Bioaccumulative and biomagnifying contaminants, such as persistent organic pollutants （POPs） and mercury （Hg）, have for decades been recognized as a health concern in arctic marine biota. In recent years, global c...Bioaccumulative and biomagnifying contaminants, such as persistent organic pollutants （POPs） and mercury （Hg）, have for decades been recognized as a health concern in arctic marine biota. In recent years, global climate change （GCC） and related loss of arctic sea ice have been observed to be driving substantial change in arctic ecosystems. This review summarizes findings documenting empirical links between GCC-induced ecological changes and alterations in POP and Hg exposures and pathways in arctic marine ecosystems. Most of the studies have reported changes in POP or Hg concentrations in tissue in relation to GCC-induced changes in species trophic interactions. These studies have typically focused on the role of changes in abun- dance, habitat range or accessibility of prey species, particularly in relation to sea ice changes. Yet, the ecological change that re- suited in contaminant trend changes has often been unclear or assumed. Other studies have successfully used chemical tracers, such as stable nitrogen and carbon isotope ratios and fatty acid signatures to link such ecological changes to contaminant level variations or trends. Lower sea ice linked-diet changes/variation were associated with higher contaminant levels in some popula- tions of polar bears, ringed seals, and thick-billed murres, but the influence of changing trophic interactions on POP levels and trends varied widely in both magnitude and direction. We suggest that future research in this new area of GCC-linked ecotox- icology should focus on routine analysis of ancillary ecological metrics with POP and Hg studies, simultaneous consideration of the multiple mechanisms by which GCC and contaminant interactions can occur, and targeted research on changing exposures and toxicological effects in species known to be sensitive to both GCC and contaminants [Current Zoology 61 （4）： 617-628, 2015].展开更多
Automatic segmentation of key microstructural features in atomic-scale electron microscope images is critical to improved understanding of structure–property relationships in many important materials and chemical sys...Automatic segmentation of key microstructural features in atomic-scale electron microscope images is critical to improved understanding of structure–property relationships in many important materials and chemical systems.However,the present paradigm involves time-intensive manual analysis that is inherently biased,error-prone,and unable to accommodate the large volumes of data produced by modern instrumentation.While more automated approaches have been proposed,many are not robust to a high variety of data,and do not generalize well to diverse microstructural features and material systems.Here,we present a flexible,semi-supervised few-shot machine learning approach for segmentation of scanning transmission electron microscopy images of three oxide material systems:(1)epitaxial heterostructures of SrTiO_(3)/Ge,(2)La_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)FeO_(3) thin films,and(3)MoO_(3) nanoparticles.We demonstrate that the few-shot learning method is more robust against noise,more reconfigurable,and requires less data than conventional image analysis methods.This approach can enable rapid image classification and microstructural feature mapping needed for emerging high-throughput characterization and autonomous microscope platforms.展开更多
In the Eurasian forest-steppe,with increasing aridity,the balance between naturally co-existing forest and grassland patches is expected to shift towards grassland dominance in the long run,although feedback mechanism...In the Eurasian forest-steppe,with increasing aridity,the balance between naturally co-existing forest and grassland patches is expected to shift towards grassland dominance in the long run,although feedback mechanisms and changes in land-use may alter this process.In this study,we compared old and recent aerial photographs of Hungarian forest-steppes to find out whether and how the forest proportion and the number of forest patches change at the decadal time scale.The percentage area covered by forest significantly increased in all study sites.The observed forest encroachment may be a legacy from earlier land-use:due to ceased or reduced grazing pressure,forests are invading grasslands until the potential forest cover allowed by climate and soil is reached.The number of forest patches significantly increased at one site(Fülöpháza),while it decreased at two sites(Bugac and Orgovány)and showed no significant change at the fourth site(Tázlár).This indicates that forest encroachment can happen at least in two different ways:through the emergence of new forest patches in the grassland,and through the extension and coalescence of already existing forest patches.Though the present work revealed increasing tree cover at a decadal time scale,the dynamic process should be monitored in the future to see how the vegetation reacts to further aridification.This could help devise a conservation strategy,as the woody/non-woody balance has a profound influence on basic ecosystem properties.展开更多
The experiment was conducted at the animal experimental station of the Faculty of Animal Sciences,Royal University of Agriculture,commenced from 10 January to 14 March,2022.The CRD(Completely Randomized Design)was use...The experiment was conducted at the animal experimental station of the Faculty of Animal Sciences,Royal University of Agriculture,commenced from 10 January to 14 March,2022.The CRD(Completely Randomized Design)was used with 5 treatments and 4 replications.The 500 chicks at one-day-old,local bread,were purchased from farmers who run their small scale hatchery farm.The chicks were kept together till 21 days old,and then were allocated randomly into in five diets(treatments),25 chicks per replication.The feed formulas for this study were designed and calculated to maintain a protein content of approximately 17%,dividing into 5 feed formulas(Treatments),such as concentrated feed only(control treatment:T0),plus 10%of fresh sweet potato vine(T1),plus 20%of fresh sweet potato vine(T2),plus 30%of fresh sweet potato vine(T3)and plus 20%of sweet potato vine meal(T4).The results showed that the treatment T1,had a similar final weight with the treatment T4,but was slightly lower than the treatment T0 which used concentrated feed alone.Feed intake and FCR(Feed Conversion Ratio)were not significantly different among those treatments.In conclusion,the average daily weight gain of chickens seemed to decrease with increasing the level of fresh sweet potato vine.Thus,the optimum level of fresh sweet potato vine was 10%,which may have little effect on the growth performance of local chickens.In addition,it was not far different from the positive control treatment and the treatment using sweet potato vine meal.However,the producers can increase the amount of sweet potato vine in feed formula by processing it into meal and mixing with concentrated feed or using as feed ingredients.展开更多
Using ab initio molecular dynamics(AIMD)simulations,classical molecular dynamics(CMD)simulations,small-angle X-ray scattering(SAXS),and pulsed-field gradient nuclear magnetic resonance(PFG-NMR),the solvation structure...Using ab initio molecular dynamics(AIMD)simulations,classical molecular dynamics(CMD)simulations,small-angle X-ray scattering(SAXS),and pulsed-field gradient nuclear magnetic resonance(PFG-NMR),the solvation structure and ion dynamics of magnesium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide(Mg(TFSI)_(2))aqueous electrolyte at 1,2,and 3 m concentrations are investigated.From AIMD and CMD simulations,the first solvation shell of an Mg;ion is found to be composed of six water molecules in an octahedral configuration and the solvation shell is rather rigid.The TFSI^(-)ions prefer to stay in the second solvation shell and beyond.Meanwhile,the comparable diffusion coefficients of positive and negative ions in Mg(TFSI)_(2)aqueous electrolytes have been observed,which is mainly due to the formation of the stable[Mg(H_(2)O_(6))_(2)]^(+)complex,and,as a result,the increased effective Mg ion size.Finally,the calculated correlated transference numbers are lower than the uncorrelated ones even at the low concentration of 2 and 3 m,suggesting the enhanced correlations between ions in the multivalent electrolytes.This work provides a molecular-level understanding of how the solvation structure and multivalency of the ion affect the dynamics and transport properties of the multivalent electrolyte,providing insight for rational designs of electrolytes for improved ion transport properties.展开更多
Forecasting models are a central part of many control systems,where high-consequence decisions must be made on long latency control variables.These models are particularly relevant for emerging artificial intelligence...Forecasting models are a central part of many control systems,where high-consequence decisions must be made on long latency control variables.These models are particularly relevant for emerging artificial intelligence(AI)-guided instrumentation,in which prescriptive knowledge is needed to guide autonomous decision-making.Here we describe the implementation of a long short-term memory model(LSTM)for forecasting in situ electron energy loss spectroscopy(EELS)data,one of the richest analytical probes of materials and chemical systems.We describe key considerations for data collection,preprocessing,training,validation,and benchmarking,showing how this approach can yield powerful predictive insight into order-disorder phase transitions.Finally,we comment on how such a model may integrate with emerging AI-guided instrumentation for powerful high-speed experimentation.展开更多
Recent advancements in person-portable instrumentation have resulted in the potential to provide contemporaneous results through rapid in-field analyses.These technologies can be utilised in emergency response scenari...Recent advancements in person-portable instrumentation have resulted in the potential to provide contemporaneous results through rapid in-field analyses.These technologies can be utilised in emergency response scenarios to aid first responders in appropriate site risk assessment and management.Large metropolitan fires can pose great risk to human and environmental health due to the rapid release of hazardous compounds into the atmosphere.Understanding the release of these hazardous organics is critical in understanding their associated risks.Person-portable gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS)was evaluated for its potential to provide rapid on-site analysis for real-time monitoring of hazardous organic compounds at fire scenes.Air sampling and analysis methods were developed for scenes of this nature.Controlled field testing demonstrated that the portable GC-MS was able to provide preliminary analytical results on the volatile organic compounds present in air samples collected from both active and extinguished fires.In-field results were confirmed using conventional laboratory-based air sampling and analysis procedures.The deployment of portable instrumentation could provide first responders with a rapid on-site assessment tool for the appropriate management of scenes,thereby ensuring environmental and human health is proactively protected and scientifically informed decisions are made for the provision of timely advice to stakeholders.展开更多
Building and factory fires pose a great risk to human and environmental health,due to the release of hazardous by-products of combustion.These hazardous compounds can dissipate into the environment through fire water ...Building and factory fires pose a great risk to human and environmental health,due to the release of hazardous by-products of combustion.These hazardous compounds can dissipate into the environment through fire water run-off,and the impact can be immediate or chronic.Current laboratory-based methods do not report hazardous compounds released from a fire scene at the time and location of the event.Reporting of results is often delayed due to the complexities and logistics of laboratory-based sampling and analysis.These delays pose a risk to the health and wellbeing of the environment and exposed community.Recent developments in person-portable instrumentation have the potential to provide rapid analysis of samples in the field.A portable gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer(GC-MS)was evaluated for the on-site analysis of water samples for the identification of hazardous organic compounds at fire scenes.The portable GC-MS was capable of detecting and identifying a range of volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds in fire water run-off,and can be used in conjunction with conventional laboratory analysis methods for a comprehensive understanding of hazardous organics released at fire scenes.Deployment of this portable instrumentation provides first responders with a rapid,on-site screening tool to appropriately manage the run-off water from firefighting activities.This ensures that environmental and human health is proactively protected.展开更多
The Mediterranean Sea is home to an interesting biodiversity. The current cumulative and descriptive study aims to enumerate some relatively large marine mammals, reptiles, and fishes that have been spotted, caught, b...The Mediterranean Sea is home to an interesting biodiversity. The current cumulative and descriptive study aims to enumerate some relatively large marine mammals, reptiles, and fishes that have been spotted, caught, by-caught, or stranded on the coast of the Gaza Strip, Palestine, which extends about 42 km along the Mediterranean Sea. This 20-year study from 2003 to 2022 relied much on frequent field visits, meetings, and discussions with stakeholders, following local media sites and social media pages, and photography. The study recorded at least 26 giants or relatively large marine organisms on the Mediterranean coast of the Gaza Strip, Palestine. Certainly, the coming years may bring other marine organisms of relatively large sizes. Marine mammals included three species of cetaceans with the Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) being the largest mammal and even the largest animal ever recorded in this study. Marine reptiles included three species of sea turtles, the largest of which is the Leatherback Sea Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), which is in fact the world’s largest sea turtle. The bony fishes were represented by ten species, the largest of which was the Ocean Sunfish (Mola mola), which is the largest bony fish in the world. The cartilaginous fishes included ten species with the largest specimens encountered were the Shortfin Shark (Isurus oxyrinchus), Bluntnose Sixgill Shark (Hexanchus griseus), Scalloped Hammerhead Shark (Sphyrna lewini), and Giant Devil Ray (Mobula mobular). Seabirds were not included in the study. The Alexandria Pompano (Alectis alexandrinus) and the Silver-Cheeked Toadfish (Lagocephalus sceleratus), which are bony fishes, appear to be the relatively smallest marine organisms recorded here. In conclusion, the role of the various parties must be coordinated to ensure the sustainability of human activities and their compatibility with the task of conserving local marine biota, including the gigantic or relatively large ones.展开更多
A fibrous adsorbent for arsenic (As) removal was synthesized with nonwoven cotton fabric as a trunk polymer. 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate phosphoric acid monomer which composed of phosphoric acid mono (50%) and di (50%...A fibrous adsorbent for arsenic (As) removal was synthesized with nonwoven cotton fabric as a trunk polymer. 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate phosphoric acid monomer which composed of phosphoric acid mono (50%) and di (50%) ethyl methacrylate ester was introduced with radiation-induced graft polymerization onto nonwoven cotton fabric. The degree of grafting of 130% was obtained at irradiation dose of 20 kGy with 5% of monomer solution for 2 hours reaction time at 40?C reaction temperature. After the grafted material was contacted with 10 mmol/L of zirconium (Zr) solution at pH 1, 0.38 mmol/g of Zr was loaded on phosphoric units as a functional group for As(V) removal. The resulting adsorbent was evaluated by column mode adsorption with 1 mg/L of As(V) solution at various pH with space velocity 200 h–1. The maximum capacity of As(V) adsorption was 0.1 mmol/g at pH 2.展开更多
Capillary electrophoresis coupled to mass spectrometry（CE–MS） was used for the analysis of naphthenic acid fraction compounds（NAFCs） of oil sands process-affected water（OSPW）. A standard mixture of amine-deriva...Capillary electrophoresis coupled to mass spectrometry（CE–MS） was used for the analysis of naphthenic acid fraction compounds（NAFCs） of oil sands process-affected water（OSPW）. A standard mixture of amine-derivatized naphthenic acids is injected directly onto the CE column and analyzed by CE–MS in less than 15 min. Time of flight MS analysis（TOFMS）, optimized for high molecular weight ions, showed NAFCs between 250 and 800 m/z. With a quadrupole mass analyzer, only low-molecular weight NAFCs（between 100 and 450 m/z） are visible under our experimental conditions. Derivatization of NAFCs consisted of two-step amidation reactions mediated by 1-ethyl-3-（3-dimethylaminopropyl）carbodiimide（EDC）, or mediated by a mixture of EDC and N-hydroxysuccinimide, in dimethyl sulfoxide, dichloromethane or ethyl acetate. The optimum background electrolyte composition was determined to be 30%（V/V） methanol in water and 2%（V/V） formic acid. NAFCs extracted from OSPW in the Athabasca oil sands region were used to demonstrate the feasibility of CE–MS for the analysis of NAFCs in environmental samples, showing that the labeled naphthenic acids are in the mass range of 350 to 1500 m/z.展开更多
The HNS Convention(International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in Connection with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea,2010)covers any damage caused by the carriage by sea of h...The HNS Convention(International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in Connection with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea,2010)covers any damage caused by the carriage by sea of hazardous and noxious substances in the territory or territorial sea of a State Party to the Convention.The costs of preventive actions,i.e.measures to avoid or minimize damage,are also covered wherever taken.The HNS Convention includes preventive measures as any reasonable measures taken by any person after an incident has occurred to prevent or minimize damage,i.e.actions such as clean-up or removal of HNS from a wreck if the HNS presents a hazard or pollution risk.It seems that after the CLC(Civil Liability Convention),much environmental legislation has lost the concept of pro-activeness/prevention of an environmental hazard and is more focused on compensation and reactiveness.This approach is not consistent with the purpose of environmental legislation and the examination of the basic principles of the HNS Convention in parallel with distinctive environmental hazards proves this theory of reactive strategy.The methodology is based on the exploratory research principles and the legal doctrine,utilizing legislation and case law as the primary source of data,aiming to examine the effects of the HNS’s entry into force by studying cases that are inside its authority and scope.展开更多
The aim of this study was to develop a straightforward approach for flood area mapping in a transboundary riverbed using Geographic Object-Based Image Analysis.Weak bilateral/multilateral cooperation among neighboring...The aim of this study was to develop a straightforward approach for flood area mapping in a transboundary riverbed using Geographic Object-Based Image Analysis.Weak bilateral/multilateral cooperation among neighboring countries hampers effective disaster management and mitigation activities over transboundary areas and strengthens the demand for reliable remote-sensing-derived information.Three object-based classification approaches using ENVISAT/ASAR and multi-temporal LANDSAT TM data were developed and validated for flood area delineation.The accuracy assessment of the classification results was based on oblique air photo interpretation and an area-based comparison with the official flood map.The bi-level object-based model using the Normalized Difference Water Index and the original post-flood TM bands attained 92.67%overall accuracy in inundated-areas detection,while the ENVISAT/ASAR classification was the least accurate(85.33%),probably due to the lower spatial resolution of the Synthetic Aperture Radar image.A strong agreement(92.14%)was found between the LANDSAT flood extent and the official flood map,suggesting that the proposed method has the potential to be employed in the future as a standard part of a flood crisis management process.展开更多
COVID-19 has presented itself with an extreme impact on the resources of its epi-centres. In Uganda, there is uncertainty about what will happen especially in the main urban hub, the Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area ...COVID-19 has presented itself with an extreme impact on the resources of its epi-centres. In Uganda, there is uncertainty about what will happen especially in the main urban hub, the Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area (GKMA). Consequently, public health professionals have scrambled into resource-driven strategies and planning to tame the spread. This paper, therefore, deploys spatial modelling to contribute to an understanding of the spatial variation of COVID-19 vulnerability in the GKMA using the socio-economic characteristics of the region. Based on expert opinion on the prevailing novel Coronavirus, spatially driven indicators were generated to assess vulnerability. Through an online survey and auxiliary datasets, these indicators were transformed, classified, and weighted based on the BBC vulnerability framework. These were spatially modelled to assess the vulnerability indices. The resultant continuous indices were aggregated, explicitly zoned, classified, and ranked based on parishes. The resultant spatial nature of vulnerability to COVID-19 in the GKMA sprawls out of major urban areas, diffuses into the peri-urban, and thins into the sparsely populated areas. The high levels of vulnerability (24.5% parishes) are concentrated in the major towns where there are many shopping malls, transactional offices, and transport hubs. Nearly half the total parishes in the GKMA (47.3%) were moderately vulnerable, these constituted mainly the parishes on the outskirts of the major towns while 28.2% had a low vulnerability. The spatial approach presented in this paper contributes to providing a rapid assessment of the socio-economic vulnerability based on administrative decision units-parishes. This essentially equips the public health domain with the right diagnosis to subject the highly exposed and vulnerable communities to regulatory policy, increase resilience incentives in low adaptive areas and optimally deploy resources to avoid the emancipation of high susceptibility areas into an epicentre of Covid-19.展开更多
文摘Bioaccumulative and biomagnifying contaminants, such as persistent organic pollutants （POPs） and mercury （Hg）, have for decades been recognized as a health concern in arctic marine biota. In recent years, global climate change （GCC） and related loss of arctic sea ice have been observed to be driving substantial change in arctic ecosystems. This review summarizes findings documenting empirical links between GCC-induced ecological changes and alterations in POP and Hg exposures and pathways in arctic marine ecosystems. Most of the studies have reported changes in POP or Hg concentrations in tissue in relation to GCC-induced changes in species trophic interactions. These studies have typically focused on the role of changes in abun- dance, habitat range or accessibility of prey species, particularly in relation to sea ice changes. Yet, the ecological change that re- suited in contaminant trend changes has often been unclear or assumed. Other studies have successfully used chemical tracers, such as stable nitrogen and carbon isotope ratios and fatty acid signatures to link such ecological changes to contaminant level variations or trends. Lower sea ice linked-diet changes/variation were associated with higher contaminant levels in some popula- tions of polar bears, ringed seals, and thick-billed murres, but the influence of changing trophic interactions on POP levels and trends varied widely in both magnitude and direction. We suggest that future research in this new area of GCC-linked ecotox- icology should focus on routine analysis of ancillary ecological metrics with POP and Hg studies, simultaneous consideration of the multiple mechanisms by which GCC and contaminant interactions can occur, and targeted research on changing exposures and toxicological effects in species known to be sensitive to both GCC and contaminants [Current Zoology 61 （4）： 617-628, 2015].
基金The authors would like to thank Drs.Jan Irvahn,Jenna Pope,and Bryan Stanfill for useful discussions.This research was supported by a Chemical Dynamics Initiative(CDi)Laboratory Directed Research and Development(LDRD)project at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory(PNNL).PNNL is a multiprogram national laboratory operated for the U.S.Department of Energy(DOE)by Battelle Memorial Institute under Contract No.DEAC05-76RL0-1830Initial code development was performed on Nuclear Processing Science Initiative(NPSI)and I3T Commercialization Program LDRD projects.The growth and STEM data collection of the STO/Ge was supported by the U.S.Department of Energy(DOE),Office of Basic Energy Sciences,Division of Materials Science and Engineering under award no.10122.A portion of the STEM imaging shown was performed in the Radiological Microscopy Suite(RMS),located in the Radiochemical Processing Laboratory(RPL)at PNNL.Thin film synthesis and additional characterization was performed using the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory(EMSL),a national scientific user facility sponsored by the Department of Energy’s Office of Biological and Environmental Research and located at PNNL.
文摘Automatic segmentation of key microstructural features in atomic-scale electron microscope images is critical to improved understanding of structure–property relationships in many important materials and chemical systems.However,the present paradigm involves time-intensive manual analysis that is inherently biased,error-prone,and unable to accommodate the large volumes of data produced by modern instrumentation.While more automated approaches have been proposed,many are not robust to a high variety of data,and do not generalize well to diverse microstructural features and material systems.Here,we present a flexible,semi-supervised few-shot machine learning approach for segmentation of scanning transmission electron microscopy images of three oxide material systems:(1)epitaxial heterostructures of SrTiO_(3)/Ge,(2)La_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)FeO_(3) thin films,and(3)MoO_(3) nanoparticles.We demonstrate that the few-shot learning method is more robust against noise,more reconfigurable,and requires less data than conventional image analysis methods.This approach can enable rapid image classification and microstructural feature mapping needed for emerging high-throughput characterization and autonomous microscope platforms.
基金supported by the National Research,Development and Innovation Office,Hungary[grant number FK 134384 to L.E.,KKP 144068 and K 137573 to P.T.,and FK 142428 to Z.B.]the János Bolyai Research Scholarship of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences(to L.E.and Z.B.)the Stipendium Hungaricum Scholarship(to K.V.H.and I.P.)。
文摘In the Eurasian forest-steppe,with increasing aridity,the balance between naturally co-existing forest and grassland patches is expected to shift towards grassland dominance in the long run,although feedback mechanisms and changes in land-use may alter this process.In this study,we compared old and recent aerial photographs of Hungarian forest-steppes to find out whether and how the forest proportion and the number of forest patches change at the decadal time scale.The percentage area covered by forest significantly increased in all study sites.The observed forest encroachment may be a legacy from earlier land-use:due to ceased or reduced grazing pressure,forests are invading grasslands until the potential forest cover allowed by climate and soil is reached.The number of forest patches significantly increased at one site(Fülöpháza),while it decreased at two sites(Bugac and Orgovány)and showed no significant change at the fourth site(Tázlár).This indicates that forest encroachment can happen at least in two different ways:through the emergence of new forest patches in the grassland,and through the extension and coalescence of already existing forest patches.Though the present work revealed increasing tree cover at a decadal time scale,the dynamic process should be monitored in the future to see how the vegetation reacts to further aridification.This could help devise a conservation strategy,as the woody/non-woody balance has a profound influence on basic ecosystem properties.
文摘The experiment was conducted at the animal experimental station of the Faculty of Animal Sciences,Royal University of Agriculture,commenced from 10 January to 14 March,2022.The CRD(Completely Randomized Design)was used with 5 treatments and 4 replications.The 500 chicks at one-day-old,local bread,were purchased from farmers who run their small scale hatchery farm.The chicks were kept together till 21 days old,and then were allocated randomly into in five diets(treatments),25 chicks per replication.The feed formulas for this study were designed and calculated to maintain a protein content of approximately 17%,dividing into 5 feed formulas(Treatments),such as concentrated feed only(control treatment:T0),plus 10%of fresh sweet potato vine(T1),plus 20%of fresh sweet potato vine(T2),plus 30%of fresh sweet potato vine(T3)and plus 20%of sweet potato vine meal(T4).The results showed that the treatment T1,had a similar final weight with the treatment T4,but was slightly lower than the treatment T0 which used concentrated feed alone.Feed intake and FCR(Feed Conversion Ratio)were not significantly different among those treatments.In conclusion,the average daily weight gain of chickens seemed to decrease with increasing the level of fresh sweet potato vine.Thus,the optimum level of fresh sweet potato vine was 10%,which may have little effect on the growth performance of local chickens.In addition,it was not far different from the positive control treatment and the treatment using sweet potato vine meal.However,the producers can increase the amount of sweet potato vine in feed formula by processing it into meal and mixing with concentrated feed or using as feed ingredients.
基金supported by the Joint Center for Energy Storage Research(JCESR),a U.S.Department of Energy,Energy Innovation Hub。
文摘Using ab initio molecular dynamics(AIMD)simulations,classical molecular dynamics(CMD)simulations,small-angle X-ray scattering(SAXS),and pulsed-field gradient nuclear magnetic resonance(PFG-NMR),the solvation structure and ion dynamics of magnesium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide(Mg(TFSI)_(2))aqueous electrolyte at 1,2,and 3 m concentrations are investigated.From AIMD and CMD simulations,the first solvation shell of an Mg;ion is found to be composed of six water molecules in an octahedral configuration and the solvation shell is rather rigid.The TFSI^(-)ions prefer to stay in the second solvation shell and beyond.Meanwhile,the comparable diffusion coefficients of positive and negative ions in Mg(TFSI)_(2)aqueous electrolytes have been observed,which is mainly due to the formation of the stable[Mg(H_(2)O_(6))_(2)]^(+)complex,and,as a result,the increased effective Mg ion size.Finally,the calculated correlated transference numbers are lower than the uncorrelated ones even at the low concentration of 2 and 3 m,suggesting the enhanced correlations between ions in the multivalent electrolytes.This work provides a molecular-level understanding of how the solvation structure and multivalency of the ion affect the dynamics and transport properties of the multivalent electrolyte,providing insight for rational designs of electrolytes for improved ion transport properties.
基金C.D.,B.E.M.,S.A.,and S.R.S.were supported by the Chemical Dynamics Initiative/Investment,under the Laboratory Directed Research and Development(LDRD)Program at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory(PNNL)PNNL is a multi-program national laboratory operated for the U.S.Department of Energy(DOE)by Battelle Memorial Institute under Contract No.DE-AC05-76RL01830+1 种基金N.L.,Y.J.,X.T.,and V.S.were supported by the Data Intensive Research Enabling Clean Technology(DI-RECT)National Science Foundation(NSF)National Research Traineeship(DGE-1633216)the State of Washington through the University of Washington(UW)Clean Energy Institute and the UW eScience Institute.
文摘Forecasting models are a central part of many control systems,where high-consequence decisions must be made on long latency control variables.These models are particularly relevant for emerging artificial intelligence(AI)-guided instrumentation,in which prescriptive knowledge is needed to guide autonomous decision-making.Here we describe the implementation of a long short-term memory model(LSTM)for forecasting in situ electron energy loss spectroscopy(EELS)data,one of the richest analytical probes of materials and chemical systems.We describe key considerations for data collection,preprocessing,training,validation,and benchmarking,showing how this approach can yield powerful predictive insight into order-disorder phase transitions.Finally,we comment on how such a model may integrate with emerging AI-guided instrumentation for powerful high-speed experimentation.
基金This project has been assisted by the New South Wales Government through its Environmental Trust[grant number 2015/RD/0156].
文摘Recent advancements in person-portable instrumentation have resulted in the potential to provide contemporaneous results through rapid in-field analyses.These technologies can be utilised in emergency response scenarios to aid first responders in appropriate site risk assessment and management.Large metropolitan fires can pose great risk to human and environmental health due to the rapid release of hazardous compounds into the atmosphere.Understanding the release of these hazardous organics is critical in understanding their associated risks.Person-portable gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS)was evaluated for its potential to provide rapid on-site analysis for real-time monitoring of hazardous organic compounds at fire scenes.Air sampling and analysis methods were developed for scenes of this nature.Controlled field testing demonstrated that the portable GC-MS was able to provide preliminary analytical results on the volatile organic compounds present in air samples collected from both active and extinguished fires.In-field results were confirmed using conventional laboratory-based air sampling and analysis procedures.The deployment of portable instrumentation could provide first responders with a rapid on-site assessment tool for the appropriate management of scenes,thereby ensuring environmental and human health is proactively protected and scientifically informed decisions are made for the provision of timely advice to stakeholders.
基金This project has been assisted by the New South Wales Government through its Environmental Trust[grant number 2015/RD/0156].
文摘Building and factory fires pose a great risk to human and environmental health,due to the release of hazardous by-products of combustion.These hazardous compounds can dissipate into the environment through fire water run-off,and the impact can be immediate or chronic.Current laboratory-based methods do not report hazardous compounds released from a fire scene at the time and location of the event.Reporting of results is often delayed due to the complexities and logistics of laboratory-based sampling and analysis.These delays pose a risk to the health and wellbeing of the environment and exposed community.Recent developments in person-portable instrumentation have the potential to provide rapid analysis of samples in the field.A portable gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer(GC-MS)was evaluated for the on-site analysis of water samples for the identification of hazardous organic compounds at fire scenes.The portable GC-MS was capable of detecting and identifying a range of volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds in fire water run-off,and can be used in conjunction with conventional laboratory analysis methods for a comprehensive understanding of hazardous organics released at fire scenes.Deployment of this portable instrumentation provides first responders with a rapid,on-site screening tool to appropriately manage the run-off water from firefighting activities.This ensures that environmental and human health is proactively protected.
文摘The Mediterranean Sea is home to an interesting biodiversity. The current cumulative and descriptive study aims to enumerate some relatively large marine mammals, reptiles, and fishes that have been spotted, caught, by-caught, or stranded on the coast of the Gaza Strip, Palestine, which extends about 42 km along the Mediterranean Sea. This 20-year study from 2003 to 2022 relied much on frequent field visits, meetings, and discussions with stakeholders, following local media sites and social media pages, and photography. The study recorded at least 26 giants or relatively large marine organisms on the Mediterranean coast of the Gaza Strip, Palestine. Certainly, the coming years may bring other marine organisms of relatively large sizes. Marine mammals included three species of cetaceans with the Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) being the largest mammal and even the largest animal ever recorded in this study. Marine reptiles included three species of sea turtles, the largest of which is the Leatherback Sea Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), which is in fact the world’s largest sea turtle. The bony fishes were represented by ten species, the largest of which was the Ocean Sunfish (Mola mola), which is the largest bony fish in the world. The cartilaginous fishes included ten species with the largest specimens encountered were the Shortfin Shark (Isurus oxyrinchus), Bluntnose Sixgill Shark (Hexanchus griseus), Scalloped Hammerhead Shark (Sphyrna lewini), and Giant Devil Ray (Mobula mobular). Seabirds were not included in the study. The Alexandria Pompano (Alectis alexandrinus) and the Silver-Cheeked Toadfish (Lagocephalus sceleratus), which are bony fishes, appear to be the relatively smallest marine organisms recorded here. In conclusion, the role of the various parties must be coordinated to ensure the sustainability of human activities and their compatibility with the task of conserving local marine biota, including the gigantic or relatively large ones.
文摘A fibrous adsorbent for arsenic (As) removal was synthesized with nonwoven cotton fabric as a trunk polymer. 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate phosphoric acid monomer which composed of phosphoric acid mono (50%) and di (50%) ethyl methacrylate ester was introduced with radiation-induced graft polymerization onto nonwoven cotton fabric. The degree of grafting of 130% was obtained at irradiation dose of 20 kGy with 5% of monomer solution for 2 hours reaction time at 40?C reaction temperature. After the grafted material was contacted with 10 mmol/L of zirconium (Zr) solution at pH 1, 0.38 mmol/g of Zr was loaded on phosphoric units as a functional group for As(V) removal. The resulting adsorbent was evaluated by column mode adsorption with 1 mg/L of As(V) solution at various pH with space velocity 200 h–1. The maximum capacity of As(V) adsorption was 0.1 mmol/g at pH 2.
基金supported by the Environment Canada and the NSERC
文摘Capillary electrophoresis coupled to mass spectrometry（CE–MS） was used for the analysis of naphthenic acid fraction compounds（NAFCs） of oil sands process-affected water（OSPW）. A standard mixture of amine-derivatized naphthenic acids is injected directly onto the CE column and analyzed by CE–MS in less than 15 min. Time of flight MS analysis（TOFMS）, optimized for high molecular weight ions, showed NAFCs between 250 and 800 m/z. With a quadrupole mass analyzer, only low-molecular weight NAFCs（between 100 and 450 m/z） are visible under our experimental conditions. Derivatization of NAFCs consisted of two-step amidation reactions mediated by 1-ethyl-3-（3-dimethylaminopropyl）carbodiimide（EDC）, or mediated by a mixture of EDC and N-hydroxysuccinimide, in dimethyl sulfoxide, dichloromethane or ethyl acetate. The optimum background electrolyte composition was determined to be 30%（V/V） methanol in water and 2%（V/V） formic acid. NAFCs extracted from OSPW in the Athabasca oil sands region were used to demonstrate the feasibility of CE–MS for the analysis of NAFCs in environmental samples, showing that the labeled naphthenic acids are in the mass range of 350 to 1500 m/z.
文摘The HNS Convention(International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in Connection with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea,2010)covers any damage caused by the carriage by sea of hazardous and noxious substances in the territory or territorial sea of a State Party to the Convention.The costs of preventive actions,i.e.measures to avoid or minimize damage,are also covered wherever taken.The HNS Convention includes preventive measures as any reasonable measures taken by any person after an incident has occurred to prevent or minimize damage,i.e.actions such as clean-up or removal of HNS from a wreck if the HNS presents a hazard or pollution risk.It seems that after the CLC(Civil Liability Convention),much environmental legislation has lost the concept of pro-activeness/prevention of an environmental hazard and is more focused on compensation and reactiveness.This approach is not consistent with the purpose of environmental legislation and the examination of the basic principles of the HNS Convention in parallel with distinctive environmental hazards proves this theory of reactive strategy.The methodology is based on the exploratory research principles and the legal doctrine,utilizing legislation and case law as the primary source of data,aiming to examine the effects of the HNS’s entry into force by studying cases that are inside its authority and scope.
文摘The aim of this study was to develop a straightforward approach for flood area mapping in a transboundary riverbed using Geographic Object-Based Image Analysis.Weak bilateral/multilateral cooperation among neighboring countries hampers effective disaster management and mitigation activities over transboundary areas and strengthens the demand for reliable remote-sensing-derived information.Three object-based classification approaches using ENVISAT/ASAR and multi-temporal LANDSAT TM data were developed and validated for flood area delineation.The accuracy assessment of the classification results was based on oblique air photo interpretation and an area-based comparison with the official flood map.The bi-level object-based model using the Normalized Difference Water Index and the original post-flood TM bands attained 92.67%overall accuracy in inundated-areas detection,while the ENVISAT/ASAR classification was the least accurate(85.33%),probably due to the lower spatial resolution of the Synthetic Aperture Radar image.A strong agreement(92.14%)was found between the LANDSAT flood extent and the official flood map,suggesting that the proposed method has the potential to be employed in the future as a standard part of a flood crisis management process.
文摘COVID-19 has presented itself with an extreme impact on the resources of its epi-centres. In Uganda, there is uncertainty about what will happen especially in the main urban hub, the Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area (GKMA). Consequently, public health professionals have scrambled into resource-driven strategies and planning to tame the spread. This paper, therefore, deploys spatial modelling to contribute to an understanding of the spatial variation of COVID-19 vulnerability in the GKMA using the socio-economic characteristics of the region. Based on expert opinion on the prevailing novel Coronavirus, spatially driven indicators were generated to assess vulnerability. Through an online survey and auxiliary datasets, these indicators were transformed, classified, and weighted based on the BBC vulnerability framework. These were spatially modelled to assess the vulnerability indices. The resultant continuous indices were aggregated, explicitly zoned, classified, and ranked based on parishes. The resultant spatial nature of vulnerability to COVID-19 in the GKMA sprawls out of major urban areas, diffuses into the peri-urban, and thins into the sparsely populated areas. The high levels of vulnerability (24.5% parishes) are concentrated in the major towns where there are many shopping malls, transactional offices, and transport hubs. Nearly half the total parishes in the GKMA (47.3%) were moderately vulnerable, these constituted mainly the parishes on the outskirts of the major towns while 28.2% had a low vulnerability. The spatial approach presented in this paper contributes to providing a rapid assessment of the socio-economic vulnerability based on administrative decision units-parishes. This essentially equips the public health domain with the right diagnosis to subject the highly exposed and vulnerable communities to regulatory policy, increase resilience incentives in low adaptive areas and optimally deploy resources to avoid the emancipation of high susceptibility areas into an epicentre of Covid-19.
