Etude de la variabilite interannuelle du climat viticole des regions du Bresil par le systeme CCM geoviticole.

The objective of this research was to characterize the inter-annual variability of the viticultural climate of the wine regions of Brazil. The survey used a long sets of climatic data base of regions: in the South if Brazil ? Serra Gaúcha, Serra do Sudeste, Campanha, Campos de Cima da Serra and Planalto Catarinense; in the Northeast of Brazil ? Submédio São Francisco. The ?Géoviticulture MCC System? method was used with its 3 climatic indices: Heliothermal Index (HI), Cool Night Index (CI) and Dryness Index (DI).

Accelerated ageing methodologies for the evaluation of particulate matter role in the corrosion of outdoor-exposed bronzes

Deterioration phenomena occurring on outdoor cultural heritage have been the subject of several studies, but relatively few works investigated the specific role of Particulate Matter (PM) in the corrosion of metals. This topic is really complex and, besides field exposures, accelerated ageing tests are also necessary to isolate and understand deterioration mechanisms due to PM. For this reason, the development of a methodology that allows to reproduce and analyze the effect of PM on alloys through accelerated ageing in climatic chamber has been started. On quaternary bronze specimens, single salts and a mix of them were deposited via two deposition methods: dry (directly depositing the salt on the surface) and wet (dropping a salt solution and drying it), simulating the initial chemical activation of the salts by RH% variations or by raindrops, respectively. Then, to better mimic the composition of real PM, a mixture containing a soluble salts, a mineral, a black carbon and an organic fraction was formulated and spread on the samples. The samples were placed in a climatic chamber and exposed to cyclic variations of T and RH for three weeks. The ageing cycles were set according to predictions on salt deliquescence/recrystallization through E-AIM model and to the evaluation of regional climatic data. The surface evolution was followed by SEM-EDX, Raman, AT-IR and UV-Vis Spectrophotometry. At the end of the test, mass losses were determined and corroded metals removed by pickling were analyzed by AAS. On the basis of the obtained results, the tested procedures seem to be promising in accelerating and mimicking realistic corrosion phenomena, as under the selected conditions, corrosion products typically found at different exposure time (from days to years) on outdoor bronzes were able to progressively form and evolve. Moreover, the two deposition modes simulating different condition of chemical activation of PM deposits allow to obtain complementary information.

Computational tool for three-point hitch geometry optimization

The weight-transfer effect, consisting of the change in dynamic load distribution between the front and the rear tractor axles, is one of the most impairing phenomena for the performance, comfort, and safety of agricultural operations. Excessive weight transfer from the front to the rear tractor axle can occur during operation or maneuvering of implements connected to the tractor through the three-point hitch (TPH). In this respect, an optimal design of the TPH can ensure better dynamic load distribution and ultimately improve operational performance, comfort, and safety. In this study, a computational design tool (The Optimizer) for the determination of a TPH geometry that minimizes the weight-transfer effect is developed. The Optimizer is based on a constrained minimization algorithm. The objective function to be minimized is related to the tractor front-to-rear axle load transfer during a simulated reference maneuver performed with a reference implement on a reference soil. Simulations are based on a 3-degrees-of-freedom (DOF) dynamic model of the tractor-TPH-implement aggregate. The inertial, elastic, and viscous parameters of the dynamic model were successfully determined through a parameter identification algorithm. The geometry determined by the Optimizer complies with the ISO-730 Standard functional requirements and other design requirements. The interaction between the soil and the implement during the simulated reference maneuver was successfully validated against experimental data. Simulation results show that the adopted reference maneuver is effective in triggering the weight-transfer effect, with the front axle load exhibiting a peak-to-peak value of 27.1 kN during the maneuver. A benchmark test was conducted starting from four geometries of a commercially available TPH. As result, all the configurations were optimized by above 10%. The Optimizer, after 36 iterations, was able to find an optimized TPH geometry which allows to reduce the weight-transfer effect by 14.9%.

Simulation of soybean growth and yield under northeastern Amazon climatic conditions

The objective of this work was to parameterize, calibrate, and validate a new version of the soybean growth and yield model developed by Sinclair, under natural field conditions in northeastern Amazon. The meteorological data and the values of soybean growth and leaf area were obtained from an agrometeorological experiment carried out in Paragominas, PA, Brazil, from 2006 to 2009. The climatic conditions during the experiment were very distinct, with a slight reduction in rainfall in 2007, due to the El Niño phenomenon. There was a reduction in the leaf area index (LAI) and in biomass production during this year, which was reproduced by the model. The simulation of the LAI had root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.55 to 0.82 m² m-2, from 2006 to 2009. The simulation of soybean yield for independent data showed a RMSE of 198 kg ha-1, i.e., an overestimation of 3%. The model was calibrated and validated for Amazonian climatic conditions, and can contribute positively to the improvement of the simulations of the impacts of land use change in the Amazon region. The modified version of the Sinclair model is able to adequately simulate leaf area formation, total biomass, and soybean yield, under northeastern Amazon climatic conditions.

An observing system simulation experiment for climate monitoring with GNSS radio occulation data: setup and testbed study

The long-term stability, high accuracy, all-weather capability, high vertical resolution, and global coverage of Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) radio occultation (RO) suggests it as a promising tool for global monitoring of atmospheric temperature change. With the aim to investigate and quantify how well a GNSS RO observing system is able to detect climate trends, we are currently performing an (climate) observing system simulation experiment over the 25-year period 2001 to 2025, which involves quasi-realistic modeling of the neutral atmosphere and the ionosphere. We carried out two climate simulations with the general circulation model MAECHAM5 (Middle Atmosphere European Centre/Hamburg Model Version 5) of the MPI-M Hamburg, covering the period 2001–2025: One control run with natural variability only and one run also including anthropogenic forcings due to greenhouse gases, sulfate aerosols, and tropospheric ozone. On the basis of this, we perform quasi-realistic simulations of RO observables for a small GNSS receiver constellation (six satellites), state-of-the-art data processing for atmospheric profiles retrieval, and a statistical analysis of temperature trends in both the “observed” climatology and the “true” climatology. Here we describe the setup of the experiment and results from a test bed study conducted to obtain a basic set of realistic estimates of observational errors (instrument- and retrieval processing-related errors) and sampling errors (due to spatial-temporal undersampling). The test bed results, obtained for a typical summer season and compared to the climatic 2001–2025 trends from the MAECHAM5 simulation including anthropogenic forcing, were found encouraging for performing the full 25-year experiment. They indicated that observational and sampling errors (both contributing about 0.2 K) are consistent with recent estimates of these errors from real RO data and that they should be sufficiently small for monitoring expected temperature trends in the global atmosphere over the next 10 to 20 years in most regions of the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS). Inspection of the MAECHAM5 trends in different RO-accessible atmospheric parameters (microwave refractivity and pressure/geopotential height in addition to temperature) indicates complementary climate change sensitivity in different regions of the UTLS so that optimized climate monitoring shall combine information from all climatic key variables retrievable from GNSS RO data.

Simulation of soybean growth and yield under northeastern Amazon climatic conditions

O objetivo deste trabalho foi parametrizar, calibrar e validar uma nova versão do modelo de crescimento e de produtividade da soja desenvolvido por Sinclair, em condições naturais de campo no nordeste da Amazônia. Os dados meteorológicos e os valores de crescimento e de área foliar da soja foram obtidos em um experimento agrometeorológico realizado em Paragominas, PA, de 2006 a 2009. As condições climáticas durante o experimento foram muito distintas, com uma ligeira redução na precipitação em 2007, em virtude do fenômeno El Niño. Houve redução no índice de área foliar (IAF) e na produção de biomassa neste ano, a qual foi reproduzida pelo modelo. A simulação do IAF apresentou raiz do erro quadrado médio (REQM) de 0,55 a 0,82 m2 m‑2, de 2006 a 2009. A simulação da produtividade da soja para os dados independentes apresentou um REQM de 198 kg ha‑1, ou seja, uma superestimativa de 3%. O modelo encontra-se calibrado e validado para as condições climáticas da Amazônia e pode contribuir positivamente para a melhoria das simulações dos impactos da mudança de uso da terra na região amazônica. A versão modificada do modelo de Sinclair simula adequadamente a formação de área foliar, a biomassa total e a produtividade da soja, nas condições climáticas do nordeste da Amazônia.

Model simulation output data (CCSM3) related to uplift of Africa and Himalaya/Tibet Plateau and the influence on tropical African vegetation

Hominid evolution in the late Miocene has long been hypothesized to be linked to the retreat of the tropical rainforest in Africa. One cause for the climatic and vegetation change often considered was uplift of Africa, but also uplift of the Himalaya and the Tibetan Plateau was suggested to have impacted rainfall distribution over Africa. Recent proxy data suggest that in East Africa open grassland habitats were available to the common ancestors of hominins and apes long before their divergence and do not find evidence for a closed rainforest in the late Miocene. We used the coupled global general circulation model CCSM3 including an interactively coupled dynamic vegetation module to investigate the impact of topography on African hydro-climate and vegetation. We performed sensitivity experiments altering elevations of the Himalaya and the Tibetan Plateau as well as of East and Southern Africa. The simulations confirm the dominant impact of African topography for climate and vegetation development of the African tropics. Only a weak influence of prescribed Asian uplift on African climate could be detected. The model simulations show that rainforest coverage of Central Africa is strongly determined by the presence of elevated African topography. In East Africa, despite wetter conditions with lowered African topography, the conditions were not favorable enough to maintain a closed rainforest. A discussion of the results with respect to other model studies indicates a minor importance of vegetation-atmosphere or ocean-atmosphere feedbacks and a large dependence of the simulated vegetation response on the land surface/vegetation model.

Improving wheat simulation capabilities in Australia from a cropping systems perspective - III. The integrated wheat model (I_WHEAT)

Previous work has identified several short-comings in the ability of four spring wheat and one barley model to simulate crop processes and resource utilization. This can have important implications when such models are used within systems models where final soil water and nitrogen conditions of one crop define the starting conditions of the following crop. In an attempt to overcome these limitations and to reconcile a range of modelling approaches, existing model components that worked demonstrably well were combined with new components for aspects where existing capabilities were inadequate. This resulted in the Integrated Wheat Model (I_WHEAT), which was developed as a module of the cropping systems model APSIM. To increase predictive capability of the model, process detail was reduced, where possible, by replacing groups of processes with conservative, biologically meaningful parameters. I_WHEAT does not contain a soil water or soil nitrogen balance. These are present as other modules of APSIM. In I_WHEAT, yield is simulated using a linear increase in harvest index whereby nitrogen or water limitations can lead to early termination of grainfilling and hence cessation of harvest index increase. Dry matter increase is calculated either from the amount of intercepted radiation and radiation conversion efficiency or from the amount of water transpired and transpiration efficiency, depending on the most limiting resource. Leaf area and tiller formation are calculated from thermal time and a cultivar specific phyllochron interval. Nitrogen limitation first reduces leaf area and then affects radiation conversion efficiency as it becomes more severe. Water or nitrogen limitations result in reduced leaf expansion, accelerated leaf senescence or tiller death. This reduces the radiation load on the crop canopy (i.e. demand for water) and can make nitrogen available for translocation to other organs. Sensitive feedbacks between light interception and dry matter accumulation are avoided by having environmental effects acting directly on leaf area development, rather than via biomass production. This makes the model more stable across environments without losing the interactions between the different external influences. When comparing model output with models tested previously using data from a wide range of agro-climatic conditions, yield and biomass predictions were equal to the best of those models, but improvements could be demonstrated for simulating leaf area dynamics in response to water and nitrogen supply, kernel nitrogen content, and total water and nitrogen use. I_WHEAT does not require calibration for any of the environments tested. Further model improvement should concentrate on improving phenology simulations, a more thorough derivation of coefficients to describe leaf area development and a better quantification of some processes related to nitrogen dynamics. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.

Flush air data system calibration using numerical simulation

The use of computational fluid dynamics simulations for calibrating a flush air data system is described, In particular, the flush air data system of the HYFLEX hypersonic vehicle is used as a case study. The HYFLEX air data system consists of nine pressure ports located flush with the vehicle nose surface, connected to onboard pressure transducers, After appropriate processing, surface pressure measurements can he converted into useful air data parameters. The processing algorithm requires an accurate pressure model, which relates air data parameters to the measured pressures. In the past, such pressure models have been calibrated using combinations of flight data, ground-based experimental results, and numerical simulation. We perform a calibration of the HYFLEX flush air data system using computational fluid dynamics simulations exclusively, The simulations are used to build an empirical pressure model that accurately describes the HYFLEX nose pressure distribution ol cr a range of flight conditions. We believe that computational fluid dynamics provides a quick and inexpensive way to calibrate the air data system and is applicable to a broad range of flight conditions, When tested with HYFLEX flight data, the calibrated system is found to work well. It predicts vehicle angle of attack and angle of sideslip to accuracy levels that generally satisfy flight control requirements. Dynamic pressure is predicted to within the resolution of the onboard inertial measurement unit. We find that wind-tunnel experiments and flight data are not necessary to accurately calibrate the HYFLEX flush air data system for hypersonic flight.

Improving FEM crash simulation accuracy through local thickness estimation based on CAD data

In this paper, we present a method for estimating local thickness distribution in nite element models, applied to injection molded and cast engineering parts. This method features considerable improved performance compared to two previously proposed approaches, and has been validated against thickness measured by di erent human operators. We also demonstrate that the use of this method for assigning a distribution of local thickness in FEM crash simulations results in a much more accurate prediction of the real part performance, thus increasing the bene ts of computer simulations in engineering design by enabling zero-prototyping and thus reducing product development costs. The simulation results have been compared to experimental tests, evidencing the advantage of the proposed method. Thus, the proposed approach to consider local thickness distribution in FEM crash simulations has high potential on the product development process of complex and highly demanding injection molded and casted parts and is currently being used by Ford Motor Company.

Simulation study of energy efficient scheduling for IEEE 802.15.4/ZigBee cluster-treeWireless Sensor Networks with time-bounded data flows

The simulation analysis is important approach to developing and evaluating the systems in terms of development time and cost. This paper demonstrates the application of Time Division Cluster Scheduling (TDCS) tool for the configuration of IEEE 802.15.4/ZigBee beaconenabled cluster-tree WSNs using the simulation analysis, as an illustrative example that confirms the practical applicability of the tool. The simulation study analyses how the number of retransmissions impacts the reliability of data transmission, the energy consumption of the nodes and the end-to-end communication delay, based on the simulation model that was implemented in the Opnet Modeler. The configuration parameters of the network are obtained directly from the TDCS tool. The simulation results show that the number of retransmissions impacts the reliability, the energy consumption and the end-to-end delay, in a way that improving the one may degrade the others.

Palaeontological data about the climatic trends from Chattian to present along the Northeastern Atlantic frontage

Climatic changes that affected the Northeastern Atlantic frontage are analyzed on the basis of the evolution of faunas and floras from the late Oligocene onwards. The study deals with calcareous nannoplankton, marine micro- and macrofaunas, some terrestrial vertebrates and vegetal assemblages. The climate, first tropical, underwent a progressive cooling (North-South thermic gradient). Notable climatic deteriorations (withdrawal towards the South or disappearance of taxa indicative of warm climate and appearance of "cold" taxa) are evidenced mainly during the Middle Miocene and the late Pliocene. Faunas and floras of modern pattern have regained, after the Pleistocene glaciations, a new climatic ranging of a temperate type in the northern part.

Palynologic data from Aquitaine (SW France) Middle Miocene Sables Fauves Formation. Climatic evolution

Climatic reconstructions based on palynological data from Aquitaine outcrops emphasize an important degradation phase during the Lower Serravallian. Climatic and environmental changes can be related to sea-level variations (Bur 5 / Lan 1, Lan 2 / Ser 1 and Ser 2 cycles). Transgressive phases feature warmer conditions and more open environments whereas regressive phases are marked by a cooler climate and an extent of the forest cover. From Langhian to Middle Serravallian, a general cooling is highlighted, with disappearance of most megathermic taxa and a transition from warm and dry climate to warm-temperate and much more humid conditions. Conclusions are consistent with studies on bordering areas and place the major degradation phase around 14 My. The palynologic data allow filling a gap in the climatic evolution of Southern France, as a connection between Lower and Upper Miocene, both well recorded. These results document, on Western Europe scale, latitudinal climatic gradient across Northern hemisphere while featuring a transition between Mediterranean area and northeastern Atlantic frontage.

Scenarios Generation for Multi-Agent simulation of Electricity Markets based on Intelligent Data Analysis

This document presents a tool able to automatically gather data provided by real energy markets and to generate scenarios, capture and improve market players’ profiles and strategies by using knowledge discovery processes in databases supported by artificial intelligence techniques, data mining algorithms and machine learning methods. It provides the means for generating scenarios with different dimensions and characteristics, ensuring the representation of real and adapted markets, and their participating entities. The scenarios generator module enhances the MASCEM (Multi-Agent Simulator of Competitive Electricity Markets) simulator, endowing a more effective tool for decision support. The achievements from the implementation of the proposed module enables researchers and electricity markets’ participating entities to analyze data, create real scenarios and make experiments with them. On the other hand, applying knowledge discovery techniques to real data also allows the improvement of MASCEM agents’ profiles and strategies resulting in a better representation of real market players’ behavior. This work aims to improve the comprehension of electricity markets and the interactions among the involved entities through adequate multi-agent simulation.