Variabilidade local e regional da evapotranspiração estimada pelo algoritmo SEBAL

Em face da importância em conhecer a evapotranspiração (ET) para uso racional da água na irrigação no contexto atual de escassez desse recurso, algoritmos de estimativa da ET a nível regional foram desenvolvidos utilizando-se de ferramentas de sensoriamento remoto. Este estudo objetivou aplicar o algoritmo SEBAL (Surface Energy Balance Algorithms for Land) em três imagens do satélite Landsat 5, do segundo semestre de 2006. As imagens correspondem a áreas irrigadas, floresta nativa densa e a Caatinga do Estado do Ceará (Baixo Acaraú, Chapada do Apodi e Chapada do Araripe). Este algoritmo calcula a evapotranspiração horária a partir do fluxo de calor latente, estimado como resíduo do balanço de energia na superfície. Os valores de ET obtidos nas três regiões foram superiores a 0,60 mm h-1 nas áreas irrigadas ou de vegetação nativa densa. As áreas de vegetação nativa menos densa apresentaram taxa da ET horária de 0,35 a 0,60 mm h-1, e valores quase nulos em áreas degradadas. A análise das médias de evapotranspiração horária pelo teste de Tukey a 5% de probabilidade permitiu evidenciar uma variabilidade significativa local, bem como regional no Estado do Ceará.

Regional plan för utveckling av vattentjänster i Åboregionen 2011 - 2035 : Sammandrag

Den regionala utvecklingsplanen för vattentjänsterna i Åboregionen omfattar städerna S:t Karins, Nådendal, Pemar, Pargas, Reso och Åbo samt kommunerna Aura, Lundo, Masku, Virmo, Nousis, Rusko och Sagu. Målsättningen är att hitta de bästa möjliga lösningarna för vattenförsörjning och avloppsvattenhantering. Uppdragsgivare för planeringsarbetet har varit de ovan nämnda kommunerna samt ELY-centralen i Egentliga Finland och Egentliga Finlands förbund. Planen har utarbetats av AIRIX Ympäristö Oy. Under planeringsarbetet framkom det att man i utvecklingen av vattenförsörjningen bör fokusera på att trygga distributionsförbindelserna. På planeringsområdet kommer det att byggas flera förbindelser som tryggar vattenförsörjningen. Därtill kommer befintliga vattentäkter och reservanläggningar att saneras. Ytvattenverket i Hallis saneras så att det blir reservanläggning för vattenverket för konstgjort grundvatten. I Masku, Nousis och Virmo byggs enligt planen en förbindelse som gör det möjligt att delvis övergå till användning av konstgjort grundvatten. I Virmo byggs också en ny grundvattentäkt. Pargas stads centralort med omgivning övergår helt till att använda konstgjort grundvatten men tätorterna i Houtskär, Korpo och Nagu kommer fortsättningsvis att försörjas av de lokala vattentäkterna. Beredskapen att trygga vattentjänsterna i särskilda situationer ska utvecklas genom ökat samarbete. Inom beredskapsplaneringen kommer man att kartlägga möjligheterna till gemensamt anordnande av bl.a. reservkraftanläggningar och desinficeringsberedskap. Enligt planen kommer den kommunala avloppsreningsfunktionen att nästan helt överföras till avloppsreningsverket i Kakola fram till 2035. Därför kommer reningsverket också att byggas ut. De lokala reningsverken kommer att vara i användning endast i tätorterna i Houtskär, Korpo och Nagu inom Pargas stad. På grund av de stora mängderna läckvatten föreslås en omfattande sanering av avloppsnätet för hela planeringsområdet. Också mottagningen av avloppsvattenslam på glesbygden ska utvecklas regionalt. Byggkostnaderna för projekten som föreslås i planen är cirka 40 miljoner euro för vattenförsörjningen och cirka 31 miljoner euro för avloppsreningen fram till 2035. Utvecklingsplanen innehåller i sin nuvarande omfattning projektens dimensioneringsgrunder och grundläggande tekniska lösningar samt preliminära kostnadsberäkningar. Den fortsatta beredningen av projekten kräver projektspecifik utredningsplanering och byggplanering innan de kan genomföras. Samtidigt utreds hur det kommunala beslutsfattandet framskrider, finansieringen av projekten och kostnadsfördelningen. Förslagen i den regionala utvecklingsplanen tas också i beaktande då man utarbetar utvecklingsplaner för de kommunala vattentjänsterna.

Ovo recepção: perfil das pacientes em lista de espera no programa do Hospital Regional da Asa Sul, Brasília, Distrito Federal

OBJETIVO: descrever o perfil epidemiológico das pacientes inscritas em lista de espera e principais indicações para o programa de ovo recepção do Hospital Regional da Asa Sul (HRAS) em Brasília, Distrito Federal. MÉTODOS: estudo descritivo prospectivo em que foram pesquisadas 330 mulheres inscritas na lista de espera do programa, das quais foram incluídas 67 mulheres independente do fator de infertilidade e que ainda não tinham sido contempladas com o tratamento. Foram excluídas 30 mulheres que moravam em outras cidades, 50 pacientes com idade superior ou igual a 50 anos, 24 pacientes que não desejavam participar do trabalho, nove pacientes que pediram exclusão do programa e 150 pacientes não localizadas por contato telefônico. As pacientes incluídas foram chamadas a responder a um questionário e tiveram seus prontuários recuperados para confirmar a realização da propedêutica necessária, a fim de estabelecer a causa da infertilidade. Os dados foram registrados e analisados pelo programa SPSS versão 12.0. RESULTADOS: o perfil epidemiológico das pacientes inclui faixa etária de 40 a 49 anos (82%), não brancas (77,6%), católicas (71,6%), casadas (59,7%), com escolaridade de primeiro ou segundo grau (76,1%), com infertilidade secundária (53,6%) por laqueadura tubária (40,3%) e que começaram a tentar engravidar até 35 anos (91%). Para estas mulheres, a principal indicação para ovo recepção foi idade no momento da inscrição no programa, seguida por baixa reserva ovariana. CONCLUSÃO: os resultados encontrados demonstram a realização indiscriminada de laqueadura tubária. O programa de ovo recepção beneficia mulheres com prognóstico reprodutivo reservado.

Aligning Regional Repository Networks

Presentation at Open Repositories 2014, Helsinki, Finland, June 9-13, 2014

HIMALDOC: A Tool for a Regional Open Repository on Sustainable Mountain Development Issues in the Hindu Kush Himalaya

Poster at Open Repositories 2014, Helsinki, Finland, June 9-13, 2014

Validation of transit-time flowmetry for chronic measurements of regional blood flow in resting and exercising rats

The objective of the present study was to validate the transit-time technique for long-term measurements of iliac and renal blood flow in rats. Flow measured with ultrasonic probes was confirmed ex vivo using excised arteries perfused at varying flow rates. An implanted 1-mm probe reproduced with accuracy different patterns of flow relative to pressure in freely moving rats and accurately quantitated the resting iliac flow value (on average 10.43 ± 0.99 ml/min or 2.78 ± 0.3 ml min-1 100 g body weight-1). The measurements were stable over an experimental period of one week but were affected by probe size (resting flows were underestimated by 57% with a 2-mm probe when compared with a 1-mm probe) and by anesthesia (in the same rats, iliac flow was reduced by 50-60% when compared to the conscious state). Instantaneous changes of iliac and renal flow during exercise and recovery were accurately measured by the transit-time technique. Iliac flow increased instantaneously at the beginning of mild exercise (from 12.03 ± 1.06 to 25.55 ± 3.89 ml/min at 15 s) and showed a smaller increase when exercise intensity increased further, reaching a plateau of 38.43 ± 1.92 ml/min at the 4th min of moderate exercise intensity. In contrast, exercise-induced reduction of renal flow was smaller and slower, with 18% and 25% decreases at mild and moderate exercise intensities. Our data indicate that transit-time flowmetry is a reliable method for long-term and continuous measurements of regional blood flow at rest and can be used to quantitate the dynamic flow changes that characterize exercise and recovery

Autoradiography reveals regional metabolic differences in the endometrium of pregnant and nonpregnant mice

The rodent endometrium undergoes remarkable modifications during pregnancy, resulting from a redifferentiation of its fibroblasts. During this modification (decidualization), the fibroblasts transform into large, polyhedral cells that establish intercellular junctions. Decidualization proceeds from the subepithelial stroma towards the deep stroma situated next to the myometrium and creates regions composed of cells in different stages of differentiation. We studied by autoradiography whether cells of these different regions have different levels of macromolecular synthesis. Radioactive amino acids or radioactive sulfate were administered to mice during estrus or on different days of pregnancy. The animals were killed 30 min after injection of the precursors and the uteri were processed for light microscope autoradiography. Silver grains were counted over cells of different regions of the endometrium and are reported as the number of silver grains per area. Higher levels of incorporation of amino acids were found in pregnant animals as compared to animals in estrus. In pregnant animals, the region of decidual cells or the region of fibroblasts transforming into decidual cells showed the highest levels of synthesis. Radioactive sulfate incorporation, on the other hand, was generally higher in nonpregnant animals. Animals without decidual cell transformation (nonpregnant and 4th day of pregnancy) showed a differential incorporation by subepithelial and deep stroma fibroblasts. This study shows that regional differences in synthetic activity exist in cells that are in different stages of transformation into decidual cells as well as in different regions of the endometrium of nonpregnant mice

Biogas production in regional integrated biodegradable waste treatment – Possibilities for improving energy performance and reducing GHG emissions

The greatest threat that the biodegradable waste causes on the environment is the methane produced in landfills by the decomposition of this waste. The Landfill Directive (1999/31/EC) aims to reduce the landfilling of biodegradable waste. In Finland, 31% of biodegradable municipal waste ended up into landfills in 2012. The pressure of reducing disposing into landfills is greatly increased by the forthcoming landfill ban on biodegradable waste in Finland. There is a need to discuss the need for increasing the utilization of biodegradable waste in regional renewable energy production to utilize the waste in a way that allows the best possibilities to reduce GHG emissions. The objectives of the thesis are: (1) to find important factors affecting renewable energy recovery possibilities from biodegradable waste, (2) to determine the main factors affecting the GHG balance of biogas production system and how to improve it and (3) to find ways to define energy performance of biogas production systems and what affects it. According to the thesis, the most important factors affecting the regional renewable energy possibilities from biodegradable waste are: the amount of available feedstock, properties of feedstock, selected utilization technologies, demand of energy and material products and the economic situation of utilizing the feedstocks. The biogas production by anaerobic digestion was seen as the main technology for utilizing biodegradable waste in agriculturally dense areas. The main reason for this is that manure was seen as the main feedstock, and it can be best utilized with anaerobic digestion, which can produce renewable energy while maintaining the spreading of nutrients on arable land. Biogas plants should be located close to the heat demand that would be enough to receive the produced heat also in the summer months and located close to the agricultural area where the digestate could be utilized. Another option for biogas use is to upgrade it to biomethane, which would require a location close to the natural gas grid. The most attractive masses for biogas production are municipal and industrial biodegradable waste because of gate fees the plant receives from them can provide over 80% of the income. On the other hand, directing gate fee masses for small-scale biogas plants could make dispersed biogas production more economical. In addition, the combustion of dry agricultural waste such as straw would provide a greater energy amount than utilizing them by anaerobic digestion. The complete energy performance assessment of biogas production system requires the use of more than one system boundary. These can then be used in calculating output–input ratios of biogas production, biogas plant, biogas utilization and biogas production system, which can be used to analyze different parts of the biogas production chain. At the moment, it is difficult to compare different biogas plants since there is a wide variation of definitions for energy performance of biogas production. A more consistent way of analyzing energy performance would allow comparing biogas plants with each other and other recovery systems and finding possible locations for further improvement. Both from the GHG emission balance and energy performance point of view, the energy consumption at the biogas plant was the most significant factor. Renewable energy use to fulfil the parasitic energy demand at the plant would be the most efficient way to reduce the GHG emissions at the plant. The GHG emission reductions could be increased by upgrading biogas to biomethane and displacing natural gas or petrol use in cars when compared to biogas CHP production. The emission reductions from displacing mineral fertilizers with digestate were seen less significant, and the greater N2O emissions from spreading digestate might surpass the emission reductions from displacing mineral fertilizers.

Effect of a Brazilian regional basic diet on the prevalence of caries in rats

The aim of the present study was to determine the effect of a regional basic diet (RBD) on the prevalence of caries in the molar teeth of rats of both sexes aged 23 days. The animals were divided into six groups of 10 rats each receiving the following diets for 30 and 60 days after weaning: RBD, a cariogenic diet, and a commercial diet. The prevalence and penetration of caries in the molar teeth of the rats was then analyzed. The RBD produced caries in 37.5% of the teeth of animals fed 30 days, and in 83.4% of animals fed 60 days, while the cariogenic diet produced caries in 72.5% and 77.5% of the teeth of animals fed 30 and 60 days, respectively. Rats fed the RBD for 30 days had caries in the enamel in 38% of their teeth, 48% had superficial dentin caries, and 7.5% moderate dentin caries. The effect of the RBD did not differ significantly from that of the cariogenic diet in terms of the presence of caries in rats fed 60 days. The penetration depth of the caries produced by the RBD was the same as that produced by the cariogenic diet. Our results show that the RBD has the same cariogenic potential as the cariogenic diet. Since the RBD is the only option for the low-income population, there should be a study of how to compensate for the cariogenicity of this diet.

Framework for Regional Heating Energy Efficiency Assessment

The aim of this project was to develop general framework for systematic assessment of energy efficiency of heating on regional level in Russia. The framework created during this project includes two main instruments, namely: general regional heating energy efficiency assessment model (REEMod) and general regional heating energy efficiency assessment criteria for housing areas (REECrit). Framework pays extreme attention to realization of energy saving, overall cost efficiency and comfortable indoor climate. Life-cycle ideology was applied during creation of the framework. Application of the framework can provide decision-making process with systematically collected and processed information on current state of areas energy efficiency. Such information will help decision makers to evaluate current situation of the whole energy chain, to compare different development scenarios and to identify the most efficient improvement methods, thus supporting realization of regions efficient energy management. Simultaneous pursuit of energy savings, cost efficiency and indoor air quality can contribute to development of sustainable community. Presented instruments should be continuously developed further as an iterative process based on knew experience, development of technology and overall understanding of energy efficiency issues.