An investigation of pile diameter influence in the bearing capacity on Dynamic Load Test (DLT)

During the construction of five residential buildings in the city of Taubate, State of São Paulo, it was possible to carry out one comprehensive investigation of the behavior of precast concrete piles in clay shales. This paper describes the results of Dynamic Load Tests (DLT's) executed in three piles with different diameters and with the same embedded length. The tests were monitored using the PDA(R) (Pile Driving Analyzer) and the pile top displacement was measured by pencil and paper procedure. From the curves of RMX versus DMX resulted from CASE(R) method, CAPWAPC(R) analyses were made for signals where the maximum mobilized soil resistance was verified. The results were compared with the predicted bearing capacity using the semi-empirical method of Decourt & Quaresma (1978) and Decourt (1982) based on SPT values and the description of the soil profile. Some comments related to the values of quake and damping used for clay shales in the analyses are also presented.

Forest natural regeneration and biomass production after slash and burn in a seasonally dry forest in the Southern Brazilian Amazon

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

Variables Involved in the Planting of Rice in the Rice Husk

Rice production in Brazil in 2010 was approximately 12,2 million tons, and to reach that amount several planting techniques were used with different strains of rice in different rice-growing areas. Since Rice Husk Ash (RHA) is the pozzolan of vegetable origin most studied by researchers working in the area of pozzolanic materials, the present paper evaluates the influence that the form of planting, the climate, the soil, the strain of rice and the origin/amount of nitrogen-based fertilizers used in rice cultivation has on the chemical composition and crystallographic properties of RHA. The results obtained in this paper, confirm the importance of carrying out routine chemical analysis and X-Ray diffraction to maintain the quality control of the CCAs produced, because in situations of large-scale production, husks of different origins may be used.

Highly polymorphic in silico-derived microsatellite loci in the potato-infecting fungal pathogen Rhizoctonia solani anastomosis group 3 from the Colombian Andes

Fourteen polymorphic microsatellite DNA markers derived from the draft genome sequence of Rhizoctonia solani anastomosis group 3 (AG-3), strain Rhs 1AP, were designed and characterized from the potato-infecting soil fungus R. solani AG-3. All loci were polymorphic in two field populations collected from Solanum tuberosum and S. phureja in the Colombian Andes. The total number of alleles per locus ranged from two to seven, while gene diversity (expected heterozygosity) varied from 0.11 to 0.81. Considering the variable levels of genetic diversity observed, these markers should be useful for population genetic analyses of this important dikaryotic fungal pathogen on a global scale.

Sewage sludge toxicity in edaphic organism: Analysis of midgut responses in the diplopod Rhinocricus padbergi

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Ultrastructural Alterations in the Midgut of Diplopods after Subchronic Exposure to Substrate Containing Sewage Mud

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

Assessment of the Toxic Potential of Sewage Sludge in the Midgut of the Diplopod Rhinocricus padbergi

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Histological and Histochemical Analysis of the Fat Body of Rhinocricus padbergi (Diplopoda) Exposed to Contaminated Industrial Soil

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

Bamboo overabundance alters forest structure and dynamics in the Atlantic Forest hotspot

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

The use of vinasse as an amendment to ex-situ bioremediation of soil and groundwater contaminated with diesel oil

Este trabalho investigou a possibilidade de se usar a vinhaça como um agente estimulador de processos de biorremediação ex-situ. Amostras de água subterrânea e solo foram coletadas em três postos de combustíveis. A biorremediação do solo foi simulada em frascos de Bartha, usados para medir a produção de CO2, durante 48 dias, onde a vinhaça foi adicionada a uma concentração de 33 mL.Kg-1 de solo. A eficiência de biodegradação também foi medida pela quantificação de hidrocarbonetos totais de petróleo (TPH) por cromatografia gasosa. A biorremediação da água subterrânea foi realizada em experimentos laboratoriais simulando condições aeradas (bioreatores) e não aeradas (frascos de DBO). em ambos os casos, a concentração de vinhaça foi de 5 % (v/v) e diferentes parâmetros físico-químicos foram avaliados durante 20 dias. Embora um aumento da fertilização e da população microbiana do solo foram obtidos com a vinhaça, esta estratégia não se mostrou adequada em aumentar a eficiência da biorremediação dos solos contaminados com óleo diesel. A adição de vinhaça às águas subterrâneas contaminadas teve efeitos negativos na biodegradação dos hidrocarbonetos, uma vez que a vinhaça, como uma fonte de carbono facilmente assimilável, foi preferencialmente consumida.

Toxicity and Biodegradation in Sandy Soil Contaminated by Lubricant Oils

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

The Production of Ligninolytic Enzymes by Marine-Derived Basidiomycetes and Their Biotechnological Potential in the Biodegradation of Recalcitrant Pollutants and the Treatment of Textile Effluents

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

Reproductive phenology of Euterpe edulis (Arecaceae) along a gradient in the Atlantic rainforest of Brazil

The palm Euterpe edulis Mart. is one of the dominant tree species in the Atlantic rainforest and considered a key resource for many frugivorous birds. We compared the reproductive phenology of E. edulis in three types of Atlantic rainforest (two lowland forests, restinga and coastal-plain, and a premontane forest) on Cardoso Island (Cananeia, São Paulo, Brazil), aiming to answer the following questions: (i) whether the reproduction of E. edulis is annual and seasonal across the years in the three forest types studied; (ii) what are the environmental factors influencing the reproductive phenology of E. edulis; and (iii) how does the timing of fruiting and fruit production of E. edulis vary among the three forest types? We evaluated the presence of flowers and fruits (immature, unripe and ripe) from August 2001 to July 2004 in 150 individuals (50 per forest), and estimated the number of infructescences with ripe fruits and the production of fruits and seeds by collecting them on the forest floor in the three forest types. Flowering and fruiting of E. edulis were annual and significantly seasonal in the three forest types, with a high synchrony of flowering and medium to low synchrony of fruiting. Flowering peaked in November and December, and immature and unripe fruits peaked in January and March, all during the rainy season. Immature and unripe fruit phases were correlated with the daylength, precipitation and temperature, important factors for fruits development. Ripe fruits peaked in April and May, in the less rainy season, with significant differences in the mean dates among forests. The number of infructescences with ripe fruits and the biomass of fruits and seeds collected on the ground also differed significantly among the forest types, being greater in the restinga and coastal plain forests, respectively. Differences in productivity were related to palm density in each area and the soil fertility. The complementary fruiting pattern of E. edulis in the forests studied may affect the distribution and abundance of certain frugivorous bird species that feed on their fruits.

Gap disturbance regime and composition in the Atlantic Montane Rain Forest: the influence of topography

In the Atlantic Montane Rain Forest of south-eastern Brazil, a field study was carried out to describe the forest disturbance regime, analyse canopy gap composition and evaluate the influence of habitat parameters on gap tree species composition. We characterized canopy gaps considering the group of variables as follows: area, type and number of tree/branch falls, topographic position, soil coverage and surrounding canopy trees. Gap composition was assessed at species level by measuring all individuals inside gaps higher than one meter. Mean gap area of the 42 canopy gaps analysed was 71.9 +/- 9.0 m(2) (mean +/- SE). Out of the studied gaps, 35.7% were created by uprooted and by snapped trees, 16.7% by dead-standing trees and 11.9% by the fall of large branches. The disturbance regime was characterized by gap openings predominantly smaller than 150 m(2) and by spatial patterning related to topography. Ridges had smaller gaps and higher proportions of gaps created by branch falls; slopes had bigger gaps generally created by uprooting events. The more abundant and frequent species were shade tolerant and the more species-rich families found inside gaps did not differ from the forest as a whole. Pioneer species were rare and restricted to medium and large size classes. The Indicator Species Analysis and the Canonical Correspondence Analysis indicated gap area, topography and the percentage of soil cover by the genera Calathea and Ctenanthe were the predominant variables correlated with woody species distribution. So, topography emerged as an important issue not only to the gap disturbance regime, but also to gap colonization. In respect to the influence of gap processes on the Atlantic Montane Rain Forest regeneration, our results support the view that canopy gap events may not be working as promoters of community wide floristic shifts.

Spawning and parental care in Hoplias malabaricus (Teleostei, Characiformes, Erythrinidae) in the Southern Pantanal, Brazil

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