Study of Densification Process and Microstructure for Highly Dense Doped MgB2 Bulk Samples

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Rapid in situ processing for real-time holographic interferometry

Experiments are described which show that a monobath can be used for rapid in situ processing in a liquid gate for real-time holographic interferometry. This also permits utilization of a very simple solution handling system. Changes in emulsion thickness are reduced to an acceptable level and problems of matching refractive indices are eliminated by exposing and viewing the holograms in water. Excellent null patterns are obtained and real-time holographic interferometry can be carried out over long periods of time.

Two ex situ fungal technologies to treat contaminated soil

Wood-degrading fungi are able to degrade a large range of recalcitrant pollutants which resemble the lignin biopolymer. This ability is attributed to the production of lignin-modifying enzymes, which are extracellular and non-specific. Despite the potential of fungi in bioremediation, there is still an understanding gap in terms of the technology. In this thesis, the feasibility of two ex situ fungal bioremediation methods to treat contaminated soil was evaluated. Treatment of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)-contaminated marsh soil was studied in a stirred slurry-phase reactor. Due to the salt content in marsh soil, fungi were screened for their halotolerance, and the white-rot fungi Lentinus tigrinus, Irpex lacteus and Bjerkandera adusta were selected for further studies. These fungi degraded 40 - 60% of a PAH mixture (phenanthrene, fluoranthene, pyrene and chrysene) in a slurry-phase reactor (100 ml) during 30 days of incubation. Thereafter, B. adusta was selected to scale-up and optimize the process in a 5 L reactor. Maximum degradation of dibenzothiophene (93%), fluoranthene (82%), pyrene (81%) and chrysene (83%) was achieved with the free mycelium inoculum of the highest initial biomass (2.2 g/l). In autoclaved soil, MnP was the most important enzyme involved in PAH degradation. In non-sterile soil, endogenous soil microbes together with B. adusta also degraded the PAHs extensively, suggesting a synergic action between soil microbes and the fungus. A fungal solid-phase cultivation method to pretreat contaminated sawmill soil with high organic matter content was developed to enhance the effectiveness of the subsequent soil combustion. In a preliminary screening of 146 fungal strains, 28 out of 52 fungi, which extensively colonized non-sterile contaminated soil, were litter-decomposing fungi. The 18 strains further selected were characterized by their production of lignin-modifying and hydrolytic enzymes, of which MnP and endo-1,4-β-glucanase were the main enzymes during cultivation on Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) bark. Of the six fungi selected for further tests, Gymnopilus luteofolius, Phanerochaete velutina, and Stropharia rugosoannulata were the most active soil organic matter degraders. The results showed that a six-month pretreatment of sawmill soil would result in a 3.5 - 9.5% loss of organic matter, depending on the fungus applied. The pretreatment process was scaled-up for a 0.56 m3 reactor, in which perforated plastic tubes filled with S. rugosoannulata growing on pine bark were introduced into the soil. The fungal pretreatment resulted in a soil mass loss of 30.5 kg, which represents 10% of the original soil mass (308 kg). Despite the fact that Scots pine bark contains several antimicrobial compounds, it was a suitable substrate for fungal growth and promoter of the production of oxidative enzymes, as well as an excellent and cheap natural carrier of fungal mycelium. This thesis successfully developed two novel fungal ex situ bioremediation technologies and introduce new insights for their further full-scale application. Ex situ slurry-phase fungal reactors might be applied in cases when the soil has a high water content or when the contaminant bioavailability is low; for example, in wastewater treatment plants to remove pharmaceutical residues. Fungal solid-phase bioremediation is a promising remediation technology to ex situ or in situ treat contaminated soil.

Effect of Nanostructuring and Ex situ Amorphous Carbon Coverage on the Lithium Storage and Insertion Kinetics in Anatase Titania

Implications of nanostructuring and conductive carbon interface on lithium insertion/removal capacity and insertion kinetics innanoparticles of anatase polymorph of titania is discussed here.Sol-gel synthesized nanoparticles of titania (particle size similar to 6 nm) were hydrothermally coated ex situ with a thin layer of amorphous carbon (layer thickness: 2-5 nm) and calcined at a temperature much higher than the sol-gel synthesis temperature. The carbon-titania composite particles (resulting size similar to 10 nm) displayed immensely superior cyclability and rate capability (higher current rates similar to 4 g(-1)) compared to unmodified calcined anatase titania. The conductive carbon interface around titania nanocrystal enhances the electronic conductivity and inhibits crystallite growth during electrochemical insertion/removal thus preventing detrimental kinetic effects observed in case of unmodified anatase titania. The carbon coating of the nanoparticles also stabilized the titania crystallographic structure via reduction in the accessibility of lithium ions to the trapping sites. This resulted in a decrease in the irreversible capacity observed in the case of nanoparticles without any carbon coating.

Ex Situ X-ray Diffraction, X-ray Absorption Near Edge Structure, Electron Spin Resonance, and Transmission Electron Microscopy Study of the Hydrothermal Crystallization of Vanadium Oxide Nanotubes: An Insight into the Mechanism of Formation

The nucleation and growth of vanadium oxide nanotubes (VOx-NT) have been followed by a combination of numerous ex situ techniques. long the hydrothermal process. Intermediate solid phases extracted at different reaction times have been characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, electron spin resonance, and V-K edge :X-ray absorption near-edge structure spectroscopy. The supernatant vanadate solutions extracted during the hydrothermal treatment have been studied by liquid V-51 NMR and flame. spectroscopy. For short durations of the hydrothermal synthesis, the initial V2O5-surfactant intercalate. is progressively transformed into VOx-NT whose crystallization starts to be detected after a hydrothermal treatment of 24 h. Upon heating from 24 h to 7 days, VOx-NT are obtained in larger amount and with an improved crystallinity. The detection of soluble amines and cyclic metavanadate V4O12](4-) in the supernatant solution along the hydrothermal process suggests that VOx-NT result from a dissolution precipitation mechanism. Metavanadate species V4O12](4-) could behave as molecular precursors in the polymerization reactions leading to VOx-NT.

Comparaciones en los patrones de crecimiento de quince poblaciones de frijol común (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) conservadas en fincas de agricultores (in situ) y ex situ

El presente estudió se llevó a cabo en la estación experimental “La compañía” con el propósito de comparar el patrón de crecimiento de 15 poblaciones locales de frijol común conservadas en fincas de agricultores y en Bancos de Germoplasma. Se consideraron tres factores de estudio con mediciones repetidas en el tiempo en un BCA con tres repeticiones. Las variables evaluadas fueron: Longitud de tallo en centímetros (cm), área foliar total en centímetros cuadrados (cm2), materia seca de láminas foliares en gramos por planta (g.p- 1 ). materia seca de restos de componentes de la planta en gramos por planta (g.p-'), materia seca total en gramos por planta (g.p-1 ) , tasa media de crecimiento absoluto en gramos por día (g.dia- 1). tasa media de crecimiento relativo en gramos por gramo presente en la planta por día (g.g- 1 día•1 índice de cosecha, y rendimiento por parcela en gramos por parcela (g. parcela-1) Las poblaciones locales y los materiales de color de semilla crema (Gualiceño) mostraron patrones de crecimiento y valores estadísticamente superiores (P< O. O 1) para longitud de tallo, área foliar y materia seca de láminas foliares al compararlas con las poblaciones almacenadas ex situ del REGEN (Nicaragua) y del CIAT (Colombia) y de color de semilla rojo o café. Sin embargo, al evaluar la materia seca total, tasa media de crecimiento absoluto y tasa media de crecimiento relativo no se registraron diferencias estadísticas significativas entre ninguno de los factores bajo estudio. Por otro lado, se apreció una interacción color por tipo de conservación estadísticamente significativa para rendimiento por parcela e índice de cosecha (Pex situ en bancos de germoplasma.

Estudio agromorfológico de quince poblaciones de frijol común (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) conservadas in situ y ex situ

Los objetivos del trabajo fueron describir la variabilidad fenotípica presente tanto entre como dentro de las poblaciones evaluadas, y a su vez determinar los efectos de color de semilla y tipo de conservación (ex situ e in situ ) sobre dicha diversidad, El estudio consistió en un experimento trifactorial, des balanceado y parcialmente anidado en un diseño de bloques completo al azar con tres repeticiones, cuyos factores de estudio fueron: Color de semilla, tipo de conservación y poblaciones anidadas dentro de cada uno de los factores. Se sometieron a análisis variables cualitativas de la flor, fenológicas y de producción (Rendimiento y sus componentes). Los resultados indicaron que el color de la semilla y el tipo de conservación resultaron ser los criterios principales de diferenciación de las poblaciones bajo estudiado destacándose el grupo de semilla de color café, la interacción de los efectos color de semilla y tipo de conservación resultaron significativas para el rendimiento, cierto de sus componentes e índice de cosecha, mostrando los materiales genéticos de color de grano crema y conservadas actualmente por los agricultores los mayores valores para la variable antes mencionadas. Las poblaciones conservadas in situ comparadas a las conservadas ex situ, presentaron valores diferentes para las variables bajo estudio

Caracterización y evaluación ex situ de una población de Teocintle anual (Zea Nicaraguensis Iltis y Benz) Recolectada en el norte de Chinandega, Nicaragua

Se realizó una caracterización y evaluación preliminar ex situ de una población de teocintle anual clasificado recientemente como lea nicaraguensis por litis & Benz (2000), dicho germoplasma fue recolectado en el norte de Chinandega. Con el objetivo de conocer el comportamiento de esta especie se sembró el teocintle en todos los meses del año 1996 en el área experimental del REGEN (UNA). Para esto se estableció un Diseño Parcelas Divididas con dos bloques, ubicando en las parcelas pequeñas los tratamientos con y sin malezas en todo el ciclo de la planta. Se utilizaron estadísticos univariados y multivariados sobre 34 descriptores cuantitativos y 11 cualitativos. La investigación demostró que el teocintle de Nicaragua responde a los periodos de luz, la floración ocmóó en los meses de octubre, noviembre, diciembre y enero, siendo estos los meses en que se realizó la caracterización ex situ. El ANDEVA realizado encontró diferencias estadísticas en la mayoria de los caracteres cuantitativos (meses y tratamientos). La altura de planta varió de 1 a 5 metros; asimismo se obtuvieron promedios entre 10 y 300 "mazorcas" y entre 600 y 1500 semillas por plantas, los mayores valores se presentaron en la siembra de marw, abril, mayo y junio en ambos tratamientos, estos fueron los periodos en donde hubo un mayor desarrollo de las plantas. Los caracteres de semilla no se vieron afectados por el ambiente ( 4-6 cariópsides por "mazorca", 7. 10 milímetros de longitud, grosor de 3-6 milímetros y ancho de semillas de 3-5 miliEl análisis de Componentes Principales determinó que los tres primeros componentes aportan el83 % de la variación. El primer componente retuvo el 58 % de variación total y quedó conformado por caracteres de inflorescencia, altura de planta, caracteres de hoja, número de entrenudos, número de semillas por planta, número de tallos laterales y altura al primer entrenudo con "mazorcas". Se identificaron tres grupos bien definidos mediante el análisis de Conglomerados (Ward's). Los meses de Marzo y Abril conformaron el primer Cluster. Los meses de Mayo, Junio y Julio establecieron el segundo núcleo, lo cual indica comportamiento similar para los tratamientos evaluados. El tercer grupo lo integraron los meses de Agosto y Septiembre con malezas metros.

Ex-situ conservation of the germplasm of aquatic organisms

This paper summarizes some of the major issues relating to ex-situ conservation of the germplasm of aquatic organisms and gives examples of some current activities and future possibilities.

Ex situ conservation status of an endangered Yangtze finless porpoise population (Neophocaena phocaenoides asiaeorientalis) as measured from microsatellites and mtDNA diversity

The Yangtze finless porpoise, Neophocaena phocaenoides asiaeorientalis, is all endangered small cetacean that occurs only in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River of China. The establishment of a breeding population of the porpoise in Tian-e-Zhou Baiji National Natural Reserve represents the first attempt at ex situ conservation efforts for a cetacean species. With the goal of effective protection, management, and monitoring of this preserved population, we examined its genetic diversity using 930 bp of mtDNA control region sequences and 13 polymorphic microsatellite loci. A very low level of genetic variation (h = 0.6010 +/- 0.0029 s.d.; pi = 0.0007 +/- 0.0000002 s.d.) in the mtDNA control region sequences and a moderate genetic diversity (Ho = 0.5740 +/- 0.2575 s.d.) in the microsatellites were detected in the population. It is necessary to introduce more individuals with representative genetic variations into the reserve ill order to foml a larger and healthier group structure for long-term survival of the population. Successful establishment of the Yangtze finless porpoise population in the Reserve also provides a useful model for an ex situ conservation programme for other rare and endangered species. (c) 2005 International Council for the Exploration ofthe Sea. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.