Echo-time independent signal modulations for strongly coupled systems in triple echo localization schemes: an extension of S-PRESS editing.

The double spin-echo point resolved spectroscopy sequence (PRESS) is a widely used method and standard in clinical MR spectroscopy. Existence of important J-modulations at constant echo times, depending on the temporal delays between the rf-pulses, have been demonstrated recently for strongly coupled spin systems and were exploited for difference editing, removing singlets from the spectrum (strong-coupling PRESS, S-PRESS). A drawback of this method for in vivo applications is that large signal modulations needed for difference editing occur only at relatively long echo times. In this work we demonstrate that, by simply adding a third refocusing pulse (3S-PRESS), difference editing becomes possible at substantially shorter echo times while, as applied to citrate, more favorable lineshapes can be obtained. For the example of an AB system an analytical description of the MR signal, obtained with this triple refocusing sequence (3S-PRESS), is provided.

Fate of nickel ion in (II-III) hydroxysulphate green rust synthesized by precipitation and coprecipitation

In order to investigate the efficiency of sulfate green rust (GR2) to remove Ni from solution, GR2 samples were synthesized under controlled laboratory conditions. Some GR2 samples were synthesized from Fe(II) and Fe(III) sulfate salts by precipitation. Other samples were prepared by coprecipitation, of Ni(II), Fe(II) and Fe(III) sulfate salts, i.e., in the presence of Ni. In another sample, Ni(II) sulfate salt was added to pre-formed GR2. After an initial X-ray diffraction (XRD) characterization all samples were exposed to ambient air in order to understand the role of Ni in the transformation of the GR2 samples. XRD was repeated after 45 days. The results showed that Nious GR2 prepared by coprecipitation is isomorphous to Ni-free GR2, i.e. Ni is incorporated into the crystalline structure. Fe(II) was not replaced by Ni(II) in the crystalline structure of GR2 formed prior to exposure to solution-phase Ni. This suggests Ni was adsorbed to the GR2 surface. Sulfate green rust is more efficient in removing Ni from the environment by coprecipitation.

Characterization of alternatively spliced products and tissue-specific isoforms of USP28 and USP25

Background: The ubiquitin-dependent protein degradation pathway is essential for the proteolysis of intracellular proteins and peptides. Deubiquitinating enzymes constitute a complex protein family involved in a multitude of cellular processes. The ubiquitin-specific proteases (UBP) are a group of enzymes whose predicted function is to reverse the ubiquitinating reaction by removing ubiquitin from a large variety of substrates. We have lately reported the characterization of human USP25, a specific-ubiquitin protease gene at 21q11.2, with a specific pattern of expression in murine fetal brains and adult testis. Results: Database homology searches at the DNA and protein levels and cDNA library screenings led to the identification of a new UBP member in the human genome, named USP28, at 11q23. This novel gene showed preferential expression in heart and muscle. Moreover, cDNA, expressed sequence tag and RT-PCR analyses provided evidence for alternatively spliced products and tissue-specific isoforms. Concerning function, USP25 overexpression in Down syndrome fetal brains was shown by real-time PCR. Conclusions: On the basis of the genomic and protein sequence as well as the functional data, USP28 and USP25 establish a new subfamily of deubiquitinating enzymes. Both genes have alternatively spliced exons that could generate protein isoforms with distinct tissue-specific activity. The overexpression of USP25 in Down syndrome fetal brains supports the gene-dosage effects suggested for other UBP members related to aneuploidy syndromes.

Assessment of Weathering Steel Bridge Performance in Iowa and Development of Inspection and Maintenance Techniques, RB17-012, 2013

Weathering steel is commonly used as a cost-effective alternative for bridge superstructures, as the costs and environmental impacts associated with the maintenance/replacement of paint coatings are theoretically eliminated. The performance of weathering steel depends on the proper formation of a surface patina, which consists of a dense layer of corrosion product used to protect the steel from further atmospheric corrosion. The development of the weathering steel patina may be hindered by environmental factors such as humid environments, wetting/drying cycles, sheltering, exposure to de-icing chlorides, and design details that permit water to pond on steel surfaces. Weathering steel bridges constructed over or adjacent to other roadways could be subjected to sufficient salt spray that would impede the development of an adequate patina. Addressing areas of corrosion on a weathering steel bridge superstructure where a protective patina has not formed is often costly and negates the anticipated cost savings for this type of steel superstructure. Early detection of weathering steel corrosion is important to extending the service life of the bridge structure; however, written inspection procedures are not available for inspectors to evaluate the performance or quality of the patina. This project focused on the evaluation of weathering steel bridge structures, including possible methods to assess the quality of the weathering steel patina and to properly maintain the quality of the patina. The objectives of this project are summarized as follows:  Identify weathering steel bridge structures that would be most vulnerable to chloride contamination, based on location, exposure, environment, and other factors.  Identify locations on an individual weathering steel bridge structure that would be most susceptible to chloride contamination, such as below joints, splash/spray zones, and areas of ponding water or debris.  Identify possible testing methods and/or inspection techniques for inspectors to evaluate the quality of the weathering steel patina at locations discussed above.  Identify possible methods to measure and evaluate the level of chloride contamination at the locations discussed above.  Evaluate the effectiveness of water washing on removing chlorides from the weathering steel patina.  Develop a general prioritization for the washing of bridge structures based on the structure’s location, environment, inspection observations, patina evaluation findings, and chloride test results.

Using spatially distributed parameters and multi-response objective functions to solve parameterization of complex applications of semi-distributed hydrological models

Application of semi-distributed hydrological models to large, heterogeneous watersheds deals with several problems. On one hand, the spatial and temporal variability in catchment features should be adequately represented in the model parameterization, while maintaining the model complexity in an acceptable level to take advantage of state-of-the-art calibration techniques. On the other hand, model complexity enhances uncertainty in adjusted model parameter values, therefore increasing uncertainty in the water routing across the watershed. This is critical for water quality applications, where not only streamflow, but also a reliable estimation of the surface versus subsurface contributions to the runoff is needed. In this study, we show how a regularized inversion procedure combined with a multiobjective function calibration strategy successfully solves the parameterization of a complex application of a water quality-oriented hydrological model. The final value of several optimized parameters showed significant and consistentdifferences across geological and landscape features. Although the number of optimized parameters was significantly increased by the spatial and temporal discretization of adjustable parameters, the uncertainty in water routing results remained at reasonable values. In addition, a stepwise numerical analysis showed that the effects on calibration performance due to inclusion of different data types in the objective function could be inextricably linked. Thus caution should be taken when adding or removing data from an aggregated objective function.

Remote Sensing Change Analysis Methodology to Support Traffic Monitoring Programs, 2003

The Federal Highway Administration mandates that states collect traffic count information at specified intervals to meet the needs of the Highway Performance Monitoring System (HPMS). A manual land use change detection method was employed to determine the effects of land use change on traffic for Black Hawk County, Iowa, from 1994 to 2002. Results from land use change detection could enable redirecting traffic count activities and related data management resources to areas that are experiencing the greatest changes in land use and related traffic volume. Including a manual land use change detection process in the Iowa Department of Transportation’s traffic count program has the potential to improve efficiency by focusing monitoring activities in areas more likely to experience significant increase in traffic.

05031-011 Rathbun Lake Watershed Final Report

This project proposes a unique approach to addressing one of the more challenging issues facing efforts to protect water quality in Rathbun Lake; reducing sediment and phosphorus delivery from land on which best management practices (BMPs) will not be applied. This project will construct ten impoundments at key locations in the watershed to reduce the annual delivery of 2,970 tons of sediment and 12,100 pounds of phosphorus to Rathbun Lake. Features of this approach are: (a) impoundments will be constructed at sites below areas with high concentrations of priority land that has the greatest potential to deliver sediment and phosphorus to Rathbun Lake and on which landowners are unable or unwilling to apply BMPs and (b) strategically placed, large impoundments can be a cost effective means of reducing the sediment and phosphorus delivered to Rathbun Lake from priority land on which BMPs will not be applied. This project will significantly enhance the success of efforts underway in the Rathbun Lake Special Project as it addresses a critical water quality protection need that is not being met by current Special Project activities.

A Monte Carlo approach to the inverse problem of diffuse pollution risk in agricultural catchments

The hydrological and biogeochemical processes that operate in catchments influence the ecological quality of freshwater systems through delivery of fine sediment, nutrients and organic matter. Most models that seek to characterise the delivery of diffuse pollutants from land to water are reductionist. The multitude of processes that are parameterised in such models to ensure generic applicability make them complex and difficult to test on available data. Here, we outline an alternative - data-driven - inverse approach. We apply SCIMAP, a parsimonious risk based model that has an explicit treatment of hydrological connectivity. we take a Bayesian approach to the inverse problem of determining the risk that must be assigned to different land uses in a catchment in order to explain the spatial patterns of measured in-stream nutrient concentrations. We apply the model to identify the key sources of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) diffuse pollution risk in eleven UK catchments covering a range of landscapes. The model results show that: 1) some land use generates a consistently high or low risk of diffuse nutrient pollution; but 2) the risks associated with different land uses vary both between catchments and between nutrients; and 3) that the dominant sources of P and N risk in the catchment are often a function of the spatial configuration of land uses. Taken on a case-by-case basis, this type of inverse approach may be used to help prioritise the focus of interventions to reduce diffuse pollution risk for freshwater ecosystems. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Remoção de Cu+2 de soluções aquosas em zeólita NaX: efeito da granulometria

The present study consists in evaluating the NaX zeolite efficiency in removing Cu2+ from aqueous solutions, for future use of NaX in removing metals from wastewaters. The experiments were performed in batch systems (with shaking and continous stirring) and for different time intervals (1 to 24 h). Three particle sizes were employed: < 850 µm, 850 µm - 1 mm and 3 mm. It has been concluded that it is possible to employ the NaX zeolite for metal removal and the particle size plays an important role in the adsorption process. Specifically, NaX zeolites of smaller particle size achieved the maximum adsorption capacity of 152.36 mg of Cu2+/g of zeolite at pH = 4.5.

Teollisuuden jäähdytysjärjestelmät. Case: Kaasunerotuslaitteiston evaluointi

Teollisuuden jäähdytysjärjestelmiä tarvitaan prosessien lämpötilan ja paineen hal-litsemiseen. Vesi on käytetyin lämmönsiirtoaine hyvän saatavuutensa, halvan hin-nan ja korkean lämmönsiirtokyvyn ansiosta. Jäähdytysjärjestelmät jaetaan kolmeen päätyyppiin, joita ovat läpivirtausjäähdytys, suljettu ja avoin kiertojäähdytys. Kullakin järjestelmätyypillä on tyypilliset alatyyppinsä. Avoimella kiertojär-jestelmällä on eniten alatyyppejä, joista yleisin on jäähdytystorni. Jäähdytystorneja on kolmea tyyppiä: märkä-, kuiva ja hybriditorni. Kullakin järjestelmätyypillä on ominaiset piirteensä käyttökohteiden, ympäristövaikutusten, ohjattavuuden, investointi- ja käyttökulujen suhteen, joita tässä työssä esitellään. Työssä tutkitaan teollisuuden jäähdytysjärjestelmien esittelyn lisäksi erään ali-painekaasunpoistimen soveltuvuutta suljetun kiertojäähdytysjärjestelmän kaasun-poistoon. Suljettuun kiertojäähdytysjärjestelmään jää ilmaa täyttövaiheessa ja kul-keutuu liuenneena käytettävän jäähdytysveden mukana. Muodostuva ylikylläinen seos synnyttää veden sekaan ilmakuplia, jotka aiheuttavat korroosiota kemiallisesti ja kuluttamalla. Lisäksi kaasukuplat vievät tilavuutta nesteeltä. Tämä pienentää järjestelmän jäähdytystehoa merkittävästi, koska kaasun lämmönsiirtokyky verrat-tuna veden lämmönsiirtokykyyn on pieni. Työssä esitellään myös muita mahdolli-sia suljetun järjestelmän kaasulähteitä ja niiden aiheuttamia ongelmia. Alipainekaasunpoistimen kaasunerotustehokkuutta mitattiin jäähdytysvesinäyttei-den selkeytymisnopeudella ja lämmönsiirtimien tehon paranemisella. Kahden viikon tarkastelujaksolla selkeytymisajat paranivat 36–60 % eri mittauspaikoissa ja lämmönsiirtimien tehot paranivat 6–29 %. Järjestelmään kuitenkin jäi merkittävä määrä kaasua, vaikka laitteen käyttöä jatkettiin tarkastelujakson jälkeen, joten tavoitteisiin ei päästy. Tutkitun alipainekaasunpoistolaitteen ei todettu soveltuvan tehdasympäristöön kestämättömyyden, hankalakäyttöisyyden ja tehottomuuden takia. Tulokset kuitenkin osoittavat, että kaasunerotuksella on merkittävä vaikutus suljetun jäähdytysjärjestelmän toimivuuteen ja saavutettavaan jäähdytystehoon.

Nikkelille selektiivisen kelatoivan adsorbenttimateriaalin valmistus ja tutkiminen

Metallien laajamittaisen ja runsaan käytön vuoksi nykyään on keskityttävä aikaisempaa tarkemmin metallipäästöjen estämiseen ja puhdistamiseen. Metallien puhdistamiseen jätevesistä voidaan käyttää erilaisia yksikköoperaatiomenetelmiä, mutta selektiivisempään erotukseen päästään ioninvaihto- ja adsorbenttimateriaaleilla. Työn tarkoitusena on valmistaa ja tutkia nikkeliselektiivisiä adsorbenttimateriaaleja. Lisäksi tutkimuskohteena on nikkelin ja 1,10-fenantroliinin välisen kompleksin muodostuminen eri pH-arvoilla. Selektiivisten adsorbenttimateriaalien valmistaminen onnistuu liittämällä kiinteään kantajaan ligandi. Tämän työn tapauksessa nikkelitemplaatin liittäminen kiinteään kantajaan funktionalisointivaiheessa muodostaa adsorbenttiin nikkelille spesifisen kohdan. Käytännössä spesifisyyden syntyminen ei ole itsestäänselvyys, vaan se riippuu paljon funktionalisointitavasta. Tässä työssä funktionalisointitapana olivat fysikaalinen adsorptio ja impregnointi. Nikkelin ja 1,10-fenantroliinin välisen kompleksin muodostumista tutkittiin eri pH-arvojen lisäksi neljällä eri happokonsentraatiolla. Tuloksia verrattiin sellaisen liuoksen spektriin, missä oli pelkkää nikkeliä. Tuloksista havaittiin, että komplekseja muodostuu käytännössä samalla tavalla pH:n ollessa 1–6. Vasta 5 M HNO3 alkoi heikentää kompleksien muodostumista, ja 10 M HNO3 esti kompleksien muodostumisen täysin. Adsorbenttimateriaaleja valmistettiin useita erilaisia, joihin osaan liitettiin nikkelitemplaatti ja osa jätettiin ilman templaattia. Työssä keskityttiin tutkimaan erityisesti kolmea silikasta valmistettua materiaalia, joissa vain kahdessa oli nikkelitemplaatti. Nikkelitemplaattien olemassaololla ei havaittu olevan juurikaan merkitystä nikkelin erottamiseen vesiliuoksista. Materiaaleille tehdyt regenerointikokeet osoittivat, että materiaalien toiminta ja kapasiteetti eivät olleet toivotulla tasolla.

Potential of plant species for bioremediation of soils applied with imidazolinone herbicides

Imidazolinone herbicides present physicochemical characteristics that allow them to persist longer in environment, with increased chances of soil and water contamination, as well as carryover effects on subsequent crops. Phytoremediation is shown as a promising technique to decontaminate soils polluted by herbicides. The aim of this study was to assess the potential of some winter grown species in removing residuals from soils contaminated with imazethapyr + imazapic and imazapic + imazapyr, using pre-emergence to control weeds in summer grown rice fields. The experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design, with four replications. All species were subjected to herbicide application at different doses. Imazethapyr + imazapic and imazapyr + imazapic were applied at doses of 0.0, 1.0 and 2.0 L ha-1, and 0.0, 140 and 280 g ha-1, respectively, in pre-emergence of the species. Brassica napus and Festuca arundinaceae are not tolerant to herbicides, with 100% of phytotoxicity (plant death) for all doses assessed. The herbicide imazapyr + imazapic proved to be less selective, causing the highest phytotoxicity in the species tested. The most tolerant species to the herbicides was Vicia sativa, which may be the most suitable one for phytoremediation programs in areas contaminated with imazethapyr + imazapic and imazapyr + imazapic.

The European Union and Assembling Biofuel Development – topological investigations concerning the associations between law, policy and space

Biofuels for transport are a renewable source of energy that were once heralded as a solution to multiple problems associated with poor urban air quality, the overproduction of agricultural commodities, the energy security of the European Union (EU) and climate change. It was only after the Union had implemented an incentivizing framework of legal and political instruments for the production, trade and consumption of biofuels that the problems of weakening food security, environmental degradation and increasing greenhouse gases through land-use changes began to unfold. In other words, the difference between political aims for why biofuels are promoted and their consequences has grown – which is also recognized by the EU policy-makers. Therefore, the global networks of producing, trading and consuming biofuels may face a complete restructure if the European Commission accomplishes its pursuit to sideline crop-based biofuels after 2020. My aim with this dissertation is not only to trace the manifold evolutions of the instruments used by the Union to govern biofuels but also to reveal how this evolution has influenced the dynamics of biofuel development. Therefore, I study the ways the EU’s legal and political instruments of steering biofuels are coconstitutive with the globalized spaces of biofuel development. My analytical strategy can be outlined through three concepts. I use the term ‘assemblage’ to approach the operations of the loose entity of actors and non-human elements that are the constituents of multi-scalar and -sectorial biofuel development. ‘Topology’ refers to the spatiality of this European biofuel assemblage and its parts whose evolving relations are treated as the active constituents of space, instead of simply being located in space. I apply the concept of ‘nomosphere’ to characterize the framework of policies, laws and other instruments that the EU applies and construes while attempting to govern biofuels. Even though both the materials and methods vary in the independent articles, these three concepts characterize my analytical strategy that allows me to study law, policy and space associated with each other. The results of my examinations underscore the importance of the instruments of governance of the EU constituting and stabilizing the spaces of producing and, on the other hand, how topological ruptures in biofuel development have enforced the need to reform policies. This analysis maps the vast scope of actors that are influenced by the mechanism of EU biofuel governance and, what is more, shows how they are actively engaging in the Union’s institutional policy formulation. By examining the consequences of fast biofuel development that are spatially dislocated from the established spaces of producing, trading and consuming biofuels such as indirect land use changes, I unfold the processes not tackled by the instruments of the EU. Indeed, it is these spatially dislocated processes that have pushed the Commission construing a new type of governing biofuels: transferring the instruments of climate change mitigation to land-use policies. Although efficient in mitigating these dislocated consequences, these instruments have also created peculiar ontological scaffolding for governing biofuels. According to this mode of governance, the spatiality of biofuel development appears to be already determined and the agency that could dampen the negative consequences originating from land-use practices is treated as irrelevant.

Relação entre mercado de terras, crescimento econômico e insegurança fundiária explicada por um modelo a "geração imbricada"

In this paper, we analyze the relationship between the land market failures and the economic growth in Brazil, starting from an overlapping model including two sectors: agricultural and industrial. The land is both a specific factor for agriculture and an asset that can be substituted to the capital used in industry. The trade-off between land and capital holding depends, among other factors, on the transaction costs on the land market. These costs result from land insecurity and generate a decrease in the land price that favors capital accumulation. Two assumptions follow from our model: one the one hand, land insecurity has a negative effect on the land price; one the other hand it has a positive effect on economic growth. These two hypotheses are tested on panel data for Brazilian Federation. The econometric results do not reject our hypothesis.

Mäntyöljyn tislauksen esikäsittely

Raakamäntyöljy on selluteollisuuden sivutuote. Suopa erotetaan mustalipeästä ja palstoitetaan tuottaen siten raakamäntyöljyä. Raakamäntyöljy tislataan tavanomaisesti viiteen pääjakeeseen: rasvahapot, hartsihapot, mäntyöljytisle, esiöljy ja mäntyöljypiki. Näiden jakeiden lisäksi raakamäntyöljyssä on erityisesti mustalipeästä siihen erottuneita epäpuhtauksia, jotka haittaavat raakamäntyöljyn prosessointia. Epäpuhtauksia ovat orgaaniset ja epäorgaaniset yhdisteet, kuten metallit, suolat ja ligniini. Nämä epäpuhtaudet aiheuttavat haitallisia reaktioita prosessissa huonontaen siten lopputuotejakeiden laatua. Tämän lisäksi epäpuhtaudet aiheuttavat saostumia prosessilaitteissa alentaen siten prosessointitehokkuutta. Raakamäntyöljyn esikäsittelyllä tehostetaan tislauksen toimintaa. Työssä esitetään esikäsittelymenetelmistä mm. degumming-menetelmä, laimea happopesu, hiilidioksidikäsittely, valkaisu ja lämpökäsittely. Menetelmien pohjalta valitaan tätä työtä varten yksi menetelmä, jonka pohjalta suunnitellaan kokeellisessa osassa suoritettavat kokeet. Kokeellinen osuus koostuu esikokeista, varsinaisista kokeista ja lisäkokeista. Menetelmän tarkoituksena on saavuttaa epäpuhtauksille 90–95 % reduktioaste. Kokeiden onnistumista tutkitaan analysoimalla alkuperäinen raakamäntyöljy, sekä jokaisen kokeen jälkeen erotetut faasit. Työssä saavutettiin hyvä erotustehokkuus. Alkuperäisen tavoitteen mukaista reduktioastetta ei pystytty määrittämään eri analyysimenetelmien ja niiden analyysituloksissa ilmenneiden eroavaisuuksien vuoksi, mutta lisäkokeiden ansiosta pystyttiin vahvistamaan kyseisen koejärjestelmän optimaalinen poistoaste. Lisäksi työssä havaittiin että esikäsittelytulos on hyvin riippuvainen käsiteltävän raaka-aineen koostumuksesta.