (Sorghum bicolor x S. sudanense), soybean (Glycine max), horsebean (Canavalia ensiformis), sesame (Sesamum indicum), and peanut (Arachis hypogaea). Compared to peanut, the first eight rotation treatments resulted in lower (P

Interactions of Heterodera glycines, Macrophomina phaseolina, and Mycorrhizal Fungi on Soybean in Kansas.

PubMed

Winkler, H E; Hetrick, B A; Todd, T C

1994-12-01

The impact of naturally occurring arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on soybean growth and their interaction with Heterodera glycines were evaluated in nematode-infested and uninfested fields in Kansas. Ten soybean cultivars from Maturity Groups III-V with differential susceptibility to H. glycines were treated with the fungicide benomyl to suppress colonization by naturally occurring mycorrhizal fungi and compared with untreated control plots. In H. glycines-infested soil, susceptible cultivars exhibited 39% lower yields, 28% lower colonization by mycorrhizal fungi, and an eightfold increase in colonization by the charcoal rot fungus, Macrophomina phaseolina, compared with resistant cultivars. In the absence of the nematode, susceptible cultivars exhibited 10% lower yields than resistant cultivars, root colonization of resistant vs. susceptible soybean by mycorrhizal fungi varied with sampling date, and there were no differences in colonization by M. phaseolina between resistant and susceptible cultivars. Benomyl application resulted in 19% greater root growth and 9% higher seed yields in H. glycines-infested soil, but did not affect soybean growth and yield in the absence of the nematode. Colonization of soybean roots by mycorrhizal fungi was negatively correlated with H. glycines population densities due to nematode antagonism to the mycorrhizal fungi rather than suppression of nematode populations. Soybean yields were a function of the pathogenic effects of H. glycines and M. phaseolina, and, to a lesser degree, the stimulatory effects of mycorrhizal fungi.

Evaluation of nanoparticle-immobilized cellulase for improved ethanol yield in simultaneous saccharification and fermentation reactions

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

Lupoi, Jason; Smith, Emily

2011-12-01

Ethanol yields were 2.1 (P = 0.06) to 2.3 (P = 0.01) times higher in simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) reactions of microcrystalline cellulose when cellulase was physisorbed on silica nanoparticles compared to enzyme in solution. In SSF reactions, cellulose is hydrolyzed to glucose by cellulase while yeast simultaneously ferments glucose to ethanol. The 35 C temperature and the presence of ethanol in SSF reactions are not optimal conditions for cellulase. Immobilization onto solid supports can stabilize the enzyme and promote activity at non-optimum reaction conditions. Mock SSF reactions that did not contain yeast were used to measure saccharification productsmore » and identify the mechanism for the improved ethanol yield using immobilized cellulase. Cellulase adsorbed to 40 nm silica nanoparticles produced 1.6 times (P = 0.01) more glucose than cellulase in solution in 96 h at pH 4.8 and 35 C. There was no significant accumulation (<250 {mu}g) of soluble cellooligomers in either the solution or immobilized enzyme reactions. This suggests that the mechanism for the immobilized enzyme's improved glucose yield compared to solution enzyme is the increased conversion of insoluble cellulose hydrolysis products to soluble cellooligomers at 35 C and in the presence of ethanol. The results show that silica-immobilized cellulase can be used to produce increased ethanol yields in the conversion of lignocellulosic materials by SSF.« less

Nitrogen rate strategies for reducing yield-scaled nitrous oxide emissions in maize

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Xu; Nafziger, Emerson D.; Pittelkow, Cameron M.

2017-12-01

Mitigating nitrogen (N) losses from agriculture without negatively impacting crop productivity is a pressing environmental and economic challenge. Reductions in N fertilizer rate are often highlighted as a solution, yet the degree to which crop yields and economic returns may be impacted at the field-level remains unclear, in part due to limited data availability. Farmers are risk averse and potential yield losses may limit the success of voluntary N loss mitigation protocols, thus understanding field-level yield tradeoffs is critical to inform policy development. Using a case study of soil N2O mitigation in the US Midwest, we conducted an ex-post assessment of two economic and two environmental N rate reduction strategies to identify promising practices for maintaining maize yields and economic returns while reducing N2O emissions per unit yield (i.e. yield-scaled emissions) compared to an assumed baseline N input level. Maize yield response data from 201 on-farm N rate experiments were combined with an empirical equation predicting N2O emissions as a function of N rate. Results indicate that the economic strategy aimed at maximizing returns to N (MRTN) led to moderate but consistent reductions in yield-scaled N2O emissions with small negative impacts on yield and slight increases in median returns. The economic optimum N rate strategy reduced yield-scaled N2O emissions in 75% of cases but increased them otherwise, challenging the assumption that this strategy will automatically reduce environmental impacts per unit production. Both environmental strategies, one designed to increase N recovery efficiency and one to balance N inputs with grain N removal, further reduced yield-scaled N2O emissions but were also associated with negative yield penalties and decreased returns. These results highlight the inherent tension between achieving agronomic and economic goals while reducing environmental impacts which is often overlooked in policy discussions. To enable the development of more scalable environmental N loss mitigation strategies, yield tradeoffs occurring at the critical point of adoption (i.e. the farm-level) should be considered.

A New Approach to Simulate Groundwater Table Dynamics and Its Validation in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lv, M.; Lu, H.; Dan, L.; Yang, K.

2017-12-01

The groundwater has very important role in hydrology-climate-human activity interaction. But the groundwater table dynamics currently is not well simulated in global-scale land surface models. Meanwhile, almost all groundwater schemes are adopting a specific yield method to estimate groundwater table, in which how to determine the proper specific yield value remains a big challenge. In this study, we developed a Soil Moisture Correlation (SMC) method to simulate groundwater table dynamics. We coupled SMC with a hydrological model (named as NEW) and compared it with the original model in which a specific yield method is used (named as CTL). Both NEW and CTL were tested in Tangnaihai Subbasin of Yellow River and Jialingjiang Subbasin along Yangtze River, where underground water is less impacted by human activities. The simulated discharges by NEW and CTL are compared against gauge observations. The comparison results reveal that after calibration both models are able to reproduce the discharge well. However, there is no parameter needed to be calibrated for SMC. It indicates that SMC method is more efficient and easy-to-use than the specific yield method. Since there is no direct groundwater table observation in these two basins, simulated groundwater table were compared with a global data set provided by Fan et al. (2013). Both NEW and CTL estimate lower depths than Fan does. Moreover, when comparing the variation of terrestrial water storage (TWS) derived from NEW with that observed by GRACE, good agreements were confirmed. It demonstrated that SMC method is able to reproduce groundwater level dynamics reliably.

Prediction of Enzyme Mutant Activity Using Computational Mutagenesis and Incremental Transduction

PubMed Central

Basit, Nada; Wechsler, Harry

2011-01-01

Wet laboratory mutagenesis to determine enzyme activity changes is expensive and time consuming. This paper expands on standard one-shot learning by proposing an incremental transductive method (T2bRF) for the prediction of enzyme mutant activity during mutagenesis using Delaunay tessellation and 4-body statistical potentials for representation. Incremental learning is in tune with both eScience and actual experimentation, as it accounts for cumulative annotation effects of enzyme mutant activity over time. The experimental results reported, using cross-validation, show that overall the incremental transductive method proposed, using random forest as base classifier, yields better results compared to one-shot learning methods. T2bRF is shown to yield 90% on T4 and LAC (and 86% on HIV-1). This is significantly better than state-of-the-art competing methods, whose performance yield is at 80% or less using the same datasets. PMID:22007208

Splitting parameter yield (SPY): A program for semiautomatic analysis of shear-wave splitting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaccarelli, Lucia; Bianco, Francesca; Zaccarelli, Riccardo

2012-03-01

SPY is a Matlab algorithm that analyzes seismic waveforms in a semiautomatic way, providing estimates of the two observables of the anisotropy: the shear-wave splitting parameters. We chose to exploit those computational processes that require less intervention by the user, gaining objectivity and reliability as a result. The algorithm joins the covariance matrix and the cross-correlation techniques, and all the computation steps are interspersed by several automatic checks intended to verify the reliability of the yields. The resulting semiautomation generates two new advantages in the field of anisotropy studies: handling a huge amount of data at the same time, and comparing different yields. From this perspective, SPY has been developed in the Matlab environment, which is widespread, versatile, and user-friendly. Our intention is to provide the scientific community with a new monitoring tool for tracking the temporal variations of the crustal stress field.

Integrated crop management practices for maximizing grain yield of double-season rice crop.

PubMed

Wang, Depeng; Huang, Jianliang; Nie, Lixiao; Wang, Fei; Ling, Xiaoxia; Cui, Kehui; Li, Yong; Peng, Shaobing

2017-01-12

Information on maximum grain yield and its attributes are limited for double-season rice crop grown under the subtropical environment. This study was conducted to examine key characteristics associated with high yielding double-season rice crop through a comparison between an integrated crop management (ICM) and farmers' practice (FP). Field experiments were conducted in the early and late seasons in the subtropical environment of Wuxue County, Hubei Province, China in 2013 and 2014. On average, grain yield in ICM was 13.5% higher than that in FP. A maximum grain yield of 9.40 and 10.53 t ha -1 was achieved under ICM in the early- and late-season rice, respectively. Yield improvement of double-season rice with ICM was achieved with the combined effects of increased plant density and optimized nutrient management. Yield gain of ICM resulted from a combination of increases in sink size due to more panicle number per unit area and biomass production, further supported by the increased leaf area index, leaf area duration, radiation use efficiency, crop growth rate, and total nitrogen uptake compared with FP. Further enhancement in the yield potential of double-season rice should focus on increasing crop growth rate and biomass production through improved and integrated crop management practices.

Prior Surgery Determines Islet Yield and Insulin Requirement in Patients with Chronic Pancreatitis

PubMed Central

Wang, Hongjun; Desai, Krupa D; Dong, Huansheng; Owzarski, Stefanie; Romagnuolo, Joseph; Morgan, Katherine A; Adams, David B

2013-01-01

Background Total pancreatectomy with islet autotransplantation (TP-IAT) is safe and effective in the management of intractable pain associated with chronic pancreatitis (CP). Prevention of pancreatogenic diabetes after TP-IAT is related to islet yield from the diseased pancreas. The purpose of this study is to compare islet yield and insulin requirement in the 76 patients who underwent different surgical procedures prior to TP-IAT at the Medical University of South Carolina between the years 2009 to 2011. Methods Patients were grouped into four categories based on the operation they had before TP-IAT: transduodenal sphincteroplasty or no prior surgery (TDS/NPS, n=50), Whipple or Beger procedure (WB, n=14), distal pancreatectomy (DP, n=8) or lateral pancreaticojejunostomy (LPJ, n=4). Islets were harvested from pancreases of those patients at our cGMP facility. Total unpurified islets were transplanted into patients via portal vein infusion. Pancreatic fibrosis, islet yield, cell viability and insulin requirement were measured. Results The pancreases of TDS/NPS and WB patients were less fibrotic, and had higher islet yield compared to those who had DP or LPJ. Higher islet yield also correlated with a greater diabetes free rate and a lesser insulin requirement at the following intervals: pre-operative, post-operative and 6 months after TP-IAT. Conclusions Prior surgery is strongly correlated with the extent of pancreatic fibrosis, islet yield and insulin requirements in CP patients undergoing TP-IAT. The history of prior pancreatic resection and drainage procedures may be used to predict post-operative islet function and help to determine the optimal timing for TP-IAT in CP patients. PMID:23411743

Theoretical analysis of the overtone-induced isomerization of methyl isocyanide

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

Miller, J.A.; Chandler, D.W.

1986-10-15

A master-equation formalism is applied to the problem of overtone-induced isomerization of CH/sub 3/NC to CH/sub 3/CN. The results are compared to the experiments of Reddy and Berry, who measured the yield of isomerization as a function of pressure after excitation to the fourth and fifth overtones of the CH stretching mode. The master-equation model predicts the yield and the curvature in the yield/sup -1/ vs pressure plots observed in the experiments. For the lower overtone (50) the results are consistent with a simple strong-collider model. However, even under strong-collider conditions the yield is very sensitive to the parameters inmore » the master equation. For the upper overtone (60) the data do not fit a strong collider model and multistep deactivation dominates. We are able to determine from the data the average energy transferred in a collision by assuming a particular form for the energy-transfer function. In addition, the effect of changing the shape of the energy-transfer function is investigated.« less

Flower synchrony, growth and yield enhancement of small type bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.) through plant growth regulators and NPK fertilization.

PubMed

Mia, Baset M A; Islam, Md Serajul; Miah, Md Yunus; Das, M R; Khan, H I

2014-02-01

Assessment of growth regulator and NPK fertilization effects are important tools for flower stimulation and yield improvement in cucurbits. This investigation demonstrates the comparative male-female flower induction and fruit yield of small sized bitter gourd treated with NPK fertilizers and plant growth regulators. Namely, two experiments having three replicates were conducted in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with NPK fertilization and plant growth regulators-GA3, NAA and Ethophon application on small sized bitter gourd-genotype BG5 at the research field of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University (BSMRAU). In experiment 1, different doses of NPK fertilizers comprised of 10 treatments and in that of experiment 2, different levels of plant growth regulators indicated 10 treatments. The results indicated that application of different doses of NPK fertilizer and plant growth regulators significantly (< or = 0.05) influenced over the flower initiation and fruit setting. The application of N90-P45-K60 fertilizer along with Ethophon spraying resulted in the better yield of small sized bitter gourd.

Comparison of mechanical and microstructural properties of conventional and severe plastic deformation processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Szombathelyi, V.; Krallics, Gy

2014-08-01

The effect of the deformation processes on yield stress, Vickers microhardness and dislocation density were investigated using commercial purity (A1050) and alloyed aluminum (Al 6082). For the evolution of the dislocation density X-ray line profile analysis was used. In the large plastic strain range the variation of mechanical and microstructure evolution of A1050 and of Al 6082 processed by equal channel angular pressing are investigated using route BC and route C. In the plastic strain range up to 3 plane strain compression test was used to evaluate mechanical properties. The hardness and the yield stress showed a sharp increase after the first pass. In the case of A1050 it was found that the two examined routes has not resulted difference in the flow stress. In the case of Al 6082 the effect of the routes on the yield stress is significant. The present results showed that in the comparable plastic strain range higher yield stress values can be achieved by plane strain compression test than by ECAP.

Modeling the Complex Impacts of Timber Harvests to Find Optimal Management Regimes for Amazon Tidal Floodplain Forests

PubMed Central

Fortini, Lucas B.; Cropper, Wendell P.; Zarin, Daniel J.

2015-01-01

At the Amazon estuary, the oldest logging frontier in the Amazon, no studies have comprehensively explored the potential long-term population and yield consequences of multiple timber harvests over time. Matrix population modeling is one way to simulate long-term impacts of tree harvests, but this approach has often ignored common impacts of tree harvests including incidental damage, changes in post-harvest demography, shifts in the distribution of merchantable trees, and shifts in stand composition. We designed a matrix-based forest management model that incorporates these harvest-related impacts so resulting simulations reflect forest stand dynamics under repeated timber harvests as well as the realities of local smallholder timber management systems. Using a wide range of values for management criteria (e.g., length of cutting cycle, minimum cut diameter), we projected the long-term population dynamics and yields of hundreds of timber management regimes in the Amazon estuary, where small-scale, unmechanized logging is an important economic activity. These results were then compared to find optimal stand-level and species-specific sustainable timber management (STM) regimes using a set of timber yield and population growth indicators. Prospects for STM in Amazonian tidal floodplain forests are better than for many other tropical forests. However, generally high stock recovery rates between harvests are due to the comparatively high projected mean annualized yields from fast-growing species that effectively counterbalance the projected yield declines from other species. For Amazonian tidal floodplain forests, national management guidelines provide neither the highest yields nor the highest sustained population growth for species under management. Our research shows that management guidelines specific to a region’s ecological settings can be further refined to consider differences in species demographic responses to repeated harvests. In principle, such fine-tuned management guidelines could make management more attractive, thus bridging the currently prevalent gap between tropical timber management practice and regulation. PMID:26322896

Genetic analysis of milk production traits of Tunisian Holsteins using random regression test-day model with Legendre polynomials

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

Objective The objective of this study was to estimate genetic parameters of milk, fat, and protein yields within and across lactations in Tunisian Holsteins using a random regression test-day (TD) model. Methods A random regression multiple trait multiple lactation TD model was used to estimate genetic parameters in the Tunisian dairy cattle population. Data were TD yields of milk, fat, and protein from the first three lactations. Random regressions were modeled with third-order Legendre polynomials for the additive genetic, and permanent environment effects. Heritabilities, and genetic correlations were estimated by Bayesian techniques using the Gibbs sampler. Results All variance components tended to be high in the beginning and the end of lactations. Additive genetic variances for milk, fat, and protein yields were the lowest and were the least variable compared to permanent variances. Heritability values tended to increase with parity. Estimates of heritabilities for 305-d yield-traits were low to moderate, 0.14 to 0.2, 0.12 to 0.17, and 0.13 to 0.18 for milk, fat, and protein yields, respectively. Within-parity, genetic correlations among traits were up to 0.74. Genetic correlations among lactations for the yield traits were relatively high and ranged from 0.78±0.01 to 0.82±0.03, between the first and second parities, from 0.73±0.03 to 0.8±0.04 between the first and third parities, and from 0.82±0.02 to 0.84±0.04 between the second and third parities. Conclusion These results are comparable to previously reported estimates on the same population, indicating that the adoption of a random regression TD model as the official genetic evaluation for production traits in Tunisia, as developed by most Interbull countries, is possible in the Tunisian Holsteins. PMID:28823122

Modeling the complex impacts of timber harvests to find optimal management regimes for Amazon tidal floodplain forests

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fortini, Lucas B.; Cropper, Wendell P.; Zarin, Daniel J.

2015-01-01

At the Amazon estuary, the oldest logging frontier in the Amazon, no studies have comprehensively explored the potential long-term population and yield consequences of multiple timber harvests over time. Matrix population modeling is one way to simulate long-term impacts of tree harvests, but this approach has often ignored common impacts of tree harvests including incidental damage, changes in post-harvest demography, shifts in the distribution of merchantable trees, and shifts in stand composition. We designed a matrix-based forest management model that incorporates these harvest-related impacts so resulting simulations reflect forest stand dynamics under repeated timber harvests as well as the realities of local smallholder timber management systems. Using a wide range of values for management criteria (e.g., length of cutting cycle, minimum cut diameter), we projected the long-term population dynamics and yields of hundreds of timber management regimes in the Amazon estuary, where small-scale, unmechanized logging is an important economic activity. These results were then compared to find optimal stand-level and species-specific sustainable timber management (STM) regimes using a set of timber yield and population growth indicators. Prospects for STM in Amazonian tidal floodplain forests are better than for many other tropical forests. However, generally high stock recovery rates between harvests are due to the comparatively high projected mean annualized yields from fast-growing species that effectively counterbalance the projected yield declines from other species. For Amazonian tidal floodplain forests, national management guidelines provide neither the highest yields nor the highest sustained population growth for species under management. Our research shows that management guidelines specific to a region’s ecological settings can be further refined to consider differences in species demographic responses to repeated harvests. In principle, such fine-tuned management guidelines could make management more attractive, thus bridging the currently prevalent gap between tropical timber management practice and regulation.

Reduced irrigation increases the water use efficiency and productivity of winter wheat-summer maize rotation on the North China Plain.

PubMed

Wang, Yunqi; Zhang, Yinghua; Zhang, Rui; Li, Jinpeng; Zhang, Meng; Zhou, Shunli; Wang, Zhimin

2018-03-15

The groundwater table has fallen sharply over the last 30years on the North China Plain, resulting in a shortage of water for winter wheat irrigation. Reducing irrigation may be an important strategy to maintain agricultural sustainability in the region; however, few studies have evaluated the transition from conventional irrigation management practices to reduced irrigation management practices in the winter wheat-summer maize rotation system. Here, we compare the yield, water consumption, and water use efficiency of winter wheat-summer maize rotation under conventional irrigation and reduced irrigation on the North China Plain from 2012 to 2015. Reducing irrigation decreased the yield but increased the water use efficiency and significantly advanced the harvest date of winter wheat. As a result, the summer maize sowing date advanced significantly, and the flowering date subsequently advanced 2-8days, thus extending the summer maize grain-filling stage. Therefore, the yield and water use efficiency of summer maize were higher under reduced irrigation than conventional irrigation, which compensated for the winter wheat yield loss under reduced irrigation. In addition, under reduced irrigation from 2012 to 2015, the yield and water use efficiency advantage of the winter wheat-summer maize rotation ranged from 0.0 to 9.7% and from 4.1 to 14.7%, respectively, and water consumption and irrigated water decreased by 20-61mm and 150mm, respectively, compared to conventional irrigation. Overall, the reduced irrigation management practice involving no irrigation after sowing winter wheat, and sowing summer maize on June 7 produced the most favorable grain yield with superb water use efficiency in the winter wheat-summer maize rotation. This study indicates that reducing irrigation could be an efficient means to cope with water resource shortages while maintaining crop production sustainability on the North China Plain. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Comparison of 21-gauge and 22-gauge aspiration needle in endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration: results of the American College of Chest Physicians Quality Improvement Registry, Education, and Evaluation Registry.

PubMed

Yarmus, Lonny B; Akulian, Jason; Lechtzin, Noah; Yasin, Faiza; Kamdar, Biren; Ernst, Armin; Ost, David E; Ray, Cynthia; Greenhill, Sarah R; Jimenez, Carlos A; Filner, Joshua; Feller-Kopman, David

2013-04-01

Endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) is a minimally invasive procedure originally performed using a 22-gauge (22G) needle. A recently introduced 21-gauge (21G) needle may improve the diagnostic yield and sample adequacy of EBUS-TBNA, but prior smaller studies have shown conflicting results. To our knowledge, this is the largest study undertaken to date to determine whether the 21G needle adds diagnostic benefit. We retrospectively evaluated the results of 1,299 patients from the American College of Chest Physicians Quality Improvement Registry, Education, and Evaluation (AQuIRE) Diagnostic Registry who underwent EBUS-TBNA between February 2009 and September 2010 at six centers throughout the United States. Data collection included patient demographics, sample adequacy, and diagnostic yield. Analysis consisted of univariate and multivariate hierarchical logistic regression comparing diagnostic yield and sample adequacy of EBUS-TBNA specimens by needle gauge. A total of 1,235 patients met inclusion criteria. Sample adequacy was obtained in 94.9% of the 22G needle group and in 94.6% of the 21G needle group (P = .81). A diagnosis was made in 51.4% of the 22G and 51.3% of the 21G groups (P = .98). Multivariate hierarchical logistic regression showed no statistical difference in sample adequacy or diagnostic yield between the two groups. The presence of rapid onsite cytologic evaluation was associated with significantly fewer needle passes per procedure when using the 21G needle (P < .001). There is no difference in specimen adequacy or diagnostic yield between the 21G and 22G needle groups. EBUS-TBNA in conjunction with rapid onsite cytologic evaluation and a 21G needle is associated with fewer needle passes compared with a 22G needle.

The effect of temperature on reproduction in the summer and winter annual Arabidopsis thaliana ecotypes Bur and Cvi

PubMed Central

Huang, Ziyue; Footitt, Steven; Finch-Savage, William E.

2014-01-01

Background and Aims Seed yield and dormancy status are key components of species fitness that are influenced by the maternal environment, in particular temperature. Responses to environmental conditions can differ between ecotypes of the same species. Therefore, to investigate the effect of maternal environment on seed production, this study compared two contrasting Arabidopsis thaliana ecotypes, Cape Verdi Isle (Cvi) and Burren (Bur). Cvi is adapted to a hot dry climate and Bur to a cool damp climate, and they exhibit winter and summer annual phenotypes, respectively. Methods Bur and Cvi plants were grown in reciprocal controlled environments that simulated their native environments. Reproductive development, seed production and subsequent germination behaviour were investigated. Measurements included: pollen viability, the development of floral structure, and germination at 10 and 25 °C in the light to determine dormancy status. Floral development was further investigated by applying gibberellins (GAs) to alter the pistil:stamen ratio. Key Results Temperature during seed development determined seed dormancy status. In addition, seed yield was greatly reduced by higher temperature, especially in Bur (>90 %) compared with Cvi (approx. 50 %). The reproductive organs (i.e. stamens) of Bur plants were very sensitive to high temperature during early flowering. Viability of pollen was unaffected, but limited filament extension relative to that of the pistils resulted in failure to pollinate. Thus GA applied to flowers to enhance filament extension largely overcame the effect of high temperature on yield. Conclusions High temperature in the maternal environment reduced dormancy and negatively affected the final seed yield of both ecotypes; however, the extent of these responses differed, demonstrating natural variation. Reduced seed yield in Bur resulted from altered floral development not reduced pollen viability. Future higher temperatures will impact on seed performance, but the consequences may differ significantly between ecotypes of the same species. PMID:24573642

Statistical analysis of corn yields responding to climate variability at various spatio-temporal resolutions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jiang, H.; Lin, T.

2017-12-01

Rain-fed corn production systems are subject to sub-seasonal variations of precipitation and temperature during the growing season. As each growth phase has varied inherent physiological process, plants necessitate different optimal environmental conditions during each phase. However, this temporal heterogeneity towards climate variability alongside the lifecycle of crops is often simplified and fixed as constant responses in large scale statistical modeling analysis. To capture the time-variant growing requirements in large scale statistical analysis, we develop and compare statistical models at various spatial and temporal resolutions to quantify the relationship between corn yield and weather factors for 12 corn belt states from 1981 to 2016. The study compares three spatial resolutions (county, agricultural district, and state scale) and three temporal resolutions (crop growth phase, monthly, and growing season) to characterize the effects of spatial and temporal variability. Our results show that the agricultural district model together with growth phase resolution can explain 52% variations of corn yield caused by temperature and precipitation variability. It provides a practical model structure balancing the overfitting problem in county specific model and weak explanation power in state specific model. In US corn belt, precipitation has positive impact on corn yield in growing season except for vegetative stage while extreme heat attains highest sensitivity from silking to dough phase. The results show the northern counties in corn belt area are less interfered by extreme heat but are more vulnerable to water deficiency.

Factors controlling headspace pressure in a manual manometric BMP method can be used to produce a methane output comparable to AMPTS.

PubMed

Himanshu, H; Voelklein, M A; Murphy, J D; Grant, J; O'Kiely, P

2017-08-01

The manual manometric biochemical methane potential (mBMP) test uses the increase in pressure to calculate the gas produced. This gas production may be affected by the headspace volume in the incubation bottle and by the overhead pressure measurement and release (OHPMR) frequency. The biogas and methane yields of cellulose, barley, silage and slurry were compared with three incubation bottle headspace volumes (50, 90 and 180ml; constant 70ml total medium) and four OHPMR frequencies (daily, each third day, weekly and solely at the end of experiment). The methane yields of barley, silage and slurry were compared with those from an automated volumetric method (AMPTS). Headspace volume and OHPMR frequency effects on biogas yield were mediated mainly through headspace pressure, with the latter having a negative effect on the biogas yield measured and relatively little effect on methane yield. Two mBMP treatments produced methane yields equivalent to AMPTS. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Vertical farming increases lettuce yield per unit area compared to conventional horizontal hydroponics.

PubMed

Touliatos, Dionysios; Dodd, Ian C; McAinsh, Martin

2016-08-01

Vertical farming systems (VFS) have been proposed as an engineering solution to increase productivity per unit area of cultivated land by extending crop production into the vertical dimension. To test whether this approach presents a viable alternative to horizontal crop production systems, a VFS (where plants were grown in upright cylindrical columns) was compared against a conventional horizontal hydroponic system (HHS) using lettuce ( Lactuca sativa L . cv. "Little Gem") as a model crop. Both systems had similar root zone volume and planting density. Half-strength Hoagland's solution was applied to plants grown in perlite in an indoor controlled environment room, with metal halide lamps providing artificial lighting. Light distribution (photosynthetic photon flux density, PPFD) and yield (shoot fresh weight) within each system were assessed. Although PPFD and shoot fresh weight decreased significantly in the VFS from top to base, the VFS produced more crop per unit of growing floor area when compared with the HHS. Our results clearly demonstrate that VFS presents an attractive alternative to horizontal hydroponic growth systems and suggest that further increases in yield could be achieved by incorporating artificial lighting in the VFS.

Production of scandium-44 m and scandium-44 g with deuterons on calcium-44: cross section measurements and production yield calculations.

PubMed

Duchemin, C; Guertin, A; Haddad, F; Michel, N; Métivier, V

2015-09-07

HIGHLIGHTS • Production of Sc-44 m, Sc-44 g and contaminants. • Experimental values determined using the stacked-foil technique. • Thick-Target production Yield (TTY) calculations. • Comparison with the TALYS code version 1.6.Among the large number of radionuclides of medical interest, Sc-44 is promising for PET imaging. Either the ground-state Sc-44 g or the metastable-state Sc-44 m can be used for such applications, depending on the molecule used as vector. This study compares the production rates of both Sc-44 states, when protons or deuterons are used as projectiles on an enriched Calcium-44 target. This work presents the first set of data for the deuteron route. The results are compared with the TALYS code. The Thick-Target production Yields of Sc-44 m and Sc-44 g are calculated and compared with those for the proton route for three different scenarios: the production of Sc-44 g for conventional PET imaging, its production for the new 3 γ imaging technique developed at the SUBATECH laboratory and the production of a Sc-44 m/Sc-44 g in vivo generator for antibody labelling.

Modeling the impact of conservation agriculture on crop production and soil properties in Mediterranean climate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moussadek, Rachid; Mrabet, Rachid; Dahan, Rachid; Laghrour, Malika; Lembiad, Ibtissam; ElMourid, Mohamed

2015-04-01

In Morocco, rainfed agriculture is practiced in the majority of agricultural land. However, the intensive land use coupled to the irregular rainfall constitutes a serious threat that affect country's food security. Conservation agriculture (CA) represents a promising alternative to produce more and sustainably. In fact, the direct seeding showed high yield in arid regions of Morocco but its extending to other more humid agro-ecological zones (rainfall > 350mm) remains scarce. In order to promote CA in Morocco, differents trials have been installed in central plateau of Morocco, to compare CA to conventional tillage (CT). The yields of the main practiced crops (wheat, lentil and checkpea) under CA and CT were analyzed and compared in the 3 soils types (Vertisol, Cambisol and Calcisol). Also, we studied the effect of CA on soil organic matter (SOM) and soil losses (SL) in the 3 different sites. The APSIM model was used to model the long term impact of CA compared to CT. The results obtained in this research have shown favorable effects of CA on crop production, SOM and soil erosion. Key words: Conservation agriculture, yield, soil properties, modeling, APSIM, Morocco.

[Breeding of new Curcuma wenyujin variety "Wenyujin No. 1"].

PubMed

Tao, Zheng-Ming; Jiang, Wu; Zheng, Fu-Bo; Wu, Zhi-Gang

2014-10-01

In order to breed and spread a new cultivar of Curcuma wenyujin, the C. wenyujin germplasm resources were investigated in authentic regions. Better varieties were chosen by comparing the yield, economic characters and quality differences between different cultivars. The results showed that the character of new selected cultivar was stable, the yield of zedoary, turmeric and curcuma was reached 313.7, 177.9, 91.2 kg per 667 m2, respectively, it increased 11.6%, 10.2%, 14.2% comparing with farmer varieties. The volatile oil contents in zedoary and turmeric was 4.0%, 3.0%, respectively. The target ingredients (germacrone) content was stable. It is demonstrated that the new cultivar "Wenyujin No. 1" has value for extension at authentic regions.

Impacts of Stratospheric Sulfate Geoengineering on Chinese Agricultural Production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xia, L.; Robock, A.

2012-12-01

Possible food supply change is one of the most important concerns in the discussion of stratospheric sulfate geoengineering. In China, the high population density and strong summer monsoon influence on agriculture make this region sensitive to climate changes, such as reductions of precipitation, temperature, and solar radiation spurred by stratospheric sulfate injection. We used results from the Geoengineering Model Intercomparison Project G2 scenario to force the Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT) crop model to predict crop yield changes from rice, maize, and winter wheat. We first evaluated the DSSAT model by forcing it with daily observed weather data and management practices for the period 1978-2008 for all the provinces in China, and compared the results to observations of the yields of the three major crops in China. We then created two 50-year sets of climate anomalies using the results from eight climate models, for 1%/year increase of CO2 and for G2 (1%/year increase of CO2 balanced by insolation reduction), and compared the resulting agricultural responses. Considering that geoengineering could happen in the future, we used two geoengineering starting years, 2020 and 2060. For 2020, we increased the mean temperature by 1°C and started the CO2 concentration at 410 ppm. For 2060, we increased temperature by 2°C and started the CO2 concentration at 550 ppm. Without changing agriculture technology, we find that compared to the control run, geoengineering with the G2 scenario starting in 2020 or 2060 would both moderately increase rice and winter wheat production due to the CO2 fertilization effect, but the increasing rates are different. However, as a C4 crop, without a significant CO2 fertilization effect, maize production would decrease slightly because of regional drought. Compared to the reference run, the three crops all have less heat stress in southern China and their yields increase, but in northern China cooler temperatures cause yields to decrease, especially for winter wheat. Therefore after deploying geoengineering (G2), there are positive effects from temperature reduction, but regions with precipitation reduction may be harmful for agriculture activity. In addition, the starting year of geoengineering would affect its impacts on agriculture.

Effect of organic waste compost on the crop productivity and soil quality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Astover, Alar; Toomsoo, Avo; Teesalu, Triin; Rossner, Helis; Kriipsalu, Mait

2017-04-01

Sustainable use of fertilizers is important for maintaining balanced nutrient cycling in agro-ecosystem, soil quality and crop productivity. Considering the high costs and energy demand of mineral fertilizers, it is increasingly important to use more alternative nutrient sources such composts. Nutrient release from organic fertilizers is slower compared to mineral fertilizers and thus their effects need to be evaluated over longer time periods. There is lack of knowledge on the residual effects of organic fertilizers, especially in Nordic climatic conditions. Residual effect of organic fertilizers is in most cases studied with animal manures, but even rare are studies with non-manure based composts. The aim of current study was to evaluate first year direct effect and residual effect of waste compost on the crop productivity and selected soil parameters. Crop rotation field experiment to reveal direct effect of compost to the spring barley yield and residual effect to potato and spring wheat yield was conducted in Tartu, Estonia on pseodopodzolic soil with low humus concentration (<2%). Compost was produced from source separated food and green waste, and category III animal by-products; and composted in aerated covered static piles for 6 weeks and after that matured in open windows for minimum six months. Compost was applied to soil with ploughing in autumn before spring barley growing season (in years 2012-2014). Compost was applied in three norms according to total N (200, 275 and 350 kg/ha). In addition there was unfertilized control plot and all experimental variants were in three replication with plot size 50 m2. First year effect of compost increased barley yield by 40-50%, first year residual effect resulted in increase of potato yield by 19-30% and second year residual effect to wheat yield was in range from 8 to 17%. First year residual effect to the potato yield was significant (F=8.9; p<0.001). All compost norms resulted significant yield increase compared to the unfertilized control plot. In the case lowest compost rate (200 kg N ha-1) yield increase was 19% (Figure 1). Second year residual effect of compost use to spring wheat grain yield was already smaller (8-17%) and statistically non-significant (F=3.2; p=0.07). Residual effect of compost is decreasing year-by-year as expected. In third growing season after application the effect is not significant but it still important to consider, especially if we take in account cumulative yield increase trough all crop rotation. Additionally changes in selected soil parameters (SOC %, pH, PK concentration) will be presented.

[Effects of reduced N application rate on yield and nutrient uptake and utilization in maize-soybean relay strip intercropping system].

PubMed

Yong, Tai-Wen; Liu, Xiao-Ming; Wen-Yu, Liu; Su, Ben-Ying; Song, Chun; Yang, Feng; Wang, Xiao-Chun; Yang, Wen-Yu

2014-02-01

A field experiment with three N application rates (0, 180, 240 N kg x hm(-2), representing zero, reduced and conventional N application, respectively) and three planting patterns (maize monoculture, soybean monoculture and maize-soybean relay strip intercropping) was conducted to reveal the effects of cropping patterns and N application rates on yield, nutrient uptake and nitrogen use efficiency of maize and soybean. The results showed that the grain yield, N, P and K uptake and harvest index of the intercropped maize reduced slightly compared with the monoculture maize, however these indices of the intercropped soybean increased significantly compared with the monoculture. With the increase in nitrogen fertilizer application, the excellence of relay strip intercropping was weakened in the maize-soybean intercropping system. The grain yield, economic coefficient, N, P and K uptake, harvest index, N agronomy efficiency and N uptake efficiency of maize and soybean increased significantly at the reduced nitrogen rate (180 N kg x hm(-2)), but the rate of soil N contribution declined, compared with the conventional rate of N application by local farmers (240 N kg x hm(-2)). In the reduced nitrogen rate treatment, total soil N and P contents of the maize strip reduced, whereas the total soil N, P and K contents of soybean strip and the total K content of maize strip increased compared with the zero N application treatment. With the reduced N application, the annual total grain yield, N, P and K uptake of above-ground biomass in the maize-soybean relay strip intercropping system were higher than in the monoculture, and the land equivalent ratio (LER) was 2.28. N uptake efficiency of maize in the relay strip intercropping system was 20.2% higher than in the maize monoculture, and the index of soybean was 30.5% lower than in the monoculture. The rate of soil N contribution in the relay strip intercropping system was 20.0% and 8.8% lower than in the maize and soybean monoculture, respectively. The reduced N application in the maize-soybean relay strip intercropping system was helpful to promote annual grain yield and improve N utilization efficiency.

Evaluation of extraction protocols for anti-diabetic phytochemical substances from medicinal plants

PubMed Central

Okoduwa, Stanley Irobekhian Reuben; Umar, Ismaila A; James, Dorcas B; Inuwa, Hajara M; Habila, James D

2016-01-01

AIM To examine the efficacy of three extraction techniques: Soxhlet-extraction (SE), cold-maceration (CM) and microwave-assisted-extraction (MAE) using 80% methanol as solvent. METHODS The study was performed on each of 50 g of Vernonia amygdalina (VA) and Occimum gratissimum (OG) leaves respectively. The percentage yield, duration of extraction, volume of solvent used, qualitative and quantitative phytoconstituents present was compared. The biological activities (hypoglycemic effect) were investigated using albino wistar rat model of diabetes mellitus (n = 36) with a combined dose (1:1) of the two plants leaf extracts (250 mg/kg b.w.) from the three methods. The extracts were administered orally, once daily for 21 d. RESULTS In this report, the percentage VA extract yield from MAE was highest (20.9% ± 1.05%) within 39 min using 250 mL of solvent, when compared to the CM (14.35% ± 0.28%) within 4320 min using 900 mL of solvent and SE (15.75% ± 0.71%) within 265 min using 500 mL of solvent. The percentage differences in OG extract yield between: MAE vs SE was 41.05%; MAE vs CM was 46.81% and SE vs CM was 9.77%. The qualitative chemical analysis of the two plants showed no difference in the various phytoconstituents tested, but differs quantitatively in the amount of the individual phytoconstituents, as MAE had significantly high yield (P > 0.05) on phenolics, saponins and tannins. SE technique gave significantly high yield (P > 0.05) on alkaloid, while CM gave significant high yield on flavonoids. The extracts from CM exhibited a significantly (P > 0.05) better hypoglycemic activity within the first 14-d of treatment (43.3% ± 3.62%) when compared to MAE (36.5% ± 0.08%) and SE methods (33.3% ± 1.60%). However, the percentage hypoglycemic activity, 21 d post-treatment with 250 mg/kg b.w. extract from MAE was 72.6% ± 1.03% and it was more comparable to 10 mg/kg b.w. glibenclamide treated group (75.0% ± 0.73%), unlike the SE (69.5% ± 0.71%) and CM (69.1% ± 1.03%). CONCLUSION CM technique produces extract with better hypoglycemic activity, whereas; MAE is a better option for high yield of phytoconstituents using less solvent within a short time. PMID:28031778

Application of paclobutrazol affect maize grain yield by regulating root morphological and physiological characteristics under a semi-arid region.

PubMed

Kamran, Muhammad; Wennan, Su; Ahmad, Irshad; Xiangping, Meng; Wenwen, Cui; Xudong, Zhang; Siwei, Mou; Khan, Aaqil; Qingfang, Han; Tiening, Liu

2018-03-19

A field experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of paclobutrazol on ear characteristics and grain yield by regulating root growth and root-bleeding sap of maize crop. Seed-soaking at rate of 0 (CK1), 200 (S1), 300 (S2), and 400 (S3) mg L -1 , and seed-dressing at rate of 0 (CK2), 1.5 (D1), 2.5 (D2), and 3.5 (D3) g kg -1 were used. Our results showed that paclobutrazol improved the ear characteristics and grain yield, and were consistently higher than control during 2015-2016. The average grain yield of S1, S2 and S3 were 18.9%, 61.3%, and 45.9% higher, while for D1, D2 and D3 were 20.2%, 33.3%, and 45.2%, compared to CK, respectively. Moreover, paclobutrazol-treated maize had improved root-length density (RLD), root-surface area density (RSD) and root-weight density (RWD) at most of the soil profiles (0-70 cm for seed-soaking, 0-60 cm for seed-dressing) and was attributed to enhancing the grain yield. In addition, root-activity, root-bleeding sap, root dry weight, diameter and root/shoot ratio increased by paclobutrazol, with highest values achieved in S2 and D3 treatments, across the whole growth stages in 2015-2016. Our results suggested that paclobutrazol could efficiently be used to enhance root-physiological and morphological characteristics, resulting in higher grain yield.

Freshwater aquatic plant biomass production in Florida

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

Reddy, K.R.; Sutton, D.L.; Bowes, G.

1983-01-01

About 8% (1.2 million ha) of the total surface area of Florida is occupied by freshwater. Many of these water bodies are eutrophic. Nutrients present in these water bodies can be potentially used to culture aquatic plants as a possible feedstock for methane production. This paper summarizes the results of known research findings on biomass production potential of freshwater aquatic plants in Florida and identifies key research needs to improve the quality and quantity of biomass yields. Among floating aquatic plants, biomass yield potential was in the order of water-hyacinth > water lettuce > pennywort > salvinia > duckweed >more » azolla. Pennywort, duckweed, and azolla appear to perform well during the cooler months compared to other aquatic plants. Among emergent plants, biomass yield potential was in the order of southern wild rice > cattails > soft rush > bulrush. Cultural techniques, nutrient management, and environmental factors influencing the biomass yields were discussed. 68 references.« less

Transmission sputtering under diatomic molecule bombardment. Model calculations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bitensky, I. S.

1996-04-01

Transmission sputtering means that emission of secondary particles is studied from the downstream side of a bombarded foil. Nonlinear effects in sputtering manifest themselves as a deviation of sputtering yield under molecular ion bombardment from the sum of the yields induced by the constituents at the same velocity. In the reflection geometry the overlap of the spike regions reaches maximum, while in transmission the degree of overlap depends on the projectile and on the foil thickness. It has been shown that the transmission sputtering yield can be described by a function of a scaling parameter determined by beam-foil characteristics and a mechanism of nonlinear sputtering. Calculations of the transmission yield have been made in the thermal spike and shock wave models. The results of calculations are compared with experimental data on phenylalanine molecular ion desorption from organic targets induced by Au + and Au 2+ impact. Suggestions for further experimental study are made.

Disassembly time of deuterium-cluster-fusion plasma irradiated by an intense laser pulse

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

Bang, W.

Energetic deuterium ions from large deuterium clusters (>10 nm diameter) irradiated by an intense laser pulse (>10¹⁶ W/cm²) produce DD fusion neutrons for a time interval determined by the geometry of the resulting fusion plasma. We show an analytical solution of this time interval, the plasma disassembly time, for deuterium plasmas that are cylindrical in shape. Assuming a symmetrically expanding deuterium plasma, we calculate the expected fusion neutron yield and compare with an independent calculation of the yield using the concept of a finite confinement time at a fixed plasma density. The calculated neutron yields agree quantitatively with the availablemore » experimental data. Our one-dimensional simulations indicate that one could expect a tenfold increase in total neutron yield by magnetically confining a 10 - keV deuterium fusion plasma for 10 ns.« less

Disassembly time of deuterium-cluster-fusion plasma irradiated by an intense laser pulse

DOE PAGES

Bang, W.

2015-07-02

Energetic deuterium ions from large deuterium clusters (>10 nm diameter) irradiated by an intense laser pulse (>10¹⁶ W/cm²) produce DD fusion neutrons for a time interval determined by the geometry of the resulting fusion plasma. We show an analytical solution of this time interval, the plasma disassembly time, for deuterium plasmas that are cylindrical in shape. Assuming a symmetrically expanding deuterium plasma, we calculate the expected fusion neutron yield and compare with an independent calculation of the yield using the concept of a finite confinement time at a fixed plasma density. The calculated neutron yields agree quantitatively with the availablemore » experimental data. Our one-dimensional simulations indicate that one could expect a tenfold increase in total neutron yield by magnetically confining a 10 - keV deuterium fusion plasma for 10 ns.« less

Comparison of Statistical Models for Analyzing Wheat Yield Time Series

PubMed Central

Michel, Lucie; Makowski, David

2013-01-01

The world's population is predicted to exceed nine billion by 2050 and there is increasing concern about the capability of agriculture to feed such a large population. Foresight studies on food security are frequently based on crop yield trends estimated from yield time series provided by national and regional statistical agencies. Various types of statistical models have been proposed for the analysis of yield time series, but the predictive performances of these models have not yet been evaluated in detail. In this study, we present eight statistical models for analyzing yield time series and compare their ability to predict wheat yield at the national and regional scales, using data provided by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and by the French Ministry of Agriculture. The Holt-Winters and dynamic linear models performed equally well, giving the most accurate predictions of wheat yield. However, dynamic linear models have two advantages over Holt-Winters models: they can be used to reconstruct past yield trends retrospectively and to analyze uncertainty. The results obtained with dynamic linear models indicated a stagnation of wheat yields in many countries, but the estimated rate of increase of wheat yield remained above 0.06 t ha−1 year−1 in several countries in Europe, Asia, Africa and America, and the estimated values were highly uncertain for several major wheat producing countries. The rate of yield increase differed considerably between French regions, suggesting that efforts to identify the main causes of yield stagnation should focus on a subnational scale. PMID:24205280

Investigation of Inconsistent ENDF/B-VII.1 Independent and Cumulative Fission Product Yields with Proposed Revisions

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

Pigni, M.T., E-mail: pignimt@ornl.gov; Francis, M.W.; Gauld, I.C.

A recent implementation of ENDF/B-VII.1 independent fission product yields and nuclear decay data identified inconsistencies in the data caused by the use of updated nuclear schemes in the decay sub-library that are not reflected in legacy fission product yield data. Recent changes in the decay data sub-library, particularly the delayed neutron branching fractions, result in calculated fission product concentrations that do not agree with the cumulative fission yields in the library as well as with experimental measurements. To address these issues, a comprehensive set of independent fission product yields was generated for thermal and fission spectrum neutron-induced fission for {supmore » 235,238}U and {sup 239,241}Pu in order to provide a preliminary assessment of the updated fission product yield data consistency. These updated independent fission product yields were utilized in the ORIGEN code to compare the calculated fission product inventories with experimentally measured inventories, with particular attention given to the noble gases. Another important outcome of this work is the development of fission product yield covariance data necessary for fission product uncertainty quantification. The evaluation methodology combines a sequential Bayesian method to guarantee consistency between independent and cumulative yields along with the physical constraints on the independent yields. This work was motivated to improve the performance of the ENDF/B-VII.1 library for stable and long-lived fission products. The revised fission product yields and the new covariance data are proposed as a revision to the fission yield data currently in ENDF/B-VII.1.« less

Parallel tempering for the traveling salesman problem

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

Percus, Allon; Wang, Richard; Hyman, Jeffrey

We explore the potential of parallel tempering as a combinatorial optimization method, applying it to the traveling salesman problem. We compare simulation results of parallel tempering with a benchmark implementation of simulated annealing, and study how different choices of parameters affect the relative performance of the two methods. We find that a straightforward implementation of parallel tempering can outperform simulated annealing in several crucial respects. When parameters are chosen appropriately, both methods yield close approximation to the actual minimum distance for an instance with 200 nodes. However, parallel tempering yields more consistently accurate results when a series of independent simulationsmore » are performed. Our results suggest that parallel tempering might offer a simple but powerful alternative to simulated annealing for combinatorial optimization problems.« less

Cost Evaluation of a Donation after Cardiac Death Program: How Cost per Organ Compares to Other Donor Types.

PubMed

Lindemann, Jessica; Dageforde, Leigh Anne; Vachharajani, Neeta; Stahlschmidt, Emily; Brockmeier, Diane; Wellen, Jason R; Khan, Adeel; Chapman, William C; Doyle, Mb Majella

2018-05-01

Donation after cardiac death (DCD) is one method of organ donation. Nationally, more than half of evaluated DCD donors do not yield transplantable organs. There is no algorithm for predicting which DCD donors will be appropriate for organ procurement. Donation after cardiac death program costs from an organ procurement organization (OPO) accounting for all evaluated donors have not been reported. Hospital, transportation, and supply costs of potential DCD donors evaluated at a single OPO from January 2009 to June 2016 were collected. Mean costs per donor and per organ were calculated. Cost of DCD donors that did not yield a transplantable organ were included in cost analyses resulting in total cost of the DCD program. Donation after cardiac death donor costs were compared with costs of in-hospital donation after brain death (DBD) donors. There were 289 organs transplanted from 264 DCD donors evaluated. Mean cost per DCD donor yielding transplantable organs was $9,306. However, 127 donors yielded no organs, at a mean cost of $8,794 per donor. The total cost of the DCD program was $32,020 per donor and $15,179 per organ. Mean cost for an in-hospital DBD donor was $33,546 and $9,478 per organ transplanted. Mean organ yield for DBD donors was 3.54 vs 2.21 for DCD donors (p < 0.0001), making the cost per DBD organ 63% of the cost of a DCD organ. Mean cost per DCD donor is comparable with DBD donors, however, individual cost of DCD organs increases by almost 40% when all costs of an entire DCD program are included. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Baseflow and stormflow metal fluxes from two small agricultural catchments in the Coastal Plain of the Chesapeake Bay Basin, United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Miller, C.V.; Foster, G.D.; Majedi, B.F.

2003-01-01

Annual yields (fluxes per unit area) of Al, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cd, Pb, Zn, Cu, Cr, Co, As and Se were estimated for two small non-tidal stream catchments on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay, United States - a poorly drained dissected-upland watershed in the Nanticoke River Basin, and a well-drained feeder tributary in the lower reaches of the Chester River Basin. Both watersheds are dominated by agriculture. A hydrograph-separation technique was used to determine the baseflow and stormflow components of metal yields, thus providing important insights into the effects of hydrology and climate on the transport of metals. Concentrations of suspended-sediment were used as a less-costly proxy of metal concentrations which are generally associated with particles. Results were compared to other studies in Chesapeake Bay and to general trends in metal concentrations across the United States. The study documented a larger than background yield of Zn and Co from the upper Nanticoke River Basin and possibly enriched concentrations of As, Cd and Se from both the upper Nanticoke River and the Chesterville Branch (a tributary of the lower Chester River). The annual yield of total Zn from the Nanticoke River Basin in 1998 was 18,000 g/km2/a, and was two to three times higher than yields reported from comparable river basins in the region. Concentrations of Cd also were high in both basins when compared to crustal concentrations and to other national data, but were within reasonable agreement with other Chesapeake Bay studies. Thus, Cd may be enriched locally either in natural materials or from agriculture.

[Effect of application of cow manure and green manure on corn yield and soil physical-chemical properties in land restoration area].

PubMed

Xu, Da Bing; Deng, Jian Qiang; Peng, Wu Xing; Si, Guo Han; Peng, Cheng Lin; Yuan, Jia Fu; Zhao, Shu Jun; Wang, Rui

2017-03-18

The effects of cow manure and green manure on maize yield, soil respiration and soil physical-chemical properties in land restoration area was evaluated through field experiments. The results indicated that the maize yield and thousand-grain mass with cow manure were increased by 7.2%-29.9% and 2.5%-18.2%, respectively compared with the application of chemical fertilizer (CF), while the soil active organic carbon and organic matter contents of cow manure were 5.3%-34.6% and 8.0%-17.6% higher than that obtained in CF. The maize yield and thousand-grain mass were increased by 10.8%-15.6% and 4.5%-8.4% with application of green manure, respectively compared with CF. The content of active organic carbon in green manure was 14.1%-48.6% higher than that detected in CF. In the second year, the content of organic matter in green manure treatment was 7.2% higher than that of CF. The soil respiration rates under cow manure and green manure treatments increased by 20.0%-69.3% compared with CF. CF and green manure could improve the soil bulk density and increase the aggregate ratios of ＜0.01 mm and 0.05-1 mm fractions, respectively. On the other hand, the cow manure and green manure could decrease the soil total porosity and the capillary porosity. In conclusion, the application of cow manure and green manure in land restoration region could increase maize yield during the two consecutive seasons, which showed a positive response to improvement of soil physical-chemical properties.

Comparison of claw health and milk yield in dairy cows on elastic or concrete flooring.

PubMed

Kremer, P V; Nueske, S; Scholz, A M; Foerster, M

2007-10-01

This article reports on the effects of elastic (rubber) flooring compared with concrete flooring on claw health and milk yield in dairy cows. Milk yield and activity data of 53 complete lactations from 49 cows were recorded by an automatic milking system in the University of Munich Livestock Center dairy herd. Cows were kept in a loose housing system on concrete-slatted or rubber-matted slatted flooring. Claws were trimmed and measured linearly in combination with claw lesion diagnosis 3 times during one lactation period (including the transition phase). An automatic milking system recorded milk yield and activity. The net horn growth of the claws increased on elastic flooring. Therefore, correct and frequent claw trimming is at least as important for claw health in dairy herds kept on rubber flooring as for those on concrete-slatted flooring. Cows housed on rubber had an increased incidence of sole ulcers. Sole hemorrhages (except for hemorrhages associated with sole ulcers) occurred less frequently on rubber than on concrete. Results concerning digital dermatitis were difficult to assess, because manual manure scraping on rubber required sprinkling the flooring twice daily, which additionally moistened the digital skin of the cows. This might explain the greater incidence of digital dermatitis on elastic flooring. The incidence of clinically lame cows did not differ between flooring types. Cows showed greater activity on rubber, most likely caused by the more comfortable walking surface compared with the concrete-slatted flooring. The greater activity may indicate better overall health of high-yielding dairy cows on rubber flooring. Milk yield, however, did not differ between flooring types.

Meta-analysis of climate impacts and uncertainty on crop yields in Europe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knox, Jerry; Daccache, Andre; Hess, Tim; Haro, David

2016-11-01

Future changes in temperature, rainfall and soil moisture could threaten agricultural land use and crop productivity in Europe, with major consequences for food security. We assessed the projected impacts of climate change on the yield of seven major crop types (viz wheat, barley, maize, potato, sugar beet, rice and rye) grown in Europe using a systematic review (SR) and meta-analysis of data reported in 41 original publications from an initial screening of 1748 studies. Our approach adopted an established SR procedure developed by the Centre for Evidence Based Conservation constrained by inclusion criteria and defined methods for literature searches, data extraction, meta-analysis and synthesis. Whilst similar studies exist to assess climate impacts on crop yield in Africa and South Asia, surprisingly, no comparable synthesis has been undertaken for Europe. Based on the reported results (n = 729) we show that the projected change in average yield in Europe for the seven crops by the 2050s is +8%. For wheat and sugar beet, average yield changes of +14% and +15% are projected, respectively. There were strong regional differences with crop impacts in northern Europe being higher (+14%) and more variable compared to central (+6%) and southern (+5) Europe. Maize is projected to suffer the largest negative mean change in southern Europe (-11%). Evidence of climate impacts on yield was extensive for wheat, maize, sugar beet and potato, but very limited for barley, rice and rye. The implications for supporting climate adaptation policy and informing climate impacts crop science research in Europe are discussed.

Multitrait, Random Regression, or Simple Repeatability Model in High-Throughput Phenotyping Data Improve Genomic Prediction for Wheat Grain Yield.

PubMed

Sun, Jin; Rutkoski, Jessica E; Poland, Jesse A; Crossa, José; Jannink, Jean-Luc; Sorrells, Mark E

2017-07-01

High-throughput phenotyping (HTP) platforms can be used to measure traits that are genetically correlated with wheat ( L.) grain yield across time. Incorporating such secondary traits in the multivariate pedigree and genomic prediction models would be desirable to improve indirect selection for grain yield. In this study, we evaluated three statistical models, simple repeatability (SR), multitrait (MT), and random regression (RR), for the longitudinal data of secondary traits and compared the impact of the proposed models for secondary traits on their predictive abilities for grain yield. Grain yield and secondary traits, canopy temperature (CT) and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), were collected in five diverse environments for 557 wheat lines with available pedigree and genomic information. A two-stage analysis was applied for pedigree and genomic selection (GS). First, secondary traits were fitted by SR, MT, or RR models, separately, within each environment. Then, best linear unbiased predictions (BLUPs) of secondary traits from the above models were used in the multivariate prediction models to compare predictive abilities for grain yield. Predictive ability was substantially improved by 70%, on average, from multivariate pedigree and genomic models when including secondary traits in both training and test populations. Additionally, (i) predictive abilities slightly varied for MT, RR, or SR models in this data set, (ii) results indicated that including BLUPs of secondary traits from the MT model was the best in severe drought, and (iii) the RR model was slightly better than SR and MT models under drought environment. Copyright © 2017 Crop Science Society of America.

Effect of optimal daily fertigation on migration of water and salt in soil, root growth and fruit yield of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) in solar-greenhouse.

PubMed

Liang, Xinshu; Gao, Yinan; Zhang, Xiaoying; Tian, Yongqiang; Zhang, Zhenxian; Gao, Lihong

2014-01-01

Inappropriate and excessive irrigation and fertilization have led to the predominant decline of crop yields, and water and fertilizer use efficiency in intensive vegetable production systems in China. For many vegetables, fertigation can be applied daily according to the actual water and nutrient requirement of crops. A greenhouse study was therefore conducted to investigate the effect of daily fertigation on migration of water and salt in soil, and root growth and fruit yield of cucumber. The treatments included conventional interval fertigation, optimal interval fertigation and optimal daily fertigation. Generally, although soil under the treatment optimal interval fertigation received much lower fertilizers than soil under conventional interval fertigation, the treatment optimal interval fertigation did not statistically decrease the economic yield and fruit nutrition quality of cucumber when compare to conventional interval fertigation. In addition, the treatment optimal interval fertigation effectively avoided inorganic nitrogen accumulation in soil and significantly (P<0.05) increased the partial factor productivity of applied nitrogen by 88% and 209% in the early-spring and autumn-winter seasons, respectively, when compared to conventional interval fertigation. Although soils under the treatments optimal interval fertigation and optimal daily fertigation received the same amount of fertilizers, the treatment optimal daily fertigation maintained the relatively stable water, electrical conductivity and mineral nitrogen levels in surface soils, promoted fine root (<1.5 mm diameter) growth of cucumber, and eventually increased cucumber economic yield by 6.2% and 8.3% and partial factor productivity of applied nitrogen by 55% and 75% in the early-spring and autumn-winter seasons, respectively, when compared to the treatment optimal interval fertigation. These results suggested that optimal daily fertigation is a beneficial practice for improving crop yield and the water and fertilizers use efficiency in solar greenhouse.

Effect of Optimal Daily Fertigation on Migration of Water and Salt in Soil, Root Growth and Fruit Yield of Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) in Solar-Greenhouse

PubMed Central

Liang, Xinshu; Gao, Yinan; Zhang, Xiaoying; Tian, Yongqiang; Zhang, Zhenxian; Gao, Lihong

2014-01-01

Inappropriate and excessive irrigation and fertilization have led to the predominant decline of crop yields, and water and fertilizer use efficiency in intensive vegetable production systems in China. For many vegetables, fertigation can be applied daily according to the actual water and nutrient requirement of crops. A greenhouse study was therefore conducted to investigate the effect of daily fertigation on migration of water and salt in soil, and root growth and fruit yield of cucumber. The treatments included conventional interval fertigation, optimal interval fertigation and optimal daily fertigation. Generally, although soil under the treatment optimal interval fertigation received much lower fertilizers than soil under conventional interval fertigation, the treatment optimal interval fertigation did not statistically decrease the economic yield and fruit nutrition quality of cucumber when compare to conventional interval fertigation. In addition, the treatment optimal interval fertigation effectively avoided inorganic nitrogen accumulation in soil and significantly (P<0.05) increased the partial factor productivity of applied nitrogen by 88% and 209% in the early-spring and autumn-winter seasons, respectively, when compared to conventional interval fertigation. Although soils under the treatments optimal interval fertigation and optimal daily fertigation received the same amount of fertilizers, the treatment optimal daily fertigation maintained the relatively stable water, electrical conductivity and mineral nitrogen levels in surface soils, promoted fine root (<1.5 mm diameter) growth of cucumber, and eventually increased cucumber economic yield by 6.2% and 8.3% and partial factor productivity of applied nitrogen by 55% and 75% in the early-spring and autumn-winter seasons, respectively, when compared to the treatment optimal interval fertigation. These results suggested that optimal daily fertigation is a beneficial practice for improving crop yield and the water and fertilizers use efficiency in solar greenhouse. PMID:24475204

Choosing GnRH Antagonist Protocol Shows Improved Oocyte and Embryo Quality, Coherent with the Perifollicular Vascularity (PFV) in Assisted Reproductive Techniques

PubMed Central

Ramachandran, Amar; Kumar, Pratap

2015-01-01

Introduction The parent oocyte from which the embryo is derived, determines its quality and the perifollicular vascularity (PFV) determines the micro-environment of the developing ovum. The PFV correlates well with the follicular oxygenation, oocyte maturation and embryo viability. PFV is imaged with Power Doppler Ultrasound. Aim To study and compare the association of the PFV of follicles with the quality of the oocytes and embryos in agonist and antagonist protocol, employed in Assisted Reproductive techniques (ART). Study Design A prospective observational study was conducted on 75 patients, who were recruited for ART cycles, out of which 25 were given the Agonist protocol and the remaining 50 received the Antagonist protocol. Materials and Methods The patients underwent the stimulation protocol. The PFV of preovulatory follicles were studied with Transvaginal Power Doppler and graded. Each oocyte retrieved carried the same label of its parent follicle. Embryos were cultured. The embryologist was blinded. The oocyte and embryo quality were assessed and compared with the PFV of parent follicle. Results Follicles with grade 1 and 2 PFV were predominantly observed. The yield of oocytes was independent of PFV. The mean yield of good quality embryos in conjunction with the PFV of the parent follicle was found to be highly significant in both the groups. The antagonist group had statistically significant yield of mature oocytes and embryos, compared to the agonist group. Conclusion Antagonist protocol had favourable outcomes compared with the agonist protocol. The retrieval of oocytes, even the mature ones and the yield of high grade embryos were found higher. As the PFV increased, the yield and overall pregnancy rates were higher. PFV as assessed by Power Doppler is a useful non-invasive biomarker of embryo quality and can be employed in conjunction with other biomarkers in ART to predict successful outcome. PMID:26674932

The effective mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions from rice paddies without compromising yield by early-season drainage.

PubMed

Islam, Syed Faiz-Ul; van Groenigen, Jan Willem; Jensen, Lars Stoumann; Sander, Bjoern Ole; de Neergaard, Andreas

2018-01-15

Global rice production systems face two opposing challenges: the need to increase production to accommodate the world's growing population while simultaneously reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Adaptations to drainage regimes are one of the most promising options for methane mitigation in rice production. Whereas several studies have focused on mid-season drainage (MD) to mitigate GHG emissions, early-season drainage (ED) varying in timing and duration has not been extensively studied. However, such ED periods could potentially be very effective since initial available C levels (and thereby the potential for methanogenesis) can be very high in paddy systems with rice straw incorporation. This study tested the effectiveness of seven drainage regimes varying in their timing and duration (combinations of ED and MD) to mitigate CH 4 and N 2 O emissions in a 101-day growth chamber experiment. Emissions were considerably reduced by early-season drainage compared to both conventional continuous flooding (CF) and the MD drainage regime. The results suggest that ED+MD drainage may have the potential to reduce CH 4 emissions and yield-scaled GWP by 85-90% compared to CF and by 75-77% compared to MD only. A combination of (short or long) ED drainage and one MD drainage episode was found to be the most effective in mitigating CH 4 emissions without negatively affecting yield. In particular, compared with CF, the long early-season drainage treatments LE+SM and LE+LM significantly (p<0.01) decreased yield-scaled GWP by 85% and 87% respectively. This was associated with carbon being stabilised early in the season, thereby reducing available C for methanogenesis. Overall N 2 O emissions were small and not significantly affected by ED. It is concluded that ED+MD drainage might be an effective low-tech option for small-scale farmers to reduce GHG emissions and save water while maintaining yield. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Comparison of ambient solvent extraction methods for the analysis of fatty acids in non-starch lipids of flour and starch

PubMed Central

Bahrami, Niloufar; Yonekura, Lina; Linforth, Robert; Carvalho da Silva, Margarida; Hill, Sandra; Penson, Simon; Chope, Gemma; Fisk, Ian Denis

2014-01-01

BACKGROUND Lipids are minor components of flours, but are major determinants of baking properties and end-product quality. To the best of our knowledge, there is no single solvent system currently known that efficiently extracts all non-starch lipids from all flours without the risk of chemical, mechanical or thermal damage. This paper compares nine ambient solvent systems (monophasic and biphasic) with varying polarities: Bligh and Dyer (BD); modified Bligh and Dyer using HCl (BDHCL); modified BD using NaCl (BDNaCl); methanol–chloroform–hexane (3:2:1, v/v); Hara and Radin (hexane–isopropanol, 3:2, v/v); water-saturated n-butanol; chloroform; methanol and hexane for their ability to extract total non-starch lipids (separated by lipid classes) from wheat flour (Triticum aestivum L.). Seven ambient extraction protocols were further compared for their ability to extract total non-starch lipids from three alternative samples: barley flour (Hordeum vulgare L.), maize starch (Zea mays L.) and tapioca starch (Manihot esculenta Crantz). RESULTS For wheat flour the original BD method and those containing HCl or NaCl tended to extract the maximum lipid and a significant correlation between lipid extraction yield (especially the glycolipids and phospholipids) and the polarity of the solvent was observed. For the wider range of samples BD and BD HCl repeatedly offered the maximum extraction yield and using pooled standardized (by sample) data from all flours, total non-starch lipid extraction yield was positively correlated with solvent polarity (r = 0.5682, P < 0.05) and water ratio in the solvent mixture (r = 0.5299, P < 0.05). CONCLUSION In general, BD-based methods showed better extraction yields compared to methods without the addition of water and, most interestingly, there was much greater method dependence of lipid yields in the starches when compared to the flour samples, which is due to the differences in lipid profiles between the two sample types (flours and starches). PMID:24132804

Effects of slow-release urea and rumen-protected methionine and histidine on performance of dairy cows.

PubMed

Giallongo, F; Hristov, A N; Oh, J; Frederick, T; Weeks, H; Werner, J; Lapierre, H; Patton, R A; Gehman, A; Parys, C

2015-05-01

This experiment was conducted with the objective to investigate the effects of slow-release urea and rumen-protected (RP) Met and His supplementation of a metabolizable protein (MP)-deficient diet (according to NRC, 2001) on lactation performance of dairy cows. Sixty lactating Holstein cows were used in a 10-wk randomized complete block-design trial. Cows were fed a covariate diet for 2 wk and then assigned to one of the following treatments for an 8-wk experimental period: (1) MP-adequate diet [AMP; 107% of MP requirements, based on the National Research Council (NRC, 2001)]; (2) MP-deficient diet (DMP; 95% of MP requirements); (3) DMP supplemented with slow-release urea (DMPU); (4) DMPU supplemented with RPMet (DMPUM); and (5) DMPUM supplemented with RPHis (DMPUMH). Total-tract apparent digestibility of dry matter, organic matter, neutral detergent fiber, and crude protein, and urinary N and urea-N excretions were decreased by DMP, compared with AMP. Addition of slow-release urea to the DMP diet increased urinary urea-N excretion. Dry matter intake (DMI) and milk yield (on average 44.0±0.9kg/d) were not affected by treatments, except DMPUMH increased DMI and numerically increased milk yield, compared with DMPUM. Milk true protein concentration and yield were increased and milk fat concentration tended to be decreased by DMPUMH, compared with DMPUM. Cows gained less body weight on the DMP diet, compared with AMP. Plasma concentrations of His and Lys were not affected by treatments, whereas supplementation of RPMet increased plasma Met concentration. Plasma concentration of 3-methylhistidine was or tended to be higher for DMP compared with AMP and DMPU, respectively. Addition of RPHis to the DMPUM diet tended to increase plasma glucose and creatinine. In conclusion, feeding a 5% MP-deficient diet (according to NRC, 2001) did not decrease DMI and yields of milk and milk components, despite a reduction in nutrient digestibility. Supplementation of RPHis increased DMI and milk protein concentration and yield. These results are in line with our previous data and suggest that His may have a positive effect on voluntary feed intake and milk production and composition in high-yielding dairy cows fed MP-deficient diets. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Diagnostic exome sequencing provides a molecular diagnosis for a significant proportion of patients with epilepsy.

PubMed

Helbig, Katherine L; Farwell Hagman, Kelly D; Shinde, Deepali N; Mroske, Cameron; Powis, Zöe; Li, Shuwei; Tang, Sha; Helbig, Ingo

2016-09-01

To assess the yield of diagnostic exome sequencing (DES) and to characterize the molecular findings in characterized and novel disease genes in patients with epilepsy. In an unselected sample of 1,131 patients referred for DES, overall results were compared between patients with and without epilepsy. DES results were examined based on age of onset and epilepsy diagnosis. Positive/likely positive results were identified in 112/293 (38.2%) epilepsy patients compared with 210/732 (28.7%) patients without epilepsy (P = 0.004). The diagnostic yield in characterized disease genes among patients with epilepsy was 33.4% (105/314). KCNQ2, MECP2, FOXG1, IQSEC2, KMT2A, and STXBP1 were most commonly affected by de novo alterations. Patients with epileptic encephalopathies had the highest rate of positive findings (43.4%). A likely positive novel genetic etiology was proposed in 14/200 (7%) patients with epilepsy; this frequency was highest in patients with epileptic encephalopathies (17%). Three genes (COQ4, DNM1, and PURA) were initially reported as likely positive novel disease genes and were subsequently corroborated in independent peer-reviewed publications. DES with analysis and interpretation of both characterized and novel genetic etiologies is a useful diagnostic tool in epilepsy, particularly in severe early-onset epilepsy. The reporting on novel genetic etiologies may further increase the diagnostic yield.Genet Med 18 9, 898-905.

Minimization of Residual Stress in an Al-Cu Alloy Forged Plate by Different Heat Treatments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dong, Ya-Bo; Shao, Wen-Zhu; Jiang, Jian-Tang; Zhang, Bao-You; Zhen, Liang

2015-06-01

In order to improve the balance of mechanical properties and residual stress, various quenching and aging treatments were applied to Al-Cu alloy forged plate. Residual stresses determined by the x-ray diffraction method and slitting method were compared. The surface residual stress measured by x-ray diffraction method was consistent with that measured by slitting method. The residual stress distribution of samples quenched in water with different temperatures (20, 60, 80, and 100 °C) was measured, and the results showed that the boiling water quenching results in a 91.4% reduction in residual stress magnitudes compared with cold water quenching (20 °C), but the tensile properties of samples quenched in boiling water were unacceptably low. Quenching in 80 °C water results in 75% reduction of residual stress, and the reduction of yield strength is 12.7%. The residual stress and yield strength level are considerable for the dimensional stability of aluminum alloy. Quenching samples into 30% polyalkylene glycol quenchants produced 52.2% reduction in the maximum compressive residual stress, and the reduction in yield strength is 19.7%. Moreover, the effects of uphill quenching and thermal-cold cycling on the residual stress were also investigated. Uphill quenching and thermal-cold cycling produced approximately 25-40% reduction in residual stress, while the effect on tensile properties is quite slight.

Physiology and transcriptomics of water-deficit stress responses in wheat cultivars TAM 111 and TAM 112.

PubMed

Reddy, Srirama Krishna; Liu, Shuyu; Rudd, Jackie C; Xue, Qingwu; Payton, Paxton; Finlayson, Scott A; Mahan, James; Akhunova, Alina; Holalu, Srinidhi V; Lu, Nanyan

2014-09-01

Hard red winter wheat crops on the U.S. Southern Great Plains often experience moderate to severe drought stress, especially during the grain filling stage, resulting in significant yield losses. Cultivars TAM 111 and TAM 112 are widely cultivated in the region, share parentage and showed superior but distinct adaption mechanisms under water-deficit (WD) conditions. Nevertheless, the physiological and molecular basis of their adaptation remains unknown. A greenhouse study was conducted to understand the differences in the physiological and transcriptomic responses of TAM 111 and TAM 112 to WD stress. Whole-plant data indicated that TAM 112 used more water, produced more biomass and grain yield under WD compared to TAM 111. Leaf-level data at the grain filling stage indicated that TAM 112 had elevated abscisic acid (ABA) content and reduced stomatal conductance and photosynthesis as compared to TAM 111. Sustained WD during the grain filling stage also resulted in greater flag leaf transcriptome changes in TAM 112 than TAM 111. Transcripts associated with photosynthesis, carbohydrate metabolism, phytohormone metabolism, and other dehydration responses were uniquely regulated between cultivars. These results suggested a differential role for ABA in regulating physiological and transcriptomic changes associated with WD stress and potential involvement in the superior adaptation and yield of TAM 112. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

The effect of lactation length on greenhouse gas emissions from the national dairy herd.

PubMed

Wall, E; Coffey, M P; Pollott, G E

2012-11-01

Many governments have signed up to greenhouse gas emission (GHGE) reduction programmes under their national climate change obligations. Recently, it has been suggested that the use of extended lactations in dairy herds could result in reduced GHGE. Dairy GHGE were modelled on a national basis and the model was used to compare emissions from lactations of three different lengths (305, 370 and 440 days), and a current 'base' scenario on the basis of maintaining current milk production levels. In addition to comparing GHGE from the average 'National Herd' under these scenarios, results were used to investigate how accounting for lactations of different lengths might alter the estimation of emissions calculated from the National Inventory methodology currently recommended by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Data for the three lactation length scenarios were derived from nationally recorded dairy performance information and used in the GHGE model. Long lactations required fewer milking cows and replacements to maintain current milk yield levels than short ones, but GHGEs were found to rise from 1214 t of CO2 equivalent (CE)/farm per year for lactations of 305 days to 1371 t CE/farm per year for 440-day lactations. This apparent anomaly can be explained by the less efficient milk production (kg milk produced per kg cow weight) found in later lactation, a more pronounced effect in longer lactations. The sensitivity of the model to changes in replacement rate, persistency and level of milk yield was investigated. Changes in the replacement rate from 25% to 20% and in persistency by −10% to +20% resulted in very small changes in GHGE. Differences in GHGE due to the level of milk yield were much more dramatic with animals in the top 10% for yield, producing about 25% less GHGE/year than the average animal. National Inventory results were investigated using a more realistic spread of lactation lengths than recommended for such calculations using emissions calculated in the first part of the study. Current UK emission calculations based on the National Inventory were 329 Gg of methane per year from the dairy herd. Using the national distribution of lactation lengths, this was found to be an underestimate by about 10%. This work showed that the current rise in lactation length or a move towards calving every 18 months would increase GHGE by 7% to 14% compared with the current scenario, assuming the same milk yield in all models. Increased milk yield would have a much greater effect on reducing GHGE than changes to lactation length, replacement rate or persistency. National Inventory methodology appears to underestimate GHGE when the distribution of lactation lengths is considered and may need revising to provide more realistic figures.

Plant-Based Assessment of Inherent Soil Productivity and Contributions to China’s Cereal Crop Yield Increase since 1980

PubMed Central

Fan, Mingsheng; Lal, Rattan; Cao, Jian; Qiao, Lei; Su, Yansen; Jiang, Rongfeng; Zhang, Fusuo

2013-01-01

Objective China’s food production has increased 6-fold during the past half-century, thanks to increased yields resulting from the management intensification, accomplished through greater inputs of fertilizer, water, new crop strains, and other Green Revolution’s technologies. Yet, changes in underlying quality of soils and their effects on yield increase remain to be determined. Here, we provide a first attempt to quantify historical changes in inherent soil productivity and their contributions to the increase in yield. Methods The assessment was conducted based on data-set derived from 7410 on-farm trials, 8 long-term experiments and an inventory of soil organic matter concentrations of arable land. Results Results show that even without organic and inorganic fertilizer addition crop yield from on-farm trials conducted in the 2000s was significantly higher compared with those in the 1980s — the increase ranged from 0.73 to 1.76 Mg/ha for China’s major irrigated cereal-based cropping systems. The increase in on-farm yield in control plot since 1980s was due primarily to the enhancement of soil-related factors, and reflected inherent soil productivity improvement. The latter led to higher and stable yield with adoption of improved management practices, and contributed 43% to the increase in yield for wheat and 22% for maize in the north China, and, 31%, 35% and 22% for early and late rice in south China and for single rice crop in the Yangtze River Basin since 1980. Conclusions Thus, without an improvement in inherent soil productivity, the ‘Agricultural Miracle in China’ would not have happened. A comprehensive strategy of inherent soil productivity improvement in China, accomplished through combining engineering-based measures with biological-approaches, may be an important lesson for the developing world. We propose that advancing food security in 21st century for both China and other parts of world will depend on continuously improving inherent soil productivity. PMID:24058605

Drought-Tolerant Corn Hybrids Yield More in Drought-Stressed Environments with No Penalty in Non-stressed Environments

PubMed Central

Adee, Eric; Roozeboom, Kraig; Balboa, Guillermo R.; Schlegel, Alan; Ciampitti, Ignacio A.

2016-01-01

The potential benefit of drought-tolerant (DT) corn (Zea mays L.) hybrids may depend on drought intensity, duration, crop growth stage (timing), and the array of drought tolerance mechanisms present in selected hybrids. We hypothesized that corn hybrids containing DT traits would produce more consistent yields compared to non-DT hybrids in the presence of drought stress. The objective of this study was to define types of production environments where DT hybrids have a yield advantage compared to non-DT hybrids. Drought tolerant and non-DT hybrid pairs of similar maturity were planted in six site-years with different soil types, seasonal evapotranspiration (ET), and vapor pressure deficit (VPD), representing a range of macro-environments. Irrigation regimes and seeding rates were used to create several micro-environments within each macro-environment. Hybrid response to the range of macro and micro-environmental stresses were characterized in terms of water use efficiency, grain yield, and environmental index. Yield advantage of DT hybrids was positively correlated with environment ET and VPD. Drought tolerant hybrids yielded 5 to 7% more than non-DT hybrids in high and medium ET environments (>430 mm ET), corresponding to seasonal VPD greater than 1200 Pa. Environmental index analysis confirmed that DT hybrids were superior in stressful environments. Yield advantage for DT hybrids appeared as yield dropped below 10.8 Mg ha-1 and averaged as much as 0.6–1 Mg ha-1 at the low yield range. Hybrids with DT technology can offer a degree of buffering against drought stress by minimizing yield reduction, but also maintaining a comparable yield potential in high yielding environments. Further studies should focus on the physiological mechanisms presented in the commercially available corn drought tolerant hybrids. PMID:27790237

[Effects of organic-inorganic mixed fertilizers on rice yield and nitrogen use efficiency].

PubMed

Zhang, Xiao-li; Meng, Lin; Wang, Qiu-jun; Luo, Jia; Huang, Qi-wei; Xu, Yang-chun; Yang, Xing-ming; Shen, Qi-rong

2009-03-01

A field experiment was carried to study the effects of organic-inorganic mixed fertilizers on rice yield, nitrogen (N) use efficiency, soil N supply, and soil microbial diversity. Rapeseed cake compost (RCC), pig manure compost (PMC), and Chinese medicine residue compost (MRC) were mixed with chemical N, P and K fertilizers. All the treatments except CK received the same rate of N. The results showed that all N fertilizer application treatments had higher rice yield (7918.8-9449.2 kg x hm(-2)) than the control (6947.9 kg x hm(-2)). Compared with that of chemical fertilizers (CF) treatment (7918.8 kg x hm(-2)), the yield of the three organic-inorganic mixed fertilizers treatments ranged in 8532.0-9449.2 kg x hm(-2), and the increment was 7.7%-19.3%. Compared with treatment CF, the treatments of organic-inorganic mixed fertilizers were significantly higher in N accumulation, N transportation efficiency, N recovery rate, agronomic N use efficiency, and physiological N use efficiency. These mixed fertilizers treatments promoted rice N uptake and improved soil N supply, and thus, increased N use efficiency, compared with treatments CF and CK. Neighbor joining analysis indicated that soil bacterial communities in the five treatments could be classified into three categories, i.e., CF and CK, PMC and MRC, and RCC, implying that the application of exogenous organic materials could affect soil bacterial communities, while applying chemical fertilizers had little effect on them.

Evaluating the Impact of CETA on Participant Earnings.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bryant, Edward C.; Rupp, Kalman

1987-01-01

Estimates of the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act's net impact on participant earnings, using Continuous Longitudinal Manpower Survey data, were compared to a similar sample from the Current Population Survey. The use of multivariate matching and weighting yielded acceptable results. (GDC)

Effect of dam weight and pregnancy nutrition on average lactation performance of ewe offspring over 5 years.

PubMed

Paten, A M; Pain, S J; Peterson, S W; Lopez-Villalobos, N; Kenyon, P R; Blair, H T

2017-06-01

The foetal mammary gland is sensitive to maternal weight and nutrition during gestation, which could affect offspring milk production. It has previously been shown that ewes born to dams offered maintenance nutrition during pregnancy (day 21 to 140 of gestation) produced greater milk, lactose and CP yields in their first lactation when compared with ewes born to dams offered ad libitum nutrition. In addition, ewes born to heavier dams produced greater milk and lactose yields when compared with ewes born to lighter dams. The objective of this study was to analyse and compare the 5-year lactation performance of the previously mentioned ewes, born to heavy or light dams that were offered maintenance or ad libitum pregnancy nutrition. Ewes were milked once per week, for the first 6 weeks of their lactation, for 5 years. Using milk yield and composition data, accumulated yields were calculated over a 42-day period for each year for milk, milk fat, CP, true protein, casein and lactose using a Legendre orthogonal polynomial model. Over the 5-year period, ewes born to heavy dams produced greater average milk (P=0.04), lactose (P=0.01) and CP (P=0.04) yields than offspring born to light dams. In contrast, over the 5-year period dam nutrition during pregnancy did not affect average (P>0.05) offspring milk yields or composition, but did increase milk and lactose accumulated yield (P=0.03 and 0.01, respectively) in the first lactation. These results indicate that maternal gestational nutrition appears to only affect the first lactational performance of ewe offspring. Neither dam nutrition nor size affected grand-offspring live weight gain to, or live weight at weaning (P>0.05). Combined these data indicate that under the conditions of the present study, manipulating dam weight or nutrition in pregnancy can have some effects of offspring lactational performance, however, these effects are not large enough to alter grand-offspring growth to weaning. Therefore, such manipulations are not a viable management tool for farmers to influence lamb growth to weaning.

Phenotypic effects of subclinical paratuberculosis (Johne's disease) in dairy cattle.

PubMed

Pritchard, Tracey C; Coffey, Mike P; Bond, Karen S; Hutchings, Mike R; Wall, Eileen

2017-01-01

The effect of subclinical paratuberculosis (or Johne's disease) risk status on performance, health, and fertility was studied in 58,096 UK Holstein-Friesian cows with 156,837 lactations across lactations 1 to 3. Low-, medium-, and high-risk group categories were allocated to cows determined by a minimum of 4 ELISA milk tests taken at any time during their lactating life. Lactation curves of daily milk, protein, and fat yields and protein and fat percentage, together with log e -transformed somatic cell count, were estimated using a random regression model to quantify differences between risk groups. The effect of subclinical paratuberculosis risk groups on fertility, lactation-average somatic cell count, and mastitis were analyzed using linear regression fitting risk group as a fixed effect. Milk yield losses associated with high-risk cows compared with low-risk cows in lactations 1, 2, and 3 for mean daily yield were 0.34, 1.05, and 1.61kg; likewise, accumulated 305-d yields were 103, 316, and 485kg, respectively. The total loss was 904kg over the first 3 lactations. Protein and fat yield losses associated with high-risk cows were significant, but primarily a feature of decreasing milk yield. Similar trends were observed for both test-day and lactation-average somatic cell count measures with higher somatic cell counts from medium- and high-risk cows compared with low-risk cows, and differences were in almost all cases significant. Likewise, mastitis incidence was significantly higher in high-risk cows compared with low-risk cows in lactations 2 and 3. Whereas the few significant differences between risk groups among fertility traits were inconsistent with no clear trend. These results are expected to be conservative, as some animals that were considered negative may become positive after the timeframe of this study, particularly if the animal was tested when relatively young. However, the magnitude of milk yield losses together with higher somatic cell counts and an increase in mastitis incidence should motivate farmers to implement the appropriate control measures to reduce the spread of the disease. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The ability of video image analysis to predict lean meat yield and EUROP score of lamb carcasses.

PubMed

Einarsson, E; Eythórsdóttir, E; Smith, C R; Jónmundsson, J V

2014-07-01

A total of 862 lamb carcasses that were evaluated by both the VIAscan® and the current EUROP classification system were deboned and the actual yield was measured. Models were derived for predicting lean meat yield of the legs (Leg%), loin (Loin%) and shoulder (Shldr%) using the best VIAscan® variables selected by stepwise regression analysis of a calibration data set (n=603). The equations were tested on validation data set (n=259). The results showed that the VIAscan® predicted lean meat yield in the leg, loin and shoulder with an R 2 of 0.60, 0.31 and 0.47, respectively, whereas the current EUROP system predicted lean yield with an R 2 of 0.57, 0.32 and 0.37, respectively, for the three carcass parts. The VIAscan® also predicted the EUROP score of the trial carcasses, using a model derived from an earlier trial. The EUROP classification from VIAscan® and the current system were compared for their ability to explain the variation in lean yield of the whole carcass (LMY%) and trimmed fat (FAT%). The predicted EUROP scores from the VIAscan® explained 36% of the variation in LMY% and 60% of the variation in FAT%, compared with the current EUROP system that explained 49% and 72%, respectively. The EUROP classification obtained by the VIAscan® was tested against a panel of three expert classifiers (n=696). The VIAscan® classification agreed with 82% of conformation and 73% of the fat classes assigned by a panel of expert classifiers. It was concluded that VIAscan® provides a technology that can directly predict LMY% of lamb carcasses with more accuracy than the current EUROP classification system. The VIAscan® is also capable of classifying lamb carcasses into EUROP classes with an accuracy that fulfils minimum demands for the Icelandic sheep industry. Although the VIAscan® prediction of the Loin% is low, it is comparable to the current EUROP system, and should not hinder the adoption of the technology to estimate the yield of Icelandic lambs as it delivered a more accurate prediction for the Leg%, Shldr% and overall LMY% with negligible prediction bias.

SACE_5599, a putative regulatory protein, is involved in morphological differentiation and erythromycin production in Saccharopolyspora erythraea

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Erythromycin is a medically important antibiotic, biosynthesized by the actinomycete Saccharopolyspora erythraea. Genes encoding erythromycin biosynthesis are organized in a gene cluster, spanning over 60 kbp of DNA. Most often, gene clusters encoding biosynthesis of secondary metabolites contain regulatory genes. In contrast, the erythromycin gene cluster does not contain regulatory genes and regulation of its biosynthesis has therefore remained poorly understood, which has for a long time limited genetic engineering approaches for erythromycin yield improvement. Results We used a comparative proteomic approach to screen for potential regulatory proteins involved in erythromycin biosynthesis. We have identified a putative regulatory protein SACE_5599 which shows significantly higher levels of expression in an erythromycin high-producing strain, compared to the wild type S. erythraea strain. SACE_5599 is a member of an uncharacterized family of putative regulatory genes, located in several actinomycete biosynthetic gene clusters. Importantly, increased expression of SACE_5599 was observed in the complex fermentation medium and at controlled bioprocess conditions, simulating a high-yield industrial fermentation process in the bioreactor. Inactivation of SACE_5599 in the high-producing strain significantly reduced erythromycin yield, in addition to drastically decreasing sporulation intensity of the SACE_5599-inactivated strains when cultivated on ABSM4 agar medium. In contrast, constitutive overexpression of SACE_5599 in the wild type NRRL23338 strain resulted in an increase of erythromycin yield by 32%. Similar yield increase was also observed when we overexpressed the bldD gene, a previously identified regulator of erythromycin biosynthesis, thereby for the first time revealing its potential for improving erythromycin biosynthesis. Conclusions SACE_5599 is the second putative regulatory gene to be identified in S. erythraea which has positive influence on erythromycin yield. Like bldD, SACE_5599 is involved in morphological development of S. erythraea, suggesting a very close relationship between secondary metabolite biosynthesis and morphological differentiation in this organism. While the mode of action of SACE_5599 remains to be elucidated, the manipulation of this gene clearly shows potential for improvement of erythromycin production in S. erythraea in industrial setting. We have also demonstrated the applicability of the comparative proteomics approach for identifying new regulatory elements involved in biosynthesis of secondary metabolites in industrial conditions. PMID:24341557

Impacts of 1.5 versus 2.0 °C on cereal yields in the West African Sudan Savanna

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Faye, Babacar; Webber, Heidi; Naab, Jesse B.; MacCarthy, Dilys S.; Adam, Myriam; Ewert, Frank; Lamers, John P. A.; Schleussner, Carl-Friedrich; Ruane, Alex; Gessner, Ursula; Hoogenboom, Gerrit; Boote, Ken; Shelia, Vakhtang; Saeed, Fahad; Wisser, Dominik; Hadir, Sofia; Laux, Patrick; Gaiser, Thomas

2018-03-01

To reduce the risks of climate change, governments agreed in the Paris Agreement to limit global temperature rise to less than 2.0 °C above pre-industrial levels, with the ambition to keep warming to 1.5 °C. Charting appropriate mitigation responses requires information on the costs of mitigating versus associated damages for the two levels of warming. In this assessment, a critical consideration is the impact on crop yields and yield variability in regions currently challenged by food insecurity. The current study assessed impacts of 1.5 °C versus 2.0 °C on yields of maize, pearl millet and sorghum in the West African Sudan Savanna using two crop models that were calibrated with common varieties from experiments in the region with management reflecting a range of typical sowing windows. As sustainable intensification is promoted in the region for improving food security, simulations were conducted for both current fertilizer use and for an intensification case (fertility not limiting). With current fertilizer use, results indicated 2% units higher losses for maize and sorghum with 2.0 °C compared to 1.5 °C warming, with no change in millet yields for either scenario. In the intensification case, yield losses due to climate change were larger than with current fertilizer levels. However, despite the larger losses, yields were always two to three times higher with intensification, irrespective of the warming scenario. Though yield variability increased with intensification, there was no interaction with warming scenario. Risk and market analysis are needed to extend these results to understand implications for food security.

Assessing the Impact of Air Pollution on Grain Yield of Winter Wheat - A Case Study in the North China Plain.

PubMed

Liu, Xiuwei; Sun, Hongyong; Feike, Til; Zhang, Xiying; Shao, Liwei; Chen, Suying

2016-01-01

The major wheat production region of China the North China Plain (NCP) is seriously affected by air pollution. In this study, yield of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) was analyzed with respect to the potential impact of air pollution index under conditions of optimal crop management in the NCP from 2001 to 2012. Results showed that air pollution was especially serious at the early phase of winter wheat growth significantly influencing various weather factors. However, no significant correlations were found between final grain yield and the weather factors during the early growth phase. In contrast, significant correlations were found between grain yield and total solar radiation gap, sunshine hour gap, diurnal temperature range and relative humidity during the late growing phase. To disentangle the confounding effects of various weather factors, and test the isolated effect of air pollution induced changes in incoming global solar radiation on yield under ceteris paribus conditions, crop model based scenario-analysis was conducted. The simulation results of the calibrated Agricultural Production Systems Simulator (APSIM) model indicated that a reduction in radiation by 10% might cause a yield reduction by more than 10%. Increasing incident radiation by 10% would lead to yield increases of (only) 7%, with the effects being much stronger during the late growing phase compared to the early growing phase. However, there is evidence that APSIM overestimates the effect of air pollution induced changes on radiation, as it does not consider the changes in radiative properties of solar insulation, i.e. the relative increase of diffuse over direct radiation, which may partly alleviate the negative effects of reduced total radiation by air pollution. Concluding, the present study could not detect a significantly negative effect of air pollution on wheat yields in the NCP.

Estimating the responses of winter wheat yields to moisture variations in the past 35 years in Jiangsu Province of China

PubMed Central

Ding, Jinfeng; Li, Chunyan

2018-01-01

Jiangsu is an important agricultural province in China. Winter wheat, as the second major grain crop in the province, is greatly affected by moisture variations. The objective of this study was to investigate whether there were significant trends in changes in the moisture conditions during wheat growing seasons over the past decades and how the wheat yields responded to different moisture levels by means of a popular drought index, the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI). The study started with a trend analysis and quantification of the moisture conditions with the Mann-Kendall test and Sen’s Slope method, respectively. Then, correlation analysis was carried out to determine the relationship between de-trended wheat yields and multi-scalar SPEI. Finally, a multivariate panel regression model was established to reveal the quantitative yield responses to moisture variations. The results showed that the moisture conditions in Jiangsu were generally at a normal level, but this century appeared slightly drier in because of the relatively high temperatures. There was a significant correlation between short time scale SPEI values and wheat yields. Among the three critical stages of wheat development, the SPEI values in the late growth stage (April-June) had a closer linkage to the yields than in the seedling stage (October-November) and the over-wintering stage (December-February). Moreover, the yield responses displayed an asymmetric characteristic, namely, moisture excess led to higher yield losses compared to moisture deficit in this region. The maximum yield increment could be obtained under the moisture level of slight drought according to the 3-month SPEI at the late growth stage, while extreme wetting resulted in the most severe yield losses. The moisture conditions in the first 15 years of the 21st century were more favorable than in the last 20 years of the 20th century for wheat production in Jiangsu. PMID:29329353

Trade-offs among ecosystem services in a typical Karst watershed, SW China.

PubMed

Tian, Yichao; Wang, Shijie; Bai, Xiaoyong; Luo, Guangjie; Xu, Yan

2016-10-01

Nowadays, most research results on ecosystem services in Karst areas are limited to a single function of an ecosystem service. Few scholars conduct a comparative study on the mutual relationships among ecosystem services, let alone reveal the trade-off and synergic relationships in typical Karst watershed. This research aims to understand and quantitatively evaluate the relationships among ecosystem services in a typical Karst watershed, broaden the depth and width of trade-off and synergic relationships in ecosystem services and explore a set of technical processes involved in these relationships. With the Shibantang Karst watershed in China as the research site, we explore the trade-off and synergic relationships of net primary productivity (NPP), water yield, and sediment yield by coupling Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) and Carnegie-Ames-Stanford Approach (CASA), and simulating and evaluating these three ecosystem services between 2000 and 2010. Results of this study are as follows. (1) The annual average water yield decreased from 528mm in 2000 to 513mm in 2010, decreasing by 2.84%. (2) The annual average sediment yield decreased from 26.15t/ha in 2000 to 23.81t/ha in 2010, with an average annual reduction of 0.23t/ha. (3) The annual average NPP increased from 739.38gCm(-2)a(-1) in 2000 to 746.25gCm(-2)a(-1) in 2010, increasing by 6.87gCm(-2)a(-1) . (4) Water yield and sediment yield are in a synergic relationship. The increase of water yield can accumulate the soil erosion amount. NPP is in a trade-off relationship with water yield and sediment yield. The improvement of NPP is good for decreasing water yield and soil erosion amount and increasing soil conservation amount. This study provides policy makers and planners an approach to develop an integrated model, as well as design mapping and monitoring protocols for land use change and ecosystem service assessments. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Estimating the responses of winter wheat yields to moisture variations in the past 35 years in Jiangsu Province of China.

PubMed

Xu, Xiangying; Gao, Ping; Zhu, Xinkai; Guo, Wenshan; Ding, Jinfeng; Li, Chunyan

2018-01-01

Jiangsu is an important agricultural province in China. Winter wheat, as the second major grain crop in the province, is greatly affected by moisture variations. The objective of this study was to investigate whether there were significant trends in changes in the moisture conditions during wheat growing seasons over the past decades and how the wheat yields responded to different moisture levels by means of a popular drought index, the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI). The study started with a trend analysis and quantification of the moisture conditions with the Mann-Kendall test and Sen's Slope method, respectively. Then, correlation analysis was carried out to determine the relationship between de-trended wheat yields and multi-scalar SPEI. Finally, a multivariate panel regression model was established to reveal the quantitative yield responses to moisture variations. The results showed that the moisture conditions in Jiangsu were generally at a normal level, but this century appeared slightly drier in because of the relatively high temperatures. There was a significant correlation between short time scale SPEI values and wheat yields. Among the three critical stages of wheat development, the SPEI values in the late growth stage (April-June) had a closer linkage to the yields than in the seedling stage (October-November) and the over-wintering stage (December-February). Moreover, the yield responses displayed an asymmetric characteristic, namely, moisture excess led to higher yield losses compared to moisture deficit in this region. The maximum yield increment could be obtained under the moisture level of slight drought according to the 3-month SPEI at the late growth stage, while extreme wetting resulted in the most severe yield losses. The moisture conditions in the first 15 years of the 21st century were more favorable than in the last 20 years of the 20th century for wheat production in Jiangsu.

Impact of plastic mulching on nitrous oxide emissions in China's arid agricultural region under climate change conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Yongxiang; Tao, Hui; Jia, Hongtao; Zhao, Chengyi

2017-06-01

The denitrification-decomposition (DNDC) model is a useful tool for integrating the effects of agricultural practices and climate change on soil nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from agricultural ecosystems. In this study, the DNDC model was evaluated against observations and used to simulate the effect of plastic mulching on soil N2O emissions and crop growth. The DNDC model performed well in simulating temporal variations in N2O emissions and plant growth during the observation period, although it slightly underestimated the cumulative N2O emissions, and was able to simulate the effects of plastic mulching on N2O emissions and crop yield. Both the observations and simulations demonstrated that the application of plastic film increased cumulative N2O emissions and cotton lint yield compared with the non-mulched treatment. The sensitivity test showed that the N2O emissions and lint yield were sensitive to changes in climate and management practices, and the application of plastic film made the N2O emissions and lint yield less sensitive to changes in temperature and irrigation. Although the simulations showed that the beneficial impacts of plastic mulching on N2O emissions were not gained under high fertilizer and irrigation scenarios, our simulations suggest that the application of plastic film effectively reduced soil N2O emissions while promoting yields under suitable fertilizer rates and irrigation. Compared with the baseline scenario, future climate change significantly increased N2O emissions by 15-17% without significantly influencing the lint yields in the non-mulched treatment; in the mulched treatment, climate change significantly promoted the lint yield by 5-6% and significantly reduced N2O emissions by 14% in the RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios. Overall, our results demonstrate that the application of plastic film is an efficient way to address increased N2O emissions and simultaneously enhance crop yield in the future.

A study to identify and compare airborne systems for in-situ measurements of launch vehicle effluents

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thomas, T. J.; Chace, A. S.

1974-01-01

An in-situ system for monitoring the concentration of HCl, CO, CO2, and Al2O3 in the cloud of reaction products that form as a result of a launch of solid propellant launch vehicle is studied. A wide array of instrumentation and platforms are reviewed to yield the recommended system. An airborne system suited to monitoring pollution concentrations over urban areas for the purpose of calibrating remote sensors is then selected using a similar methodology to yield the optimal configuration.

Photodynamic activity of pyropheophorbide methyl ester and pyropheophorbide a in dimethylformamide solution.

PubMed

Al-Omari, Saleh; Ali, Ahmad

2009-03-01

Comparative spectroscopic study including the photosensitizers of pyropheophorbide methyl ester (PPME) and pyropheophorbide a (PPa) was performed to study their photodynamic activity. The investigated photosensitizers in a homogeneous system of dimethylformamide (DMF) are not photostable upon irradiation. The photobleaching efficiency of PPa is higher than that of PPME. Combining these results with the data obtained by measuring the singlet oxygen quantum yield and the hydroxyl group generation, it was revealed that the photobleaching efficiency could be correlated with the singlet oxygen quantum yield and the hydroxyl group production of the photosensitizer.

A Comparison of Yield Studies of Slash Pine in Old-Field Plantations

Treesearch

F.A. Bennett; R. L. Barnes; J.L. Clutter; C.E. McGee

1970-01-01

This report compares three yield studies of slash pine in old-field plantation. Similarities and differences in yield are disccssed. Within the range of sample data common to all studies, yield estimates are similar; major difierences occur only in extrapolated values.

Verification of Experimental Techniques for Flow Surface Determination

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lissenden, Cliff J.; Lerch, Bradley A.; Ellis, John R.; Robinson, David N.

1996-01-01

The concept of a yield surface is central to the mathematical formulation of a classical plasticity theory. However, at elevated temperatures, material response can be highly time-dependent, which is beyond the realm of classical plasticity. Viscoplastic theories have been developed for just such conditions. In viscoplastic theories, the flow law is given in terms of inelastic strain rate rather than the inelastic strain increment used in time-independent plasticity. Thus, surfaces of constant inelastic strain rate or flow surfaces are to viscoplastic theories what yield surfaces are to classical plasticity. The purpose of the work reported herein was to validate experimental procedures for determining flow surfaces at elevated temperatures. Since experimental procedures for determining yield surfaces in axial/torsional stress space are well established, they were employed -- except inelastic strain rates were used rather than total inelastic strains. In yield-surface determinations, the use of small-offset definitions of yield minimizes the change of material state and allows multiple loadings to be applied to a single specimen. The key to the experiments reported here was precise, decoupled measurement of axial and torsional strain. With this requirement in mind, the performance of a high-temperature multi-axial extensometer was evaluated by comparing its results with strain gauge results at room temperature. Both the extensometer and strain gauges gave nearly identical yield surfaces (both initial and subsequent) for type 316 stainless steel (316 SS). The extensometer also successfully determined flow surfaces for 316 SS at 650 C. Furthermore, to judge the applicability of the technique for composite materials, yield surfaces were determined for unidirectional tungsten/Kanthal (Fe-Cr-Al).

Controlled-rate freezer cryopreservation of highly concentrated peripheral blood mononuclear cells results in higher cell yields and superior autologous T-cell stimulation for dendritic cell-based immunotherapy.

PubMed

Buhl, Timo; Legler, Tobias J; Rosenberger, Albert; Schardt, Anke; Schön, Michael P; Haenssle, Holger A

2012-11-01

Availability of large quantities of functionally effective dendritic cells (DC) represents one of the major challenges for immunotherapeutic trials against infectious or malignant diseases. Low numbers or insufficient T-cell activation of DC may result in premature termination of treatment and unsatisfying immune responses in clinical trials. Based on the notion that cryopreservation of monocytes is superior to cryopreservation of immature or mature DC in terms of resulting DC quantity and immuno-stimulatory capacity, we aimed to establish an optimized protocol for the cryopreservation of highly concentrated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) for DC-based immunotherapy. Cryopreserved cell preparations were analyzed regarding quantitative recovery, viability, phenotype, and functional properties. In contrast to standard isopropyl alcohol (IPA) freezing, PBMC cryopreservation in an automated controlled-rate freezer (CRF) with subsequent thawing and differentiation resulted in significantly higher cell yields of immature and mature DC. Immature DC yields and total protein content after using CRF were comparable with results obtained with freshly prepared PBMC and exceeded results of standard IPA freezing by approximately 50 %. While differentiation markers, allogeneic T-cell stimulation, viability, and cytokine profiles were similar to DC from standard freezing procedures, DC generated from CRF-cryopreserved PBMC induced a significantly higher antigen-specific IFN-γ release from autologous effector T cells. In summary, automated controlled-rate freezing of highly concentrated PBMC represents an improved method for increasing DC yields and autologous T-cell stimulation.

Genotypic Variation in Yield, Yield Components, Root Morphology and Architecture, in Soybean in Relation to Water and Phosphorus Supply

PubMed Central

He, Jin; Jin, Yi; Du, Yan-Lei; Wang, Tao; Turner, Neil C.; Yang, Ru-Ping; Siddique, Kadambot H. M.; Li, Feng-Min

2017-01-01

Water shortage and low phosphorus (P) availability limit yields in soybean. Roots play important roles in water-limited and P-deficient environment, but the underlying mechanisms are largely unknown. In this study we determined the responses of four soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] genotypes [Huandsedadou (HD), Bailudou (BLD), Jindou 21 (J21), and Zhonghuang 30 (ZH)] to three P levels [applied 0 (P0), 60 (P60), and 120 (P120) mg P kg-1 dry soil to the upper 0.4 m of the soil profile] and two water treatment [well-watered (WW) and water-stressed (WS)] with special reference to root morphology and architecture, we compared yield and its components, root morphology and root architecture to find out which variety and/or what kind of root architecture had high grain yield under P and drought stress. The results showed that water stress and low P, respectively, significantly reduced grain yield by 60 and 40%, daily water use by 66 and 31%, P accumulation by 40 and 80%, and N accumulation by 39 and 65%. The cultivar ZH with the lowest daily water use had the highest grain yield at P60 and P120 under drought. Increased root length was positively associated with N and P accumulation in both the WW and WS treatments, but not with grain yield under water and P deficits. However, in the WS treatment, high adventitious and lateral root densities were associated with high N and P uptake per unit root length which in turn was significantly and positively associated with grain yield. Our results suggest that (1) genetic variation of grain yield, daily water use, P and N accumulation, and root morphology and architecture were observed among the soybean cultivars and ZH had the best yield performance under P and water limited conditions; (2) water has a major influence on nutrient uptake and grain yield, while additional P supply can modestly increase yields under drought in some soybean genotypes; (3) while conserved water use plays an important role in grain yield under drought, root traits also contribute to high nutrient uptake efficiency and benefit yield under drought. PMID:28912792

[Effects of different colored plastic film mulching and planting density on dry matter accumulation and yield of spring maize.

PubMed

Zhang, Lin Lin; Sun, Shi Jun; Chen, Zhi Jun; Jiang, Hao; Zhang, Xu Dong; Chi, Dao Cai

2018-01-01

In order to investigate the effect of different colored plastic film mulching and planting density on spring maize dry matter accumulation and yield in the rain-fed area of the Northeast China, a complete combination field experiment which was comprised by three types of mulching (non-mulching, transparent plastic film mulching and black plastic film mulching) and five densities (60000, 67500, 75000, 82500 and 90000 plants·hm -2 ), was conducted to analyze the water and heat effect, dry matter accumulation and yield of spring maize (Liangyu 99). The results showed that, compared with the other mulching treatments, the black plastic film mulching treatment significantly increased the maize dry matter accumulation and maize biomass by 3.2%-8.2%. In mature stage, the biomass increased firstly and then decreased with the increasing plant density. When planting density was 82500 plants·hm -2 , the biomass was the highest, which was 5.2%-28.3% higher than that of other plant density treatments. The mean soil temperature in prophase of transparent plastic film mulching treatment was 0.4-2.7 ℃ higher than that of other treatments, which accelerated the maize growth process and augmented the dry matter transportation amount (T), dry matter transportation efficiency (TE) and contribution rate of dry matter transportation to the grain yield (TC) of maize stalk and leaf. The T, TE, TC of leaf and leaf-stalk under 60000 plants·hm -2 treatment were the highest. The highest T, TE, TC of stalk were observed under 75000 plants·hm -2 treatment. In heading period, the water consumption and daily water consumption intensity of maize under the treatment of black film mulching were the largest, which were 9.4%-10.6% and 10.6%-24.5% higher than that of other mulching treatments, respectively. The highest water consumption and daily water consumption intensity were both obtained under 90000 plants·hm -2 treatment, which increased by 6.8%-15.7% and 7.0%-20.0% compared with other plant density treatments. The combination of black film mulching and density of 82500 plants·hm -2 significantly improved the water use efficiency of maize, which increased by 4.6%-40.9% compared with other treatments. In addition, it increased yield by 3.0%-39.7% compared with other treatments. At heading stage, the correlation between the dry matter amount of stalk and leaf and the yield and yield components was the biggest. Decreasing 1 kg·hm -2 dry matter amount of stalk and leaf would decrease the population yield by almost 0.79 kg·hm -2 . Decreasing 10% dry matter amount of stalk and leaf would decrease the yield by almost 10%. Based on increasing plant density, black film mulching was beneficial for increasing the dry matter accumulation and improving grain yield and water use efficiency of spring maize.

Comparison of plateletpheresis on the Fenwal Amicus, Fresenius COM.TEC, and Trima Accel Cell separators.

PubMed

Keklik, Muzaffer; Eser, Bulent; Kaynar, Leylagul; Sivgin, Serdar; Keklik, Ertugrul; Solmaz, Musa; Ozturk, Ahmet; Buyukoglan, Ruksan; Yay, Mehmet; Cetin, Mustafa; Unal, Ali

2015-06-01

Blood component donations by apheresis have become more common in modern blood transfusion practices. We compared three apheresis instruments (Fenwal Amicus, Fresenius COM.TEC, and Trima Accel) with regard to platelet (PLT) yield, collection efficiency (CE), and collection rate (CR). The single-needle or double-needle plateletpheresis procedures of the three instruments were compared in a retrospective, randomized study in 270 donors. The blood volume processed was higher in the COM.TEC compared with the Amicus and Trima. Also there was a significantly higher median volume of ACD used in collections on the COM.TEC compared with the Amicus and Trima. The PLT yield was significantly lower with the COM.TEC compared with the Amicus and Trima. Additionally, the CE was significantly lower with the COM.TEC compared with the Amicus and Trima. There was no significant difference in median separation time and CR between the three groups. When procedures were compared regarding CE by using Amicus device, it was significantly higher in single-needle than double-needle plateletpheresis. When double-needle Amicus system was compared with double-needle COM.TEC system, CE and PLT yield were significantly higher with Amicus system. When single-needle Amicus system was compared with single-needle Trima system, CE and PLT yield were significantly higher with Trima system. All instruments collected PLTs efficiently. However, the CE was lower with the COM.TEC compared with the Amicus and Trima. Also, we found Amicus single-needle system collected PLTs more efficiently compared with the double-needle system. CE and PLT yields were significantly higher with the single-needle Trima instrument compared with the single-needle Amicus device. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Impact of hydrogeological data on measures of uncertainty, site characterization and environmental performance metrics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Barros, Felipe P. J.; Ezzedine, Souheil; Rubin, Yoram

2012-02-01

The significance of conditioning predictions of environmental performance metrics (EPMs) on hydrogeological data in heterogeneous porous media is addressed. Conditioning EPMs on available data reduces uncertainty and increases the reliability of model predictions. We present a rational and concise approach to investigate the impact of conditioning EPMs on data as a function of the location of the environmentally sensitive target receptor, data types and spacing between measurements. We illustrate how the concept of comparative information yield curves introduced in de Barros et al. [de Barros FPJ, Rubin Y, Maxwell R. The concept of comparative information yield curves and its application to risk-based site characterization. Water Resour Res 2009;45:W06401. doi:10.1029/2008WR007324] could be used to assess site characterization needs as a function of flow and transport dimensionality and EPMs. For a given EPM, we show how alternative uncertainty reduction metrics yield distinct gains of information from a variety of sampling schemes. Our results show that uncertainty reduction is EPM dependent (e.g., travel times) and does not necessarily indicate uncertainty reduction in an alternative EPM (e.g., human health risk). The results show how the position of the environmental target, flow dimensionality and the choice of the uncertainty reduction metric can be used to assist in field sampling campaigns.

Persufflation Improves Pancreas Preservation When Compared With the Two-Layer Method

PubMed Central

Scott, W.E.; O'Brien, T.D.; Ferrer-Fabrega, J.; Avgoustiniatos, E.S.; Weegman, B.P.; Anazawa, T.; Matsumoto, S.; Kirchner, V.A.; Rizzari, M.D.; Murtaugh, M.P.; Suszynski, T.M.; Aasheim, T.; Kidder, L.S.; Hammer, B.E.; Stone, S.G.; Tempelman, L.; Sutherland, D.E.R.; Hering, B.J.; Papas, K.K.

2010-01-01

Islet transplantation is emerging as a promising treatment for patients with type 1 diabetes. It is important to maximize viable islet yield for each organ due to scarcity of suitable human donor pancreata, high cost, and the high dose of islets required for insulin independence. However, organ transport for 8 hours using the two-layer method (TLM) frequently results in lower islet yields. Since efficient oxygenation of the core of larger organs (eg, pig, human) in TLM has recently come under question, we investigated oxygen persufflation as an alternative way to supply the pancreas with oxygen during preservation. Porcine pancreata were procured from non–heart-beating donors and preserved by either TLM or persufflation for 24 hours and fixed. Biopsies were collected from several regions of the pancreas, sectioned, stained with hematoxylin and eosin, and evaluated by a histologist. Persufflated tissues exhibited distended capillaries due to gas perfusion and significantly less autolysis/cell death than regions not exposed to persufflation or tissues exposed to TLM. The histology presented here suggests that after 24 hours of preservation, persufflation dramatically improves tissue health when compared with TLM. These results indicate the potential for persufflation to improve viable islet yields and extend the duration of preservation, allowing more donor organs to be utilized. PMID:20692396

Pistil Smut Infection Increases Ovary Production, Seed Yield Components, and Pseudosexual Reproductive Allocation in Buffalograss

PubMed Central

Chandra, Ambika; Huff, David R.

2014-01-01

Sex expression of dioecious buffalograss [Bouteloua dactyloides Columbus (syn. Buchloë dactyloides (Nutt.) Engelm.)] is known to be environmentally stable with approximate 1:1, male to female, sex ratios. Here we show that infection by the pistil smut fungus [Salmacisia buchloëana Huff & Chandra (syn. Tilletia buchloëana Kellerman and Swingle)] shifts sex ratios of buffalograss to be nearly 100% phenotypically hermaphroditic. In addition, pistil smut infection decreased vegetative reproductive allocation, increased most seed yield components, and increased pseudosexual reproductive allocation in both sex forms compared to uninfected clones. In female sex forms, pistil smut infection resulted in a 26 fold increase in ovary production and a 35 fold increase in potential harvest index. In male sex forms, pistil smut infection resulted in 2.37 fold increase in floret number and over 95% of these florets contained a well-developed pistil. Although all ovaries of infected plants are filled with fungal teliospores and hence reproductively sterile, an average male-female pair of infected plants exhibited an 87 fold increase in potential harvest index compared to their uninfected clones. Acquiring an ability to mimic the effects of pistil smut infection would enhance our understanding of the flowering process in grasses and our efforts to increase seed yield of buffalograss and perhaps other grasses. PMID:27135522

Identifying seedling root architectural traits associated with yield and yield components in wheat.

PubMed

Xie, Quan; Fernando, Kurukulasuriya M C; Mayes, Sean; Sparkes, Debbie L

2017-05-01

Plant roots growing underground are critical for soil resource acquisition, anchorage and plant-environment interactions. In wheat ( Triticum aestivum ), however, the target root traits to improve yield potential still remain largely unknown. This study aimed to identify traits of seedling root system architecture (RSA) associated with yield and yield components in 226 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) derived from a cross between the bread wheat Triticum aestivum 'Forno' (small, wide root system) and spelt Triticum spelta 'Oberkulmer' (large, narrow root system). A 'pouch and wick' high-throughput phenotyping pipeline was used to determine the RSA traits of 13-day-old RIL seedlings. Two field experiments and one glasshouse experiment were carried out to investigate the yield, yield components and phenology, followed by identification of quantitative trait loci (QTLs). There was substantial variation in RSA traits between genotypes. Seminal root number and total root length were both positively associated with grains m -2 , grains per spike, above-ground biomass m -2 and grain yield. More seminal roots and longer total root length were also associated with delayed maturity and extended grain filling, likely to be a consequence of more grains being defined before anthesis. Additionally, the maximum width of the root system displayed positive relationships with spikes m -2 , grains m -2 and grain yield. Ten RILs selected for the longest total roots exhibited the same effects on yield and phenology as described above, compared with the ten lines with the shortest total roots. Genetic analysis revealed 38 QTLs for the RSA, and QTL coincidence between the root and yield traits was frequently observed, indicating tightly linked genes or pleiotropy, which concurs with the results of phenotypic correlation analysis. Based on the results from the Forno × Oberkulmer population, it is proposed that vigorous early root growth, particularly more seminal roots and longer total root length, is important to improve yield potential, and should be incorporated into wheat ideotypes in breeding. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Annals of Botany Company. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

How Big Was It? Getting at Yield

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pasyanos, M.; Walter, W. R.; Ford, S. R.

2013-12-01

One of the most coveted pieces of information in the wake of a nuclear test is the explosive yield. Determining the yield from remote observations, however, is not necessarily a trivial thing. For instance, recorded observations of seismic amplitudes, used to estimate the yield, are significantly modified by the intervening media, which varies widely, and needs to be properly accounted for. Even after correcting for propagation effects such as geometrical spreading, attenuation, and station site terms, getting from the resulting source term to a yield depends on the specifics of the explosion source model, including material properties, and depth. Some formulas are based on assumptions of the explosion having a standard depth-of-burial and observed amplitudes can vary if the actual test is either significantly overburied or underburied. We will consider the complications and challenges of making these determinations using a number of standard, more traditional methods and a more recent method that we have developed using regional waveform envelopes. We will do this comparison for recent declared nuclear tests from the DPRK. We will also compare the methods using older explosions at the Nevada Test Site with announced yields, material and depths, so that actual performance can be measured. In all cases, we also strive to quantify realistic uncertainties on the yield estimation.

Comparison of femtosecond laser and continuous wave UV sources for protein-nucleic acid crosslinking.

PubMed

Fecko, Christopher J; Munson, Katherine M; Saunders, Abbie; Sun, Guangxing; Begley, Tadhg P; Lis, John T; Webb, Watt W

2007-01-01

Crosslinking proteins to the nucleic acids they bind affords stable access to otherwise transient regulatory interactions. Photochemical crosslinking provides an attractive alternative to formaldehyde-based protocols, but irradiation with conventional UV sources typically yields inadequate product amounts. Crosslinking with pulsed UV lasers has been heralded as a revolutionary technique to increase photochemical yield, but this method had only been tested on a few protein-nucleic acid complexes. To test the generality of the yield enhancement, we have investigated the benefits of using approximately 150 fs UV pulses to crosslink TATA-binding protein, glucocorticoid receptor and heat shock factor to oligonucleotides in vitro. For these proteins, we find that the quantum yields (and saturating yields) for forming crosslinks using the high-peak intensity femtosecond laser do not improve on those obtained with low-intensity continuous wave (CW) UV sources. The photodamage to the oligonucleotides and proteins also has comparable quantum yields. Measurements of the photochemical reaction yields of several small molecules selected to model the crosslinking reactions also exhibit nearly linear dependences on UV intensity instead of the previously predicted quadratic dependence. Unfortunately, these results disprove earlier assertions that femtosecond pulsed laser sources provide significant advantages over CW radiation for protein-nucleic acid crosslinking.

Effects of blue light on pigment biosynthesis of Monascus.

PubMed

Chen, Di; Xue, Chunmao; Chen, Mianhua; Wu, Shufen; Li, Zhenjing; Wang, Changlu

2016-04-01

The influence of different illumination levels of blue light on the growth and intracellular pigment yields of Monascus strain M9 was investigated. Compared with darkness, constant exposure to blue light of 100 lux reduced the yields of six pigments, namely, rubropunctatamine (RUM), monascorubramine (MOM), rubropunctatin (RUN), monascorubrin (MON), monascin (MS), and ankaflavin (AK). However, exposure to varying levels of blue light had different effects on pigment production. Exposure to 100 lux of blue light once for 30 min/day and to 100 lux of blue light once and twice for 15 min/day could enhance RUM, MOM, MS, and AK production and reduce RUN and MON compared with non-exposure. Exposure to 100 lux twice for 30 min/day and to 200 lux once for 45 min/day decreased the RUM, MOM, MS, and AK yields and increased the RUN and MON. Meanwhile, the expression levels of pigment biosynthetic genes were analyzed by real-time quantitative PCR. Results indicated that gene MpPKS5, mppR1, mppA, mppB, mmpC, mppD, MpFasA, MpFasB, and mppF were positively correlated with the yields of RUN and MON, whereas mppE and mppR2 were associated with RUM, MOM, MS, and AK production.

Effect of amine functionalization of spherical MCM-41 and SBA-15 on controlled drug release

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

Szegedi, A., E-mail: szegedi@chemres.h; Popova, M.; Goshev, I.

2011-05-15

MCM-41 and SBA-15 silica materials with spherical morphology and different particle sizes were synthesized and modified by post-synthesis method with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES). A comparative study of the adsorption and release of a model drug, ibuprofen, were carried out. The modified and drug loaded mesoporous materials were characterized by XRD, TEM, N{sub 2} physisorption, thermal analysis, elemental analysis and FT-IR spectroscopy. Surface modification with amino groups resulted in high degree of ibuprofen loading and slow rate of release for MCM-41, whereas it was the opposite for SBA-15. The adsorbed drug content and the delivery rate can be predetermined by the choicemore » of mesoporous material with the appropriate structural characteristics and surface functionality. -- Graphical Abstract: Ibuprofen delivery from the parent and amino-modified spherical MCM-41 materials with 100 nm (small) and 500 nm (large) particle sizes. Display Omitted Highlights: {yields} Spherical type MCM-41 and SBA-15 with different particle sizes were modified by APTES. {yields} Adsorption and release rate of ibuprofen were compared. {yields} High degree of ibuprofen loading, slow release rate for MCM-41, the opposite for SBA-15. {yields} MCM-41 with 100 nm particles was more stable and showed slower release rate« less

Spring maize yield, soil water use and water use efficiency under plastic film and straw mulches in the Loess Plateau

PubMed Central

Lin, Wen; Liu, Wenzhao; Xue, Qingwu

2016-01-01

To compare the soil water balance, yield and water use efficiency (WUE) of spring maize under different mulching types in the Loess Plateau, a 7-year field experiment was conducted in the Changwu region of the Loess Plateau. Three treatments were used in this experiment: straw mulch (SM), plastic film mulch (PM) and conventional covering without mulch (CK). Results show that the soil water change of dryland spring maize was as deep as 300 cm depth and hence 300 cm is recommended as the minimum depth when measure the soil water in this region. Water use (ET) did not differ significantly among the treatments. However, grain yield was significantly higher in PM compared with CK. WUE was significantly higher in PM than in CK for most years of the experiment. Although ET tended to be higher in PM than in the other treatments (without significance), the evaporation of water in the fallow period also decreased. Thus, PM is sustainable with respect to soil water balance. The 7-year experiment and the supplemental experiment thus confirmed that straw mulching at the seedling stage may lead to yield reduction and this effect can be mitigated by delaying the straw application to three-leaf stage. PMID:27976710

Effect of cost-effective substrates on growth cycle and yield of lingzhi or reishi medicinal mushroom, Ganoderma lucidum (higher Basidiomycetes) from Northwestern Himalaya (India).

PubMed

Mehta, Sheetal; Jandaik, Savita; Gupta, Dharmesh

2014-01-01

To find a cost-effective alternative substrate, the medicinal mushroom Ganoderma lucidum was grown on sawdusts of sheesham, mango, and poplar. Optimum spawn level was determined by spawning in substrates at various levels (1, 2, 3, and 4%). To determine the effect of supplementation, substrates were supplemented with wheat bran, rice bran and corn flour at different concentrations (10, 20, and 30%). Duration of growth cycle, mushroom yield, and biological efficiency data were recorded. Among substrates, mango sawdust was superior, with 1.5-fold higher yields than poplar sawdust, which was the least suitable. However with respect to fructification, mango sawdust produced the first primordia earlier (21±1 days) compared with the other investigated substrates. 3% spawn level was found to be optimal irrespective of the substrate. Yield and biological efficiency (BE) were maximally enhanced by supplementation with wheat bran, whereas rice bran was the least suitable supplement among those tested. Growth cycle shortened and mushroom yield increased to a maximum at the 20% level of supplements. Mango sawdust in combination with 20% wheat bran, if spawned at the 3% level, resulted in a high yield (BE = 58.57%).

Kinetics of Static Strain Aging in Polycrystalline NiAl-based Alloys

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Weaver, M. L.; Kaufman, M. J.; Noebe, R. D.

1996-01-01

The kinetics of yield point return have been studied in two NiAl-based alloys as a function of aging time at temperatures between 300 and 700 K. The results indicate that the upper yield stress increment, Delta sigma(sub u) (i.e., stress difference between the upper yield point and the final flow stress achieved during prestraining), in conventional purity (CP-NiAl) and in high purity carbon-doped (NiAl-C) material first increased with a t(exp 2/3) relationship before reaching a plateau. This behavior suggests that a Cottrell locking mechanism is the cause for yield points in NiAl. In addition, positive y-axis intercepts were observed in plots of Delta sigma(sub u) versus t(exp 2/3) suggesting the operation of a Snoek mechanism. Analysis according to the Cottrell Bilby model of atmosphere formation around dislocations yields an activation energy for yield point return in the range 70 to 76 kJ/mol which is comparable to the activation energy for diffusion of interstitial impurities in bcc metals. It is, thus, concluded that the kinetics of static strain aging in NiAl are controlled by the locking of dislocations by Cottrell atmospheres of carbon atoms around dislocations.

A Diversified Recruitment Approach Incorporating Social Media Leads to Research Participation Among Young Adult-Aged Female Cancer Survivors.

PubMed

Gorman, Jessica R; Roberts, Samantha C; Dominick, Sally A; Malcarne, Vanessa L; Dietz, Andrew C; Su, H Irene

2014-06-01

Purpose: Cancer survivors in their adolescent and young adult (AYA) years are an understudied population, possibly in part because of the high effort required to recruit them into research studies. The aim of this paper is to describe the specific recruitment strategies used in four studies recruiting AYA-aged female cancer survivors and to identify the highest yielding approaches. We also discuss challenges and recommendations. Methods: We recruited AYA-aged female cancer survivors for two studies conducted locally and two conducted nationally. Recruitment strategies included outreach and referral via: healthcare providers and clinics; social media and the internet; community and word of mouth; and a national fertility information hotline. We calculated the yield of each recruitment approach for the local and national studies by comparing the number that participated to the number of potential participants. Results: We recruited a total of 534 participants into four research studies. Seventy-one percent were diagnosed as young adults and 61% were within 3 years of their cancer diagnosis. The highest-yielding local recruitment strategy was healthcare provider and clinic referral. Nationally, social media and internet outreach yielded the highest rate of participation. Overall, internet-based recruitment resulted in the highest number and yield of participants. Conclusion: Our results suggest that outreach through social media and the internet are effective approaches to recruiting AYA-aged female cancer survivors. Forging collaborative relationships with survivor advocacy groups' members and healthcare providers also proved beneficial.

A Diversified Recruitment Approach Incorporating Social Media Leads to Research Participation Among Young Adult-Aged Female Cancer Survivors

PubMed Central

Gorman, Jessica R.; Roberts, Samantha C.; Dominick, Sally A.; Malcarne, Vanessa L.; Dietz, Andrew C.

2014-01-01

Purpose: Cancer survivors in their adolescent and young adult (AYA) years are an understudied population, possibly in part because of the high effort required to recruit them into research studies. The aim of this paper is to describe the specific recruitment strategies used in four studies recruiting AYA-aged female cancer survivors and to identify the highest yielding approaches. We also discuss challenges and recommendations. Methods: We recruited AYA-aged female cancer survivors for two studies conducted locally and two conducted nationally. Recruitment strategies included outreach and referral via: healthcare providers and clinics; social media and the internet; community and word of mouth; and a national fertility information hotline. We calculated the yield of each recruitment approach for the local and national studies by comparing the number that participated to the number of potential participants. Results: We recruited a total of 534 participants into four research studies. Seventy-one percent were diagnosed as young adults and 61% were within 3 years of their cancer diagnosis. The highest-yielding local recruitment strategy was healthcare provider and clinic referral. Nationally, social media and internet outreach yielded the highest rate of participation. Overall, internet-based recruitment resulted in the highest number and yield of participants. Conclusion: Our results suggest that outreach through social media and the internet are effective approaches to recruiting AYA-aged female cancer survivors. Forging collaborative relationships with survivor advocacy groups' members and healthcare providers also proved beneficial. PMID:24940529

On the modelling of complex kinematic hardening and nonquadratic anisotropic yield criteria at finite strains: application to sheet metal forming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grilo, Tiago J.; Vladimirov, Ivaylo N.; Valente, Robertt A. F.; Reese, Stefanie

2016-06-01

In the present paper, a finite strain model for complex combined isotropic-kinematic hardening is presented. It accounts for finite elastic and finite plastic strains and is suitable for any anisotropic yield criterion. In order to model complex cyclic hardening phenomena, the kinematic hardening is described by several back stress components. To that end, a new procedure is proposed in which several multiplicative decompositions of the plastic part of the deformation gradient are considered. The formulation incorporates a completely general format of the yield function, which means that any yield function can by employed by following a procedure that ensures the principle of material frame indifference. The constitutive equations are derived in a thermodynamically consistent way and numerically integrated by means of a backward-Euler algorithm based on the exponential map. The performance of the constitutive model is assessed via numerical simulations of industry-relevant sheet metal forming processes (U-channel forming and draw/re-draw of a panel benchmarks), the results of which are compared to experimental data. The comparison between numerical and experimental results shows that the use of multiple back stress components is very advantageous in the description of springback. This holds in particular if one carries out a comparison with the results of using only one component. Moreover, the numerically obtained results are in excellent agreement with the experimental data.

Pricing Weather Index Insurance Based on Artificial Controlled Experiment - A Case Study of Cold Temperature for Early Rice in Jiangxi, China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

SUN, Q.; Yang, Z.

2017-12-01

The growth of early rice is often threated by a phenomenon known as Grain Buds Cold, a period of anomalously cold temperature that occurs during the booting and flowering stage. Therefore, quantifying the impact of weather on crop yield is a core issue in design of weather index insurance. A high yield loss will lead to an increasing premium rate. In this paper, we explored a new way to investigate the relationship between yield loss rate and cold temperature durations. A two-year artificial controlled experiment was used to build logarithm and linear yield loss model. Moreover, an information diffusion model was applied to calculate the probability of different durations which lasting for 3-20 days. The results show that pure premium rates of logarithm yield loss model had better premium rates performance than that of linear yield loss model. The premium rates of Grain Buds Cold Weather Index Insurance fluctuated between 7.085% and 10.151% in Jiangxi Province. Compared with common statistical methods, the artificial controlled experiment provides an easier and more robust way to determine the relationship between yield and single meteorological factor. Meanwhile, this experiment would be very important for some regions where were lacking in historical yield data and climate data and could help farmers cope with extreme cold weather risks under varying weather conditions.

Process gg{yields}h{sub 0}{yields}{gamma}{gamma} in the Lee-Wick standard model

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

Krauss, F.; Underwood, T. E. J.; Zwicky, R.

2008-01-01

The process gg{yields}h{sub 0}{yields}{gamma}{gamma} is studied in the Lee-Wick extension of the standard model (LWSM) proposed by Grinstein, O'Connell, and Wise. In this model, negative norm partners for each SM field are introduced with the aim to cancel quadratic divergences in the Higgs mass. All sectors of the model relevant to gg{yields}h{sub 0}{yields}{gamma}{gamma} are diagonalized and results are commented on from the perspective of both the Lee-Wick and higher-derivative formalisms. Deviations from the SM rate for gg{yields}h{sub 0} are found to be of the order of 15%-5% for Lee-Wick masses in the range 500-1000 GeV. Effects on the rate formore » h{sub 0}{yields}{gamma}{gamma} are smaller, of the order of 5%-1% for Lee-Wick masses in the same range. These comparatively small changes may well provide a means of distinguishing the LWSM from other models such as universal extra dimensions where same-spin partners to standard model fields also appear. Corrections to determinations of Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa (CKM) elements |V{sub t(b,s,d)}| are also considered and are shown to be positive, allowing the possibility of measuring a CKM element larger than unity, a characteristic signature of the ghostlike nature of the Lee-Wick fields.« less

Analysis of MINIE2013 Explosion Air-Blast Data

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

Schnurr, Julie M.; Rodgers, Arthur J.; Kim, Keehoon

We report analysis of air-blast overpressure measurements from the MINIE2013 explosive experiments. The MINIE2013 experiment involved a series of nearly 70 near-surface (height-ofburst, HOB, ranging from -1 to +4 m) low-yield (W=2-20 kg TNT equivalent) chemical highexplosives tests that were recorded at local distances (230 m – 28.5 km). Many of the W and HOB combinations were repeated, allowing for quantification of the variability in air-blast features and corresponding yield estimates. We measured canonical signal features (peak overpressure, impulse per unit area, and positive pulse duration) from the air-blast data and compared these to existing air-blast models. Peak overpressure measurementsmore » showed good agreement with the models at close ranges but tended to attenuate more rapidly at longer range (~ 1 km), which is likely caused by upward refraction of acoustic waves due to a negative vertical gradient of sound speed. We estimated yields of the MINIE2013 explosions using the Integrated Yield Determination Tool (IYDT). Errors of the estimated yields were on average within 30% of the reported yields, and there were no significant differences in the accuracy of the IYDT predictions grouped by yield. IYDT estimates tend to be lower than ground truth yields, possibly because of reduced overpressure amplitudes by upward refraction. Finally, we report preliminary results on a development of a new parameterized air-blast waveform.« less

[Study on High-yield Cultivation Measures for Arctii Fructus].

PubMed

Liu, Shi-yong; Jiang, Xiao-bo; Wang, Tao; Sun, Ji-ye; Hu, Shang-qin; Zhang, Li

2015-02-01

To find out the high yield cultivation measures for Arctii Fructus. Completely randomized block experiment design method was used in the field planting, to analyze the effect of different cultivation way on agronomic characters, phenological phase,quality and quantity of Arctii Fructus. Arctium lappa planted on August 28 had the best results of plant height, thousand seeds weight and yield. The highest yield of Arctii Fructus was got at the density of 1,482 plants/667 m2. Arctiin content was in an increase trend with the planting time delay and planting density increasing. The plant height, thousand seeds weight, yield and arctiin content by split application of fertilizer were significantly higher than that by one-time fertilization. Compared with open field Arctium lappa, plant height, yield, arctiin content and relative water content of plastic film mulching Arctium lappa was higher by 7.74%, 10.87%, 6.38% and 24.20%, respectively. In the topping Arctium lappa, the yield was increased by 11.09%, with 39. 89% less branching number. Early planting time and topping shortened the growth cycle of Arctium lappa plant. The high-yield cultivation measures of Arctii Fructus are: around August 28 to sowing, planting density of 1 482 plants/667 m2, split application of fertilizer for four times, covering film on surface of the soil and topping in bolting.

Biodiesel production using waste frying oil

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

Charpe, Trupti W.; Rathod, Virendra K., E-mail: vk.rathod@ictmumbai.edu.in

2011-01-15

Research highlights: {yields} Waste sunflower frying oil is successfully converted to biodiesel using lipase as catalyst. {yields} Various process parameters that affects the conversion of transesterification reaction such as temperature, enzyme concentration, methanol: oil ratio and solvent are optimized. {yields} Inhibitory effect of methanol on lipase is reduced by adding methanol in three stages. {yields} Polar solvents like n-hexane and n-heptane increases the conversion of tranesterification reaction. - Abstract: Waste sunflower frying oil is used in biodiesel production by transesterification using an enzyme as a catalyst in a batch reactor. Various microbial lipases have been used in transesterification reaction tomore » select an optimum lipase. The effects of various parameters such as temperature, methanol:oil ratio, enzyme concentration and solvent on the conversion of methyl ester have been studied. The Pseudomonas fluorescens enzyme yielded the highest conversion. Using the P. fluorescens enzyme, the optimum conditions included a temperature of 45 deg. C, an enzyme concentration of 5% and a methanol:oil molar ratio 3:1. To avoid an inhibitory effect, the addition of methanol was performed in three stages. The conversion obtained after 24 h of reaction increased from 55.8% to 63.84% because of the stage-wise addition of methanol. The addition of a non-polar solvent result in a higher conversion compared to polar solvents. Transesterification of waste sunflower frying oil under the optimum conditions and single-stage methanol addition was compared to the refined sunflower oil.« less

Phenotyping of field-grown wheat in the UK highlights contribution of light response of photosynthesis and flag leaf longevity to grain yield.

PubMed

Carmo-Silva, Elizabete; Andralojc, P John; Scales, Joanna C; Driever, Steven M; Mead, Andrew; Lawson, Tracy; Raines, Christine A; Parry, Martin A J

2017-06-15

Improving photosynthesis is a major target for increasing crop yields and ensuring food security. Phenotyping of photosynthesis in the field is critical to understand the limits to crop performance in agricultural settings. Yet, detailed phenotyping of photosynthetic traits is relatively scarce in field-grown wheat, with previous studies focusing on narrow germplasm selections. Flag leaf photosynthetic traits, crop development, and yield traits were compared in 64 field-grown wheat cultivars in the UK. Pre-anthesis and post-anthesis photosynthetic traits correlated significantly and positively with grain yield and harvest index (HI). These traits included net CO2 assimilation measured at ambient CO2 concentrations and a range of photosynthetic photon flux densities, and traits associated with the light response of photosynthesis. In most cultivars, photosynthesis decreased post-anthesis compared with pre-anthesis, and this was associated with decreased Rubisco activity and abundance. Heritability of photosynthetic traits suggests that phenotypic variation can be used to inform breeding programmes. Specific cultivars were identified with traits relevant to breeding for increased crop yields in the UK: pre-anthesis photosynthesis, post-anthesis photosynthesis, light response of photosynthesis, and Rubisco amounts. The results indicate that flag leaf longevity and operating photosynthetic activity in the canopy can be further exploited to maximize grain filling in UK bread wheat. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology.

VARIATIONS IN RECRUITMENT YIELD, COSTS, SPEED AND PARTICIPANT DIVERSITY ACROSS INTERNET PLATFORMS IN A GLOBAL STUDY EXAMINING THE EFFICACY OF AN HIV/AIDS AND HIV TESTING ANIMATED AND LIVE-ACTION VIDEO AMONG ENGLISH- OR SPANISH-SPEAKING INTERNET OR SOCIAL MEDIA USERS

PubMed Central

Shao, Winnie; Guan, Wentao; Clark, Melissa A.; Liu, Tao; Santelices, Claudia; Cortés, Dharma E.; Merchant, Roland C.

2016-01-01

For a world-wide, Internet-based study on HIV/AIDS and HIV testing knowledge, we compared the yields, speed and costs of recruitment and participant diversity across free postings on 13 Internet or social media platforms, paid advertising or postings on 3 platforms, and separate free postings and paid advertisements on Facebook. Platforms were compared by study completions (yield), time to completion, completion to enrollment ratios (CERs), and costs/ completion; and by participants’ demographic characteristics, HIV testing history, and health literacy levels. Of the 482 English-speaking participants, Amazon Mechanical Turk yielded the most participants, recruited participants at the fastest rate and had the highest CER (0.78) and lowest costs / completion. Of the 335 Spanish-speaking participants, Facebook yielded the most participants and recruited participants at the fastest rate, although Amazon Mechanical Turk had the highest CER (0.72) and lowest costs/completion. Across platforms participants differed substantially according to their demographic characteristics, HIV testing history and health literay skills. The study results highlight the need for researchers to strongly consider choice of Internet or social media plaforms when conducting Internet-based research. Because of the sample specifications and cost restraints of studies, specific Internet/ social media or participant selection plaforms will be much more effective or appropriate than others. PMID:27330570

Nuclear model calculation and targetry recipe for production of 110mIn.

PubMed

Kakavand, T; Mirzaii, M; Eslami, M; Karimi, A

2015-10-01

(110m)In is potentially an important positron emitting that can be used in positron emission tomography. In this work, the excitation functions and production yields of (110)Cd(d, 2n), (111)Cd(d, 3n), (nat)Cd(d, xn), (110)Cd(p, n), (111)Cd(p, 2n), (112)Cd(p, 3n) and (nat)Cd(p, xn) reactions to produce the (110m)In were calculated using nuclear model code TALYS and compared with the experimental data. The yield of isomeric state production of (110)In was also compared with ground state production ones to reach the optimal energy range of projectile for the high yield production of metastable state. The results indicate that the (110)Cd(p, n)(110m)In is a high yield reaction with an isomeric ratio (σ(m)/σ(g)) of about 35 within the optimal incident energy range of 15-5 MeV. To make the target, cadmium was electroplated on a copper substrate in varying electroplating conditions such as PH, DC current density, temperature and time. A set of cold tests were also performed on the final sample under several thermal shocks to verify target resistance. The best electroplated cadmium target was irradiated with 15 MeV protons at current of 100 µA for one hour and the production yield of (110m)In and other byproducts were measured. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

VARIATIONS IN RECRUITMENT YIELD, COSTS, SPEED AND PARTICIPANT DIVERSITY ACROSS INTERNET PLATFORMS IN A GLOBAL STUDY EXAMINING THE EFFICACY OF AN HIV/AIDS AND HIV TESTING ANIMATED AND LIVE-ACTION VIDEO AMONG ENGLISH- OR SPANISH-SPEAKING INTERNET OR SOCIAL MEDIA USERS.

PubMed

Shao, Winnie; Guan, Wentao; Clark, Melissa A; Liu, Tao; Santelices, Claudia; Cortés, Dharma E; Merchant, Roland C

For a world-wide, Internet-based study on HIV/AIDS and HIV testing knowledge, we compared the yields, speed and costs of recruitment and participant diversity across free postings on 13 Internet or social media platforms, paid advertising or postings on 3 platforms, and separate free postings and paid advertisements on Facebook. Platforms were compared by study completions (yield), time to completion, completion to enrollment ratios (CERs), and costs/ completion; and by participants' demographic characteristics, HIV testing history, and health literacy levels. Of the 482 English-speaking participants, Amazon Mechanical Turk yielded the most participants, recruited participants at the fastest rate and had the highest CER (0.78) and lowest costs / completion. Of the 335 Spanish-speaking participants, Facebook yielded the most participants and recruited participants at the fastest rate, although Amazon Mechanical Turk had the highest CER (0.72) and lowest costs/completion. Across platforms participants differed substantially according to their demographic characteristics, HIV testing history and health literay skills. The study results highlight the need for researchers to strongly consider choice of Internet or social media plaforms when conducting Internet-based research. Because of the sample specifications and cost restraints of studies, specific Internet/ social media or participant selection plaforms will be much more effective or appropriate than others.

Comparison of different hadron production models for the study of π±, K±, protons and antiprotons production in proton-carbon interactions at 90 GeV/c

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ajaz, M.; Ali, Y.; Ullah, S.; Ali, Q.; Tabassam, U.

2018-05-01

In this research paper, comprehensive results on the double differential yield of π± and K± mesons, protons and antiprotons as a function of laboratory momentum in several polar angle ranges from 0-420 mrad for pions, 0-360 mrad for kaons, proton and antiproton are reported. EPOS 1.99, EPOS-LHC and QGSJETII-04 models are used to perform simulations. The predictions of these models at 90 GeV/c are plotted for comparison, which shows that QGSJETII-04 model gives overall higher yield for π+ mesons in the polar angle interval of 0-40 mrad but for the π‑ the yield is higher only up to 20 mrad. For π+ mesons after 40 mrad, EPOS-LHC predicts higher yield as compared to EPOS 1.99 and QGSJETII-04 while EPOS-LHC and EPOS 1.99 give similar behavior in these two intervals. However, for π‑ mesons EPOS-LHC and EPOS 1.99 give similar behavior in these two intervals. For of K± mesons, QGSJETII-04 model gives higher predictions in all cases from 0-300 mrad, while EPOS 1.99 and EPOS-LHC show similar distributions. In case of protons, all models give similar distribution but this is not true for antiproton. All models are in good agreement for p > 20 GeV/c. EPOS 1.99 produce lower yield compared to the other two models from 60-360 mrad polar angle interval.

Comparison Of trap types and colors for capturing emerald ash borer adults at different population densities

Treesearch

Therese M. Poland; Deborah G. Mccullough

2014-01-01

Results of numerous trials to evaluate artificial trap designs and lures for detection of Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire, the emerald ash borer, have yielded inconsistent results, possibly because of different A. planipennis population densities in the field sites. In 2010 and 2011, we compared 1) green canopy traps, 2) purple...

The Visibility of Information Science and Library Science Research in Bibliometric Mapping of the LIS Field

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Astrom, Fredrik

2010-01-01

The relation between information science and library science has been debated for decades, and even attempts at utilizing methods generally acknowledged as robust for the purpose of mapping research fields have yielded results with large variations. Therefore, a set of citation analyses was performed, comparing the results of analyses on…

Standardization and validation of the body weight adjustment regression equations in Olympic weightlifting.

PubMed

Kauhanen, Heikki; Komi, Paavo V; Häkkinen, Keijo

2002-02-01

The problems in comparing the performances of Olympic weightlifters arise from the fact that the relationship between body weight and weightlifting results is not linear. In the present study, this relationship was examined by using a nonparametric curve fitting technique of robust locally weighted regression (LOWESS) on relatively large data sets of the weightlifting results made in top international competitions. Power function formulas were derived from the fitted LOWESS values to represent the relationship between the 2 variables in a way that directly compares the snatch, clean-and-jerk, and total weightlifting results of a given athlete with those of the world-class weightlifters (golden standards). A residual analysis of several other parametric models derived from the initial results showed that they all experience inconsistencies, yielding either underestimation or overestimation of certain body weights. In addition, the existing handicapping formulas commonly used in normalizing the performances of Olympic weightlifters did not yield satisfactory results when applied to the present data. It was concluded that the devised formulas may provide objective means for the evaluation of the performances of male weightlifters, regardless of their body weights, ages, or performance levels.

Improving the yield from fermentative hydrogen production.

PubMed

Kraemer, Jeremy T; Bagley, David M

2007-05-01

Efforts to increase H(2) yields from fermentative H(2) production include heat treatment of the inoculum, dissolved gas removal, and varying the organic loading rate. Although heat treatment kills methanogens and selects for spore-forming bacteria, the available evidence indicates H(2) yields are not maximized compared to bromoethanesulfonate, iodopropane, or perchloric acid pre-treatments and spore-forming acetogens are not killed. Operational controls (low pH, short solids retention time) can replace heat treatment. Gas sparging increases H(2) yields compared to un-sparged reactors, but no relationship exists between the sparging rate and H(2) yield. Lower sparging rates may improve the H(2) yield with less energy input and product dilution. The reasons why sparging improves H(2) yields are unknown, but recent measurements of dissolved H(2) concentrations during sparging suggest the assumption of decreased inhibition of the H(2)-producing enzymes is unlikely. Significant disagreement exists over the effect of organic loading rate (OLR); some studies show relatively higher OLRs improve H(2) yield while others show the opposite. Discovering the reasons for higher H(2) yields during dissolved gas removal and changes in OLR will help improve H(2) yields.

Drought Tolerance during Reproductive Development is Important for Increasing wheat yield Potential under Climate change in Europe.

PubMed

Senapati, Nimai; Stratonovitch, Pierre; Paul, Matthew J; Semenov, Mikhail A

2018-06-12

Drought stress during reproductive development could drastically reduce grain number and wheat yield, but quantitative evaluation of such effect is unknown under climate change. The objectives of this study were to a) evaluate potential yield benefits of drought tolerance during reproductive development for wheat ideotypes under climate change in Europe, and b) identify potential cultivar parameters for improvement. We used the Sirius wheat model to optimise drought tolerant (DT) and drought sensitive (DS) wheat ideotypes under future 2050 climate scenario at 13 contrasting sites, representing major wheat growing regions in Europe. Averaged over the sites, DT ideotypes achieved 13.4% greater yield compared to DS, with the double yield stability for DT. However, the performances of the ideotypes were site dependent. Mean yield of DT was 28-37% greater compared to DS in southern Europe. In contrast, no yield difference (≤ 1%) between ideotypes was found in north-western Europe. An intermediate yield benefit of 10-23% was found due to drought tolerance in central and eastern Europe. We conclude that tolerance to drought stress during reproductive development is important for high yield potentials and greater yield stability of wheat under climate change in Europe.

Assessing pretreatment reactor scaling through empirical analysis

DOE PAGES

Lischeske, James J.; Crawford, Nathan C.; Kuhn, Erik; ...

2016-10-10

Pretreatment is a critical step in the biochemical conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to fuels and chemicals. Due to the complexity of the physicochemical transformations involved, predictively scaling up technology from bench- to pilot-scale is difficult. This study examines how pretreatment effectiveness under nominally similar reaction conditions is influenced by pretreatment reactor design and scale using four different pretreatment reaction systems ranging from a 3 g batch reactor to a 10 dry-ton/d continuous reactor. The reactor systems examined were an Automated Solvent Extractor (ASE), Steam Explosion Reactor (SER), ZipperClave(R) reactor (ZCR), and Large Continuous Horizontal-Screw Reactor (LHR). To our knowledge, thismore » is the first such study performed on pretreatment reactors across a range of reaction conditions (time and temperature) and at different reactor scales. The comparative pretreatment performance results obtained for each reactor system were used to develop response surface models for total xylose yield after pretreatment and total sugar yield after pretreatment followed by enzymatic hydrolysis. Near- and very-near-optimal regions were defined as the set of conditions that the model identified as producing yields within one and two standard deviations of the optimum yield. Optimal conditions identified in the smallest-scale system (the ASE) were within the near-optimal region of the largest scale reactor system evaluated. A reaction severity factor modeling approach was shown to inadequately describe the optimal conditions in the ASE, incorrectly identifying a large set of sub-optimal conditions (as defined by the RSM) as optimal. The maximum total sugar yields for the ASE and LHR were 95%, while 89% was the optimum observed in the ZipperClave. The optimum condition identified using the automated and less costly to operate ASE system was within the very-near-optimal space for the total xylose yield of both the ZCR and the LHR, and was within the near-optimal space for total sugar yield for the LHR. This indicates that the ASE is a good tool for cost effectively finding near-optimal conditions for operating pilot-scale systems, which may be used as starting points for further optimization. Additionally, using a severity-factor approach to optimization was found to be inadequate compared to a multivariate optimization method. As a result, the ASE and the LHR were able to enable significantly higher total sugar yields after enzymatic hydrolysis relative to the ZCR, despite having similar optimal conditions and total xylose yields. This underscores the importance of incorporating mechanical disruption into pretreatment reactor designs to achieve high enzymatic digestibilities.« less

Assessing pretreatment reactor scaling through empirical analysis

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

Lischeske, James J.; Crawford, Nathan C.; Kuhn, Erik

Pretreatment is a critical step in the biochemical conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to fuels and chemicals. Due to the complexity of the physicochemical transformations involved, predictively scaling up technology from bench- to pilot-scale is difficult. This study examines how pretreatment effectiveness under nominally similar reaction conditions is influenced by pretreatment reactor design and scale using four different pretreatment reaction systems ranging from a 3 g batch reactor to a 10 dry-ton/d continuous reactor. The reactor systems examined were an Automated Solvent Extractor (ASE), Steam Explosion Reactor (SER), ZipperClave(R) reactor (ZCR), and Large Continuous Horizontal-Screw Reactor (LHR). To our knowledge, thismore » is the first such study performed on pretreatment reactors across a range of reaction conditions (time and temperature) and at different reactor scales. The comparative pretreatment performance results obtained for each reactor system were used to develop response surface models for total xylose yield after pretreatment and total sugar yield after pretreatment followed by enzymatic hydrolysis. Near- and very-near-optimal regions were defined as the set of conditions that the model identified as producing yields within one and two standard deviations of the optimum yield. Optimal conditions identified in the smallest-scale system (the ASE) were within the near-optimal region of the largest scale reactor system evaluated. A reaction severity factor modeling approach was shown to inadequately describe the optimal conditions in the ASE, incorrectly identifying a large set of sub-optimal conditions (as defined by the RSM) as optimal. The maximum total sugar yields for the ASE and LHR were 95%, while 89% was the optimum observed in the ZipperClave. The optimum condition identified using the automated and less costly to operate ASE system was within the very-near-optimal space for the total xylose yield of both the ZCR and the LHR, and was within the near-optimal space for total sugar yield for the LHR. This indicates that the ASE is a good tool for cost effectively finding near-optimal conditions for operating pilot-scale systems, which may be used as starting points for further optimization. Additionally, using a severity-factor approach to optimization was found to be inadequate compared to a multivariate optimization method. As a result, the ASE and the LHR were able to enable significantly higher total sugar yields after enzymatic hydrolysis relative to the ZCR, despite having similar optimal conditions and total xylose yields. This underscores the importance of incorporating mechanical disruption into pretreatment reactor designs to achieve high enzymatic digestibilities.« less

Measurements of the branching fractions for B{sub (s)}{yields}D{sub (s)}{pi}{pi}{pi} and {Lambda}{sub b}{sup 0}{yields}{Lambda}{sub c}{sup +}{pi}{pi}{pi}

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

Aaij, R.; Bauer, Th.; Beuzekom, M. van

Branching fractions of the decays H{sub b}{yields}H{sub c}{pi}{sup -}{pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup -} relative to H{sub b}{yields}H{sub c}{pi}{sup -} are presented, where H{sub b} (H{sub c}) represents B{sup 0} (D{sup +}), B{sup -} (D{sup 0}), B{sub s}{sup 0} (D{sub s}{sup +}), and {Lambda}{sub b}{sup 0} ({Lambda}{sub c}{sup +}). The measurements are performed with the LHCb detector using 35 pb{sup -1} of data collected at {radical}(s)=7 TeV. The ratios of branching fractions are measured to be [B(B{sup 0}{yields}D{sup +}{pi}{sup -}{pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup -})]/[B(B{sup 0}{yields}D{sup +}{pi}{sup -})]=2.38{+-}0.11{+-}0.21, [B(B{sup -}{yields}D{sup 0}{pi}{sup -}{pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup -})]/[B(B{sup -}{yields}D{sup 0}{pi}{sup -})]= 1.27{+-}0.06{+-}0.11, [B(B{sub s}{sup 0}{yields}D{sub s}{sup +}{pi}{sup -}{pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup -})]/[B(B{submore » s}{sup 0}{yields}D{sub s}{sup +}{pi}{sup -})]=2.01{+-}0.37{+-}0.20, [B({Lambda}{sub b}{sup 0}{yields}{Lambda}{sub c}{sup +}{pi}{sup -} {pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup -})]/[B({Lambda}{sub b}{sup 0}{yields}{Lambda}{sub c}{sup +}{pi}{sup -})]=1.43{+-}0.16{+-}0.13 We also report measurements of partial decay rates of these decays to excited charm hadrons. These results are of comparable or higher precision than existing measurements.« less

Intercomparison of Soil Moisture, Evaporative Stress, and Vegetation Indices for Estimating Corn and Soybean Yields Over the U.S.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mladenova, Iliana E.; Bolten, John D.; Crow, Wade T.; Anderson, Martha C.; Hain, C. R.; Johnson, David M.; Mueller, Rick

2017-01-01

This paper presents an intercomparative study of 12 operationally produced large-scale datasets describing soil moisture, evapotranspiration (ET), and or vegetation characteristics within agricultural regions of the contiguous United States (CONUS). These datasets have been developed using a variety of techniques, including, hydrologic modeling, satellite-based retrievals, data assimilation, and survey in-field data collection. The objectives are to assess the relative utility of each dataset for monitoring crop yield variability, to quantitatively assess their capacity for predicting end-of-season corn and soybean yields, and to examine the evolution of the yield-index correlations during the growing season. This analysis is unique both with regards to the number and variety of examined yield predictor datasets and the detailed assessment of the water availability timing on the end-of-season crop production during the growing season. Correlation results indicate that over CONUS, at state-level soil moisture and ET indices can provide better information for forecasting corn and soybean yields than vegetation-based indices such as normalized difference vegetation index. The strength of correlation with corn and soybean yields strongly depends on the interannual variability in yield measured at a given location. In this case study, some of the remotely derived datasets examined provide skill comparable to that of in situ field survey-based data further demonstrating the utility of these remote sensing-based approaches for estimating crop yield.

Comparison of commercial RNA extraction kits and qPCR master mixes for studying gene expression in small biopsy tissue samples from the equine gastric epithelium.

PubMed

Tesena, Parichart; Korchunjit, Wasamon; Taylor, Jane; Wongtawan, Tuempong

2017-01-01

Gastric tissue biopsy and gene expression analysis are important tools for disease diagnosis and study of the physiology of the equine stomach. However, RNA extraction from gastric biopsy samples is a complex procedure because the samples contain low quantities of RNA and are contaminated with mucous protein and bacterial flora. The objectives of these studies were to compare the performance of RNA extraction methods and to investigate the sensitivity of commercial qPCR master mixes for gene expression analysis of gastric biopsy samples. Three commercial RNA extraction methods (TRIzol ™ , GENEzol ™ and MiniPrep ™ ) and four qPCR master mixes with SYBR ® green (qPCRBIO, KAPA, QuantiNova, and PerfeCTa) were compared. RNA qualification and quantitation were compared. Real-time PCR was used to compare qPCR master mixes. The results revealed that TRIzol and GENEzol obtained significantly higher yield of RNA (P<0.01) but that TRIzol had the highest contamination of protein and DNA (P<0.05). Conversely, MiniPrep resulting in a significantly higher purification of RNA (P<0.05) but provided the lowest yield of RNA (P<0.01). For PCR master mixes, KAPA was significantly (P<0.05) more sensitive than other qPCR kits for all amounts of DNA template, particularly at the lowest amount of cDNA. In conclusion, GENEzol is the best method to obtain a high RNA yield and purification and it is more cost-effective than the others as well. Regarding the qPCR master mixes, KAPA SYBR qPCR Master Mix (2x) Universal is superior to the other tested master mixes for studying gene expression in equine gastric biopsies.

Changes in Soil Carbon and Enzyme Activity As a Result of Different Long-Term Fertilization Regimes in a Greenhouse Field

PubMed Central

Zhang, Lili; Chen, Wei; Burger, Martin; Yang, Lijie; Gong, Ping; Wu, Zhijie

2015-01-01

In order to discover the advantages and disadvantages of different fertilization regimes and identify the best management practice of fertilization in greenhouse fields, soil enzyme activities involved in carbon (C) transformations, soil chemical characteristics, and crop yields were monitored after long-term (20-year) fertilization regimes, including no fertilizer (CK), 300 kg N ha-1 and 600 kg N ha-1 as urea (N1 and N2), 75 Mg ha-1 horse manure compost (M), and M with either 300 or 600 kg N ha-1 urea (MN1 and MN2). Compared with CK, fertilization increased crop yields by 31% (N2) to 69% (MN1). However, compared with CK, inorganic fertilization (especially N2) also caused soil acidification and salinization. In the N2 treatment, soil total organic carbon (TOC) decreased from 14.1±0.27 g kg-1 at the beginning of the long-term experiment in 1988 to 12.6±0.11 g kg-1 (P<0.05). Compared to CK, N1 and N2 exhibited higher soil α-galactosidase and β-galactosidase activities, but lower soil α-glucosidase and β-glucosidase activities (P<0.05), indicating that inorganic fertilization had different impacts on these C transformation enzymes. Compared with CK, the M, MN1 and MN2 treatments exhibited higher enzyme activities, soil TOC, total nitrogen, dissolved organic C, and microbial biomass C and N. The fertilization regime of the MN1 treatment was identified as optimal because it produced the highest yields and increased soil quality, ensuring sustainability. The results suggest that inorganic fertilizer alone, especially in high amounts, in greenhouse fields is detrimental to soil quality. PMID:25706998

Statistics-based model for prediction of chemical biosynthesis yield from Saccharomyces cerevisiae

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background The robustness of Saccharomyces cerevisiae in facilitating industrial-scale production of ethanol extends its utilization as a platform to synthesize other metabolites. Metabolic engineering strategies, typically via pathway overexpression and deletion, continue to play a key role for optimizing the conversion efficiency of substrates into the desired products. However, chemical production titer or yield remains difficult to predict based on reaction stoichiometry and mass balance. We sampled a large space of data of chemical production from S. cerevisiae, and developed a statistics-based model to calculate production yield using input variables that represent the number of enzymatic steps in the key biosynthetic pathway of interest, metabolic modifications, cultivation modes, nutrition and oxygen availability. Results Based on the production data of about 40 chemicals produced from S. cerevisiae, metabolic engineering methods, nutrient supplementation, and fermentation conditions described therein, we generated mathematical models with numerical and categorical variables to predict production yield. Statistically, the models showed that: 1. Chemical production from central metabolic precursors decreased exponentially with increasing number of enzymatic steps for biosynthesis (>30% loss of yield per enzymatic step, P-value = 0); 2. Categorical variables of gene overexpression and knockout improved product yield by 2~4 folds (P-value < 0.1); 3. Addition of notable amount of intermediate precursors or nutrients improved product yield by over five folds (P-value < 0.05); 4. Performing the cultivation in a well-controlled bioreactor enhanced the yield of product by three folds (P-value < 0.05); 5. Contribution of oxygen to product yield was not statistically significant. Yield calculations for various chemicals using the linear model were in fairly good agreement with the experimental values. The model generally underestimated the ethanol production as compared to other chemicals, which supported the notion that the metabolism of Saccharomyces cerevisiae has historically evolved for robust alcohol fermentation. Conclusions We generated simple mathematical models for first-order approximation of chemical production yield from S. cerevisiae. These linear models provide empirical insights to the effects of strain engineering and cultivation conditions toward biosynthetic efficiency. These models may not only provide guidelines for metabolic engineers to synthesize desired products, but also be useful to compare the biosynthesis performance among different research papers. PMID:21689458

Yield, Quality, and Nutrient Concentrations of Strawberry (Fragaria ×ananassa Duch. cv. 'Sonata') Grown with Different Organic Fertilizer Strategies.

PubMed

Pokhrel, Bhaniswor; Laursen, Kristian Holst; Petersen, Karen Koefoed

2015-06-17

Four combinations of two solid organic fertilizers (Monterra Malt and chicken manure) applied before planting and two liquid organic fertilizers (broad bean and Pioner Hi-Fruit/K-Max) given through drip irrigation (fertigation) were compared with inorganic fertilization regarding growth, yield, nutrient concentration, and fruit quality of strawberries. Broad bean fertigation combined with Monterra Malt resulted in a similar fruit yield as inorganic fertilizer and a higher yield than Monterra Malt combined with Pioner; however, total soluble solids, firmness, and titratable acid were improved with Pioner fertigation, although these parameters were more affected by harvest time than the applied fertilizers. The concentrations of most nutrients in fruits and leaves were higher in inorganically fertigated plants. The reductions in fruit yield in three of four treatments and fruit weight in all organic treatments may be due to a combination of the following conditions in the root zone: (1) high pH and high NH4(+)/NO3(-) ratio; (2) high EC and/or high NaCl concentration; (3) cation imbalance; and (4) nutrient deficiency.

[Effects of simulated acid rain on oilseed rape (Brassica napus) physiological characteristics at flowering stage and yield].

PubMed

Cao, Chun-Xin; Zhou, Qin; Han, Liang-Liang; Zhang, Pei; Jiang, Hai-Dong

2010-08-01

A pot experiment was conducted to study the effects of different acidity simulated acid rain on the physiological characteristics at flowering stage and yield of oilseed rape (B. napus cv. Qinyou 9). Comparing with the control (pH 6.0), weak acidity (pH = 4.0-5.0) simulated acid rain stimulated the rape growth to some extent, but had less effects on the plant biomass, leaf chlorophyll content, photosynthetic characteristics, and yield. With the further increase of acid rain acidity, the plant biomass, leaf chlorophyll content, photosynthetic rate, antioxidative enzyme activities, and non-enzyme antioxidant contents all decreased gradually, while the leaf malonyldialdehyde (MDA) content and relative conductivity increased significantly. As the results, the pod number per plant, seed number per pod, seed weight, and actual yield decreased. However, different yield components showed different sensitivity to simulated acid rain. With the increasing acidity of simulated acid rain, the pod number per plant and the seed number per pod decreased significantly, while the seed weight was less affected.

Ball milling pretreatment of oil palm biomass for enhancing enzymatic hydrolysis.

PubMed

Zakaria, Mohd Rafein; Fujimoto, Shinji; Hirata, Satoshi; Hassan, Mohd Ali

2014-08-01

Oil palm biomass, namely empty fruit bunch and frond fiber, were pretreated using a planetary ball mill. Particle sizes and crystallinity index values of the oil palm biomass were significantly reduced with extended ball mill processing time. The treatment efficiency was evaluated by the generation of glucose, xylose, and total sugar conversion yields from the pretreatment process compared to the amount of sugars from raw materials. Glucose and xylose contents were determined using high-performance liquid chromatography. An increasing trend in glucose and xylose yield as well as total sugar conversion yield was observed with decreasing particle size and crystallinity index. Oil palm frond fiber exhibited the best material yields using ball milling pretreatment with generated glucose, xylose, and total sugar conversion yields of 87.0, 81.6, and 85.4%, respectively. In contrast, oil palm empty fruit bunch afforded glucose and xylose of 70.0 and 82.3%, respectively. The results obtained in this study showed that ball mill-treated oil palm biomass is a suitable pretreatment method for high conversion of glucose and xylose.

Co-pyrolysis characteristics of microalgae Isochrysis and Chlorella: Kinetics, biocrude yield and interaction.

PubMed

Zhao, Bingwei; Wang, Xin; Yang, Xiaoyi

2015-12-01

Co-pyrolysis characteristics of Isochrysis (high lipid) and Chlorella (high protein) were investigated qualitatively and quantitatively based on DTG curves, biocrude yield and composition by individual pyrolysis and co-pyrolysis. DTG curves in co-pyrolysis have been compared accurately with those in individual pyrolysis. An interaction has been detected at 475-500°C in co-pyrolysis based on biocrude yields, and co-pyrolysis reaction mechanism appear three-dimensional diffusion in comparison with random nucleation followed by growth in individual pyrolysis based on kinetic analysis. There is no obvious difference in the maximum biocrude yields for individual pyrolysis and co-pyrolysis, but carboxylic acids (IC21) decreased and N-heterocyclic compounds (IC12) increased in co-pyrolysis. Simulation results of biocrude yield by Components Biofuel Model and Kinetics Biofuel Model indicate that the processes of co-pyrolysis comply with those of individual pyrolysis in solid phase by and large. Variation of percentage content in co-pyrolysis and individual pyrolysis biocrude indicated interaction in gas phase. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Pyrolysis polygeneration of poplar wood: Effect of heating rate and pyrolysis temperature.

PubMed

Chen, Dengyu; Li, Yanjun; Cen, Kehui; Luo, Min; Li, Hongyan; Lu, Bin

2016-10-01

The pyrolysis of poplar wood were comprehensively investigated at different pyrolysis temperatures (400, 450, 500, 550, and 600°C) and at different heating rates (10, 30, and 50°C/min). The results showed that BET surface area of biochar, the HHV of non-condensable gas and bio-oil reached the maximum values of 411.06m(2)/g, 14.56MJ/m(3), and 14.39MJ/kg, under the condition of 600°C and 30°C/min, 600°C and 50°C/min, and 550°C and 50°C/min, respectively. It was conducive to obtain high mass and energy yield of bio-oil at 500°C and higher heating rate, while lower pyrolysis temperature and heating rate contributed towards obtaining both higher mass yield and energy yield of biochar. However, higher pyrolysis temperature and heating rate contributed to obtain both higher mass yield and energy yield of the non-condensable gas. In general, compared to the heating rate, the pyrolysis temperature had more effect on the product properties. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Proline puckering parameters for collagen structure simulations

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

Wu, Di, E-mail: diwu@fudan.edu.cn

Collagen is made of triple helices rich in proline residues, and hence is influenced by the conformational motions of prolines. Because the backbone motions of prolines are restricted by the helical structures, the only side chain motion—proline puckering—becomes an influential factor that may affect the stability of collagen structures. In molecular simulations, a proper proline puckering population is desired so to yield valid results of the collagen properties. Here we design the proline puckering parameters in order to yield suitable proline puckering populations as demonstrated in the experimental results. We test these parameters in collagen and the proline dipeptide simulations.more » Compared with the results of the PDB and the quantum calculations, we propose the proline puckering parameters for the selected collagen model simulations.« less

Predicting cotton yield of small field plots in a cotton breeding program using UAV imagery data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maja, Joe Mari J.; Campbell, Todd; Camargo Neto, Joao; Astillo, Philip

2016-05-01

One of the major criteria used for advancing experimental lines in a breeding program is yield performance. Obtaining yield performance data requires machine picking each plot with a cotton picker, modified to weigh individual plots. Harvesting thousands of small field plots requires a great deal of time and resources. The efficiency of cotton breeding could be increased significantly while the cost could be decreased with the availability of accurate methods to predict yield performance. This work is investigating the feasibility of using an image processing technique using a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) camera mounted on a small Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (sUAV) to collect normal RGB images in predicting cotton yield on small plot. An orthonormal image was generated from multiple images and used to process multiple, segmented plots. A Gaussian blur was used to eliminate the high frequency component of the images, which corresponds to the cotton pixels, and used image subtraction technique to generate high frequency pixel images. The cotton pixels were then separated using k-means cluster with 5 classes. Based on the current work, the calculated percentage cotton area was computed using the generated high frequency image (cotton pixels) divided by the total area of the plot. Preliminary results showed (five flights, 3 altitudes) that cotton cover on multiple pre-selected 227 sq. m. plots produce an average of 8% which translate to approximately 22.3 kgs. of cotton. The yield prediction equation generated from the test site was then use on a separate validation site and produced a prediction error of less than 10%. In summary, the results indicate that a COTS camera with an appropriate image processing technique can produce results that are comparable to expensive sensors.

Biochar and Glomus caledonium Influence Cd Accumulation of Upland Kangkong (Ipomoea aquatica Forsk.) Intercropped with Alfred Stonecrop (Sedum alfredii Hance)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Junli; Wu, Fuyong; Wu, Shengchun; Lam, Cheung Lung; Lin, Xiangui; Wong, Ming Hung

2014-04-01

Both biochar application and mycorrhizal inoculation have been proposed to improve plant growth and alter bioaccumulation of toxic metals. A greenhouse pot trial was conducted to investigate growth and Cd accumulation of upland kangkong (Ipomoea aquatica Forsk.) intercropped with Alfred stonecrop (Sedum alfredii Hance) in a Cd-contaminated soil inoculated with Glomus caledonium and/or applied with biochar. Compared with the monocultural control, intercropping with stonecrop (IS) decreased kangkong Cd acquisition via rhizosphere competition, and also decreased kangkong yield. Gc inoculation (+M) accelerated growth and Cd acquisition of stonecrop, and hence resulted in further decreases in kangkong Cd acquisition. Regardless of IS and +M, biochar addition (+B) increased kangkong yield via elevating soil available P, and decreased soil Cd phytoavailability and kangkong Cd concentration via increasing soil pH. Compared with the control, the treatment of IS + M + B had a substantially higher kangkong yield (+25.5%) with a lower Cd concentration (-62.7%). Gc generated additive effects on soil alkalinization and Cd stabilization to biochar, causing lower DTPA-extractable (phytoavailable) Cd concentrations and post-harvest transfer risks.

Ultrasound-assisted extraction and quantitation of oils from Syzygium aromaticum flower bud (clove) with supercritical carbon dioxide.

PubMed

Yang, Yu-Chiao; Wei, Ming-Chi; Hong, Show-Jen

2014-01-03

This study evaluated ultrasound-assisted supercritical carbon dioxide (USC-CO2) extraction for determining the extraction yields of oils and the contents of eugenol, β-caryophyllene, eugenyl acetate and α-humulene from clove buds. Compared to traditional SC-CO2 extraction, USC-CO2 extraction might provide a 13.5% increase in the extraction yield for the oil while utilizing less severe operating parameters, such as temperature, pressure, CO2 flow rate and the time consumed by the process. Our results were comparable to those obtained using the heat reflux extraction method, though the yield was improved by 20.8% using USC-CO2. In kinetic studies, the USC-CO2 extraction of clove oil followed second-order kinetics. The activation energy for the oil extraction was 76.56kJ/mol. The USC-CO2 procedure facilitated the use of mild extraction conditions, improved extraction efficiency and the quality of products and is a potential method for industry. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Enhanced bioethanol production from pretreated corn stover via multi-positive effect of casein micelles.

PubMed

Eckard, Anahita Dehkhoda; Muthukumarappan, Kasiviswanathan; Gibbons, William

2013-05-01

Casein polypeptides containing substructures of αs1-casein, β-casein, k-casein, αs2-casein were used as a lignin-blocker at above critical micelles concentration to improve the bioethanol production of dilute acid, lime, alkali, extrusion and AFEX pretreated corn stover (CS). Application of 0.5 g/g glucan of casein was found to effectively increase the glucose yield of CS pretreated with dilute acid, lime, alkali, extrusion and AFEX by 31.9%, 17.0%, 22.7%, 29.5%, and 17.4%, respectively with no positive impact on Avicel. Consequently 96 h simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) of these hydrolysates reduced the fermentation period by up to 48 h and increased the theoretical yield of ethanol by 8.48-33.7% compared to control. Application of casein during saccharification reduced the enzyme utilization by 33.0%. Recycling of hydrolysate from casein-treated CS for a 2nd round hydrolysis resulted in average glucose yield of 36.4% compared to 29.0% control. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Modeling of yield surface evolution in uniaxial and biaxial loading conditions using a prestrained large scale specimen

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaman, Shakil Bin; Barlat, Frédéric; Kim, Jin Hwan

2018-05-01

Large-scale advanced high strength steel (AHSS) sheet specimens were deformed in uniaxial tension, using a novel grip system mounted on a MTS universal tension machine. After pre-strain, they were used as a pre-strained material to examine the anisotropic response in the biaxial tension tests with various load ratios, and orthogonal tension tests at 45° and 90° from the pre-strain axis. The flow curve and the instantaneous r-value of the pre-strained steel in each of the aforementioned uniaxial testing conditions were also measured and compared with those of the undeformed steel. Furthermore, an exhaustive analysis of the yield surface was also conducted and the results, prior and post-prestrain were represented and compared. The homogeneous anisotropic hardening (HAH) model [1] was employed to predict the behavior of the pre-strained material. It was found that the HAH-predicted flow curves after non-linear strain path change and the yield loci after uniaxial pre-strain were in good agreement with the experiments, while the r-value evolution after strain path change was qualitatively well predicted.

All-inkjet-printed thin-film transistors: manufacturing process reliability by root cause analysis

PubMed Central

Sowade, Enrico; Ramon, Eloi; Mitra, Kalyan Yoti; Martínez-Domingo, Carme; Pedró, Marta; Pallarès, Jofre; Loffredo, Fausta; Villani, Fulvia; Gomes, Henrique L.; Terés, Lluís; Baumann, Reinhard R.

2016-01-01

We report on the detailed electrical investigation of all-inkjet-printed thin-film transistor (TFT) arrays focusing on TFT failures and their origins. The TFT arrays were manufactured on flexible polymer substrates in ambient condition without the need for cleanroom environment or inert atmosphere and at a maximum temperature of 150 °C. Alternative manufacturing processes for electronic devices such as inkjet printing suffer from lower accuracy compared to traditional microelectronic manufacturing methods. Furthermore, usually printing methods do not allow the manufacturing of electronic devices with high yield (high number of functional devices). In general, the manufacturing yield is much lower compared to the established conventional manufacturing methods based on lithography. Thus, the focus of this contribution is set on a comprehensive analysis of defective TFTs printed by inkjet technology. Based on root cause analysis, we present the defects by developing failure categories and discuss the reasons for the defects. This procedure identifies failure origins and allows the optimization of the manufacturing resulting finally to a yield improvement. PMID:27649784

Genomic prediction using an iterative conditional expectation algorithm for a fast BayesC-like model.

PubMed

Dong, Linsong; Wang, Zhiyong

2018-06-11

Genomic prediction is feasible for estimating genomic breeding values because of dense genome-wide markers and credible statistical methods, such as Genomic Best Linear Unbiased Prediction (GBLUP) and various Bayesian methods. Compared with GBLUP, Bayesian methods propose more flexible assumptions for the distributions of SNP effects. However, most Bayesian methods are performed based on Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) algorithms, leading to computational efficiency challenges. Hence, some fast Bayesian approaches, such as fast BayesB (fBayesB), were proposed to speed up the calculation. This study proposed another fast Bayesian method termed fast BayesC (fBayesC). The prior distribution of fBayesC assumes that a SNP with probability γ has a non-zero effect which comes from a normal density with a common variance. The simulated data from QTLMAS XII workshop and actual data on large yellow croaker were used to compare the predictive results of fBayesB, fBayesC and (MCMC-based) BayesC. The results showed that when γ was set as a small value, such as 0.01 in the simulated data or 0.001 in the actual data, fBayesB and fBayesC yielded lower prediction accuracies (abilities) than BayesC. In the actual data, fBayesC could yield very similar predictive abilities as BayesC when γ ≥ 0.01. When γ = 0.01, fBayesB could also yield similar results as fBayesC and BayesC. However, fBayesB could not yield an explicit result when γ ≥ 0.1, but a similar situation was not observed for fBayesC. Moreover, the computational speed of fBayesC was significantly faster than that of BayesC, making fBayesC a promising method for genomic prediction.

The Influence of Sugar Cane Bagasse Type and Its Particle Size on Xylose Production and Xylose-to-Xylitol Bioconversion with the Yeast Debaryomyces hansenii.

PubMed

Aghcheh, Razieh Karimi; Bonakdarpour, Babak; Ashtiani, Farzin Zokaee

2016-11-01

In the present study, the effect of the type of sugar cane bagasse (non-depithed or depithed) and its particle size on the production of xylose and its subsequent fermentation to xylitol by Debaryomyces hansenii CBS767 was investigated using a full factorial experimental design. It was found that the particle size range and whether bagasse was depithed or not had a significant effect on the concentration and yield of xylose in the resulting hemicellulose hydrolysate. Depithed bagasse resulted in higher xylose concentrations compared to non-depithed bagasse. The corresponding detoxified hemicellulose hydrolysates were used as fermentation media for the production of xylitol. The hemicellulose hydrolysate prepared from depithed bagasse also yielded meaningfully higher xylitol fermentation rates compared to non-depithed bagasse. However, in the case of non-depithed bagasse, the hemicellulose hydrolysate prepared from larger particle size range resulted in higher xylitol fermentation rates, whereas the effect in the case of non-depithed bagasse was not pronounced. Therefore, depithing of bagasse is an advantageous pretreatment when it is to be employed in bioconversion processes.

Secondary emission from dust grains: Comparison of experimental and model results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Richterova, I.; Pavlu, J.; Nemecek, Z.; Safrankova, J.; Zilavy, P.

The motion, coalescence, and other processes in dust clouds are determined by the dust charge. Since dust grains in the space are bombarded by energetic electrons, the secondary emission is an important process contributing to their charge. It is generally expected that the secondary emission yield is related to surface properties of the bombarded body. However, it is well known that secondary emission from small bodies is determined not only by their composition but an effect of dimension can be very important when the penetration depth of primary electrons is comparable with the grain size. It implies that the secondary emission yield can be influenced by the substrate material if the surface layer is thin enough. We have developed a simple Monte Carlo model of secondary emission that was successfully applied on the dust simulants from glass and melanine formaldehyd (MF) resin and matched very well experimental results. In order to check the influence of surface layers, we have modified the model for spheres covered by a layer with different material properties. The results of model simulations are compared with measurements on MF spheres covered by different metals.

Evaluation of fertilizer and water management effect on rice performance and greenhouse gas intensity in different seasonal weather of tropical climate.

PubMed

Ku, Hyun-Hwoi; Hayashi, Keiichi; Agbisit, Ruth; Villegas-Pangga, Gina

2017-12-01

Intensively double cropping rice increases greenhouse gas (GHG) emission in tropical countries, and hence, finding better management practices is imperative for reducing global warming potential (GWP), while sustaining rice yield. This study demonstrated an efficient fertilizer and water management practice targeting seasonal weather conditions effects on rice productivity, nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), GWP, and GHG intensity (GHGI). Two-season experiments were conducted with two pot-scale experiments using urea and urea+cattle manure (CM) under continuous flooding (CF) during the wet season (2013WS), and urea with/without CaSiO 3 application under alternate wetting and drying (AWD) during the dry season (2014DS). In 2013WS, 120kgNha -1 of urea fertilizer resulted in lower CH 4 emission and similar rice production compared to urea+CM. In 2014DS, CaSiO 3 application showed no difference in yields and led to significant reduction of N 2 O emission, but increased CH 4 emission and GWP. Due to significant increases in GHG emissions in urea+CM and CaSiO 3 application, we compared a seasonal difference in a local rice cultivation to test two water management practices. CF was adopted during 2013WS while AWD was adopted during 2014DS. Greater grain yields and yield components and NUE were obtained in 2014DS than in 2013WS. Furthermore, higher grain yields contributed to similar values of GHGI although GWP of cumulative GHG emissions was increased in 2014DS. Thus, utilizing urea only application under AWD is a preferred practice to minimize GWP without yield decline for double cropping rice in tropical countries. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Water consumption, grain yield, and water productivity in response to field water management in double rice systems in China.

PubMed

Wu, Xiao Hong; Wang, Wei; Yin, Chun Mei; Hou, Hai Jun; Xie, Ke Jun; Xie, Xiao Li

2017-01-01

Rice cultivation has been challenged by increasing food demand and water scarcity. We examined the responses of water use, grain yield, and water productivity to various modes of field water managements in Chinese double rice systems. Four treatments were studied in a long-term field experiment (1998-2015): continuous flooding (CF), flooding-midseason drying-flooding (F-D-F), flooding-midseason drying-intermittent irrigation without obvious standing water (F-D-S), and flooding-rain-fed (F-RF). The average precipitation was 483 mm in early-rice season and 397 mm in late-rice season. The irrigated water for CF, F-D-F, F-D-S, and F-RF, respectively, was 263, 340, 279, and 170 mm in early-rice season, and 484, 528, 422, and 206 mm in late-rice season. Grain yield for CF, F-D-F, F-D-S, and F-RF, respectively, was 4,722, 4,597, 4,479, and 4,232 kgha-1 in early-rice season, and 5,420, 5,402, 5,366, and 4,498 kgha-1 in late-rice season. Compared with CF, F-D-F consumed more irrigated water, which still decreased grain yield, leading to a decrease in water productivity by 25% in early-rice season and by 8% in late-rice season. Compared with F-D-F, F-D-S saved much irrigated water with a small yield reduction, leading to an increase in water productivity by 22% in early-rice season and by 26% in late-rice season. The results indicate that CF is best for early-rice and FDS is best for late-rice in terms of grain yield and water productivity.

Heat treatment of wheat straw by immersion in hot water decreases mushroom yield in Pleurotus ostreatus.

PubMed

Jaramillo Mejía, Santiago; Albertó, Edgardo

2013-01-01

The oyster mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus, is cultivated worldwide. It is one of the most appreciated mushrooms due to its high nutritional value. Immersion of the substrate in hot water is one of the most popular and worldwide treatment used for mushroom farmers. It is cheap and easy to implement. To compare the yields obtained during mushroom production of P. ostreatus using different pre-treatments (immersion in hot water, sterilization by steam and the use of fungicide) to determine if they influence mushroom crop. Four different treatments of substrate (wheat straw) were carried out: (i) immersion in hot water (IHW); (ii) steam sterilization; (iii) chemical; and (iv) untreated. The residual water from the IHW treatment was used to evaluate the mycelium growth and the production of P. ostreatus. Carbendazim treatment produced highest yields (BE: 106.93%) while IHW produced the lowest BE with 75.83%. Sugars, N, P, K and Ca were found in residual water of IHW treatment. The residual water increased the mycelium growth but did not increase yields. We have proved that IHW treatment of substrate reduced yields at least 20% when compared with other straw treatments such as steam, chemical or untreated wheat straw. Nutrients like sugars, proteins and minerals were found in the residual water extract which is the resultant water where the immersion treatment is carried out. The loss of these nutrients would be the cause of yield decrease. Alternative methods to the use of IHW as treatment of the substrate should be considered to reduce economical loss. Copyright © 2012 Revista Iberoamericana de Micología. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Development of parmesan cheese production from local cow milk

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aliwarga, Lienda; Christianti, Elisabeth Novi; Lazarus, Chrisella

2017-05-01

Parmesan cheese is one of the dairy products which is used in various foods, such as pasta, bakery product, and pizza. It has a hard texture due to aging process for at least two years. Long aging period inhibited the production of parmesan cheese while consumer demands were increasing gradually. This research was conducted to figure out the effect of starter culture and rennet dose to the production of parmesan cheese. This research consists of (1) pasteurization of 1,500 ml milk at 73°C; and (2) main cheese making process that comprised of fermentation process and the addition of rennet. In latter stage, milk was converted into curd. Variations were made for the dose of bacteria culture and rennet. Both variables correlated to the fermentation time and characteristics of the produced cheese. The analysis of the produced cheese during testing stage included measured protein and cheese yield, whey pH, water activity, and moisture content. Moreover, an organoleptic test was done in a qualitative manner. The results showed that the dose of bacteria culture has a significant effect to the fermentation time, protein yield, and cheese yield. Meanwhile, rennet dose significantly affected cheese yield, pH of whey, and water activity. The highest protein yield (93.1%) was obtained at 0.6 ml of culture and 0.5 ml of rennet while the maximum cheese yield (6.81%) was achieved at 0.4 ml of culture and 0.1 ml of rennet. The water activity of produced cheeses was lower compared to the water activity of common parmesan cheese (ca. 0.6). For the organoleptic test, 0.4 ml of bacterial culture and 0.5 ml of rennet produced the most preferred cheese flavor compared to other variations.

Emergent aquatics: stand establishment, management, and species screening

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

Pratt, D.C.; Andrews, N.J.; Dubbe, D.R.

1982-11-01

Several emergent aquatic species have been identified as potential biomass crops, including Typha spp. (cattail), Scirpus spp. (rush), Sparganium spp. (bur reed), and Phragmites (reed). This report discusses first year results from studies of stand establishment and management, Typha nutrient requirements, wetland species yield comparisons, and Typha micropropagation. In a comparison of the relative effectiveness of seed, seedlings, and rhizomes for stand establishment, rhizomes appeared to be more consistent and productive under a wire variety of conditions. Both rhizomes and seedling established plots grew successfully on excavated peatland sites. First season results from a multiyear fertilizer rate experiment indicate thatmore » fertilizer treatment resulted in significantly increased tissue nutrient concentrations which should carry over into subsequent growing seasons. Shoot density and belowground dry weight were also significantly increased by phosphorus + potassium and potassium applications, respectively. First season yields of selected wetland species from managed paddies generally were comparable to yields reported from natural stands. Several particularly productive clones of Typha spp. have been identified. A method of establishing Typha in tissue culture is described.« less

Derivation and evaluation of a labeled hedonic scale.

PubMed

Lim, Juyun; Wood, Alison; Green, Barry G

2009-11-01

The objective of this study was to develop a semantically labeled hedonic scale (LHS) that would yield ratio-level data on the magnitude of liking/disliking of sensation equivalent to that produced by magnitude estimation (ME). The LHS was constructed by having 49 subjects who were trained in ME rate the semantic magnitudes of 10 common hedonic descriptors within a broad context of imagined hedonic experiences that included tastes and flavors. The resulting bipolar scale is statistically symmetrical around neutral and has a unique semantic structure. The LHS was evaluated quantitatively by comparing it with ME and the 9-point hedonic scale. The LHS yielded nearly identical ratings to those obtained using ME, which implies that its semantic labels are valid and that it produces ratio-level data equivalent to ME. Analyses of variance conducted on the hedonic ratings from the LHS and the 9-point scale gave similar results, but the LHS showed much greater resistance to ceiling effects and yielded normally distributed data, whereas the 9-point scale did not. These results indicate that the LHS has significant semantic, quantitative, and statistical advantages over the 9-point hedonic scale.

The long-term strength of Europe and its implications for plate-forming processes.

PubMed

Pérez-Gussinyé, M; Watts, A B

2005-07-21

Field-based geological studies show that continental deformation preferentially occurs in young tectonic provinces rather than in old cratons. This partitioning of deformation suggests that the cratons are stronger than surrounding younger Phanerozoic provinces. However, although Archaean and Phanerozoic lithosphere differ in their thickness and composition, their relative strength is a matter of much debate. One proxy of strength is the effective elastic thickness of the lithosphere, Te. Unfortunately, spatial variations in Te are not well understood, as different methods yield different results. The differences are most apparent in cratons, where the 'Bouguer coherence' method yields large Te values (> 60 km) whereas the 'free-air admittance' method yields low values (< 25 km). Here we present estimates of the variability of Te in Europe using both methods. We show that when they are consistently formulated, both methods yield comparable Te values that correlate with geology, and that the strength of old lithosphere (> or = 1.5 Gyr old) is much larger (mean Te > 60 km) than that of younger lithosphere (mean Te < 30 km). We propose that this strength difference reflects changes in lithospheric plate structure (thickness, geothermal gradient and composition) that result from mantle temperature and volatile content decrease through Earth's history.

Effect of filters and reconstruction algorithms on I-124 PET in Siemens Inveon PET scanner

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ram Yu, A.; Kim, Jin Su

2015-10-01

Purpose: To assess the effects of filtering and reconstruction on Siemens I-124 PET data. Methods: A Siemens Inveon PET was used. Spatial resolution of I-124 was measured to a transverse offset of 50 mm from the center FBP, 2D ordered subset expectation maximization (OSEM2D), 3D re-projection algorithm (3DRP), and maximum a posteriori (MAP) methods were tested. Non-uniformity (NU), recovery coefficient (RC), and spillover ratio (SOR) parameterized image quality. Mini deluxe phantom data of I-124 was also assessed. Results: Volumetric resolution was 7.3 mm3 from the transverse FOV center when FBP reconstruction algorithms with ramp filter was used. MAP yielded minimal NU with β =1.5. OSEM2D yielded maximal RC. SOR was below 4% for FBP with ramp, Hamming, Hanning, or Shepp-Logan filters. Based on the mini deluxe phantom results, an FBP with Hanning or Parzen filters, or a 3DRP with Hanning filter yielded feasible I-124 PET data.Conclusions: Reconstruction algorithms and filters were compared. FBP with Hanning or Parzen filters, or 3DRP with Hanning filter yielded feasible data for quantifying I-124 PET.

Confined ion energy >200 keV and increased fusion yield in a DPF with monolithic tungsten electrodes and pre-ionization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lerner, Eric J.; Hassan, Syed M.; Karamitsos, Ivana; Von Roessel, Fred

2017-10-01

To reduce impurities in the dense plasma focus FF-1 device, we used monolithic tungsten electrodes with pre-ionization. With this new set-up, we demonstrated a three-fold reduction of impurities by mass and a ten-fold reduction by ion number. FF-1 produced a 50% increase in fusion yield over our previous copper electrodes, both for a single shot and for a mean of ten consecutive shots with the same conditions. These results represent a doubling of fusion yield as compared with any other plasma focus device with the same 60 kJ energy input. In addition, FF-1 produced a new single-shot record of 240 ± 20 keV for mean ion energy, a record for any confined fusion plasma, using any device, and a 50% improvement in ten-shot mean ion energy. With a deuterium-nitrogen mix and corona-discharge pre-ionization, we were also able to reduce the standard deviation in the fusion yield to about 15%, a four-fold reduction over the copper-electrode results. We intend to further reduce impurities with new experiments using microwave treatment of tungsten electrodes, followed by the use of beryllium electrodes.

The role of calcium in improving photosynthesis and related physiological and biochemical attributes of spring wheat subjected to simulated acid rain.

PubMed

Dolatabadian, Aria; Sanavy, Seyed Ali Mohammad Modarres; Gholamhoseini, Majid; Joghan, Aydin Khodaei; Majdi, Mohammad; Kashkooli, Arman Beyraghdar

2013-04-01

The response of photosynthesis parameters, catalase, superoxide dismutase and peroxidase activity, malondialdehyde, proline, chlorophyll, yield and yield components to foliar application of calcium and simulated acid rain in wheat were investigated. Foliar treatment of calcium led to significant increases in the photosynthesis rate, transpiration rate, stomatal conductance, proline, chlorophyll, yield and yield components in plants subjected to acid rain. Antioxidant enzyme activity and lipid peroxidation in the wheat leaves decreased because of calcium foliar application. Calcium hindered degradation of the rubisco subunits under acid rain treatment compared with water-treated plants. Results suggest that acid rain induces the production of free radicals resulting in lipid peroxidation of the cell membrane so that significant increase in antioxidant enzyme activity was observed. In addition, photosynthetic parameters i.e. photosynthesis rate, transpiration rate and stomatal conductance were drastically suppressed by acid rain. The cellular damage caused by free radicals might be reduced or prevented by a protective metabolism including antioxidative enzymes and calcium. We report that foliar application of calcium before acid rain may ameliorate the adverse effects of acid rain in wheat plants.

Indication for double parton scatterings in W+ prompt J/ψ production at the LHC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lansberg, Jean-Philippe; Shao, Hua-Sheng; Yamanaka, Nodoka

2018-06-01

We re-analyse the associated production of a prompt J / ψ and a W boson in pp collisions at the LHC following the results of the ATLAS Collaboration. We perform the first study of the Single-Parton-Scattering (SPS) contributions at the Next-to-Leading Order (NLO) in αs in the Colour-Evaporation Model (CEM), an approach based on the quark-hadron-duality. Our study provides clear indications for Double-Parton-Scattering (DPS) contributions, in particular at low transverse momenta, since our SPS CEM evaluation, which can be viewed as a conservative upper limit of the SPS yields, falls short compared to the ATLAS experimental data by 3.1 standard deviations. We also determine a finite allowed region for σeff, inversely proportional to the size of the DPS yields, corresponding to the otherwise opposed hypotheses, namely our NLO CEM evaluation and the LO direct Colour-Singlet (CS) Model contribution. In both cases, the resulting DPS yields are significantly larger than that initially assumed by ATLAS based on jet-related analyses but is consistent with their observed raw-yield azimuthal distribution and with their prompt J / ψ + J / ψ and Z+ prompt J / ψ data.

Precipitation Effect on Mechanical Properties and Phase Stability of High Manganese Steel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bae, Cheoljun; Kim, Rosa; Lee, Un-Hae; Kim, Jongryoul

2017-09-01

High manganese (Mn) steels are attractive for automotive applications due to their excellent tensile strength and superior elongation. However, the relatively low yield strength of Mn steels compared to other advanced high-strength steels is a critical problem limiting their use in structural parts. In order to increase the yield strength, the precipitation hardening effect of Mn steels was investigated by the addition of carbide-forming elements. Changes in the austenite phase stability were also evaluated in terms of stacking fault energy (SFE). As a result, fine V(C,N) precipitates were found to increase the yield strength effectively but to lower the SFE by the consumption of matrix carbons. For achieving precipitation hardening without sacrificing austenite stability, the soluble carbon content was discussed.

Probing a four flavor vis-a-vis three flavor neutrino mixing for ultrahigh energy neutrino signals at a 1 km2 detector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pandey, Madhurima; Majumdar, Debasish; Dutta Banik, Amit

2018-05-01

We consider a four-flavor scenario for the neutrinos where an extra sterile neutrino is introduced to the three families of active neutrinos and study the deviation from the three-flavor scenario in the ultrahigh-energy (UHE) regime. We calculate the possible muon and shower yields at a 1 km2 detector such as IceCube for these neutrinos from distant UHE sources, e.g., gamma-ray bursts, etc. Similar estimations for muon and shower yields are also obtained for the three-flavor case. Comparing the two results, we find considerable differences between the yields for these two cases. This can be useful for probing the existence of a fourth sterile component using UHE neutrino flux.

Mutation Breeding of β-carotene Producing Strain B. trispora by Low Energy Ion Implantation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Ning; Yu, Long

2009-02-01

Ion beam bioengineering technology as a new mutation approach has been widely used in the biological breeding field. In this paper the application of low energy nitrogen ion implantation in the β-carotene producing strain, Blakeslea trispora(-) was investigated. The effects of different fermentation conditions on β-carotene production by a high yield strain were examined. Results showed that two β-carotene high yielding strains B.trispora(-) BH3-701 and BH3-728 were screened out and the averaged production of β-carotene was raised by 178.7% and 164.6% respectively after five passages in the shaking flasks. Compared with the original strain, the highest yield strain BH3-701 was potent in accumulating β-carotene, especially in the later stage, and greatly increased production efficiency.

Yield of undamaged slash pine stands in South Florida

Treesearch

O. Gordon Langdon

1961-01-01

Predictions of future timber yields are necessary for formulating management plans and for comparing timber growing with alternative land uses. One useful tool for making these predictions is a set of yield tables.

Standardization of milk using cold ultrafiltration retentates for the manufacture of Swiss cheese: effect of altering coagulation conditions on yield and cheese quality.

PubMed

Govindasamy-Lucey, S; Jaeggi, J J; Martinelli, C; Johnson, M E; Lucey, J A

2011-06-01

Fortification of cheesemilk with membrane retentates is often practiced by cheesemakers to increase yield. However, the higher casein (CN) content can alter coagulation characteristics, which may affect cheese yield and quality. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of using ultrafiltration (UF) retentates that were processed at low temperatures on the properties of Swiss cheese. Because of the faster clotting observed with fortified milks, we also investigated the effects of altering the coagulation conditions by reducing the renneting temperature (from 32.2 to 28.3°C) and allowing a longer renneting time before cutting (i.e., giving an extra 5min). Milks with elevated total solids (TS; ∼13.4%) were made by blending whole milk retentates (26.5% TS, 7.7% CN, 11.5% fat) obtained by cold (<7°C) UF with part skim milk (11.4% TS, 2.5% CN, 2.6% fat) to obtain milk with CN:fat ratio of approximately 0.87. Control cheeses were made from part-skim milk (11.5% TS, 2.5% CN, 2.8% fat). Three types of UF fortified cheeses were manufactured by altering the renneting temperature and renneting time: high renneting temperature=32.2°C (UFHT), low renneting temperature=28.3°C (UFLT), and a low renneting temperature (28.3°C) plus longer cutting time (+5min compared to UFLT; UFLTL). Cutting times, as selected by a Wisconsin licensed cheesemaker, were approximately 21, 31, 35, and 32min for UFHT, UFLT, UFLTL, and control milks, respectively. Storage moduli of gels at cutting were lower for the UFHT and UFLT samples compared with UFLTL or control. Yield stress values of gels from the UF-fortified milks were higher than those of control milks, and decreasing the renneting temperature reduced the yield stress values. Increasing the cutting time for the gels made from the UF-fortified milks resulted in an increase in yield stress values. Yield strain values were significantly lower in gels made from control or UFLTL milks compared with gels made from UFHT or UFLT milks. Cheese composition did not differ except for fat content, which was lower in the control compared with the UF-fortified cheeses. No residual lactose or galactose remained in the cheeses after 2 mo of ripening. Fat recoveries were similar in control, UFHT, and UFLTL but lower in UFLT cheeses. Significantly higher N recoveries were obtained in the UF-fortified cheeses compared with control cheese. Because of higher fat and CN contents, cheese yield was significantly higher in UF-fortified cheeses (∼11.0 to 11.2%) compared with control cheese (∼8.5%). A significant reduction was observed in volume of whey produced from cheese made from UF-fortified milk and in these wheys, the protein was a higher proportion of the solids. During ripening, the pH values and 12% trichloroacetic acid-soluble N levels were similar for all cheeses. No differences were observed in the sensory properties of the cheeses. The use of UF retentates improved cheese yield with no significant effect on ripening or sensory quality. The faster coagulation and gel firming can be decreased by altering the renneting conditions. Copyright © 2011 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

K+-nucleus scattering using K {yields} {mu}{nu} decays as a normalization check

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

Michael, R.; Hicks, K.; Bart, S.

1995-04-01

Elastic scattering of 720 and 620 MeV/c positive kaons from targets of {sup 12}C and {sup 6}Li has been measured up to laboratory angles of 42{degrees}. Since the magnitude of the cross sections is sensitive to nuclear medium effects, the K{yields}{mu}{nu} decay mode has been used to check the normalization. GEANT has been used to mimic the kaon decays over a path length of 12cm, with a correlated beam structure matching the experimental kaon beam. The corresponding muon distribution has been passed thru Monte Carlo simulations of the moby dick spectrometer. The results are compared with the experimental number ofmore » decay muons with good agreement. These results also agree with the normalization found using p-p elastic scattering. The normalized K{sup +} elastic data are compared to recent optical model predictions based on both Klein-Gordon and KDP equations in the impulse approximation.« less

Bench-Scale Evaluation of Hydrothermal Processing Technology for Conversion of Wastewater Solids to Fuels

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

Marrone, Philip A.; Elliott, Douglas C.; Billing, Justin M.

Hydrothermal Liquefaction (HTL) and Catalytic Hydrothermal Gasification (CHG) proof-of-concept bench-scale tests were performed to assess the potential of hydrothermal treatment for handling municipal wastewater sludge. HTL tests were conducted at 300-350°C and 20 MPa on three different feeds: primary sludge, secondary sludge, and digested solids. Corresponding CHG tests were conducted at 350°C and 20 MPa on the HTL aqueous phase output using a ruthenium based catalyst. Biocrude yields ranged from 25-37%. Biocrude composition and quality were comparable to biocrudes generated from algae feeds. Subsequent hydrotreating of biocrude resulted in a product with comparable physical and chemical properties to crude oil.more » CHG product gas methane yields on a carbon basis ranged from 47-64%. Siloxane concentrations in the CHG product gas were below engine limits. The HTL-CHG process resulted in a chemical oxygen demand (COD) reduction of > 99.9% and a reduction in residual solids for disposal of 94-99%.« less

Numerical simulations of incompressible laminar flows using viscous-inviscid interaction procedures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shatalov, Alexander V.

The present method is based on Helmholtz velocity decomposition where velocity is written as a sum of irrotational (gradient of a potential) and rotational (correction due to vorticity) components. Substitution of the velocity decomposition into the continuity equation yields an equation for the potential, while substitution into the momentum equations yields equations for the velocity corrections. A continuation approach is used to relate the pressure to the gradient of the potential through a modified Bernoulli's law, which allows the elimination of the pressure variable from the momentum equations. The present work considers steady and unsteady two-dimensional incompressible flows over an infinite cylinder and NACA 0012 airfoil shape. The numerical results are compared against standard methods (stream function-vorticity and SMAC methods) and data available in literature. The results demonstrate that the proposed formulation leads to a good approximation with some possible benefits compared to the available formulations. The method is not restricted to two-dimensional flows and can be used for viscous-inviscid domain decomposition calculations.

Industrial hemp as a potential bioenergy crop in comparison with kenaf, switchgrass and biomass sorghum.

PubMed

Das, Lalitendu; Liu, Enshi; Saeed, Areej; Williams, David W; Hu, Hongqiang; Li, Chenlin; Ray, Allison E; Shi, Jian

2017-11-01

This study takes combined field trial, lab experiment, and economic analysis approaches to evaluate the potential of industrial hemp in comparison with kenaf, switchgrass and biomass sorghum. Agronomy data suggest that the per hectare yield (5437kg) of industrial hemp stem alone was at a similar level with switchgrass and sorghum; while the hemp plants require reduced inputs. Field trial also showed that ∼1230kg/ha hemp grain can be harvested in addition to stems. Results show a predicted ethanol yield of ∼82gallons/dry ton hemp stems, which is comparable to the other three tested feedstocks. A comparative cost analysis indicates that industrial hemp could generate higher per hectare gross profit than the other crops if both hemp grains and biofuels from hemp stem were counted. These combined evaluation results demonstrate that industrial hemp has great potential to become a promising regional commodity crop for producing both biofuels and value-added products. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Ion and advanced electric thruster research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilbur, P. J.

1980-01-01

A phenomenological model of the orificed, hollow cathode based on the field enhanced, thermionic mechanism of electron emission is presented. High frequency oscillations associated with the orificed, hollow cathode are shown to be a consequence of current flow through the cathode orifice. A procedure for Langmuir probing of the hollow cathode discharge and analyzing the resulting probe characteristics is discussed. The results of sputter yield measurements made for molybdenum, tantalum, type 304 stainless steel and copper surfaces being bombarded by low energy argon or mercury ions are also given. The effects of nitrogen and alternated copper layers on the sputter yields of molybdenum, tantalum and 304 stainless steel are also discussed. A dynamic model of electrothermal rocket and ramjet thrusters is developed. The gross performance of these devices is compared to that of an electromagnetic gun for the case of a high acceleration, Earth launch mission. The theoretical performance of electrothermal rockets and ramjets is shown to be comparable to that of the electromagnetic gun.

Analytical gradients for subsystem density functional theory within the slater-function-based amsterdam density functional program.

PubMed

Schlüns, Danny; Franchini, Mirko; Götz, Andreas W; Neugebauer, Johannes; Jacob, Christoph R; Visscher, Lucas

2017-02-05

We present a new implementation of analytical gradients for subsystem density-functional theory (sDFT) and frozen-density embedding (FDE) into the Amsterdam Density Functional program (ADF). The underlying theory and necessary expressions for the implementation are derived and discussed in detail for various FDE and sDFT setups. The parallel implementation is numerically verified and geometry optimizations with different functional combinations (LDA/TF and PW91/PW91K) are conducted and compared to reference data. Our results confirm that sDFT-LDA/TF yields good equilibrium distances for the systems studied here (mean absolute deviation: 0.09 Å) compared to reference wave-function theory results. However, sDFT-PW91/PW91k quite consistently yields smaller equilibrium distances (mean absolute deviation: 0.23 Å). The flexibility of our new implementation is demonstrated for an HCN-trimer test system, for which several different setups are applied. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Intra- and inter-basin mercury comparisons: Importance of basin scale and time-weighted methylmercury estimates

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bradley, Paul M.; Journey, Celeste A.; Bringham, Mark E.; Burns, Douglas A.; Button, Daniel T.; Riva-Murray, Karen

2013-01-01

To assess inter-comparability of fluvial mercury (Hg) observations at substantially different scales, Hg concentrations, yields, and bivariate-relations were evaluated at nested-basin locations in the Edisto River, South Carolina and Hudson River, New York. Differences between scales were observed for filtered methylmercury (FMeHg) in the Edisto (attributed to wetland coverage differences) but not in the Hudson. Total mercury (THg) concentrations and bivariate-relationships did not vary substantially with scale in either basin. Combining results of this and a previously published multi-basin study, fish Hg correlated strongly with sampled water FMeHg concentration (p = 0.78; p = 0.003) and annual FMeHg basin yield (p = 0.66; p = 0.026). Improved correlation (p = 0.88; p < 0.0001) was achieved with time-weighted mean annual FMeHg concentrations estimated from basin-specific LOADEST models and daily streamflow. Results suggest reasonable scalability and inter-comparability for different basin sizes if wetland area or related MeHg-source-area metrics are considered.

Metal removal from Municipal Solid Waste Incineration fly ash: A comparison between chemical leaching and bioleaching.

PubMed

Funari, V; Mäkinen, J; Salminen, J; Braga, R; Dinelli, E; Revitzer, H

2017-02-01

Bio- and hydrometallurgical experimental setups at 2-l reactor scale for the processing of fly ash from municipal waste incinerators were explored. We aimed to compare chemical H 2 SO 4 leaching and bioleaching; the latter involved the use of H 2 SO 4 and a mixed culture of acidophilic bacteria. The leaching yields of several elements, including some of those considered as critical (Mg, Co, Ce, Cr, Ga, Nb, Nd, Sb and Sm), are provided. At the end of the experiments, both leaching methods resulted in comparable yields for Mg and Zn (>90%), Al and Mn (>85%), Cr (∼65%), Ga (∼60%), and Ce (∼50%). Chemical leaching showed the best yields for Cu (95%), Fe (91%), and Ni (93%), whereas bioleaching was effective for Nd (76%), Pb (59%), and Co (55%). The two leaching methods generated solids of different quality with respect to the original material as we removed and significantly reduced the metals amounts, and enriched solutions where metals can be recovered for example as mixed salts for further treatment. Compared to chemical leaching the bioleaching halved the use of H 2 SO 4 , i.e., a part of agent costs, as a likely consequence of bio-produced acid and improved metal solubility. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Batch anaerobic co-digestion of Kimchi factory waste silage and swine manure under mesophilic conditions.

PubMed

Kafle, Gopi Krishna; Kim, Sang Hun; Sung, Kyung Ill

2012-11-01

The objective of this study was to investigate the feasibility of anaerobic co-digestion of Kimchi factory waste silage (KFWS) with swine manure (SM). Chinese cabbage (CC) is the major waste generated by a Kimchi factory and KFWS was prepared by mixing CC and rice bran (RB) (70:30 on a dry matter basis). In Experiment I, the biogas potential of CC and RB were measured and, in Experiment II, the test was conducted with different ratios of KFWS and SM (KFWS: SM=0:100; 33:67; 67:33; 100:0 by% volatile solids (VS) basis). KFWS produced a 27% higher biogas yield and a 59% higher methane yield compared to CC. The specific biogas yields increased by 19, 40 and 57% with KFWS-33%, KFWS-67% and KFWS-100%, respectively compared to SM-100% (394 mL/g VS). Similarly, VS removal increased by 37, 51 and 74% with KFWS-33%, KFWS-67% and KFWS-100%, respectively compared to SM-100%. These results suggested that Kimchi factory waste could be effectively treated by making silage, and the silage could be used as a potential co-substrate to enhance biogas production from SM digesters. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Breeding progress, environmental variation and correlation of winter wheat yield and quality traits in German official variety trials and on-farm during 1983-2014.

PubMed

Laidig, Friedrich; Piepho, Hans-Peter; Rentel, Dirk; Drobek, Thomas; Meyer, Uwe; Huesken, Alexandra

2017-01-01

Over the last 32 years, a large gain in grain yield (24 %) was achieved in official German variety trials, and despite considerable loss in protein concentration (-7.9 %), winter wheat baking quality was partially improved over the last 32 years. On-farm gain in grain yield (32 %) exceeded gain in trials, but at yield level about 25 dt ha -1 lower. Breeding progress was very successfully transferred into both progress in grain yield and on-farm baking quality. Long-term gains in grain yield and baking quality of 316 winter wheat varieties from German official trials were evaluated. We dissected progress into a genetic and a non-genetic part to quantify the contribution of genetic improvement. We further investigated the influence of genotype and environment on total variation by estimating variance components. We also estimated genetic and phenotypic correlation between quality traits. For trial data, we found a large gain in grain yield (24%), but a strong decline in protein concentration (-8.0%) and loaf volume (-8.5%) relative to 1983. Improvement of baking quality could be achieved for falling number (5.8%), sedimentation value (7.9%), hardness (13.4%), water absorption (1.2%) and milling yield (2.4%). Grain yield, falling number and protein concentration were highly influenced by environment, whereas for sedimentation value, hardness, water absorption and loaf volume genotypes accounted for more than 60% of total variation. Strong to very strong relations exist among protein concentration, sedimentation value, and loaf volume. On-farm yields were obtained from national statistics, and grain quality data from samples collected by national harvest survey. These on-farm data were compared with trial results. On-farm gain in grain yield was 31.6%, but at a mean level about 25 dt ha -1  lower. Improvement of on-farm quality exceeded trial results considerably. A shift to varieties with improved baking quality can be considered as the main reason for this remarkable improvement of on-farm baking quality.

An investigation of enhanced secondary ion emission under Au(n)+ (n = 1-7) bombardment.

PubMed

Nagy, G; Gelb, L D; Walker, A V

2005-05-01

We investigate the mechanism of the nonlinear secondary ion yield enhancement using Au(n)+ (n = 1, 2, 3, 5, 7) primary ions bombarding thin films of Irganox 1010, DL-phenylalanine and polystyrene on Si, Al, and Ag substrates. The largest differences in secondary ion yields are found using Au+, Au2+, and Au3+ primary ion beams. A smaller increase in secondary ion yield is observed using Au5+ and Au7+ primary ions. The yield enhancement is found to be larger on Si than on Al, while the ion yield is smaller using an Au+ beam on Si than on Al. Using Au(n)+ ion structures obtained from Density Functional Theory, we demonstrate that the secondary yield enhancement is not simply due to an increase in energy per area deposited into the surface (energy deposition density). Instead, based on simple mechanical arguments and molecular dynamics results from Medvedeva et al, we suggest a mechanism for nonlinear secondary ion yield enhancement wherein the action of multiple concerted Au impacts leads to efficient energy transfer to substrate atoms in the near surface region and an increase in the number of secondary ions ejected from the surface. Such concerted impacts involve one, two, or three Au atoms, which explains well the large nonlinear yield enhancements observed going from Au+ to Au2+ to Au3+ primary ions. This model is also able to explain the observed substrate effect. For an Au+ ion passing through the more open Si surface, it contacts fewer substrate atoms than in the more dense Al surface. Less energy is deposited in the Si surface region by the Au+ primary ion and the secondary ion yield will be lower for adsorbates on Si than on Al. In the case of Au(n)+ the greater density of Al leads to earlier break-up of the primary ion and a consequent reduction in energy transfer to the near-surface region when compared with Si. This results in higher secondary ion yields and yield enhancements on silicon than aluminum substrates.

Effect of calving interval and parity on milk yield per feeding day in Danish commercial dairy herds.

PubMed

Lehmann, J O; Fadel, J G; Mogensen, L; Kristensen, T; Gaillard, C; Kebreab, E

2016-01-01

The idea of managing cows for extended lactations rather than lactations of the traditional length of 1 yr primarily arose from observations of increasing problems with infertility and cows being dried off with high milk yields. However, it is vital for the success of extended lactation practices that cows are able to maintain milk yield per feeding day when the length of the calving interval (CInt) is increased. Milk yield per feeding day is defined as the cumulated lactation milk yield divided by the sum of days between 2 consecutive calvings. The main objective of this study was to investigate the milk production of cows managed for lactations of different lengths, and the primary aim was to investigate the relationship between CInt, parity, and milk yield. Five measurements of milk yield were used: energy-corrected milk (ECM) yield per feeding day, ECM yield per lactating day, cumulative ECM yield during the first 305 d of lactation, as well as ECM yield per day during early and late lactation. The analyses were based on a total of 1,379 completed lactations from cows calving between January 2007 and May 2013 in 4 Danish commercial dairy herds managed for extended lactation for several years. Herd-average CInt length ranged from 414 to 521 d. The herds had Holstein, Jersey, or crosses between Holstein, Jersey, and Red Danish cows with average milk yields ranging from 7,644 to 11,286 kg of ECM per cow per year. A significant effect of the CInt was noted on all 5 measurements of milk yield, and this effect interacted with parity for ECM per feeding day, ECM per lactating day and ECM per day during late lactation. The results showed that cows were at least able to produce equivalent ECM per feeding day with increasing CInt, and that first- and second-parity cows maintained ECM per lactating day. Cows with a CInt between 17 and 19 mo produced 476 kg of ECM more during the first 305 d compared with cows with a CInt of less than 13 mo. Furthermore, early-lactation ECM yield was greater for all cows and late-lactation ECM yield was less for second-parity and older cows when undergoing an extended compared with a shorter lactation. Increasing CInt increased the dry period length with 3 to 5d. In conclusion, the group of cows with longer CInt were able to produce at least equivalent amounts of ECM per feeding day when the CInt was up to 17 to 19 mo on these 4 commercial dairy farms. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Dynamic strain aging and plastic instabilities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mesarovic, Sinisa Dj.

1995-05-01

A constitutive model proposed by McCormick [(1988) Theory of flow localization due to dynamic strain ageing. Acta. Metall.36, 3061-3067] based on dislocation-solute interaction and describing dynamic strain aging behavior, is analyzed for the simple loading case of uniaxial tension. The model is rate dependent and includes a time-varying state variable, representing the local concentration of the impurity atoms at dislocations. Stability of the system and its post-instability behavior are considered. The methods used include analytical and numerical stability and bifurcation analysis with a numerical continuation technique. Yield point behavior and serrated yielding are found to result for well defined intervals of temperature and strain rate. Serrated yielding emerges as a branch of periodic solutions of the relaxation oscillation type, similar to frictional stick-slip. The distinction between the temporal and spatial (loss of homogeneity of strain) instability is emphasized. It is found that a critical machine stiffness exists above which a purely temporal instability cannot occur. The results are compared to the available experimental data.

Optimization of the co-digestion of catch crops with manure using a central composite design and reactor operation.

PubMed

Molinuevo-Salces, Beatriz; Ahring, Birgitte K; Uellendahl, Hinrich

2015-02-01

This study investigates the effect of catch crops as co-substrate on manure-based anaerobic digestion. Batch experiments were carried out for two catch crops, namely Italian ryegrass (IR) and oil seed radish (OSR), in co-digestion with manure. Methane yields in the range of 271-558 and 216-361 ml CH4/g volatile solids (VS) were obtained for OSR and IR in co-digestion, respectively. OSR co-digestion was chosen for semi-continuous reactor experiments. The addition of 50 % of OSR to manure (on VS basis) in semi-continuous anaerobic digestion resulted in a methane yield of 348 ml CH4/g VS, an improvement of 1.46 times compared to manure alone. Adaptation to OSR was observed, and no ammonia or volatile fatty acid-mediated inhibition was detected. The results prove that it is feasible to use catch crops as co-substrate for manure-based biogas production, obtaining a stable process with significantly higher methane yields than that of manure alone.

Highly efficient organosolv fractionation of cornstalk into cellulose and lignin in organic acids.

PubMed

Shui, Tao; Feng, Shanghuan; Yuan, Zhongshun; Kuboki, Takashi; Xu, Chunbao Charles

2016-10-01

In this study, effects of fractionation solvents, catalysts, temperatures and residence time on yields, purity and chemical composition of the products were investigated at the solid/solvent ratio of 1:5 (g/g). It was revealed that mixture of acetic acid/formic acid/water at the ratio of 3:6:1 (v/v/v) resulted in crude cellulose and lignin products of relatively high purity. The use of HCl catalyst contributed to a high crude cellulose yield, while H2SO4 showed an adverse effect on cellulose yield. However, both of these acidic catalysts contributed to much lower hemicellulose contents in the resulted crude cellulose products compared with those obtained without a catalyst. Fractionation at 90°C for 180min in mixed solvents of acetic acid/formic acid/water (3:6:1, v/v/v) with or without catalyst produced crude cellulose with very low residual lignin contents (<4%). Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Predictor symbology in computer-generated pictorial displays

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Grunwald, A. J.

1981-01-01

The display under investigation, is a tunnel display for the four-dimensional commercial aircraft approach-to-landing under instrument flight rules. It is investigated whether more complex predictive information such as a three-dimensional perspective vehicle symbol, predicting the future vehicle position as well as future vehicle attitude angles, contributes to a better system response, and suitable predictor laws for the predictor motions, are formulated. Methods for utilizing the predictor symbol in controlling the forward velocity of the aircraft in four-dimensional approaches, are investigated. The simulator tests show, that the complex perspective vehicle symbol yields improved damping in the lateral response as compared to a flat two-dimensional predictor cross, but yields generally larger vertical deviations. Methods of using the predictor symbol in controlling the forward velocity of the vehicle are shown to be effective. The tunnel display with superimposed perspective vehicle symbol yields very satisfactory results and pilot acceptance in the lateral control but is found to be unsatisfactory in the vertical control, as a result of too large vertical path-angle deviations.

The light-yield response of a NE-213 liquid-scintillator detector measured using 2-6 MeV tagged neutrons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scherzinger, J.; Al Jebali, R.; Annand, J. R. M.; Fissum, K. G.; Hall-Wilton, R.; Kanaki, K.; Lundin, M.; Nilsson, B.; Perrey, H.; Rosborg, A.; Svensson, H.

2016-12-01

The response of a NE-213 liquid-scintillator detector has been measured using tagged neutrons from 2 to 6 MeV originating from an Am/Be neutron source. The neutron energies were determined using the time-of-flight technique. Pulse-shape discrimination was employed to discern between gamma-rays and neutrons. The behavior of both the fast (35 ns) and the combined fast and slow (475 ns) components of the neutron scintillation-light pulses were studied. Three different prescriptions were used to relate the neutron maximum energy-transfer edges to the corresponding recoil-proton scintillation-light yields, and the results were compared to simulations. The overall normalizations of parametrizations which predict the fast or total light yield of the scintillation pulses were also tested. Our results agree with both existing data and existing parametrizations. We observe a clear sensitivity to the portion and length of the neutron scintillation-light pulse considered.

Sensitivity of agricultural runoff loads to rising levels of CO2 and climate change in the San Joaquin Valley watershed of California.

PubMed

Ficklin, Darren L; Luo, Yuzhou; Luedeling, Eike; Gatzke, Sarah E; Zhang, Minghua

2010-01-01

The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) was used to assess the impact of climate change on sediment, nitrate, phosphorus and pesticide (diazinon and chlorpyrifos) runoff in the San Joaquin watershed in California. This study used modeling techniques that include variations of CO(2), temperature, and precipitation to quantify these responses. Precipitation had a greater impact on agricultural runoff compared to changes in either CO(2) concentration or temperature. Increase of precipitation by +/-10% and +/-20% generally changed agricultural runoff proportionally. Solely increasing CO(2) concentration resulted in an increase in nitrate, phosphorus, and chlorpyrifos yield by 4.2, 7.8, and 6.4%, respectively, and a decrease in sediment and diazinon yield by 6.3 and 5.3%, respectively, in comparison to the present-day reference scenario. Only increasing temperature reduced yields of all agricultural runoff components. The results suggest that agricultural runoff in the San Joaquin watershed is sensitive to precipitation, temperature, and CO(2) concentration changes.

Effect of inorganic species on torrefaction process and product properties of rice husk.

PubMed

Zhang, Shuping; Su, Yinhai; Ding, Kuan; Zhu, Shuguang; Zhang, Houlei; Liu, Xinzhi; Xiong, Yuanquan

2018-06-20

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of inorganic species on torrefaction process and product properties. Torrefaction process of raw and leached rice husk was performed at different temperatures between 210 and 270 °C. Inorganic species have significant effect on the torrefaction process and properties of torrefaction products. The results indicated that solid yield increased, gas yield decreased and liquid yield remained unchanged for leached rice husk when compared to raw rice husk. Gas products from torrefaction process mainly contained CO 2 and CO, and leaching process slightly reduced the volume concentration of CO 2 . Removal of inorganic species slightly decreased water content and increased organic component content in liquid products. Acetic acid, furfural, 2,3-dihydrobenzofuran and levoglucosan were the dominant components in liquid product. Inorganic species enhanced the effect of deoxygenation and dehydrogenation during torrefaction process, resulting in the enrichment of C component in solid products. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A comparison of essential oils obtained from lavandin via different extraction processes: Ultrasound, microwave, turbohydrodistillation, steam and hydrodistillation.

PubMed

Périno-Issartier, Sandrine; Ginies, Christian; Cravotto, Giancarlo; Chemat, Farid

2013-08-30

A total of eight extraction techniques ranging from conventional methods (hydrodistillation (HD), steam distillation (SD), turbohydrodistillation (THD)), through innovative techniques (ultrasound assisted extraction (US-SD) and finishing with microwave assisted extraction techniques such as In situ microwave-generated hydrodistillation (ISMH), microwave steam distillation (MSD), microwave hydrodiffusion and gravity (MHG), and microwave steam diffusion (MSDf)) were used to extract essential oil from lavandin flowers and their results were compared. Extraction time, yield, essential oil composition and sensorial analysis were considered as the principal terms of comparison. The essential oils extracted using the more innovative processes were quantitatively (yield) and qualitatively (aromatic profile) similar to those obtained from the conventional techniques. The method which gave the best results was the microwave hydrodiffusion and gravity (MHG) method which gave reduced extraction time (30min against 220min for SD) and gave no differences in essential oil yield and sensorial perception. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Distal Predominance of Electrodiagnostic Abnormalities in Early Stage Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

PubMed

Shayya, Luay; Babu, Suma; Pioro, Erik P; Li, Jianbo; Li, Yuebing

2018-05-09

We compare the electrodiagnostic (EDX) yield of limb muscles in revealing lower motor neuron (LMN) dysfunction by electromyography (EMG) in early stage amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Single-site retrospective review Results: This study includes 122 consecutive patients with possible ALS as defined by revised El Escorial Criteria. Distal limb muscles show more frequent EMG abnormalities than proximal muscles. EDX yield is higher in the limb where weakness begins and when clinical signs of LMN dysfunction are evident. Adoption of Awaji criteria increases the yield of EMG positive segments significantly in the cervical (p<0.0005) and lumbosacral regions (P<0.0001), and upgrades 19 patients into probable and 1 patient into definite categories. Electromyographic abnormalities are distal limb-predominant in early stage ALS. A redefinition of an EDX-positive cervical or lumbosacral segment, with an emphasis on distal limb muscles, may result in an earlier ALS diagnosis. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Mind the Roots: Phenotyping Below-Ground Crop Diversity and Its Influence on Final Yield

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nieters, C.; Guadagno, C. R.; Lemli, S.; Hosseini, A.; Ewers, B. E.

2017-12-01

Changes in global climate patterns and water regimes are having profound impacts on worldwide crop production. An ever-growing population paired with increasing temperatures and unpredictable periods of severe drought call for accurate modeling of future crop yield. Although novel approaches are being developed in high-throughput, above-ground image phenotyping, the below-ground plant system is still poorly phenotyped. Collection of plant root morphology and hydraulics are needed to inform mathematical models to reliably estimate yields of crops grown in sub-optimal conditions. We used Brassica rapa to inform our model as it is a globally cultivated crop with several functionally diverse cultivars. Specifically, we use 7 different accessions from oilseed (R500 and Yellow Sarson), leafy type (Pac choi and Chinese cabbage), a vegetable turnip, and two Wisconsin Fast Plants (Imb211 and Fast Plant self-compatible), which have shorter life cycles and potentially large differences in allocation to roots. Bi-weekly, we harvested above and below-ground biomass to compare the varieties in terms of carbon allocation throughout their life cycle. Using WinRhizo software, we analyzed root system length and surface area to compare and contrast root morphology among cultivars. Our results confirm that root structural characteristics are crucial to explain plant water use and carbon allocation. The root:shoot ratio reveals a significant (p < 0.01) difference among crop accession. To validate the procedure across different varieties and life stages we also compared surface area results from the image-based technology to dry biomass finding a strong linear relationship (R2= 0.85). To assess the influence of a diverse above-ground morphology on the root system we also measured above-ground anatomical and physiological traits such as gas exchange, chlorophyll content, and chlorophyll a fluorescence. A thorough analysis of the root system will clarify carbon dynamics and hydraulics at the whole-plant level, improving final yield predictions.