Interaction between N-fertilizer and water availability on borer-rot complex in sugarcane

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Removal of glyphosate herbicide from water using biopolymer membranes

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Trichomes related to an unusual method of water retention and protection of the stem apex in an arid zone perennial species

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Opportunistic pathogens and elements of the resistome that are common in bottled mineral water support the need for continuous surveillance

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

How the fluctuations of water levels affect populations of invasive bivalve Corbicula fluminea (Muller, 1774) in a Neotropical reservoir?

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Does the plankton community follow the horizontal water quality heterogeneity in a tropical urban reservoir (Guarapiranga reservoir, Sao Paulo, Brazil)?

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Foliar or soil applications of silicon alleviate water-deficit stress of potato plants

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Communal suckling in water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis)

Communal nursing (an adult female allowing the offspring of another conspecific female to suckle) is a relatively frequent behavior in water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis). Fourteen lactating water buffalo cows and their nursing calves were observed at a Brazilian dairy after the cows had been milked. The two variables of greatest interest were solicitations of their own mothers and other cows by the calves, and acceptances of their own offspring and non-filial calves by the cows. Correlational analyses suggested three easily discriminable clusters of variables. Calves solicited and succeeded in suckling from their own mothers more often than they did from any other individual cow, but they solicited all other cows slightly more often than they did their own mothers. They were more likely to try to suckle other cows if they were rejected by their own mothers. Cows that had a high probability of accepting their own offspring tended to accept non-filial calves as well. Calves tended to maximize the total number rather than the probability of successful solicitations. Communal suckling was not reciprocal. Communal and filial suckling results from encounters between cows and calves performing under different motivational states. © 1991.

Catastrophic regime shift in water reservoirs and São Paulo water supply crisis

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Assessment of cytotoxicity and AhR-mediated toxicity in tropical fresh water sediments under the influence of an oil refinery

Oil refinery effluents contain many chemicals at variable concentrations. Therefore, it is difficult to predict potential effects on the environment. The Atibaia River (SP, Brazil), which serves as a source of water supply for many municipalities, receives the effluents of one of the biggest oil refinery of this country. The aim of this study was to identify the (eco)toxicity of fresh water sediments under the influence of this oil refinery through neutral red (cytotoxicity) and ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) assays (AhR-mediated toxicity) in RTL-W1 cells (derived from fish liver). Once the refinery captures the waters of Jaguarí River for the development of its activities and discharges its effluents after treatment into the Atibaia River, which then flows into Piracicaba River, sediments from both river systems were also investigated. The samples showed a high cytotoxic potential, even when compared to well-known pollution sites. However, the cytotoxicity of samples collected downstream the effluent was not higher than that of sediments collected upstream, which suggested that the refinery discharges are not the main source of pollution in those areas. No EROD activity could be recorded, which could be confirmed by chemical analyses of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) that revealed a high concentration of phenanthrene, anthracene, fluoranthene, and pyrene, which are not EROD inducers in RTL-W1 cells. In contrast, high concentrations of PAHs were found upstream the refinery effluent, corroborating cytotoxicity results from the neutral red assay. A decrease of PAHs was recorded from upstream to downstream the refinery effluent, probably due to dilution of compounds following water discharges. On the other hand, these discharges apparently contribute specifically to the amount of anthracene in the river, since an increase of anthracene concentrations could be recorded downstream the effluent. Since the extrapolation of results from acute toxicity to specific toxic effects with different modes of action is a complex task, complementary bioassays covering additional specific effects should be applied in future studies for better understanding of the overall ecotoxicity of those environments.

A mathematical view of water table fluctuations in a shallow aquifer in Brazil

Detailed monitoring of the groundwater table can provide important data about both short- and long-term aquifer processes, including information useful for estimating recharge and facilitating groundwater modeling and remediation efforts. In this paper, we presents results of 4 years (2002 to 2005) of monitoring groundwater water levels in the Rio Claro Aquifer using observation wells drilled at the Rio Claro campus of São Paulo State University in Brazil. The data were used to follow natural periodic fluctuations in the water table, specifically those resulting from earth tides and seasonal recharge cycles. Statistical analyses included methods of time-series analysis using Fourier analysis, cross-correlation, and R/S analysis. Relationships could be established between rainfall and well recovery, as well as the persistence and degree of autocorrelation of the water table variations. We further used numerical solutions of the Richards equation to obtain estimates of the recharge rate and seasonable groundwater fluctuations. Seasonable soil moisture transit times through the vadose zone obtained with the numerical solution were very close to those obtained with the cross-correlation analysis. We also employed a little-used deep drainage boundary condition to obtain estimates of seasonable water table fluctuations, which were found to be consistent with observed transient groundwater levels during the period of study.

A study on the viability of minimum quantity lubrication with water in grinding of ceramics using a hybrid-bonded diamond wheel

With the currently strict environmental law in present days, researchers and industries are seeking to reduce the amount of cutting fluid used in machining. Minimum quantity lubrication is a potential alternative to reduce environmental impacts and overall process costs. This technique can substantially reduce cutting fluids in grinding, as well as provide better performance in relation to conventional cutting fluid application (abundant fluid flow). The present work aims to test the viability of minimum quantity lubrication (with and without water) in grinding of advanced ceramics, when compared to conventional method (abundant fluid flow). Measured output variables were grinding power, surface roughness, roundness errors and wheel wear, as well as scanning electron micrographs. The results show that minimum quantity lubrication with water (1:1) was superior to conventional lubrication-cooling in terms of surface quality, also reducing wheel wear, when compared to the other methods tested.

Arcabouço hidroestratigráfico e evolução temporal dos níveis d´água no sistema aquífero guarani na cidade de Araraquara-SP

Pós-graduação em Geociências e Meio Ambiente - IGCE