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Sample records for active desiccant rooftop

  1. Field Demonstration of Active Desiccant Modules Designed to Integrate with Standard Unitary Rooftop Package Equipment - Final Report: Phase 3

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fischer, J

    2004-03-15

    This report summarizes the investigation of two active desiccant module (ADM) pilot site installations initiated in 2001. Both pilot installations were retrofits at existing facilities served by conventional heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems that had encountered frequent humidity control, indoor air quality (IAQ), and other operational problems. Each installation involved combining a SEMCO, Inc., ADM (as described in Fischer and Sand 2002) with a standard packaged rooftop unit built by the Trane Company. A direct digital control (DDC) system integral to the ADM performed the dual function of controlling the ADM/rooftop combination and facilitating data collection, trending, and remote performance monitoring. The first installation involved providing preconditioned outdoor air to replace air exhausted from the large kitchen hood and bathrooms of a Hooters restaurant located in Rome, Georgia. This facility had previously added an additional rooftop unit in an attempt to achieve occupant comfort without success. The second involved conditioning the outdoor air delivered to each room of a wing of the Mountain Creek Inn at the Callaway Gardens resort. This hotel, designed in the ''motor lodge'' format with each room opening to the outdoors, is located in southwest Georgia. Controlling the space humidity always presented a serious challenge. Uncomfortable conditions and musty odors had caused many guests to request to move to other areas within the resort. This is the first field demonstration performed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory where significant energy savings, operating cost savings, and dramatically improved indoor environmental conditions can all be claimed as the results of a retrofit desiccant equipment field installation. The ADM/rooftop combination installed at the restaurant resulted in a reduction of about 34% in the electricity used by the building's air-conditioning system. This represents a reduction of

  2. Field Test and Performance Verification: Integrated Active Desiccant Rooftop Hybrid System Installed in a School - Final Report: Phase 4A

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fischer, J

    2005-12-21

    This report summarizes the results of a field verification pilot site investigation that involved the installation of a hybrid integrated active desiccant/vapor-compression rooftop heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) unit at an elementary school in the Atlanta Georgia area. For years, the school had experienced serious humidity and indoor air quality (IAQ) problems that had resulted in occupant complaints and microbial (mold) remediation. The outdoor air louvers of the original HVAC units had been closed in an attempt to improve humidity control within the space. The existing vapor compression variable air volume system was replaced by the integrated active desiccant rooftop (IADR) system that was described in detail in an Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) report published in 2004 (Fischer and Sand 2004). The IADR system and all space conditions have been monitored remotely for more than a year. The hybrid system was able to maintain both the space temperature and humidity as desired while delivering the outdoor air ventilation rate required by American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers Standard 62. The performance level of the IADR unit and the overall system energy efficiency was measured and found to be very high. A comprehensive IAQ investigation was completed by the Georgia Tech Research Institute before and after the system retrofit. Before-and-after data resulting from this investigation confirmed a significant improvement in IAQ, humidity control, and occupant comfort. These observations were reported by building occupants and are echoed in a letter to ORNL from the school district energy manager. The IADR system was easily retrofitted in place of the original rooftop system using a custom curb adapter. All work was completed in-house by the school's maintenance staff over one weekend. A subsequent cost analysis completed for the school district by the design engineer of record concluded that the IADR

  3. Active Desiccant-Based Preconditioning Market Analysis and Product Development

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fischer, J.

    2001-01-11

    The Phase 1 report (ORNL/Sub/94-SVO44/1), completed earlier in this program, involved a comprehensive field survey and market analysis comparing various specialized outdoor air handling units. This initial investigation included conventional cooling and reheat, conventional cooling with sensible recovery, total energy recovery systems (passive desiccant technology) and various active desiccant systems. The report concluded that several markets do promise a significant sales opportunity for a Climate Changer-based active desiccant system offering. (Climate Changer is a registered trademark of Trane Company.) This initial market analysis defined the wants and needs of the end customers (design engineers and building owners), which, along with subsequent information included in this report, have been used to guide the determination of the most promising active desiccant system configurations. This Phase 2 report begins with a summary of a more thorough investigation of those specific markets identified as most promising for active desiccant systems. Table 1 estimates the annual sales potential for a cost-effective product line of active desiccant systems, such as that built from Climate Changer modules. The Product Development Strategy section describes the active desiccant system configurations chosen to best fit the needs of the marketplace while minimizing system options. Key design objectives based on market research are listed in this report for these active desiccant systems. Corresponding performance goals for the dehumidification wheel required to meet the overall system design objectives are also defined. The Performance Modeling section describes the strategy used by SEMCO to design the dehumidification wheels integrated into the prototype systems currently being tested as part of the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Desiccant Technology Program. Actual performance data from wheel testing was used to revise the system performance and energy analysis

  4. Criteria of choosing building structures for rooftop boiler rooms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Plotnikov Artyom

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper investigates parameters of noise and vibration distribution in the territory of residential area depending on the structural materials and power of independent heat supply systems. Rooftop boiler rooms are decentralized heat supply systems in buildings. Today, residential areas are strongly affected by noise and vibrations. Adverse effects are isolated by buildings materials, protective shields and floating floors. Rooftop boiler rooms located in Tyumen city were investigated within this research. Structures of rooftop boiler rooms were analyzed. Acoustic analysis results and the parameters of equivalent continuous sound level are presented. An option for improvement of rooftop boiler rooms structures is suggested. Comparison of capital investments in construction and installation activities is carried out. Conclusion on capital investments required for noise protection is made.

  5. Rooftop Garden Design Challenge

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roman, Harry T.

    2010-01-01

    A small commercial building in a nearby industrial park has decided to install a rooftop garden for its employees to enjoy. The garden will be about 100 feet long and 75 feet wide. This article presents a design challenge for technology and engineering students wherein they will assist in the initial conceptual design of the rooftop garden. The…

  6. Solar rooftop in India: Policies, challenges and outlook

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Malti Goel

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Solar photovoltaic rooftop has emerged as a potential green technology to address climate change issues by reducing reliance on conventional fossil fuel based energy. With a strong commitment to increase the renewable sources based energy capacity to 175 GW by 2022, India has a target to install 100 GW of solar energy capacity. Of this 40 GW would be the share of grid connected solar PV rooftop. This paper examines global growth in solar energy, world's major rooftop installed capacity countries' policies and solar rooftop policy instruments in India. The current Indian goals, issues & challenges in achieving them and trends in further development are discussed. Keywords: Solar energy, India, Rooftop PV, Policies, Outlook

  7. Dark-Black Stains on Rooftops: Implications on the Quality of Water Harvested from Rooftops in Uyo Metropolis-Nigeria

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ihom A.P.

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available The study Dark-Black Stains on Rooftops: Implications on the Quality of Water Harvested from Rooftops in Uyo Metropolis-Nigeria has been undertaken. The study took samples of harvested rainwater from the rooftops of buildings in four different locations in Uyo Metropolis. The samples were taken for analysis at the Ministry of Science and Technology Laboratory-Uyo. The parameters of the harvested rainwater investigated covered physical and chemical properties, heavy metals, total organic carbon (TOC and total coliform count (TCC. Gravimetric, titrimetric and instrumental methods of analysis were used in determining the various parameters investigated. The result was analysed by comparing it with WHO and Ministry of Environment standard specifications for drinking water. The result was equally compared with the composition of the dark-black stains on the rooftops to establish whether the stains on the rooftops were from the rainwater. Findings were astounding; the rainwater was acidic in all the four stations and could not meet up with WHO standard for drinking water. Lead values of 0.75 mg/l and 0.22 mg/l in stations 2 and 3 respectively exceeded WHO standard specification of 0.01mg/l for drinking water. The iron content in the water from stations 2, 3, and 4 all exceeded WHO standard specification for drinking water of 0.30mg/l. All the four stations had cadmium content in the rainwater, which was more than WHO specification for drinking water of 0.003mg/l. The water showed bacteria contamination with total coliform count of 118MPN/100ml in station 4. Some of the parameters in the rainwater also reported in the composition of the dark-black stains on the rooftops an indication that the rain contributed to the dark-black stains on the rooftops in Uyo metropolis. The study concluded that harvested rainwater from the rooftops of buildings in Uyo metropolis is polluted and is not suitable for drinking, bathing and even for use in fish farming. The

  8. Integrating rooftop solar into a multi-source energy planning optimization model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Arnette, Andrew N.

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • There is significant technical capacity for rooftop solar installations. • Rooftop solar generation is heavily dependent on key parameters. • Rooftop solar should be one of several options for increasing renewable energy. • Renewable energy planning should consider both cost and benefits. - Abstract: This research uses an optimization model to compare the role of rooftop solar generation versus large-scale solar and wind farm installations in renewable energy planning. The model consists of competing objectives, minimizing annual generation costs and minimizing annual greenhouse gas emissions. Rather than focus on the individual consumer’s investment decision, over 20 scenarios were developed which explored key input parameters such as the maximum penetration level of rooftop solar installations, pricing of equipment, tax credits, and net-metering policy to determine what role rooftop solar plays in renewable energy investment at an aggregate level. The research finds that at lower levels of penetration, such as those currently found in the United States, other renewable energy sources remain viable options, thus rooftop solar should be just one option considered when increasing development of renewable energy sources. The research also shows that a balanced approach taking into account both of the opposing objectives will lead to greater levels of rooftop solar generation than focusing solely on cost or emissions. Therefore, rooftop solar should be considered as part of an overall balanced approach to increasing renewable energy generation

  9. Calculating solar photovoltaic potential on residential rooftops in Kailua Kona, Hawaii

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carl, Caroline

    As carbon based fossil fuels become increasingly scarce, renewable energy sources are coming to the forefront of policy discussions around the globe. As a result, the State of Hawaii has implemented aggressive goals to achieve energy independence by 2030. Renewable electricity generation using solar photovoltaic technologies plays an important role in these efforts. This study utilizes geographic information systems (GIS) and Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data with statistical analysis to identify how much solar photovoltaic potential exists for residential rooftops in the town of Kailua Kona on Hawaii Island. This study helps to quantify the magnitude of possible solar photovoltaic (PV) potential for Solar World SW260 monocrystalline panels on residential rooftops within the study area. Three main areas were addressed in the execution of this research: (1) modeling solar radiation, (2) estimating available rooftop area, and (3) calculating PV potential from incoming solar radiation. High resolution LiDAR data and Esri's solar modeling tools and were utilized to calculate incoming solar radiation on a sample set of digitized rooftops. Photovoltaic potential for the sample set was then calculated with the equations developed by Suri et al. (2005). Sample set rooftops were analyzed using a statistical model to identify the correlation between rooftop area and lot size. Least squares multiple linear regression analysis was performed to identify the influence of slope, elevation, rooftop area, and lot size on the modeled PV potential values. The equations built from these statistical analyses of the sample set were applied to the entire study region to calculate total rooftop area and PV potential. The total study area statistical analysis findings estimate photovoltaic electric energy generation potential for rooftops is approximately 190,000,000 kWh annually. This is approximately 17 percent of the total electricity the utility provided to the entire island in

  10. Impact of Rooftop Solar PV on Residential Distribution Network

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bhattarai, Bishnu Prasad; Bak-Jensen, Birgitte; Pillai, Jayakrishnan Radhakrishna

    Increased environmental awareness in recent years has encouraged rapid growth of renewable energy sources especially solar PV and wind. Among them, small scale solar PV has been gaining more momentum especially at residential level. Even today moderate penetration of grid tied rooftop solar PV has...... become reality in many countries. In spite of various benefits, higher penetration of rooftop PVs might come up with number of detrimental effects, with power quality and overcurrent protection being the major ones. Therefore, it is reasonable to quantify both drawback and benefits of rooftop PV...

  11. Photovoltaic array with minimally penetrating rooftop support system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lenox, Carl J.S.

    2012-10-23

    A photovoltaic array including a plurality of photovoltaic assemblies and a plurality of mounting units. The mounting units each include an elongate rail and a plurality of leg assemblies. The rail is sized and configured to maintain a portion of at least two of the photovoltaic assemblies, with the leg assemblies extending from the rail in a spaced-apart fashion and terminating in a foot for placement against a rooftop structure for minimally penetration installation. Further, at least one of the leg assemblies can include a retractable leg. When the photovoltaic array is installed to a rooftop structure including a membrane intermittently secured to a rooftop deck, the retractable leg accommodates upward billowing of the membrane under windy conditions.

  12. 77 FR 58114 - SunShot Prize: Race to the Rooftop

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-09-19

    ...This notice announces the release of the SunShot Prize: Race to the Rooftop competition. This competition offers $10 million in prizes to those who can lower the non-hardware installation cost of rooftop solar energy systems.

  13. THERMAL PERFORMANCE OF ROOFTOP GREENERY SYSTEM AT THE TROPICAL CLIMATE OF MALAYSIA A case study of a 10 storied building R.C.C flat rooftop at UTM, Johor Bahru, Malaysia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rumana Rashid

    2009-07-01

    Full Text Available In tropical countries rooftop greenery is more sympathetic to the prevailing climate and provides comfortable indoor environment. This paper analyses the above hypothesis on a 10 storied residential apartments in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM. The analysis of actual performance of the rooftop greenery can provide the information on effectiveness of its application on contemporary houses for tropical climate in Malaysia. Empirical studies have been performed an internal and external roof surface, where temperature and air temperature were measured for a period of three days in two phases. The first phase of measurement was carried out when the rooftop was empty. After the rooftop greenery was built then the second phase of measurement was conducted. Expected findings of the research are that the green rooftop will tend to experience lower surface temperature than the original exposed roof surface. So this research work will provide an introduction or preliminary guide line for thermally responsive architecture on the basis of thermal performance of the rooftop greenery system. Temperature is the main criteria of human comfort. To provide an indoor comfortable environment through the greening of the rooftop of the building is more appropriate in the tropical climate of Malaysia.

  14. Better Buildings Alliance, Advanced Rooftop Unit Campaign: Rooftop Unit Measurement and Verification (Fact Sheet)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2014-09-01

    This document provides facility managers and building owners an introduction to measurement and verification (M&V) methods to estimate energy and cost savings of rooftop units replacement or retrofit projects to estimate paybacks or to justify future projects.

  15. Field Demonstration of Active Desiccant-Based Outdoor Air Preconditioning Systems, Final Report: Phase 3; FINAL

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fischer, J.

    2001-01-01

    This report summarizes an investigation of the performance of two active desiccant cooling systems that were installed as pilot systems in two locations-a college dormitory and a research laboratory-during the fall of 1999. The laboratory system was assembled in the field from commercially available Trane air-handling modules combined with a standard total energy recovery module and a customized active desiccant wheel, both produced by SEMCO. The dormitory system was a factory-built, integrated system produced by SEMCO that included both active desiccant and sensible-only recovery wheels, a direct-fired gas regeneration section, and a pre-piped Trane heat pump condensing section. Both systems were equipped with direct digital control systems, complete with full instrumentation and remote monitoring capabilities. This report includes detailed descriptions of these two systems, installation details, samples of actual performance, and estimations of the energy savings realized. These pi lot sites represent a continuation of previous active desiccant product development research (Fischer, Hallstrom, and Sand 2000; Fischer 2000). Both systems performed as anticipated, were reliable, and required minimal maintenance. The dehumidification/total-energy-recovery hybrid approach was particularly effective in all respects. System performance showed remarkable improvement in latent load handling capability and operating efficiency compared with the original conventional cooling system and with the conventional system that remained in another, identical wing of the facility. The dehumidification capacity of the pilot systems was very high, the cost of operation was very low, and the system was cost-effective, offering a simple payback for these retrofit installations of approximately 5 to 6 years. Most important, the dormitory system resolved numerous indoor air quality problems in the dormitory by providing effective humidity control and increased, continuous ventilation air

  16. 77 FR 36272 - SunShot Prize: America's Most Affordable Rooftop

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-06-18

    ...The Department of Energy (DOE) announces in this notice the release of the SunShot Prize: America's Most Affordable Rooftop Solar for public comment. Interested persons are encouraged to learn about the SunShot Prize: America's Most Affordable Rooftop rules at eere.energy.gov/solar/sunshot/prize.html.

  17. Rooftop Solar Photovoltaic Technical Potential in the United States

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gagnon, Pieter; Margolis, Robert; Melius, Jennifer; Phillips, Caleb; Elmore, Ryan

    2016-01-01

    How much energy could we generate if PV modules were installed on all of the suitable roof area in the nation? To answer this question, we first use GIS methods to process a lidar dataset and determine the amount of roof area that is suitable for PV deployment in 128 cities nationwide, containing 23% of U.S. buildings, and provide PV-generation results for a subset of those cities. We then extend the insights from that analysis to the entire continental United States. We develop two statistical models -- one for small buildings and one for medium and large buildings -- and populate them with geographic variables that correlate with rooftop's suitability for PV. We simulate the productivity of PV installed on the suitable roof area, and present the technical potential of PV on both small buildings and medium/large buildings for every state in the continental US. Within the 128 cities covered by lidar data, 83% of small buildings have a location suitable for a PV installation, but only 26% of the total rooftop area of small buildings is suitable for development. The sheer number of buildings in this class, however, gives small buildings the greatest technical potential. Small building rooftops could accommodate 731 GW of PV capacity and generate 926 TWh/year of PV energy, approximately 65% of rooftop PV's total technical potential. We conclude by summing the PV-generation results for all building sizes and therefore answering our original question, estimating that the total national technical potential of rooftop PV is 1,118 GW of installed capacity and 1,432 TWh of annual energy generation. This equates to 39% of total national electric-sector sales.

  18. Adaptive Harmonic Compensation in Residential Distribution Grid by Roof-Top PV Systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zangeneh Bighash, Esmaeil; Sadeghzadeh, Seyed Mohammad; Ebrahimzadeh, Esmaeil

    2018-01-01

    grid- connected roof-top PV inverters in residential distribution grid can be an opportunity to engage these systems in the power quality issues as custom power devices. By implementing a proper control for roof-top PV inverters, these systems may in addition to inject the fundamental current......, additionally act like a virtual harmonic resistance and dedicate their additional current capacity to compensate the harmonics of residential distribution grid. In this paper, each roof-top PV system is a grid harmonic supervisor, where it continually measures the PCC voltage harmonics by Sliding Discrete...

  19. Cover Your Cough! A Short and Simple Activity to Demonstrate the Antimicrobial Effect of Desiccation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jennifer Cook Easterwood

    2013-08-01

    Full Text Available Many undergraduate microbiology laboratory manuals include exercises demonstrating the antimicrobial effects of physical agents, such as UV light and heat, and chemical agents, such as disinfectants and antibiotics (3, 4. There is, however, a lack of exercises examining the effects of desiccation on bacterial growth and survival. This particular form of antimicrobial control is especially relevant today with an increased emphasis on coughing and sneezing into one’s sleeve or a tissue, where microbes will not contaminate hands and will eventually desiccate and die (2. Desiccation can have bacteriostatic or bactericidal effects depending on the species, the material on which the organism has desiccated, and the length of time. The absence of water can damage many cellular components, including enzymes, nucleic acids, and cell membranes (1. However, many prokaryotes have some degree of resistance to desiccation, with Escherichia coli surviving around 24 hours and Bacillus species surviving upwards of 300 years, though these numbers can vary due to a number of confounding factors (5. Some of these factors include the method by which desiccation occurred, whether desiccation occurred in a natural or laboratory situation, and the species itself (5. To address the effects of desiccation on bacterial growth and survival, a short, simple exercise was developed. By inoculating various materials with bacterial cultures and allowing them to air-dry for 24 hours, students can visualize the effects of desiccation by analyzing the growth, or lack thereof, when organisms are transferred to nutrient agar plates. This exercise has been used in a health professions microbiology course as well as a microbiology course for biology and biochemistry majors. It is short enough to be conducted during a standard lecture period or during a longer laboratory period in conjunction with other experiments demonstrating the effectiveness of physical agents on microbial

  20. Desiccant cooling: State-of-the-art assessment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pesaran, A.A.; Penney, T.R.; Czanderna, A.W.

    1992-10-01

    The objectives of this document are to present an overview of the work accomplished to date on desiccant cooling to provide assessment of the state of the art of desiccant cooling technology in the field of desiccant material dehumidifier components, desiccant systems, and models. The report also discusses the factors that affect the widespread acceptance of desiccant cooling technology. This report is organized as follows. First, a basic description and historical overview of desiccant cooling technology is provided. Then, the recent research and development (R D) program history (focusing on DOE's funded efforts) is discussed. The status of the technology elements (materials, components, systems) is discussed in detail and a preliminary study on the energy impact of desiccant technology is presented. R D needs for advancing the technology in the market are identified. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory's unique desiccant test facilities and their typical outputs are described briefly. Finally, the results of a comprehensive literature search on desiccant cooling are presented in a bibliography. The bibliography contains approximately 900 citations on desiccant cooling.

  1. Desiccant cooling: State-of-the-art assessment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pesaran, A.A.; Penney, T.R.; Czanderna, A.W.

    1992-10-01

    The objectives of this document are to present an overview of the work accomplished to date on desiccant cooling to provide assessment of the state of the art of desiccant cooling technology in the field of desiccant material dehumidifier components, desiccant systems, and models. The report also discusses the factors that affect the widespread acceptance of desiccant cooling technology. This report is organized as follows. First, a basic description and historical overview of desiccant cooling technology is provided. Then, the recent research and development (R&D) program history (focusing on DOE`s funded efforts) is discussed. The status of the technology elements (materials, components, systems) is discussed in detail and a preliminary study on the energy impact of desiccant technology is presented. R&D needs for advancing the technology in the market are identified. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory`s unique desiccant test facilities and their typical outputs are described briefly. Finally, the results of a comprehensive literature search on desiccant cooling are presented in a bibliography. The bibliography contains approximately 900 citations on desiccant cooling.

  2. Rooftop photovoltaic (PV) systems : a cost–benefit analysis study of industrial halls

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lee, B.; Trcka, M.; Hensen, J.L.M.

    2013-01-01

    Rooftop photovoltaic (PV) systems can be readily deployed on industrial halls with relatively large rooftop area. Feed-in tariff above the base price of electricity is offered in many countries to subsidize the high initial investment of PV systems. In order to fully capitalize the benefit of the

  3. Robust rooftop extraction from visible band images using higher order CRF

    KAUST Repository

    Li, Er

    2015-08-01

    In this paper, we propose a robust framework for building extraction in visible band images. We first get an initial classification of the pixels based on an unsupervised presegmentation. Then, we develop a novel conditional random field (CRF) formulation to achieve accurate rooftops extraction, which incorporates pixel-level information and segment-level information for the identification of rooftops. Comparing with the commonly used CRF model, a higher order potential defined on segment is added in our model, by exploiting region consistency and shape feature at segment level. Our experiments show that the proposed higher order CRF model outperforms the state-of-the-art methods both at pixel and object levels on rooftops with complex structures and sizes in challenging environments. © 1980-2012 IEEE.

  4. Rooftop runoff as a source of contamination: a review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lye, Dennis J

    2009-10-15

    Scientific reports concerning chemical and microbiological contaminant levels of rainwater runoff from rooftop collection in both urban and rural areas are reviewed. This alternative source of water has been documented to often contain substantial amounts of contaminants. Studies describing levels of heavy metal contamination specific to runoff from rooftop catchment areas containing exposed metal surfaces are discussed. Depending upon the intended use, scientific evidence is also accumulating that various treatments and disinfections will be required prior to release of roof-runoff water either into surface waters or for more direct consumer usage. For microbial contamination, current proposed standards and guidelines regarding this type of water source are shown to vary widely worldwide. Scientific literature reveals a lack of clarity regarding water quality guidelines and health related standards for certain types of rooftop runoff. Studies suggests that rainwater collection systems which are properly designed, maintained, and treated may provide a valuable supplement to existing water supplies by reducing demand on community water supplies/infrastructure costs, enhancing effective management of storm water runoff, and increasing restoration of underground reservoirs through controlled infiltration.

  5. Is rooftop solar PV at socket parity without subsidies?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hagerman, Shelly; Jaramillo, Paulina; Morgan, M. Granger

    2016-01-01

    Installations of rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) technology in the United States have increased dramatically in recent years, in large part because of state and federal subsidies. In the future, such subsidies may be reduced or eliminated. From the homeowner's perspective, solar PV is competitive when it can produce electricity at a cost equivalent to the retail electricity rate, a condition sometimes referred to as “socket parity”. In assessing the economic viability of residential solar PV, most existing literature considers only a few locations and fails to consider the differences in PV system cost and electricity prices that exist across the U.S. We combined insolation data from more than 1000 locations, installation costs by region, and county-level utility rates to provide a more complete economic assessment of rooftop solar PV across the U.S. We calculated the break-even electricity prices and evaluated the reductions in installed costs needed to reach socket parity. Among the scenarios considered, we estimate that only Hawaii has achieved socket parity without the use of subsidies. With subsidies, six states reach socket parity, yet widespread parity is still not achieved. We find that high installation costs and financing rates are two of the largest barriers to socket parity. - Highlights: • We evaluate the economic viability of residential rooftop solar PV across the U.S. • Widespread socket parity has not been achieved in the U.S. without subsidies. • Net metering may be critical for the economic viability of rooftop solar PV.

  6. Deep Vadose Zone Treatability Test for the Hanford Central Plateau: Interim Post-Desiccation Monitoring Results

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Truex, Michael J. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Oostrom, Martinus [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Strickland, Christopher E. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Johnson, Timothy C. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Johnson, Christian D. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Clayton, Ray E. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Chronister, Glen B. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2013-09-01

    A field test of desiccation is being conducted as an element of the deep vadose zone treatability test program. Desiccation technology relies on removal of water from a portion of the subsurface such that the resultant low moisture conditions inhibit downward movement of water and dissolved contaminants. Previously, a field test report (Truex et al. 2012a) was prepared describing the active desiccation portion of the test and initial post-desiccation monitoring data. Additional monitoring data have been collected at the field test site during the post-desiccation period and is reported herein along with interpretation with respect to desiccation performance. This is an interim report including about 2 years of post-desiccation monitoring data.

  7. Flânerie and Acrophilia in the Postmetropolis: Rooftops in Hong Kong Cinema

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Chow, Y.F.; de Kloet, J.

    2014-01-01

    Living in the spectacle of Hong Kong's skyscape, how often do its dwellers actually see, not to mention reach, its rooftops? Intriguingly, despite their apparent ephemerality and inaccessibility, the vertical fringes of the city feature frequently in Hong Kong cinema: the rooftop. In this article,

  8. Study of an aqueous lithium chloride desiccant system Part II: Desiccant regeneration

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fumo, Nelson [Universidad Nacional Experimental del Tachira, San Cristobal (Venezuela); Goswami, Yogi [University of Florida, Gainesville (United States)

    2000-07-01

    Desiccant systems have been proposed as alternative to handle the latent load in vapor compression air conditioning for energy saving. The air dehumidification occurs because of the difference in vapor pressure which let the moisture diffuse from the air to the liquid desiccant. The diffused moisture cause a dilution of the desiccant which must be regenerated to return it to the original conditions. This paper presents the results from a study of the performance of a packed tower regenerator for an aqueous lithium chloride desiccant dehumidification system. The rate of water evaporation, as well as the effectiveness of the regeneration process were assessed under the effects of variables such as air and desiccant flow rates, air temperature and humidity, and desiccant temperature and concentration. A variation of the oeberg and Goswami mathematical model was used to predict the experimental findings given satisfactory results. [Spanish] Se han propuesto sistemas desecantes para hacerse cargo de la carga latente en acondicionamiento de aire por compresion de vapor para el ahorro de energia. La deshumidificacion del aire ocurre en razon de la diferencia de presion de vapor que deja la humedad difusa del aire en el desecante liquido. La humedad difusa del aire origina una dilucion del desecante el cual debe de ser regenerado para regresarlo a sus condiciones originales. Este documento presenta los resultados de un estudio sobre el comportamiento de un regenerador de torre empacada para un sistema de deshumidificacion de solucion desecante de cloruro de litio. El regimen de evaporacion de agua, asi como tambien la efectividad del proceso de regeneracion que se evaluo bajo los efectos de variables tales como los regimenes de flujo de aire y de desecante, temperatura del aire y humedad, y temperatura y concentracion del desecante. Una variacion del modelo matematico de Oberg y Goswami se uso para predecir los resultados experimentales que dieron resultados satisfactorios.

  9. Molecular strategies of the Caenorhabditis elegans dauer larva to survive extreme desiccation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cihan Erkut

    Full Text Available Massive water loss is a serious challenge for terrestrial animals, which usually has fatal consequences. However, some organisms have developed means to survive this stress by entering an ametabolic state called anhydrobiosis. The molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying this phenomenon are poorly understood. We recently showed that Caenorhabditis elegans dauer larva, an arrested stage specialized for survival in adverse conditions, is resistant to severe desiccation. However, this requires a preconditioning step at a mild desiccative environment to prepare the organism for harsher desiccation conditions. A systems approach was used to identify factors that are activated during this preconditioning. Using microarray analysis, proteomics, and bioinformatics, genes, proteins, and biochemical pathways that are upregulated during this process were identified. These pathways were validated via reverse genetics by testing the desiccation tolerances of mutants. These data show that the desiccation response is activated by hygrosensation (sensing the desiccative environment via head neurons. This leads to elimination of reactive oxygen species and xenobiotics, expression of heat shock and intrinsically disordered proteins, polyamine utilization, and induction of fatty acid desaturation pathway. Remarkably, this response is specific and involves a small number of functional pathways, which represent the generic toolkit for anhydrobiosis in plants and animals.

  10. Present practice and future prospect of rooftop farming in Dhaka city: A step towards urban sustainability

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mastura Safayet

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh is one of the most populated megacity in the world and the population growth in this city is extremely high. To support growing food demand of increasing population, food supply should be secure and sustainable. On the other hand, with the pace of urbanization built-up areas are increasing; hence supply of roof space is also increasing. Rooftop farming can provide solution to increased food demand and also can promote a sustainable and livable city. Local fresh and safe food can be ensured through roof gardens in Dhaka city. The aim of the study is to explore the present practice and challenges of rooftop farming that was encountered by practitioners. Mirpur and Mohammadpur areas have been selected as study areas. Two practitioners are interviewed and 60 non-practitioners are surveyed. Results show that rooftop farming can support environment by improving air quality, reducing carbon in the atmosphere and can benefit society by reducing storm water management cost. One of the significant findings from the non-practitioner survey is that maximum people are willing to practice rooftop farming and want to provide at least 50% of roof space for rooftop farming. Finally some recommendations have been suggested to improve rooftop farming practice and encourage more people to practice rooftop farming in future.

  11. Assessing the Potential for Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting from Large Public Institutions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Adugna, Dagnachew; Jensen, Marina Bergen; Lemma, Brook; Gebrie, Geremew Sahilu

    2018-02-14

    As in many other cities, urbanization coupled with population growth worsens the water supply problem of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with a water supply deficit of 41% in 2016. To investigate the potential contribution of rooftop rainwater harvesting (RWH) from large public institutions, 320 such institutions were selected and grouped into 11 categories, from which 25-30% representative 588 rooftops were digitalized and the potential RWH volume computed based on a ten-year rainfall dataset. When comparing the resulting RWH potential with the water consumption, up to 2.3% of the annual, potable water supply can be provided. If reused only within one's own institution, the self-sufficiency varies from 0.9 to 649%. Non-uniform rainfall patterns add uncertainty to these numbers, since the size of the storage tank becomes critical for coverage in the dry season from October to May. Despite the low replacement potential at the city level, RWH from large institutions will enable a significant volume of potable water to be transferred to localities critically suffering from water shortage. Further, large institutions may demonstrate how RWH can be practiced, thus acting as a frontrunner for the dissemination of RWH to other types of rooftops. To narrow the water supply gap, considering rooftop RWH as an alternative water supply source is recommended. However, the present study assumed that financial constraints to install large sized storage tanks are considered as a possible challenge. Thus, future research is needed to investigate the cost-benefit balance along with the invention of a cheap storage tank as they may affect the potential contribution of RWH from rooftops.

  12. Assessing the Potential for Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting from Large Public Institutions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dagnachew Adugna

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available As in many other cities, urbanization coupled with population growth worsens the water supply problem of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with a water supply deficit of 41% in 2016. To investigate the potential contribution of rooftop rainwater harvesting (RWH from large public institutions, 320 such institutions were selected and grouped into 11 categories, from which 25–30% representative 588 rooftops were digitalized and the potential RWH volume computed based on a ten-year rainfall dataset. When comparing the resulting RWH potential with the water consumption, up to 2.3% of the annual, potable water supply can be provided. If reused only within one’s own institution, the self-sufficiency varies from 0.9 to 649%. Non-uniform rainfall patterns add uncertainty to these numbers, since the size of the storage tank becomes critical for coverage in the dry season from October to May. Despite the low replacement potential at the city level, RWH from large institutions will enable a significant volume of potable water to be transferred to localities critically suffering from water shortage. Further, large institutions may demonstrate how RWH can be practiced, thus acting as a frontrunner for the dissemination of RWH to other types of rooftops. To narrow the water supply gap, considering rooftop RWH as an alternative water supply source is recommended. However, the present study assumed that financial constraints to install large sized storage tanks are considered as a possible challenge. Thus, future research is needed to investigate the cost-benefit balance along with the invention of a cheap storage tank as they may affect the potential contribution of RWH from rooftops.

  13. Relationship between rooftop and on-road concentrations of traffic-related pollutants in a busy street canyon: Ambient wind effects

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kwak, Kyung-Hwan; Lee, Sang-Hyun; Seo, Jaemyeong Mango; Park, Seung-Bu; Baik, Jong-Jin

    2016-01-01

    Rooftop and on-road measurements of O_3, NO_2, NO_x, and CO concentrations were conducted to investigate the relationship between rooftop and on-road concentrations in a busy and shallow street canyon with an aspect ratio of ∼0.3 in Seoul, Republic of Korea, from 15 April to 1 May 2014. The median road-to-roof concentration ratios, correlation coefficients between rooftop and on-road concentrations, and temporal variations of rooftop and on-road concentrations are analyzed according to the rooftop wind directions which are two cross-canyon and two along-canyon directions. The analysis results indicate that the relationship is strong when the rooftop is situated on the downwind side rather than on the upwind side. Relative to the cross-canyon wind directions, one of the along-canyon wind directions can more enhance the relationship. A conceptual framework is proposed to explain the effect of ambient wind direction on the relationship between rooftop and on-road concentrations in a street canyon. - One of the along-canyon wind directions can enhance the relationship between rooftop and on-road concentrations of traffic-related pollutants in a busy and shallow street canyon.

  14. Rooftop wind resource assessment using a three-dimensional ultrasonic anemometer

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Anderson, D.C.; Whale, J.; Livingston, P.O.; Chan, D. [Murdoch Univ., Murdoch, WA (Australia)

    2008-07-01

    Building integrated wind turbines (BUWTs) are designed for the built environment and can be located on or next to buildings. In general, these types of urban wind turbines are less than 20 kW in rated capacity, and have the potential to contribute to the energy needs of the building and reduce overall emissions. There are currently over 32 manufacturers and 57 different urban wind turbine products available in Europe alone. The first rooftop wind system in Australia was installed in 2006. To data, 5 systems have been installed and there are plans for up to 20 more. The main problems associated with these types of systems are due to poor wind resources at the location or improper site selection for the turbine. This paper reported on a research study into initiating best practice guidelines for rooftop wind systems. There is a concern that environmentally conscious homeowners or businesses will install rooftop wind systems in support of sustainability, but without adequate consideration of safety, structural building integrity or turbine performance. The potential consequence of such projects could be the failure of the project due to underperforming turbines, noise, and vibration; or the development of a negative reputation for wind energy and the renewable energy industry. This study included 2 primary initiatives, notably a computer simulated modeling exercise and an onsite rooftop wind monitoring station. This paper focused on the methodology and justification for developing the monitoring station. An ultrasonic 3D anemometer was used to collect data and to develop a 3D wind profile. The wind regime on the rooftop in the complex terrain of the built environment was highly dynamic, turbulent, and included a strong vertical component. It was concluded that site selection for turbines must be determined by a proper feasibility study involving accurate data. Although the initial phase of the project to predict the resource and deploy the monitoring station has been

  15. Rooftop solar photovoltaic potential in cities: how scalable are assessment approaches?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castellanos, Sergio; Sunter, Deborah A.; Kammen, Daniel M.

    2017-12-01

    Distributed photovoltaics (PV) have played a critical role in the deployment of solar energy, currently making up roughly half of the global PV installed capacity. However, there remains significant unused economically beneficial potential. Estimates of the total technical potential for rooftop PV systems in the United States calculate a generation comparable to approximately 40% of the 2016 total national electric-sector sales. To best take advantage of the rooftop PV potential, effective analytic tools that support deployment strategies and aggressive local, state, and national policies to reduce the soft cost of solar energy are vital. A key step is the low-cost automation of data analysis and business case presentation for structure-integrated solar energy. In this paper, the scalability and resolution of various methods to assess the urban rooftop PV potential are compared, concluding with suggestions for future work in bridging methodologies to better assist policy makers.

  16. Sugars and Desiccation Tolerance in Seeds 1

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koster, Karen L.; Leopold, A. Carl

    1988-01-01

    Soluble sugars have been shown to protect liposomes and lobster microsomes from desiccation damage, and a protective role has been proposed for them in several anhydrous systems. We have studied the relationship between soluble sugar content and the loss of desiccation tolerance in the axes of germinating soybean (Glycine max L. Merr. cv Williams), pea (Pisum sativum L. cv Alaska), and corn (Zea mays L. cv Merit) axes. The loss of desiccation tolerance during imbibition was monitored by following the ability of seeds to germinate after desiccation following various periods of preimbibition and by following the rates of electrolyte leakage from dried, then rehydrated axes. Finally, we analyzed the soluble sugar contents of the axes throughout the transition from desiccation tolerance to intolerance. These analyses show that sucrose and larger oligosaccharides were consistently present during the tolerant stage, and that desiccation tolerance disappeared as the oligosaccharides were lost. The results support the idea that sucrose may serve as the principal agent of desiccation tolerance in these seeds, with the larger oligosaccharides serving to keep the sucrose from crystallizing. PMID:16666392

  17. Estimating Rooftop Suitability for PV: A Review of Methods, Patents, and Validation Techniques

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Melius, J. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Margolis, R. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Ong, S. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2013-12-01

    A number of methods have been developed using remote sensing data to estimate rooftop area suitable for the installation of photovoltaics (PV) at various geospatial resolutions. This report reviews the literature and patents on methods for estimating rooftop-area appropriate for PV, including constant-value methods, manual selection methods, and GIS-based methods. This report also presents NREL's proposed method for estimating suitable rooftop area for PV using Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data in conjunction with a GIS model to predict areas with appropriate slope, orientation, and sunlight. NREL's method is validated against solar installation data from New Jersey, Colorado, and California to compare modeled results to actual on-the-ground measurements.

  18. Influence of Martian regolith analogs on the activity and growth of methanogenic archaea, with special regard to long-term desiccation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Janosch eSchirmack

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available Methanogenic archaea have been studied as model organisms for possible life on Mars for several reasons: they can grow lithoautotrophically by using hydrogen and carbon dioxide as energy and carbon sources, respectively; they are anaerobes; and they evolved at a time when conditions on early Earth are believed to have looked similar to those of early Mars. As Mars is currently dry and cold and as water might be available only at certain time intervals, any organism living on this planet would need to cope with desiccation. On Earth there are several regions with low water availability as well, e.g. permafrost environments, desert soils and salt pans. Here, we present the results of a set of experiments investigating the influence of different Martian regolith analogs on the metabolic activity and growth of three methanogenic strains exposed to culture conditions as well as long-term desiccation. In most cases, concentrations below 1 %wt of regolith in the media resulted in an increase of methane production rates, whereas higher concentrations decreased the rates, thus prolonging the lag phase. Further experiments showed that methanogenic archaea are capable of producing methane when incubated on a water-saturated sedimentary matrix of regolith lacking nutrients. Survival of methanogens under these conditions was analyzed with a 400 day desiccation experiment in the presence of regolith analogs. All tested strains of methanogens survived the desiccation period as it was determined through reincubation on fresh medium and via qPCR following propidium monoazide treatment to identify viable cells. The survival of long-term desiccation and the ability of active metabolism on water-saturated MRAs strengthens the possibility of methanogenic archaea or physiologically similar organisms to exist in environmental niches on Mars. The best results were achieved in presence of a phyllosilicate, which provides insights of possible positive effects in habitats

  19. Solar to hydrogen: Compact and cost effective CPV field for rooftop operation and hydrogen production

    KAUST Repository

    Burhan, Muhammad; Oh, Seung Jin; Chua, Kian Jon Ernest; Ng, Kim Choon

    2016-01-01

    installations at the rooftop of commercial and residential buildings are aimed to be increased to half of total installed PV. On the other hand, there is no commercial CPV system available to be suitable for rooftop operation, giving motivation

  20. Identification of proteins involved in desiccation tolerance in the red seaweed Pyropia orbicularis (Rhodophyta, Bangiales).

    Science.gov (United States)

    López-Cristoffanini, Camilo; Zapata, Javier; Gaillard, Fanny; Potin, Philippe; Correa, Juan A; Contreras-Porcia, Loretto

    2015-12-01

    Extreme reduction in cellular water content leads to desiccation, which, if persistent, affects the physiology of organisms, mainly through oxidative stress. Some organisms are highly tolerant to desiccation, including resurrection plants and certain intertidal seaweeds. One such species is Pyropia orbicularis, a rhodophycean that colonizes upper intertidal zones along the Chilean coast. Despite long, daily periods of air exposure due to tides, this alga is highly tolerant to desiccation. The present study examined the proteome of P. orbicularis by 2DE and LC-MS/MS analyses to determine the proteins associated with desiccation tolerance (DT). The results showed that, under natural conditions, there were significant changes in the protein profile during low tide as compared to naturally hydrated plants at high tide. These changes were mainly in newly appeared proteins spots such as chaperones, monodehydroascorbate reductase, and manganese superoxide dismutase, among others. Previously undescribed proteins under desiccation conditions included phycobiliproteins, glyoxalase I, and phosphomannomutase. These changes evidenced that several physiological responses involved in DT are activated during low tide, including decreased photosynthetic activity, increased antioxidant capacity, and the preservation of cell physiology by regulating water content, cell wall structure, and cell volume. Similar responses have been observed in resurrection plants and bryophytes exposed to desiccation. Therefore, the coordinated activation of different desiccation tolerance pathways in P. orbicularis could explain the successful biological performance of this seaweed in the upper intertidal rocky zones. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  1. Region-Based Building Rooftop Extraction and Change Detection

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tian, J.; Metzlaff, L.; d'Angelo, P.; Reinartz, P.

    2017-09-01

    Automatic extraction of building changes is important for many applications like disaster monitoring and city planning. Although a lot of research work is available based on 2D as well as 3D data, an improvement in accuracy and efficiency is still needed. The introducing of digital surface models (DSMs) to building change detection has strongly improved the resulting accuracy. In this paper, a post-classification approach is proposed for building change detection using satellite stereo imagery. Firstly, DSMs are generated from satellite stereo imagery and further refined by using a segmentation result obtained from the Sobel gradients of the panchromatic image. Besides the refined DSMs, the panchromatic image and the pansharpened multispectral image are used as input features for mean-shift segmentation. The DSM is used to calculate the nDSM, out of which the initial building candidate regions are extracted. The candidate mask is further refined by morphological filtering and by excluding shadow regions. Following this, all segments that overlap with a building candidate region are determined. A building oriented segments merging procedure is introduced to generate a final building rooftop mask. As the last step, object based change detection is performed by directly comparing the building rooftops extracted from the pre- and after-event imagery and by fusing the change indicators with the roof-top region map. A quantitative and qualitative assessment of the proposed approach is provided by using WorldView-2 satellite data from Istanbul, Turkey.

  2. REGION-BASED BUILDING ROOFTOP EXTRACTION AND CHANGE DETECTION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. Tian

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Automatic extraction of building changes is important for many applications like disaster monitoring and city planning. Although a lot of research work is available based on 2D as well as 3D data, an improvement in accuracy and efficiency is still needed. The introducing of digital surface models (DSMs to building change detection has strongly improved the resulting accuracy. In this paper, a post-classification approach is proposed for building change detection using satellite stereo imagery. Firstly, DSMs are generated from satellite stereo imagery and further refined by using a segmentation result obtained from the Sobel gradients of the panchromatic image. Besides the refined DSMs, the panchromatic image and the pansharpened multispectral image are used as input features for mean-shift segmentation. The DSM is used to calculate the nDSM, out of which the initial building candidate regions are extracted. The candidate mask is further refined by morphological filtering and by excluding shadow regions. Following this, all segments that overlap with a building candidate region are determined. A building oriented segments merging procedure is introduced to generate a final building rooftop mask. As the last step, object based change detection is performed by directly comparing the building rooftops extracted from the pre- and after-event imagery and by fusing the change indicators with the roof-top region map. A quantitative and qualitative assessment of the proposed approach is provided by using WorldView-2 satellite data from Istanbul, Turkey.

  3. Dish-based CPV-T for rooftop generation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davila-Peralta, Christian; Hyatt, Justin; Alfred, Dan; Struble, Morgan; Sodari, Frank; Angel, Roger

    2017-09-01

    Hybrid CPV-T with combined electrical and thermal output is well suited to solar generation from fixed limited areas, such as on the roof of an industrial or commercial facility with need for heat. This application will become especially attractive once overall electrical conversion efficiency of 40% is reached, as is projected for REhnu CPV systems using multijunction cells of 50% efficiency, anticipated in a few years. We outline here a configuration of dish- based CPV trackers optimized for close packing on a flat roof in a triangular grid, with a mirror area-to-ground area ratio of 50%. When the geometry of shadowing averaged over a year is taken into account, 80% of all the sunlight that would strike the rooftop is directed into the receivers. Such an array on a given area of flat roof will generate more electrical energy than would be possible with conventional PV panels, even if covering the entire rooftop, because of silicon's relative inefficiency. For example, in Tucson, the annual average global flux of 5.7 kWh/m2/day on a horizontal surface covered with 22% silicon modules will yield 1.25 kWh/m2/day. We show that a CPV system collecting 80% of all the direct sunlight of 7.0 kWh/m2 and converting it with 40% efficiency will yield 2.24 kWh/m2/day of rooftop area, nearly twice as much4. Thermal power will double again the total energy yield. A dual axis CPV-T tracker designed specifically very close spacing has been built to carry a single dish mirror of the standard type used in REhnu's M-8 generator, described by Stalcup et al in these proceedings1,2. Sunlight is collected and focused by a single square paraboloidal mirror, 1.65 × 1.65 m with focal length of 1.5 m. For closest possible packing without mechanical interference, and for broad distribution of load on a rooftop, the mirror and receiver are mounted to a C-ring structure, configured such that the elevation and azimuth axes intersect at a virtual pivot, at the center of the sphere that just

  4. Improved climatic chamber for desiccation simulation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lozada Catalina

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The climatic chamber at the Universidad de Los Andes was improved for modeling desiccation in soil layers. This chamber allows the measurement of different environmental variables. In this research, evaporation tests were conducted in water imposing boundary conditions for drying, and then these tests were performed in a soil layer. The soil was prepared from a slurry state and was drying controlling the temperature, the infrared radiation, the wind velocity, and the relative humidity. In the first part of this paper, a description of the climatic chamber, operation ranges and theoretical work principles of the climatic chamber are presented. Then, the second part shows the results for desiccation in water and soil. The desiccation tests performed with the climatic chamber allow simulating all environmental conditions accurately during drying coupling the effect of all environmental variables. As a result, the evaporation rate increases with infrared radiation in soil and water. The rate at the beginning of the desiccation tests in clays is the same as in water. However, this evaporation rate decreases as the soil becomes desiccated.

  5. The rise of non-imaging optics for rooftop solar collectors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rosengarten, Gary; Stanley, Cameron; Ferrari, Dave; Blakers, Andrew; Ratcliff, Tom

    2016-09-01

    In this paper we explore the use of non-imaging optics for rooftop solar concentrators. Specifically, we focus on compound parabolic concentrators (CPCs), which form an ideal shape for cylindrical thermal absorbers, and for linear PV cells (allowing the use of more expensive but more efficient cells). Rooftops are ideal surfaces for solar collectors as they face the sky and are generally free, unused space. Concentrating solar radiation adds thermodynamic value to thermal collectors (allowing the attainment of higher temperature) and can add efficiency to PV electricity generation. CPCs allow that concentration over the day without the need for tracking. Hence they have become ubiquitous in applications requiring low concentration.

  6. Rooftop Solar Photovoltaic Technical Potential in the United States. A Detailed Assessment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gagnon, Pieter [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Margolis, Robert [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Melius, Jennifer [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Phillips, Caleb [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Elmore, Ryan [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2016-01-01

    How much energy could be generated if PV modules were installed on all of the suitable roof area in the nation? To answer this question, we first use GIS methods to process a lidar dataset and determine the amount of roof area that is suitable for PV deployment in 128 cities nationwide, containing 23% of U.S. buildings, and provide PV-generation results for a subset of those cities. We then extend the insights from that analysis to the entire continental United States. We develop two statistical models--one for small buildings and one for medium and large buildings--and populate them with geographic variables that correlate with rooftop's suitability for PV. We simulate the productivity of PV installed on the suitable roof area, and present the technical potential of PV on both small buildings and medium/large buildings for every state in the continental US. Within the 128 cities covered by lidar data, 83% of small buildings have a location suitable for a PV installation, but only 26% of the total rooftop area of small buildings is suitable for development. The sheer number of buildings in this class, however, gives small buildings the greatest technical potential. Small building rooftops could accommodate 731 GW of PV capacity and generate 926 TWh/year of PV energy, approximately 65% of rooftop PV's total technical potential. We conclude by summing the PV-generation results for all building sizes and therefore answering our original question, estimating that the total national technical potential of rooftop PV is 1,118 GW of installed capacity and 1,432 TWh of annual energy generation. This equates to 39% of total national electric-sector sales.

  7. Rooftop Solar Technical Potential for Low-to-Moderate Income Households in the United States

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sigrin, Benjamin O [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Mooney, Meghan E [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2018-04-17

    This report presents a first-of-kind assessment of the technical potential of rooftop solar for low and moderate-income households, as well as providing insight on the distribution of solar potential by tenure, income, and other building characteristics. We find that a substantial fraction of the national rooftop solar potential is located on LMI buildings and, for all incomes, a substantial fraction on multi-family and renter-occupied buildings. We also find that rooftop solar can significantly contribute to long-term penetration targets established by the U.S. DOE, though to do so requires deployment on multi-family and renter-occupied buildings. Traditional deployment models have insufficiently enabled access to solar for these income groups and building types. Without innovation either in regulatory, market, or policy factors, a large fraction of the U.S. potential is unlikely to be addressed, as well as leading to inequalities in solar access. Ironically, potential electric bill savings from rooftop solar would have the greatest material impact on the lives of low-income households as compared to their high-income counterparts.

  8. Developing sporophytes transition from an inducible to a constitutive ecological strategy of desiccation tolerance in the moss Aloina ambigua: effects of desiccation on fitness.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stark, Lloyd R; Brinda, John C

    2015-03-01

    Two ecological strategies of desiccation tolerance exist in plants, constitutive and inducible. Because of difficulties in culturing sporophytes, very little is known about desiccation tolerance in this generation and how desiccation affects sexual fitness. Cultured sporophytes and vegetative shoots from a single genotype of the moss Aloina ambigua raised in the laboratory were tested for their strategy of desiccation tolerance by desiccating the shoot-sporophyte complex and vegetative shoots at different intensities, and comparing outcomes with those of undried shoot-sporophyte complexes and vegetative shoots. By using a dehardened clonal line, the effects of field, age and genetic variance among plants were removed. The gametophyte and embryonic sporophyte were found to employ a predominantly inducible strategy of desiccation tolerance, while the post-embryonic sporophyte was found to employ a moderately constitutive strategy of desiccation tolerance. Further, desiccation reduced sporophyte fitness, as measured by sporophyte mass, seta length and capsule size. However, the effects of desiccation on sporophyte fitness were reduced if the stress occurred during embryonic development as opposed to postembryonic desiccation. The effects of desiccation on dehardened sporophytes of a bryophyte are shown for the first time. The transition from one desiccation tolerance strategy to the other in a single structure or generation is shown for only the second time in plants and for the first time in bryophytes. Finding degrees of inducible strategies of desiccation tolerance in different life phases prompts the formulation of a continuum hypothesis of ecological desiccation tolerance in mosses, where desiccation tolerance is not an either/or phenomenon, but varies in degree along a gradient of ecological inducibility. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Annals of Botany Company. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email

  9. Analysis on a hybrid desiccant air-conditioning system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jia, C.X.; Dai, Y.J.; Wu, J.Y.; Wang, R.Z.

    2006-01-01

    Hybrid desiccant-assisted preconditioner and split cooling coil system, which combines the merits of moisture removal by desiccant and cooling coil for sensible heat removal, is a potential alternative to conventional vapor compression cooling systems. In this paper, experiments on a hybrid desiccant air-conditioning system, which is actually an integration of a rotary solid desiccant dehumidification and a vapor compression air-conditioning unit, had been carried out. It is found that, compared with the conventional VC (vapor compression) system, the hybrid desiccant cooling system economizes 37.5% electricity powers when the process air temperature and relative humidity are maintained at 30 o C, and 55% respectively. The reason why the hybrid desiccant cooling system features better performance relative to the VC system lies in the improvement brought about in the performance of the evaporator in VC unit due to desiccant dehumidification. A thermodynamic model of the hybrid desiccant system with R-22 as the refrigerant has been developed and the impact of operating parameters on the sensible heat ratio of the evaporator and the electric power saving rate has been analyzed. It is found that a majority of evaporators can operate in the dry condition even if the regeneration temperature is lower (i.e. 80 o C)

  10. Rooftop PV system. Final technical progress report, Phase II

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1995-08-01

    Under this four-year PV:BONUS Program, ECD and United Solar are developing and demonstrating two new lightweight flexible building integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) modules specifically designed as exact replacements for conventional asphalt shingles and standing seam metal roofing. These modules can be economically and aesthetically integrated into new residential and commercial buildings, and address the even larger roofing replacement market. The modules are designed to be installed by roofing contractors without special training which minimizes the installation and balance of system costs. The modules will be fabricated from high-efficiency, multiple-junction a-Si alloy solar cells developed by ECD and United Solar. Under the Phase I Program, which ended in March 1994, we developed two different concept designs for rooftop PV modules: (1) the United Solar overlapping (asphalt shingle replacement) shingle-type modules and (2) the ECD metal roof-type modules. We also developed a plan for fabricating, testing and demonstrating these modules. Candidate demonstration sites for our rooftop PV modules were identified and preliminary engineering designs for these demonstrations were developed; a marketing study plan was also developed. The major objectives of the Phase II Program, which started in June 1994 was (1) to develop, test, and qualify these new rooftop modules; (2) to develop mechanical and electrical engineering specifications for the demonstration projects; and (3) to develop a marketing/commercialization plan.

  11. Deep Vadose Zone Treatability Test for the Hanford Central Plateau. Interim Post-Desiccation Monitoring Results, Fiscal Year 2015

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Truex, Michael J. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Strickland, Christopher E. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Oostrom, Martinus [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Johnson, Christian D. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Tartakovsky, Guzel D. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Johnson, Timothy C. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Clayton, Ray E. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Chronister, Glen B. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2015-09-01

    A field test of desiccation is being conducted as an element of the Deep Vadose Zone Treatability Test Program. The active desiccation portion of the test has been completed. Monitoring data have been collected at the field test site during the post-desiccation period and are reported herein. This is an interim data summary report that includes about 4 years of post-desiccation monitoring data. The DOE field test plan proscribes a total of 5 years of post-desiccation monitoring.

  12. Steady state modeling of desiccant wheels

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bellemo, Lorenzo; Elmegaard, Brian; Kærn, Martin Ryhl

    2014-01-01

    Desiccant wheels are rotary desiccant dehumidifiers used in air conditioning and drying applications. The modeling of simultaneous heat and mass transfer in these components is crucial for estimating their performances, as well as for simulating and optimizing their implementation in complete...

  13. The study of desiccation-tolerance in drying leaves of the desiccation-tolerant grass Sporobolus elongatus and the desiccation-sensitive grass Sporobolus pyramidalis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ghasempour, Hamid Reza; Kianian, Jahanbakheshe

    2007-03-01

    Hydrated leaves of the resurrection grass Sporobolus elongatus are not desiccation tolerant (DT), but moderate to severe drought stress can induce their DT with the leaves remain attach to drying intact plants. In vivo protein synthesis was studied with SDS-page of extracts of leaves of intact drying plants of S. elongatus (a desiccation-Tolerant grass (DT)) and S. pyramidalis (a desiccation-sensitive species (DS)). Free proline increased in drying leaves. Soluble sugar contents also increased with drying but were less than fully hydrated leaves at 8% RWC. Total protein also showed an increase with an exception at 8% RWC which showed a decrease. SDS-page of extracts of drying leaves of both DT and DS plants were studied as relative water contents (RWC) decreased. In first phase, DT species at 58% RWC (80-51% RWC range), two proteins increased in contents. In the second phase, at 8% (35-4% RWC range) two new bands increased and two bands decreased. In leaves of DS species some bands decreased as drying progressed. Also, as drying advanced free proline increased in DT species. Total protein increased as drying increased but at 8% RWC decreased. All data of results are consistent with current views about studied factors and their roles during drying and induction of desiccation tolerance in DT plants.

  14. Desiccation stress induces developmental heterochrony in ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Stressful environments are known to perturb developmental patterns in insects. In the purview of desiccation as astressor, relatively little is known about the developmental consequences linked with desiccation tolerance. In thisstudy, we have particularly focused on the exploration of the temporal profile of postembryonic ...

  15. Repellent activity of desiccant dusts and conidia of the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana when tested against poultry red mites (Dermanyssus gallinae) in laboratory experiments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kilpinen, Ole; Steenberg, Tove

    2016-11-01

    Desiccant dusts and entomopathogenic fungi have previously been found to hold potential against the poultry red mite, which is an important pest in egg production and notoriously difficult to control. Both control agents may cause repellence in other arthropods and potentially also influence control levels adversely when used against the poultry red mite. Five desiccant dust products with good efficacy against the poultry red mite Dermanyssus gallinae caused avoidance behavior in mites when tested in bioassays. The repellent activity was correlated with efficacy, which was found to depend on both dose and relative humidity (RH). However, one desiccant dust was significantly less repellent compared to other dusts with similar levels of efficacy. Further, dry conidia of the fungus Beauveria bassiana were also shown to be repellent to poultry red mites, both when applied on its own and when admixed with a low dose of the desiccant dust Diamol. The pick-up of desiccant dust particles and fungus conidia from treated surfaces by mites did not differ depending on RH, whereas the overall efficacy of the two control agents were significantly higher at 75 than at 85 % RH. In addition, the combined effect of the two substances was synergistic when tested in a bioassay where mites could choose whether to cross a treated surface. This is the first time a member of Acari has been shown to be repelled by desiccant dusts and by conidia of an entomopathogenic fungus.

  16. An automated model for rooftop PV systems assessment in ArcGIS using LIDAR

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mesude Bayrakci Boz

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available As photovoltaic (PV systems have become less expensive, building rooftops have come to be attractive for local power production. Identifying rooftops suitable for solar energy systems over large geographic areas is needed for cities to obtain more accurate assessments of production potential and likely patterns of development. This paper presents a new method for extracting roof segments and locating suitable areas for PV systems using Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR data and building footprints. Rooftop segments are created using seven slope (tilt, ve aspect (azimuth classes and 6 different building types. Moreover, direct beam shading caused by nearby objects and the surrounding terrain is taken into account on a monthly basis. Finally, the method is implemented as an ArcGIS model in ModelBuilder and a tool is created. In order to show its validity, the method is applied to city of Philadelphia, PA, USA with the criteria of slope, aspect, shading and area used to locate suitable areas for PV system installation. The results show that 33.7% of the buildings footprints areas and 48.6% of the rooftop segments identi ed is suitable for PV systems. Overall, this study provides a replicable model using commercial software that is capable of extracting individual roof segments with more detailed criteria across an urban area.

  17. Effects of streptomycin, desiccation, and UV radiation on ice nucleation by Pseudomonas viridiflava

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anderson, J.A.; Ashworth, E.N.

    1986-01-01

    Streptomycin (100 micrograms per milliliter), desiccation (over CaSO 4 ), and ultraviolet radiation (4500 microwatts per square centimeter at 254 nonometers for 15 minutes) reduced ice nucleation activity by Pseudomonas viridiflava strain W-1 as determined by freezing drops of the bacterial suspensions. Highest residual ice nucleation activity by dead cells was obtained by desiccation, although no freezing above -3.5 0 C was detected. The rate and extent of loss of ice nucleation activity following streptomycin and ultraviolet treatment was affected by preconditioning temperature. At 21 0 C and above, loss of activity by dead cells was rapid and irreversible

  18. Research and development needs for desiccant cooling technology 1992--1997. (Supplement to the NREL report, Desiccant Cooling: State-of-the-Art Assessment)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pesaran, A A

    1992-12-01

    This report is a supplement to Desiccant Cooling: State-of-the-Art Assessment (NREL/TP-254-4147, DE93000013). In this supplement document we have described a detailed program assuming sufficient funding to implement the R&D activities needed. Desiccant dehumidification is a mature technology for industrial applications, and in recent years the technology has been used for air conditioning a number of institutional and commercial buildings. Our proposal is based on argumentative discussions at various national meetings with leaders of the technology. The goal is the penetration of the broad air conditioning market. This work is funded by the Buildings technology Office of the US Department of Energy.

  19. Efficient energy storage in liquid desiccant cooling systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hublitz, Astrid

    2008-07-18

    Liquid Desiccant Cooling Systems (LDCS) are open loop sorption systems for air conditioning that use a liquid desiccant such as a concentrated salt solution to dehumidify the outside air and cool it by evaporative cooling. Thermochemical energy storage in the concentrated liquid desiccant can bridge power mismatches between demand and supply. Low-flow LDCS provide high energy storage capacities but are not a state-of-the-art technology yet. The key challenge remains the uniform distribution of the liquid desiccant on the heat and mass transfer surfaces. The present research analyzes the factors of influence on the energy storage capacity by simulation of the heat and mass transfer processes and specifies performance goals for the distribution of the process media. Consequently, a distribution device for the liquid desiccant is developed that reliably meets the performance goals. (orig.)

  20. Proteomics of desiccation tolerance during development and germination of maize embryos

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Huang, Hui; Møller, Ian Max; Song, Song-Quan

    2012-01-01

    Maize seeds were used to identify the key embryo proteins involved in desiccation tolerance during development and germination. Immature maize embryos (28N) during development and mature embryos imbibed for 72 h (72HN) are desiccation sensitive. Mature maize embryos (52N) during development...... pattern. We infer that these eleven proteins are involved in seed desiccation tolerance. We conclude that desiccation-tolerant embryos make more economical use of their resources to accumulate protective molecules and antioxidant systems to deal with maturation drying and desiccation treatment........ are desiccation tolerant. Thiobarbituric acid reactive substance and hydrogen peroxide contents decreased and increased with acquisition and loss of desiccation tolerance, respectively. A total of 111 protein spots changed significantly (1.5 fold increase/decrease) in desiccation-tolerant and -sensitive embryos...

  1. Campomanesia adamantium (Cambess.) O. Berg seed desiccation: influence on vigor and nucleic acids.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dresch, Daiane M; Masetto, Tathiana E; Scalon, Silvana P Q

    2015-01-01

    The aim of this study was to evaluate the sensitivity of Campomanesia adamantium seeds to desiccation by drying in activated silica gel (fast) and under laboratory conditions (slow). To assess the sensitivity of the seeds to desiccation, we used drying with silica gel and drying under laboratory conditions (25 °C), in order to obtain seeds with moisture content of 45, 35, 30, 25, 20, 15, 10 and 5%. The physiological potential of the seeds after desiccation was evaluated by measuring primary root protrusion, percentage of normal seedlings, germination seed index, seedling length, total seedling dry mass, electrical conductivity and DNA and RNA integrities. The C. adamantium seeds were sensitive to desiccation and to a reduction in moisture content to 21.1% or less by desiccation using silica gel, and to 17.2% or less by desiccation under laboratory conditions; impairment of the physiological potential of the seeds was observed at these low moisture content levels. The integrity of the seed genomic DNA was not affected after drying seeds in the two methods. However, drying in silica gel to 4.5% moisture content and drying under laboratory conditions to 5.4% moisture content resulted in the loss of seed RNA integrity.

  2. Campomanesia adamantium (Cambess. O. Berg seed desiccation: influence on vigor and nucleic acids

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    DAIANE M. DRESCH

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study was to evaluate the sensitivity of Campomanesia adamantium seeds to desiccation by drying in activated silica gel (fast and under laboratory conditions (slow. To assess the sensitivity of the seeds to desiccation, we used drying with silica gel and drying under laboratory conditions (25 °C, in order to obtain seeds with moisture content of 45, 35, 30, 25, 20, 15, 10 and 5%. The physiological potential of the seeds after desiccation was evaluated by measuring primary root protrusion, percentage of normal seedlings, germination seed index, seedling length, total seedling dry mass, electrical conductivity and DNA and RNA integrities. The C. adamantium seeds were sensitive to desiccation and to a reduction in moisture content to 21.1% or less by desiccation using silica gel, and to 17.2% or less by desiccation under laboratory conditions; impairment of the physiological potential of the seeds was observed at these low moisture content levels. The integrity of the seed genomic DNA was not affected after drying seeds in the two methods. However, drying in silica gel to 4.5% moisture content and drying under laboratory conditions to 5.4% moisture content resulted in the loss of seed RNA integrity.

  3. Performance evaluation of photovoltaic systems on Kuwaiti schools’ rooftop

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Al-Otaibi, A.; Al-Qattan, A.; Fairouz, F.; Al-Mulla, A.

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Evaluation of rooftop PV installations at 2 Kuwaiti schools was carried out. • Lack of real plants data in the region and specifically Kuwait motivated the work. • Automated cleaning system allowed for minimization of soiling loss. • The average PV system performance was greater than 76%. • Schools show high potential for rooftop installations. - Abstract: Photovoltaic (PV) is a high-potential renewable energy technology for Kuwait to pursue due to high daily irradiation, and has garnered local attention in recent years due to the growing energy demand and concerns over climate change. As yet, no data are available regarding the actual performance of PV systems in Kuwait’s harsh environment. This paper presents a 12-month-long performance evaluation of the first 85.05 kW p and 21.6 kW p copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) thin film, grid-connected PV systems on the rooftops of two schools. The schools’ monthly energy consumption and PV generation profiles, the actual performance of the PV plants, the effectiveness of automated cleaning systems on the power output, and the benefits of PV implementation in schools were analyzed and evaluated. Data analysis was applied to filter and normalize the data in order to identify the actual performance parameters. The findings of the study, based on solar irradiation collected, the performance of the module technology and the effectiveness of the automated cleaning systems, show that the performance ratio was maintained between 0.74 and 0.85. Furthermore, the minimum monthly energy yield of the PV systems was about 104 kW h/kW p . The annual average daily final yields of the PV systems in this study were 4.5 kW h/kW p /day. The results provided insight into the performance of CIGS grid-connected PV systems in Kuwait, and those data will be beneficial to the PV research community worldwide. School buildings, particularly for the rooftops, are a unique and important asset for urban PV system

  4. Retrofitting Inefficient Rooftop Air-Conditioning Units Reduces U.S. Navy Energy Use (Fact Sheet)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None, None

    2014-04-01

    As part of the U.S. Navy's overall energy strategy, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) partnered with the Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) to demonstrate market-ready energy efficiency measures, renewable energy generation, and energy systems integration. One such technology - retrofitting rooftop air-conditioning units with an advanced rooftop control system - was identified as a promising source for reducing energy use and costs, and can contribute to increasing energy security.

  5. Solar access of residential rooftops in four California cities

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Levinson, Ronnen; Akbari, Hashem; Pomerantz, Melvin

    2010-05-14

    Shadows cast by trees and buildings can limit the solar access of rooftop solar-energy systems, including photovoltaic panels and thermal collectors. This study characterizes residential rooftop shading in Sacramento, San Jose, Los Angeles and San Diego, CA. Our analysis can be used to better estimate power production and/or thermal collection by rooftop solar-energy equipment. It can also be considered when designing programs to plant shade trees. High-resolution orthophotos and LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) measurements of surface height were used to create a digital elevation model of all trees and buildings in a well-treed 2.5-4 km{sup 2} residential neighborhood. On-hour shading of roofing planes (the flat elements of roofs) was computed geometrically from the digital elevation model. Values in future years were determined by repeating these calculations after simulating tree growth. Parcel boundaries were used to determine the extent to which roofing planes were shaded by trees and buildings in neighboring parcels. For the subset of S+SW+W-facing planes on which solar equipment is commonly installed for maximum solar access, absolute light loss in spring, summer and fall peaked about two to four hours after sunrise and about two to four hours before sunset. The fraction of annual insolation lost to shading increased from 0.07-0.08 in the year of surface-height measurement to 0.11-0.14 after 30 years of tree growth. Only about 10% of this loss results from shading by trees and buildings in neighboring parcels.

  6. Performance comparison between a solar driven rotary desiccant cooling system and conventional vapor compression system (performance study of desiccant cooling)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ge, T.S.; Ziegler, F.; Wang, R.Z.; Wang, H.

    2010-01-01

    Solar driven rotary desiccant cooling systems have been widely recognized as alternatives to conventional vapor compression systems for their merits of energy-saving and being eco-friendly. In the previous paper, the basic performance features of desiccant wheel have been discussed. In this paper, a solar driven two-stage rotary desiccant cooling system and a vapor compression system are simulated to provide cooling for one floor in a commercial office building in two cities with different climates: Berlin and Shanghai. The model developed in the previous paper is adopted to predict the performance of the desiccant wheel. The objectives of this paper are to evaluate and compare the thermodynamic and economic performance of the two systems and to obtain useful data for practical application. Results show that the desiccant cooling system is able to meet the cooling demand and provide comfortable supply air in both of the two regions. The required regeneration temperatures are 55 deg. C in Berlin and 85 deg. C in Shanghai. As compared to the vapor compression system, the desiccant cooling system has better supply air quality and consumes less electricity. The results of the economic analysis demonstrate that the dynamic investment payback periods are 4.7 years in Berlin and 7.2 years in Shanghai.

  7. Elevated temperatures are associated with stress in rooftop-nesting Common Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor) chicks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Newberry, Gretchen N; Swanson, David L

    2018-01-01

    Grasslands and riparian forests in southeastern South Dakota have been greatly reduced since historical times, primarily due to conversion to row-crop agriculture. Common Nighthawk ( Chordeiles minor ) nesting habitat includes grasslands, open woodlands and urban rooftops, but nesting sites in southeastern South Dakota are confined to rooftops, as natural nesting habitat is limited. Nighthawks nesting on exposed rooftop habitats may encounter thermal conditions that increase operative temperatures relative to vegetated land cover types. Mean humidity has increased and mean wind speed and cloud cover have decreased during the nighthawk breeding season from 1948 to 2016 in southeastern South Dakota. These changes might contribute to increasing operative temperatures at exposed rooftop nest sites and this could influence chick condition. We studied nest micro-climate and the plasma stress response for 24 rooftop-nesting nighthawk chicks from 17 nests during 2015 and 2016. High humidity prior to blood collection reduced both baseline and stress-induced plasma corticosterone (CORT). In contrast, high maximum temperatures during the day before sampling increased stress-induced CORT. The magnitude of the chick stress response was significantly negatively related to maximum wind speed for the week prior to CORT measurement. Other weather and micro-climate variables were not significant effectors of CORT metrics. Most chicks had low baseline CORT and were able to mount a stress response, but a subset of chicks ( n = 4) showed elevated baseline CORT and a negative association between the magnitude of stress response and ambient temperature. For this subset, mean ambient temperature for the day before sampling was significantly higher (2.3°C) than for chicks with typical baseline CORT levels. These data suggest that regional climate change trends could affect the ability of nighthawk chicks to mount a stress response, which, in turn, might influence the susceptibility of

  8. The response of foodborne pathogens to osmotic and desiccation stresses in the food chain

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Burgess, Catherine M.; Gianotti, Andrea; Gruzdev, Nadia

    2016-01-01

    In combination with other strategies, hyperosmolarity and desiccation are frequently used by the food processing industry as a means to prevent bacterial proliferation, and particularly that of foodborne pathogens, in food products. However, it is increasingly observed that bacteria, including...... human pathogens, encode mechanisms to survive and withstand these stresses. This review provides an overview of the mechanisms employed by Salmonella spp., Shiga toxin producing E. coli, Cronobacter spp., Listeria monocytogenes and Campylobacter spp. to tolerate osmotic and desiccation stresses...... and identifies gaps in knowledge which need to be addressed to ensure the safety of low water activity and desiccated food products....

  9. Vacuum membrane distillation of liquid desiccants Utilizing Hollow Fiber Membranes

    KAUST Repository

    Lefers, Ryan

    2018-01-31

    This paper documents the testing of a vacuum membrane distillation system intended for use with liquid desiccants. Liquid desiccants offer the possibility for low-energy, ambient temperature dehumidification. Effective desalination and purification of diluted desiccants outputs two important products: a concentrated desiccant for reuse in dehumidification and fresh water. In this study, vacuum membrane distillation was used in the laboratory to purify diluted liquid desiccants. Calcium chloride and magnesium chloride were the desiccants selected for testing. Desiccant solutions were pumped through the lumens of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) hollow fiber membranes at varying feed inlet temperatures, solution velocity rates and vacuum set points during membrane distillation. An average flux of 8 kg m-2 h-1 was obtained using 30 wt% magnesium chloride solution at a temperature of 50 °C while applying vacuum to achieve 25 mbar absolute pressure on the air side of the membrane. The results are promising for the development of a full-scale vacuum membrane distillation process for desiccant solution regeneration and fresh water recovery. In addition, the recovered condensate was of sufficient quality for use in agricultural irrigation or drinking water.

  10. Vacuum membrane distillation of liquid desiccants Utilizing Hollow Fiber Membranes

    KAUST Repository

    Lefers, Ryan; Srivatsa Bettahalli, N.M.; Fedoroff, Nina V.; Nunes, Suzana Pereira; Leiknes, TorOve

    2018-01-01

    This paper documents the testing of a vacuum membrane distillation system intended for use with liquid desiccants. Liquid desiccants offer the possibility for low-energy, ambient temperature dehumidification. Effective desalination and purification of diluted desiccants outputs two important products: a concentrated desiccant for reuse in dehumidification and fresh water. In this study, vacuum membrane distillation was used in the laboratory to purify diluted liquid desiccants. Calcium chloride and magnesium chloride were the desiccants selected for testing. Desiccant solutions were pumped through the lumens of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) hollow fiber membranes at varying feed inlet temperatures, solution velocity rates and vacuum set points during membrane distillation. An average flux of 8 kg m-2 h-1 was obtained using 30 wt% magnesium chloride solution at a temperature of 50 °C while applying vacuum to achieve 25 mbar absolute pressure on the air side of the membrane. The results are promising for the development of a full-scale vacuum membrane distillation process for desiccant solution regeneration and fresh water recovery. In addition, the recovered condensate was of sufficient quality for use in agricultural irrigation or drinking water.

  11. Desiccation: An environmental and food industry stress that bacteria commonly face.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Esbelin, Julia; Santos, Tiago; Hébraud, Michel

    2018-02-01

    Water is essential for all living organisms, for animals as well as for plants and micro-organisms. For these latter, the presence of water or a humid environment with a high air relative humidity (RH) is necessary for their survival and growth. Thus, variations in the availability of water or in the air relative humidity constitute widespread environmental stresses which challenge microorganisms, and especially bacteria. Indeed, in their direct environment, bacteria are often faced with conditions that remove cell-bound water through air-drying of the atmosphere. Bacterial cells are subject to daily or seasonal environmental variations, sometimes going through periods of severe desiccation. This is also the case in the food industry, where air dehumidification treatments are applied after the daily cleaning-disinfection procedures. In plants producing low-water activity products, it is also usual to significantly reduce or eliminate water usage. Periodic desiccation exposure affects bacteria viability and so they require strategies to persist. Negative effects of desiccation are wide ranging and include direct cellular damage but also changes in the biochemical and biophysical properties of cells for which planktonic cells are more exposed than cells in biofilm. Understanding the mechanisms of desiccation adaptation and tolerance has a biological and biotechnological interest. This review gives an overview of the factors influencing desiccation tolerance and the biological mechanisms involved in this stress response. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Documenting the Effectiveness of Cosorption of Airborne Contaminants by a Field-Installed Active Desiccant System: Final Report - Phase 2D

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fischer, J

    2003-01-23

    The final report for Phase 1 of this research effort (ORNL/SUB/94-SV004/1) concluded that a significant market opportunity would exist for active desiccant systems if it could be demonstrated that they can remove a significant proportion of common airborne contaminants while simultaneously performing the primary function of dehumidifying a stream of outdoor air or recirculated building air. If the engineering community begins to follow the intent of ASHRAE Standard 62, now part of all major building codes, the outdoor air in many major cities may need to be pre-cleaned before it is introduced into occupied spaces. Common air contaminant cosorption capability would provide a solution to three important aspects of the ASHRAE 62-89 standard that have yet to be effectively addressed by heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) equipment manufacturers: (1) The ASHRAE standard defines acceptable outdoor air quality. If the outdoor air contains unacceptable levels of certain common outdoor air contaminants (e.g., sulfur dioxide, ozone), then the standard requires that these contaminants be removed from the outdoor air stream to reach compliance with the acceptable outdoor air quality guidelines. (2) Some engineers prefer to apply a filtration or prescriptive approach rather than a ventilation approach to solving indoor air quality problems. The ASHRAE standard recognizes this approach provided that the filtration technology exists to remove the gaseous contaminants encountered. The performance of current gaseous filtration technologies is not well documented, and they can be costly to maintain because the life of the filter is limited and the cost is high. Moreover, it is not easy to determine when the filters need changing. In such applications, an additional advantage provided by the active desiccant system would be that the same piece of equipment could control space humidity and provide filtration, even during unoccupied periods, if the active desiccant system

  13. Transcriptomic analysis of Salmonella desiccation resistance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Haiping; Bhaskara, Anuhya; Megalis, Christina; Tortorello, Mary Lou

    2012-12-01

    The survival of Salmonella in low moisture foods and processing environments remains a great challenge for the food industry and public health. To explore the mechanisms of Salmonella desiccation resistance, we studied the transcriptomic responses in Salmonella Tennessee (Tennessee), using Salmonella Typhimurium LT2 (LT2), a strain weakly resistant to desiccation, as a reference strain. In response to 2 h of air-drying at 11% equilibrated relative humidity, approximately one-fourth of the open reading frames (ORFs) in the Tennessee genome and one-fifth in LT2 were differentially expressed (>2-fold). Among all differentially expressed functional groups (>5-fold) in both strains, the expression fold change associated with fatty acid metabolism was the highest, and constituted 51% and 35% of the total expression fold change in Tennessee and LT2, respectively. Tennessee showed greater changes in expression of genes associated with stress response and envelope modification than LT2, while showing lesser changes in protein biosynthesis expression. Expression of flagella genes was significantly more inhibited in stationary phase cells of Tennessee than LT2 both before and after desiccation. The accumulation of the osmolyte trehalose was significantly induced by desiccation in Tennessee, but no increase was detectable in LT2, which is consistent with the expression patterns of the entire trehalose biosynthesis and degradation pathways in both strains. Results from this study present a global view of the dynamic desiccation responses in Salmonella, which will guide future research efforts to control Salmonella in low moisture environments.

  14. Rooftop Unit Comparison Calculator User Manual

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Miller, James D. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2015-04-30

    This document serves as a user manual for the Packaged rooftop air conditioners and heat pump units comparison calculator (RTUCC) and is an aggregation of the calculator’s website documentation. Content ranges from new-user guide material like the “Quick Start” to the more technical/algorithmic descriptions of the “Methods Pages.” There is also a section listing all the context-help topics that support the features on the “Controls” page. The appendix has a discussion of the EnergyPlus runs that supported the development of the building-response models.

  15. Experimental performance of a liquid desiccant dehumidification system under tropical climates

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jain, Sanjeev; Tripathi, Sagun; Das, Rajat Subhra

    2011-01-01

    Research highlights: → Indirect contact between air and desiccant using a porous surface to avoid carryover. → Humidity effectiveness and moisture removal rate reported under varying conditions. → Humidity effectiveness with LiCl as desiccant in the range 0.36-0.45. → Mass transfer characteristic of contactor surface restricted system performance. -- Abstract: The current energy crisis, climate change and increased air conditioning demands have generated a need for developing technologies based on renewable energy sources. Foremost amongst the cooling technologies are the sorption technologies working on low grade heat that can be supplied by solar energy. Liquid desiccant technologies seem to be a promising option as these tend to have higher thermal COPs, lower regeneration temperatures, facilitate simultaneous cooling and ease of storage of concentrated desiccant that can be used during the nonsunshine hours. But few concerns like carryover of liquid desiccant in air require further investigations. The liquid desiccant system under study incorporates a double channelled exchanger for air to liquid desiccant heat and mass transfer. It provides a large surface area for air/desiccant contact and reduces the carryover as direct contact between desiccant and air is minimized unlike spray towers, packed bed and falling film designs. Desiccant is heated in a plate heat exchanger using hot water and then regenerated in a regenerator. The set-up comprises of a dehumidifier, along with a regenerator, a cooling tower, plate heat exchangers and a control unit. Experiments were conducted on the system using calcium chloride and lithium chloride as desiccants by varying parameters like inlet air conditions, hot water temperature and desiccant concentration in order to evaluate the performance of the system under different operating conditions. The performance of the system is presented in terms of moisture removal rates, dehumidifier and regenerator effectiveness.

  16. Solar assisted liquid desiccant cooling using clay based membranes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Priya S. Shanmuga

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The environmental concerns have led to the urge of the usage of non-conventional energy resources like solar, wind, thermal, geothermal etc. which provide enormous source of energy without causing any further diminution of the environment. Instead of the conventional HVAC systems that cause colossal environmental perils, usage of liquid desiccants in coming in vogue whereby reducing ecological threats. Moreover, solar assisted systems provide further impulse to such systems. This paper discusses about the various comparisons between liquid desiccants: Lithium chloride, Potassium formate and Calcium chloride and concludes that potassium formate is the best desiccant to be used among the three. Potassium formate (HCOOK is used which is cheaper and less corrosive as compared to the other aqueous salts, and has a negative crystallization temperature. Potassium formate is a new liquid desiccant and thus, not much research is available currently. The weather conditions of Manipal provide an appropriate condition for the experimentations of solar aided liquid desiccant evaporative cooling systems due to its humid climate and intense solar radiation obtained. The small scale experimentation also encounters the problem of liquid desiccant carryover by the air flow, with the help of clay based membranes which are again cheap, environmentally benign and obtained in a facile way. The projected system takes complete advantage of pure solar energy aimed at the regeneration of liquid desiccant.

  17. Unravelling desiccation tolerance in germinated Arabidopsis seeds

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Maia de Oliveira, J.

    2014-01-01

    How different organisms survive in the absence or under very limited amounts of water is still an open question. The aim of the research presented in this thesis is to explore the molecular basis of desiccation tolerance in seeds. We investigated the possibilities of using germinated desiccation

  18. Desiccation tolerance of Sphagnum revisited: a puzzle resolved.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hájek, T; Vicherová, E

    2014-07-01

    As ecosystem engineers, Sphagnum mosses control their surroundings through water retention, acidification and peat accumulation. Because water retention avoids desiccation, sphagna are generally intolerant to drought; however, the literature on Sphagnum desiccation tolerance (DT) provides puzzling results, indicating the inducible nature of their DT. To test this, various Sphagnum species and other mesic bryophytes were hardened to drought by (i) slow drying; (ii) ABA application and (iii) chilling or frost. DT tolerance was assessed as recovery of chlorophyll fluorescence parameters after severe desiccation. We monitored the seasonal course of DT in bog bryophytes. Under laboratory conditions, following initial de-hardening, untreated Sphagnum shoots lacked DT; however, DT was induced by all hardening treatments except chilling, notably by slow drying, and in Sphagnum species of the section Cuspidata. In the field, sphagna in hollows and lawns developed DT several times during the growing season, responding to reduced precipitation and a lowered water table. Hummock and aquatic species developed DT only in late autumn, probably as a response to frost. Sphagnum protonemata failed to develop DT; hence, desiccation may limit Sphagnum establishment in drier habitats with suitable substrate chemistry. Desiccation avoiders among sphagna form compact hummocks or live submerged; thus, they do not develop DT in the field, lacking the initial desiccation experience, which is frequent in hollow and lawn habitats. We confirmed the morpho-physiological trade-off: in contrast to typical hollow sphagna, hummock species invest more resources in water retention (desiccation avoidance), while they have a lower ability to develop physiological DT. © 2013 German Botanical Society and The Royal Botanical Society of the Netherlands.

  19. Stiffness of desiccating insect wings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mengesha, T E; Vallance, R R; Mittal, R

    2011-01-01

    The stiffness of insect wings is typically determined through experimental measurements. Such experiments are performed on wings removed from insects. However, the wings are subject to desiccation which typically leads to an increase in their stiffness. Although this effect of desiccation is well known, a comprehensive study of the rate of change in stiffness of desiccating insect wings would be a significant aid in planning experiments as well as interpreting data from such experiments. This communication presents a comprehensive experimental analysis of the change in mass and stiffness of gradually desiccating forewings of Painted Lady butterflies (Vanessa cardui). Mass and stiffness of the forewings of five butterflies were simultaneously measured every 10 min over a 24 h period. The averaged results show that wing mass declined exponentially by 21.1% over this time period with a time constant of 9.8 h, while wing stiffness increased linearly by 46.2% at a rate of 23.4 μN mm -1 h -1 . For the forewings of a single butterfly, the experiment was performed over a period of 1 week, and the results show that wing mass declined exponentially by 52.2% with a time constant of 30.2 h until it reached a steady-state level of 2.00 mg, while wing stiffness increased exponentially by 90.7% until it reached a steady-state level of 1.70 mN mm -1 . (communication)

  20. Stiffness of desiccating insect wings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mengesha, T E; Vallance, R R [Department of Mechanical Engineering, The George Washington University, 738 Phillips Hall, 801 22nd St NW, Washington, DC 20052 (United States); Mittal, R, E-mail: vallance@gwu.edu [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, 126 Latrobe Hall, 3400 N Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218 (United States)

    2011-03-15

    The stiffness of insect wings is typically determined through experimental measurements. Such experiments are performed on wings removed from insects. However, the wings are subject to desiccation which typically leads to an increase in their stiffness. Although this effect of desiccation is well known, a comprehensive study of the rate of change in stiffness of desiccating insect wings would be a significant aid in planning experiments as well as interpreting data from such experiments. This communication presents a comprehensive experimental analysis of the change in mass and stiffness of gradually desiccating forewings of Painted Lady butterflies (Vanessa cardui). Mass and stiffness of the forewings of five butterflies were simultaneously measured every 10 min over a 24 h period. The averaged results show that wing mass declined exponentially by 21.1% over this time period with a time constant of 9.8 h, while wing stiffness increased linearly by 46.2% at a rate of 23.4 {mu}N mm{sup -1} h{sup -1}. For the forewings of a single butterfly, the experiment was performed over a period of 1 week, and the results show that wing mass declined exponentially by 52.2% with a time constant of 30.2 h until it reached a steady-state level of 2.00 mg, while wing stiffness increased exponentially by 90.7% until it reached a steady-state level of 1.70 mN mm{sup -1}. (communication)

  1. Differential gene expression in Pyropia columbina (Bangiales, Rhodophyta under natural hydration and desiccation conditions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Loretto Contreras-Porcia

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available In rocky shores, desiccation is triggered by daily tide changes, and experimental evidence suggests that local distribution of algal species across the intertidal rocky zone is related to their capacity to tolerate desiccation. In this context, the permanence of Pyropia columbina in the high intertidal rocky zone is explained by its exceptional physiological tolerance to desiccation. This study explored the metabolic pathways involved in tolerance to desiccation in the Chilean P. columbina, by characterizing its transcriptome under contrasting conditions of hydration. We obtained 1,410 ESTs from two subtracted cDNA libraries in naturally hydrated and desiccated fronds. Results indicate that transcriptome from both libraries contain transcripts from diverse metabolic pathways related to tolerance. Among the transcripts differentially expressed, 15% appears involved in protein synthesis, processing and degradation, 14.4% are related to photosynthesis and chloroplast, 13.1% to respiration and mitochondrial function (NADH dehydrogenase and cytochrome c oxidase proteins, 10.6% to cell wall metabolism, and 7.5% are involved in antioxidant activity, chaperone and defense factors (catalase, thioredoxin, heat shock proteins, cytochrome P450. Both libraries highlight the presence of genes/proteins never described before in algae. This information provides the first molecular work regarding desiccation tolerance in P. columbina, and helps, to some extent, explaining the classical patterns of ecological distribution described for algae across the intertidal zone.

  2. Implicit Regularization for Reconstructing 3D Building Rooftop Models Using Airborne LiDAR Data

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jaewook Jung

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available With rapid urbanization, highly accurate and semantically rich virtualization of building assets in 3D become more critical for supporting various applications, including urban planning, emergency response and location-based services. Many research efforts have been conducted to automatically reconstruct building models at city-scale from remotely sensed data. However, developing a fully-automated photogrammetric computer vision system enabling the massive generation of highly accurate building models still remains a challenging task. One the most challenging task for 3D building model reconstruction is to regularize the noises introduced in the boundary of building object retrieved from a raw data with lack of knowledge on its true shape. This paper proposes a data-driven modeling approach to reconstruct 3D rooftop models at city-scale from airborne laser scanning (ALS data. The focus of the proposed method is to implicitly derive the shape regularity of 3D building rooftops from given noisy information of building boundary in a progressive manner. This study covers a full chain of 3D building modeling from low level processing to realistic 3D building rooftop modeling. In the element clustering step, building-labeled point clouds are clustered into homogeneous groups by applying height similarity and plane similarity. Based on segmented clusters, linear modeling cues including outer boundaries, intersection lines, and step lines are extracted. Topology elements among the modeling cues are recovered by the Binary Space Partitioning (BSP technique. The regularity of the building rooftop model is achieved by an implicit regularization process in the framework of Minimum Description Length (MDL combined with Hypothesize and Test (HAT. The parameters governing the MDL optimization are automatically estimated based on Min-Max optimization and Entropy-based weighting method. The performance of the proposed method is tested over the International

  3. Implicit Regularization for Reconstructing 3D Building Rooftop Models Using Airborne LiDAR Data.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jung, Jaewook; Jwa, Yoonseok; Sohn, Gunho

    2017-03-19

    With rapid urbanization, highly accurate and semantically rich virtualization of building assets in 3D become more critical for supporting various applications, including urban planning, emergency response and location-based services. Many research efforts have been conducted to automatically reconstruct building models at city-scale from remotely sensed data. However, developing a fully-automated photogrammetric computer vision system enabling the massive generation of highly accurate building models still remains a challenging task. One the most challenging task for 3D building model reconstruction is to regularize the noises introduced in the boundary of building object retrieved from a raw data with lack of knowledge on its true shape. This paper proposes a data-driven modeling approach to reconstruct 3D rooftop models at city-scale from airborne laser scanning (ALS) data. The focus of the proposed method is to implicitly derive the shape regularity of 3D building rooftops from given noisy information of building boundary in a progressive manner. This study covers a full chain of 3D building modeling from low level processing to realistic 3D building rooftop modeling. In the element clustering step, building-labeled point clouds are clustered into homogeneous groups by applying height similarity and plane similarity. Based on segmented clusters, linear modeling cues including outer boundaries, intersection lines, and step lines are extracted. Topology elements among the modeling cues are recovered by the Binary Space Partitioning (BSP) technique. The regularity of the building rooftop model is achieved by an implicit regularization process in the framework of Minimum Description Length (MDL) combined with Hypothesize and Test (HAT). The parameters governing the MDL optimization are automatically estimated based on Min-Max optimization and Entropy-based weighting method. The performance of the proposed method is tested over the International Society for

  4. Moving Advanced Desiccant Materials into Mainstream Non-CFC Cooling Products

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sand, J R [ORNL; Grossman, G [ORNL; Rice, C K [ORNL; Fairchild, P D [ORNL; Gross, I L [Engelhard/ICC

    1994-01-01

    Desiccant air-conditioning systems can be used as alternatives for conventional air-conditioning equipment in any commercial or residential building. Recent breakthroughs in desiccant materials technology and the creation of new markets by Indoor Air Quality issues make desiccant-based air-conditioning equipment practical for many space-conditioning applications.

  5. In situ FTIR assessment of desiccation-tolerant tissues

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wolkers, W.F.; Hoekstra, F.A.

    2003-01-01

    This essay shows how Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) microspectroscopy can be applied to study thermodynamic parameters and conformation of endogenous biomolecules in desiccation-tolerant biological tissues. Desiccation tolerance is the remarkable ability of some organisms to survive complete

  6. Hydrogen at the Rooftop: Compact CPV-Hydrogen system to Convert Sunlight to Hydrogen

    KAUST Repository

    Burhan, Muhammad

    2017-12-27

    Despite being highest potential energy source, solar intermittency and low power density make it difficult for solar energy to compete with the conventional power plants. Highly efficient concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) system provides best technology to be paired with the electrolytic hydrogen production, as a sustainable energy source with long term energy storage. However, the conventional gigantic design of CPV system limits its market and application to the open desert fields without any rooftop installation scope, unlike conventional PV. This makes CPV less popular among solar energy customers. This paper discusses the development of compact CPV-Hydrogen system for the rooftop application in the urban region. The in-house built compact CPV system works with hybrid solar tracking of 0.1° accuracy, ensured through proposed double lens collimator based solar tracking sensor. With PEM based electrolyser, the compact CPV-hydrogen system showed 28% CPV efficiency and 18% sunlight to hydrogen (STH) efficiency, for rooftop operation in tropical region of Singapore. For plant designers, the solar to hydrogen production rating of 217 kWh/kg has been presented with 15% STH daily average efficiency, recorded from the long term field operation of the system.

  7. Hydrogen at the Rooftop: Compact CPV-Hydrogen system to Convert Sunlight to Hydrogen

    KAUST Repository

    Burhan, Muhammad; Wakil Shahzad, Muhammad; Ng, Kim Choon

    2017-01-01

    Despite being highest potential energy source, solar intermittency and low power density make it difficult for solar energy to compete with the conventional power plants. Highly efficient concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) system provides best technology to be paired with the electrolytic hydrogen production, as a sustainable energy source with long term energy storage. However, the conventional gigantic design of CPV system limits its market and application to the open desert fields without any rooftop installation scope, unlike conventional PV. This makes CPV less popular among solar energy customers. This paper discusses the development of compact CPV-Hydrogen system for the rooftop application in the urban region. The in-house built compact CPV system works with hybrid solar tracking of 0.1° accuracy, ensured through proposed double lens collimator based solar tracking sensor. With PEM based electrolyser, the compact CPV-hydrogen system showed 28% CPV efficiency and 18% sunlight to hydrogen (STH) efficiency, for rooftop operation in tropical region of Singapore. For plant designers, the solar to hydrogen production rating of 217 kWh/kg has been presented with 15% STH daily average efficiency, recorded from the long term field operation of the system.

  8. Desiccant Dewpoint Cooling System Independent of External Water Sources

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bellemo, Lorenzo; Elmegaard, Brian; Markussen, Wiebke B.

    2015-01-01

    the air that regenerates the desiccant dehumidifier, and using it for running the evaporative coolers in the system. A closed regeneration circuit is used for maximizing the amount of condensed water. This solution is applied to a system with a desiccant wheel dehumidifier and a dew point cooler, termed...... desiccant dew-point cooling system, for demonstrating its function and applicability. Simulations are carried out for varying outdoor conditions under constant supply conditions. The results show that the system is independent of external water supply for the majority of simulated conditions. In comparison...... to the desiccant dew-point system without water recovery, the required regeneration temperature increases and the system thermal efficiency decreases....

  9. Experimental investigations on performance of liquid desiccant-vapor compression hybrid air conditioner

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mohan, B. Shaji; Tiwari, Shaligram; Maiya, M.P.

    2015-01-01

    A coupled desiccant column is integrated with a conventional room air conditioner (AC) to enhance dehumidification of the room air. One desiccant column (absorber) is placed after the evaporator the other (regenerator) after the condenser of the AC unit. Such a novel liquid desiccant vapour compression hybrid air conditioning system has been fabricated and tested in a balanced ambient room type calorimeter for very low flow rates of liquid desiccant (lithium bromide solution). The moisture from the cold supply air is transferred to the hot condenser air by the desiccant flowing in the loop, thereby complimenting the dehumidification of the room air at the evaporator. The supply air is also sensibly heated during the dehumidification process by liquid desiccant in the absorber, which together enables the hybrid system to maintain low humidity in the room. Whereas the liquid desiccant is regenerated by the condenser waste heat, the entire cooling is derived only by the AC unit. The experimental results show that an increase of room temperature reduces both dehumidification of process air and regeneration of liquid desiccant, whereas an increase of room specific humidity enhances both these for the flow rate of the liquid desiccant in the range of 0.2–1.6% of the air flow rate through the absorber. - Highlights: • A liquid desiccant vapor compression hybrid system is fabricated and tested. • The liquid desiccant reduces latent load but equally increases sensible load. • Hybrid system performance is studied for varying room temperature and humidity. • Higher room temperature lowers air dehumidification and desiccant regeneration. • Increase of room specific humidity enhances dehumidification and also regeneration

  10. Triple-bore hollow fiber membrane contactor for liquid desiccant based air dehumidification

    KAUST Repository

    Bettahalli Narasimha, Murthy Srivatsa

    2016-04-26

    Dehumidification is responsible for a large part of the energy consumption in cooling systems in high humidity environments worldwide. Improving efficiency is therefore essential. Liquid desiccants offer a promising solution for dehumidification, as desired levels of humidity removal could be easily regulated. The use of membrane contactors in combination with liquid desiccant is attractive for dehumidification because they prevent direct contact between the humid air and the desiccant, removing both the potential for desiccant carryover to the air and the potential for contamination of the liquid desiccant by dust and other airborne materials, as well as minimizing corrosion. However, the expected additional mass transport barrier of the membrane surface can lower the expected desiccation rate per unit of desiccant surface area. In this context, hollow fiber membranes present an attractive option for membrane liquid desiccant contactors because of their high surface area per unit volume. We demonstrate in this work the performance of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) based triple-bore hollow fiber membranes as liquid desiccant contactors, which are permeable to water vapor but impermeable to liquid water, for dehumidification of hot and humid air.

  11. Solar PV-based rooftop power plant

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ashok Kumar, B.; Kumar, Chaitanya; Patel, C.B.; Pattanaik, B.R.; Panda, P.K.; Kaul, S.K.; Mishra, H.

    2017-01-01

    Technical Services Division (TSD) is responsible for providing reliable power supply to various operating reactors, laboratories and facilities of BARC. The power supply to BARC is derived from TATA Power at 110 KV and 22 KV at an average HT tariff of Rs.8.49 per unit at present. Peak power demand of BARC in summer season goes up to 23 MW. TSD has implemented several energy conservation measures to reduce the energy consumption and as well taken initiatives to install solar PV based rooftop power plants to reduce the cost of energy consumption in BARC

  12. Performance assessment of adding Cu-ultrafine particles into falling film desiccant

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Al-Mulla Ali, A.

    2006-01-01

    The concept of dehumidification between air and liquid desiccant for the improvement of the efficiency of heating and cooling fluids in industrial applications was discussed. The use of solid/liquid desiccants has received much attention in recent years because liquid desiccants can take moisture from surrounding air at low temperature and then release the moisture at high temperature to provide a continuous process of dehumidification of air and regeneration of liquid desiccant. This process can be used with conventional vapor compression cycles. This paper presented a comparative numerical study between parallel and counter flow configurations that examined the effects of various parameters on heat and mass transfer for the dehumidification and cooling processes of air and regeneration rate of liquid desiccant. Ultrafine particles were added to the falling film desiccant to investigate heat and mass transfer enhancement for both parallel and counter flow channels. The Cu-volume fraction in the falling film desiccant and dispersion effect were the important parameters. A mathematical model was therefore developed to account for the addition of Cu-ultrafine particles into the film desiccant. The dehumidification and cooling rate processes were found to improve with an increase in the Cu-ultrafine particles and dispersion effect. The new hybrid AC system was shown to improve indoor air quality, reduce energy consumption, and be environmentally safe. It was concluded that although the volume fraction and dispersion factor improve the dehumidification and cooling processes of the air, the improvements are not significant due to the small thickness of the falling-film desiccant. The regeneration process did not improve for either controlling parameter because of the small thickness of the film desiccant. 14 refs., 10 figs

  13. Thermal performance of different planting substrates and irrigation frequencies in extensive tropical rooftop greeneries

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lin, Yi-Jiung [Department of Environmental Engineering and Science, Foo-Yin University, Kaohsiung (China); No. 16, Lane 29, Chen-Sing 7th Street, Niao-Song, Kaohsiung 833 (China); Lin, Hsien-Te [Department of Architecture, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan (China); No. 1, Ta-Hsueh Road, Tainan 701 (China)

    2011-02-15

    The need for the better use of scarce planetary resources has never been more evident than it is today. However, this need is poorly reflected in human housing. In recent years, there has been a growing realization of the importance of constructing human shelters that better conserve energy and water through appropriate insulation and architectural designs. Among the important advancements in these areas is the use of rooftop greeneries for both energy and water conservation. This paper performs an investigation into this topic within the specific climatic context of tropical regions. Long-term experimental results are provided from a four-floor building in Kaohsiung in the southern part of Taiwan. The study involves a fully monitored extensive rooftop greenery and examines four different plant substrates, three different irrigation regimes, and different types of drought-enduring plants to find the most efficient combination of all three in providing maximum heat insulation and water usage efficiency. The attenuation of solar radiation through the vegetation layer is evaluated, as well as the thermal insulation performance of the rooftop greenery structure. Among the substrates, burned sludge has the best thermal reduction percentage of heat amplitude under the roof slab surface (up to 84.4%). Irrigation twice a week has the best thermal reduction percentage of heat amplitude (91.6%). Among the plant types, Sansevieria trifasciata cv. Laurentii Compacta and Rhoeo spathaceo cv. Compacta are found to be suitable for extensive rooftop greeneries because they have the best coverage ratio and are most drought enduring. (author)

  14. Effect of Nitrogen Starvation on Desiccation Tolerance of Arctic Microcoleus Strains (Cyanobacteria

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daria eTashyreva

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Although desiccation tolerance of Microcoleus species is a well-known phenomenon, there is very little information about their limits of desiccation tolerance in terms of cellular water content, the survival rate of their cells, and the environmental factors inducing their resistance to drying. We have discovered that three Microcoleus strains, isolated from terrestrial habitats of the High Arctic, survived extensive dehydration (to 0.23 g water g-1 dry mass, but did not tolerate complete desiccation (to 0.03 g water g-1 dry mass regardless of pre-desiccation treatments. However, these treatments were critical for the survival of incomplete desiccation: cultures grown under optimal conditions failed to survive even incomplete desiccation; a low temperature enabled only 0 to 15% of cells to survive, while 39.8 to 65.9% of cells remained alive and intact after nitrogen starvation. Unlike Nostoc, which co-exists with Microcoleus in Arctic terrestrial habitats, Microcoleus strains are not truly anhydrobiotic and do not possess constitutive desiccation tolerance. Instead, it seems that the survival strategy of Microcoleus in periodically dry habitats involves avoidance of complete desiccation, but tolerance to milder desiccation stress, which is induced by suboptimal conditions (e.g. nitrogen starvation.

  15. Clay with Desiccation Cracks is an Advection Dominated Environment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baram, S.; Kurtzman, D.; Sher, Y.; Ronen, Z.; Dahan, O.

    2012-04-01

    Heavy clay sediments are regarded "safe" from the hydrological point of view due to their low hydraulic conductivities. However, the formation of desiccation cracks in dispersive clays may dramatically change their bulk hydraulic properties. The impact of desiccation cracks on water percolation, dissolved salts and contaminants transport and redox related reactions (microbial ammonium oxidation and denitrification) were investigated in 6 -12 m clay layer near a diary farm waste lagoon. The study implemented unique vadose-zone monitoring systems that enable in-situ measurements of the temporal variation of the sediment's water content along with frequent sampling of the sediment's pore water along the entire vadose zone (> 30 m). Results from four years of continuous measurements showed quick rises in sediment water content following rain events and temporal wastewater overflows. The percolation pattern indicated dominance of preferential flow through a desiccation-cracks network crossing the entire clay sediment layer. High water-propagation velocities (0.4 - 23.6 m h-1) were observed, indicating that the desiccation-crack network remains open and serves as a preferential flow pathway year-round, even at high sediment water content (~0.50 m3 m-3). The rapid percolation bypassed the most bio-geo-active parts of the soil, transporting even highly sorptive contaminants (testosterone and estrogen) in to the deep sections of the vadose zone, accelerating the underlying groundwater contamination. The ammonium and nitrate concentrations in the vadose zone and the high number of nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria (~108 gene copies gdry-sediemt-1, each) found in the sediment indicated that the entire vadose zone is aerated even at high water content conditions (~0.55 m3 m-3). The dissolved salts concentration in the pore-water and the δ2H-H2O and δ18O-H2O values of the pore-water substantially increased with depth (becoming less depleted) in the clay sediment

  16. Rapid reactivation of cyanobacterial photosynthesis and migration upon rehydration of desiccated marine microbial mats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Arjun eChennu

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Desiccated cyanobacterial mats are the dominant biological feature in the Earth's arid zones. While the response of desiccated cyanobacteria to rehydration is well documented for terrestrial systems, information about the response in marine systems is lacking. We used high temporal resolution hyperspectral imaging, liquid chromatography, pulse-amplitude fluorometry, oxygen microsensors and confocal laser microscopy to study this response in a desiccated microbial mat from Exmouth Gulf, Australia. During the initial 15 minutes after rehydration chlorophyll a concentrations increased 2-5 fold and cyanobacterial photosynthesis was re-established. Although the mechanism behind this rapid increase of chlorophyll a remains unknown, we hypothesize that it involves resynthesis from a precursor stored in desiccated cyanobacteria. The subsequent phase (15 min – 48 h involved migration of the reactivated cyanobacteria towards the mat surface, which led, together with a gradual increase in chlorophyll a, to a further increase in photosynthesis. We conclude that the response involving an increase in chlorophyll a and recovery of photosynthetic activity within minutes after rehydration is common for cyanobacteria from desiccated mats of both terrestrial and aquatic origin. However the response of upward migration and its triggering factor appears to be mat-specific and likely linked to other factors.

  17. Rapid Reactivation of Cyanobacterial Photosynthesis and Migration upon Rehydration of Desiccated Marine Microbial Mats

    KAUST Repository

    Chennu, Arjun

    2015-12-24

    Desiccated cyanobacterial mats are the dominant biological feature in the Earth’s arid zones. While the response of desiccated cyanobacteria to rehydration is well-documented for terrestrial systems, information about the response in marine systems is lacking. We used high temporal resolution hyperspectral imaging, liquid chromatography, pulse-amplitude fluorometry, oxygen microsensors, and confocal laser microscopy to study this response in a desiccated microbial mat from Exmouth Gulf, Australia. During the initial 15 min after rehydration chlorophyll a concentrations increased 2–5 fold and cyanobacterial photosynthesis was re-established. Although the mechanism behind this rapid increase of chlorophyll a remains unknown, we hypothesize that it involves resynthesis from a precursor stored in desiccated cyanobacteria. The subsequent phase (15 min–48 h) involved migration of the reactivated cyanobacteria toward the mat surface, which led, together with a gradual increase in chlorophyll a, to a further increase in photosynthesis. We conclude that the response involving an increase in chlorophyll a and recovery of photosynthetic activity within minutes after rehydration is common for cyanobacteria from desiccated mats of both terrestrial and marine origin. However, the response of upward migration and its triggering factor appear to be mat-specific and likely linked to other factors.

  18. Rapid Reactivation of Cyanobacterial Photosynthesis and Migration upon Rehydration of Desiccated Marine Microbial Mats

    KAUST Repository

    Chennu, Arjun; Grinham, Alistair; Polerecky, Lubos; de Beer, Dirk; Alnajjar, Mohammad Ahmad

    2015-01-01

    Desiccated cyanobacterial mats are the dominant biological feature in the Earth’s arid zones. While the response of desiccated cyanobacteria to rehydration is well-documented for terrestrial systems, information about the response in marine systems is lacking. We used high temporal resolution hyperspectral imaging, liquid chromatography, pulse-amplitude fluorometry, oxygen microsensors, and confocal laser microscopy to study this response in a desiccated microbial mat from Exmouth Gulf, Australia. During the initial 15 min after rehydration chlorophyll a concentrations increased 2–5 fold and cyanobacterial photosynthesis was re-established. Although the mechanism behind this rapid increase of chlorophyll a remains unknown, we hypothesize that it involves resynthesis from a precursor stored in desiccated cyanobacteria. The subsequent phase (15 min–48 h) involved migration of the reactivated cyanobacteria toward the mat surface, which led, together with a gradual increase in chlorophyll a, to a further increase in photosynthesis. We conclude that the response involving an increase in chlorophyll a and recovery of photosynthetic activity within minutes after rehydration is common for cyanobacteria from desiccated mats of both terrestrial and marine origin. However, the response of upward migration and its triggering factor appear to be mat-specific and likely linked to other factors.

  19. Soil desiccation cracks as a suction–contraction process

    KAUST Repository

    Cordero, J. A.; Useche, G.; Prat, P. C.; Ledesma, A.; Santamarina, Carlos

    2017-01-01

    Recent macro- and particle-scale advances in unsaturated soil behaviour have led to an enhanced understanding of the effects of moisture changes on soil response. This research examines desiccation cracks as a suction–contraction-coupled process using sand–clay mixtures. Suction–moisture measurements highlight the role of fines on suction potential even at low fines content; on the other hand, oedometer tests exhibit a marked transition from sand-controlled to clay-controlled compressibility. Time-lapse photography of desiccation tests in flat trays show the onset of crack initiation and the subsequent evolution in horizontal strains; concurrent gravimetric water content measurements relate crack nucleation to suction at air entry. Suction and compressibility increase with the soil-specific surface and have a compounded effect on desiccation-driven lateral contraction. Both layer thickness and its lateral extent affect the development of desiccation cracks. The recently proposed revised soil classification system properly anticipates the transitions in compressibility and capillary phenomena observed in this study (between 15 and 35% fines content).

  20. Soil desiccation cracks as a suction–contraction process

    KAUST Repository

    Cordero, J. A.

    2017-10-05

    Recent macro- and particle-scale advances in unsaturated soil behaviour have led to an enhanced understanding of the effects of moisture changes on soil response. This research examines desiccation cracks as a suction–contraction-coupled process using sand–clay mixtures. Suction–moisture measurements highlight the role of fines on suction potential even at low fines content; on the other hand, oedometer tests exhibit a marked transition from sand-controlled to clay-controlled compressibility. Time-lapse photography of desiccation tests in flat trays show the onset of crack initiation and the subsequent evolution in horizontal strains; concurrent gravimetric water content measurements relate crack nucleation to suction at air entry. Suction and compressibility increase with the soil-specific surface and have a compounded effect on desiccation-driven lateral contraction. Both layer thickness and its lateral extent affect the development of desiccation cracks. The recently proposed revised soil classification system properly anticipates the transitions in compressibility and capillary phenomena observed in this study (between 15 and 35% fines content).

  1. Desiccant-assisted cooling fundamentals and applications

    CERN Document Server

    Brum, Nisio

    2014-01-01

    The increasing concern with indoor air quality has led to air-quality standards with increased ventilation rates. Although increasing the volume flow rate of outside air is advisable from the perspective of air-quality, it is detrimental to energy consumption, since the outside air has to be brought to the comfort condition before it is insufflated to the  conditioned ambient. Moreover, the humidity load carried within outside air has challenging HVAC engineers to design cooling units which are able to satisfactorily handle both sensible and latent contributions to the thermal load. This constitutes a favorable scenario for the use of solid desiccants to assist the cooling units. In fact, desiccant wheels have been increasingly applied by HVAC designers, allowing distinct processes for the air cooling and dehumidification. In fact, the ability of solid desiccants in moisture removal is effective enough to allow the use of evaporative coolers, in opposition to the traditional vapor-compression cycle, resultin...

  2. Performance investigation on the ultrasonic atomization liquid desiccant regeneration system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yang, Zili; Zhang, Kaisheng; Hwang, Yunho; Lian, Zhiwei

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • We applied ultrasonic atomization technology to boost liquid desiccant regeneration. • We established a novel UARS and made a thorough study on its performance. • We developed a performance prediction model for UARS and validated its accuracy. • The necessary regeneration temperature dropped significantly (4.4 °C) in UARS. • Energy consumption for regenerating desiccant was reduced greatly (60.4%) in UARS. - Abstract: Liquid desiccant dehumidification systems have accumulated considerable research interest in recent years for their great energy saving potential in buildings. Within the system, the regenerator recovering liquid desiccant plays a major role in its performance. When the ultrasonic atomization technology is applied to atomize the desiccant solution into numerous tiny droplets with diameters around 50 μm, the regeneration process could be greatly enhanced. To validate this approach, a novel ultrasonic atomization liquid desiccant regeneration system (UARS) was studied in this work. An Ideal Regeneration Model (IRM) was developed to predict the regeneration performance of the UARS. Additionally, thorough experiments were carried out to validate the model under different operating conditions of the desiccant solution and air stream. The model predicted values and the experimental results coincided, with the average deviation less than 7.9%. The performance of UARS was compared with other regeneration systems from the open literature, while a case study was conducted for the power consumption and energy saving potential of UARS. It was found that the ultrasonic atomization technology enabled utilization of lower-grade energy for desiccant regeneration with the regeneration temperature lowered as much as 4.4 °C. In addition, a considerable energy saving potential of up to 23.4% could be achieved by the UARS for regenerating per unit mass flow of desiccant solution, while the power consumption of the ultrasonic atomization system

  3. Identification by phenotypic and genetic approaches of an indigenous Saccharomyces cerevisiae wine strain with high desiccation tolerance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zambuto, Marianna; Romaniello, Rossana; Guaragnella, Nicoletta; Romano, Patrizia; Votta, Sonia; Capece, Angela

    2017-10-01

    During active dry yeast (ADY) production process, cells are exposed to multiple stresses, such as thermal, oxidative and hyperosmotic shock. Previously, by analysing cells in exponential growth phase, we selected an indigenous Saccharomyces cerevisiae wine strain, namely CD-6Sc, for its higher tolerance to desiccation and higher expression of specific desiccation stress-related genes in comparison to other yeast strains. In this study, we performed a desiccation treatment on stationary phase cells by comparing the efficacy of two different methods: a 'laboratory dry test' on a small scale (mild stress) and a treatment by spray-drying (severe stress), one of the most appropriate preservation method for yeasts and other micro-organisms. The expression of selected desiccation-related genes has been also assessed in order to validate predictive markers for desiccation tolerance. Our data demonstrate that the 'mild' and the 'severe' desiccation treatments give similar results in terms of cell recovery, but the choice of marker genes strictly depends on the growth phase in which cells undergo desiccation. The indigenous CD-6Sc was ultimately identified as a high dehydration stress-tolerant indigenous strain suitable for ADY production. This study highlights the exploitation of natural yeast biodiversity as a source of hidden technological features and as an alternative approach to strain improvement by genetic modifications. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  4. Water relations during desiccation of cysts of the potato-cyst nematode Globodera rostochiensis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wharton, D A; Worland, M R

    2001-03-01

    The loss during desiccation of osmotically active water (OAW), which freezes during cooling to -45 degrees C, and osmotically inactive water (OIW), which remains unfrozen, from the cysts of the potato cyst nematode, Globodera rostochiensis, was determined using differential scanning calorimetry. Exotherms and endotherms associated with non-egg compartments were not detected after 5 min desiccation at 50% relative humidity and 20 degrees C. The pattern of water loss from the cysts indicates that water is lost from compartments outside the eggs first, that nearly all the non-egg water is OAW and that the OIW content of the cyst is contained within the eggs. Water is lost from the eggs only after the OAW content outside the eggs falls below that within the eggs. Both OAW and OIW are lost from the eggs during desiccation but the eggs retain a small amount of OIW. Other animals which survive some desiccation but which are not anhydrobiotic will tolerate the loss of OAW but not the loss of their OIW. Anhydrobiotic animals can survive the loss of both their OAW and a substantial proportion of their OIW.

  5. Desiccants for retrospective dosimetry using optically stimulated luminescence (OSL)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Geber-Bergstrand, Therése; Bernhardsson, Christian; Christiansson, Maria; Mattsson, Sören; Rääf, Christopher L.

    2015-01-01

    Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) was used to test different kinds of desiccants for their potential use in retrospective dosimetry. Desiccants are used for the purpose of absorbing liquids and can be found in a number of items which may be found in the immediate environment of a person, including hand bags, drug packages, and the vehicles of rescue service teams. Any material exhibiting OSL properties suitable for retrospective dosimetry is a useful addition to the existing dosimetry system available in emergency preparedness. Eleven kinds of desiccants were investigated in order to obtain an overview of the fundamental OSL properties necessary for retrospective dosimetry. Measurements were made using a Risø TL/OSL reader and irradiations were achieved with the 90 Sr/ 90 Y source incorporated in the reader. Several of the desiccants exhibited promising properties as retrospective dosemeters. Some of the materials exhibited a strong as-received signal, i.e. without any laboratory irradiation, but the origin of this signal has not yet been established. The minimum detectable dose ranged from 8 to 450 mGy for ten of the materials and for one material (consisting of natural clay) the minimum detectable dose was 1.8 Gy. - Highlights: • Desiccants can be used as fortuitous dosemeters using OSL. • The minimum detectable dose for processed desiccants range from 8 to 450 mGy. • The minimum detectable dose for natural clay was 1.8 Gy

  6. Rooftop hospital gardens for physical therapy: a post-occupancy evaluation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davis, Brad E

    2011-01-01

    The goal of this study was to understand successes and weaknesses of a rooftop hospital garden used primarily for physical therapy. Literature on the healing benefits of nature and designed outdoor spaces in healthcare contexts continues to become more focused on specific patient populations. This study contributes to the knowledge of rooftop hospital gardens and gardens for physical rehabilitation. A post-occupancy evaluation was conducted using interviews with a lead therapist and landscape architect, behavior mapping, a staff survey, and a patient questionnaire. The designer and administrative staff perceived high accessibility while patients and staff reported low accessibility. Patients reported high satisfaction with the garden while staff reported little time for garden use. Poor maintenance decisions resulted in decreased functional and aesthetic value. Garden elements take on added layers of meaning and value to users seeking to escape the indoor environment, placing increased importance on evidence-based site design. Multiple perspectives must be considered in facility and garden master planning. Finally, designers and horticultural therapists must be retained in garden management to preserve and enhance garden functionality.

  7. Solar to hydrogen: Compact and cost effective CPV field for rooftop operation and hydrogen production

    KAUST Repository

    Burhan, Muhammad

    2016-11-25

    Current commercial CPV systems are designed as large units which are targeted to be installed in open desert fields with high DNI availability. It appeared that the CPV is among some of those technologies which gained very little attention of people, with less customers and market. For conventional PV systems, the installations at the rooftop of commercial and residential buildings have a significant share in the total installed capacity of PV systems. That is why for most of the countries, the PV installations at the rooftop of commercial and residential buildings are aimed to be increased to half of total installed PV. On the other hand, there is no commercial CPV system available to be suitable for rooftop operation, giving motivation for the development of CPV field of compact systems. This paper discusses the development of a CPV field for the rooftop operation, comprising of compact CPV system with cost effective but highly accurate solar tracking sensor and wireless master slave control. In addition, the performance of the developed CPV systems is evaluated for production of hydrogen, which can be used as energy carrier or energy storage and a maximum solar to hydrogen efficiency of 18% is obtained. However, due to dynamic nature of the weather data and throughout the day variations in the performance of CPV and electrolyser, the solar to hydrogen performance is proposed to be reported as daily and long term average efficiency. The CPV-Hydrogen system showed daily average conversion efficiency of 15%, with solar to hydrogen production rate of 218 kW h/kg.

  8. Tolerance to environmental desiccation in moss sperm.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shortlidge, Erin E; Rosenstiel, Todd N; Eppley, Sarah M

    2012-05-01

    • Sexual reproduction in mosses requires that sperm be released freely into the environment before finding and fertilizing a receptive female. After release from the male plant, moss sperm may experience a range of abiotic stresses; however, few data are available examining stress tolerance of moss sperm and whether there is genetic variation for stress tolerance in this important life stage. • Here, we investigated the effects of environmental desiccation and recovery on the sperm cells of three moss species (Bryum argenteum, Campylopus introflexus, and Ceratodon purpureus). • We found that a fraction of sperm cells were tolerant to environmental desiccation for extended periods (d) and that tolerance did not vary among species. We found that this tolerance occurs irrespective of ambient dehydration conditions, and that the addition of sucrose during dry-down improved cell recovery. Although we observed no interspecific variation, significant variation among individuals within species in sperm cell tolerance to environmental desiccation was observed, suggesting selection could potentially act on this basic reproductive trait. • The observation of desiccation-tolerant sperm in multiple moss species has important implications for understanding bryophyte reproduction, suggesting the presence of a significant, uncharacterized complexity in the ecology of moss mating systems. © 2012 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2012 New Phytologist Trust.

  9. Simulation of potential standalone liquid desiccant cooling cycles

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Das, Rajat Subhra; Jain, Sanjeev

    2015-01-01

    LDCS (Liquid desiccant cooling systems), capable of achieving dehumidification and cooling with low-grade heat input, can be effectively used for treating fresh air in hot and humid regions. These can also be operated using non-concentrating solar collectors. The present study is concerned with the evaluation of various potential liquid desiccant cycles for tropical climatic conditions. Six potential standalone liquid desiccant cycles are identified and analyzed to select the best configuration for achieving thermal comfort. A computer simulation model is developed in EES (Equation Solver) software platform to evaluate the performance of all the cycles at various operating conditions. Aqueous solution of LiCl (lithium chloride) is used as desiccant. Mass and energy balance equations of all the components along with their effectiveness and LiCl property correlation equations are solved simultaneously for given ambient conditions. As the desiccant circuit is a closed loop, no assumptions are made about its concentration and temperature in the algorithm. Supply air conditions, cooling capacity, COP (capacity and coefficient of performance) and CR (circulation rate) per unit cooling capacity and hot water temperature requirement are used as a measure for analyzing the performance of the different cycles. The effect of hot water temperature on the performance of the cycles is evaluated at ARI conditions. The performances of the cycles are also evaluated for cities selected from each of the climatic zone of India that represent typical tropical climates. Although all the cycles are feasible at ARI and hot and dry conditions, only two cycles can achieve the selected indoor conditions in the peak humid conditions. The results would be useful for selecting suitable liquid desiccant cycle for a given climate. - Highlights: • Six potential standalone liquid desiccant cycles identified and analyzed to select best configuration. • A computer simulation model is developed in

  10. Experimental study of regenerative desiccant integrated solar dryer with and without reflective mirror

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shanmugam, V. [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sathyabama University, Chennai, 600 119 (India); Natarajan, E. [Institute for Energy Studies, College of Engineering, Anna University, Chennai, 600 025 (India)

    2007-06-15

    An indirect forced convection with desiccant integrated solar dryer has been built and tested. The main parts are: a flat plate solar air collector, a drying chamber, desiccant bed and a centrifugal blower. The system is operated in two modes, sunshine hours and off sunshine hours. During sun shine hours the hot air from the flat plate collector is forced to the drying chamber for drying the product and simultaneously the desiccant bed receives solar radiation directly and through the reflected mirror. In the off sunshine hours, the dryer is operated by circulating the air inside the drying chamber through the desiccant bed by a reversible fan. The dryer is used to dry 20 kg of green peas and pineapple slices. Drying experiments were conducted with and without the integration of desiccant unit. The effect of reflective mirror on the drying potential of desiccant unit was also investigated. With the inclusion of reflective mirror, the drying potential of the desiccant material is increased by 20% and the drying time is reduced. The drying efficiency of the system varies between 43% and 55% and the pick-up efficiency varies between 20% and 60%, respectively. Approximately in all the drying experiments 60% of moisture is removed by air heated using solar energy and the remainder by the desiccant. The inclusion of reflective mirror on the desiccant bed makes faster regeneration of the desiccant material. (author)

  11. Resilience of roof-top Plant-Microbial Fuel Cells during Dutch winter

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Helder, M.; Strik, D.P.B.T.B.; Timmers, R.A.; Reas, S.M.T.; Hamelers, H.V.M.; Buisman, C.J.N.

    2013-01-01

    The Plant-Microbial Fuel Cell (P-MFC) is in theory a technology that could produce sustainable electricity continuously. We operated two designs of the P-MFC under natural roof-top conditions in the Netherlands for 221 days, including winter, to test its resilience. Current and power densities are

  12. Business models and financing options for a rapid scale-up of rooftop solar power systems in Thailand

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tongsopit, Sopitsuda; Moungchareon, Sunee; Aksornkij, Apinya; Potisat, Tanai

    2016-01-01

    Diverse solar PV business models and financing options exist in the international landscape, helping expand and accelerate the adoption of rooftop solar PV systems. The conditions for their emergence are context specific, depending on the policies, regulations, incentives, and market conditions of each country. After a review of the international landscape, this paper compiles and analyzes business models and financing options for rooftop solar PV investment in Thailand that have emerged during the period between 2013 and 2015. Despite policy discontinuity for the support of rooftop solar systems, diverse business models and financing options are driving market expansion and expanding solar access to more Thai consumers. Drawing on our policy and regulatory analyses and in-depth interviews with business representatives, we identify four types of business models and one financing option. The business models include Roof Rental, Solar PPA, Solar Leasing, and Community Solar, and the financing option is the solar loan. We analyze the drivers for their emergence, barriers to their success, and the risks from the business owners' and consumers' viewpoints. Our policy recommendation is focused on crafting a net-metering regulation with evidence-based studies on the potential costs and benefits to different stakeholders. - Highlights: •Advances understanding on PV business models in urban developing countries' context. •Reviews emerging rooftop solar business models in Thailand. •Thailand has a dynamic solar market despite policy uncertainties.

  13. A desiccant-enhanced evaporative air conditioner: Numerical model and experiments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Woods, Jason; Kozubal, Eric

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: ► We studied a new process combining liquid desiccants and evaporative cooling. ► We modeled the process using a finite-difference numerical model. ► We measured the performance of the process with experimental prototypes. ► Results show agreement between model and experiment of ±10%. ► Results add confidence to previous modeled energy savings estimates of 40–85%. - Abstract: This article presents modeling and experimental results on a recently proposed liquid desiccant air conditioner, which consists of two stages: a liquid desiccant dehumidifier and an indirect evaporative cooler. Each stage is a stack of channel pairs, where a channel pair is a process air channel separated from an exhaust air channel with a thin plastic plate. In the first stage, a liquid desiccant film, which lines the process air channels, removes moisture from the air through a porous hydrophobic membrane. An evaporating water film wets the surface of the exhaust channels and transfers the enthalpy of vaporization from the liquid desiccant into an exhaust airstream, cooling the desiccant and enabling lower outlet humidity. The second stage is a counterflow indirect evaporative cooler that siphons off and uses a portion of the cool-dry air exiting the second stage as the evaporative sink. The objectives of this article are to (1) present fluid-thermal numerical models for each stage, (2) present experimental results of prototypes for each stage, and (3) compare the modeled and experimental results. Several experiments were performed on the prototypes over a range of inlet temperatures and humidities, process and exhaust air flow rates, and desiccant concentrations and flow rates. The model predicts the experiments within ±10%.

  14. Desiccation tolerance in Anopheles coluzzii: the effects of spiracle size and cuticular hydrocarbons

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arcaz, Arthur C.; Huestis, Diana L.; Dao, Adama; Yaro, Alpha S.; Diallo, Moussa; Andersen, John; Blomquist, Gary J.; Lehmann, Tovi

    2016-01-01

    ABSTRACT The African malaria mosquitoes Anopheles gambiae and Anopheles coluzzii range over forests and arid areas, where they withstand dry spells and months-long dry seasons, suggesting variation in their desiccation tolerance. We subjected a laboratory colony (G3) and wild Sahelian mosquitoes during the rainy and dry seasons to desiccation assays. The thoracic spiracles and amount and composition of cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) of individual mosquitoes were measured to determine the effects of these traits on desiccation tolerance. The relative humidity of the assay, body water available, rate of water loss and water content at death accounted for 88% of the variation in desiccation tolerance. Spiracle size did not affect the rate of water loss or desiccation tolerance of the colony mosquitoes, as was the case for the total CHCs. However, six CHCs accounted for 71% of the variation in desiccation tolerance and three accounted for 72% of the variation in the rate of water loss. Wild A. coluzzii exhibited elevated desiccation tolerance during the dry season. During that time, relative thorax and spiracle sizes were smaller than during the rainy season. A smaller spiracle size appeared to increase A. coluzzii's desiccation tolerance, but was not statistically significant. Seasonal changes in CHC composition were detected in Sahelian A. coluzzii. Stepwise regression models suggested the effect of particular CHCs on desiccation tolerance. In conclusion, the combination of particular CHCs along with the total amount of CHCs is a primary mechanism conferring desiccation tolerance in A. coluzzii, while variation in spiracle size might be a secondary mechanism. PMID:27207644

  15. Triiodothyronine and thyroxine content of desiccated thyroid tablets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rees-Jones, R W; Larsen, P R

    1977-11-01

    Triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4) were measured by radioimmunoassay in Pronase hydrolysates of four lots each of 1- and 2-grain tablets of desiccated thyroid (Thyroid, Armour) and thyroglobulin (Proloid, Warner-Chilcott). The methodology used was verified by studies of tablets containing known quantities of T4 and T3. One grain of desiccated thyroid contained 12 +/- 1 and 64 +/- 3 microgram (mean +/- SD) of T3 and T4 per tablet, respectively (T4/T3 molar ratio, 4.3). A 1-grain tablet of thyroglobulin contained 16 +/- 2 and 55 +/- 5 microgram of T3 and T4, respectively with a T4/T3 ratio of 2.9. Two-grain tablets generally contained twice the quantity of T3 and T4 in the 1-grain preparations. The variation in T3 and T4 content between the four lots of each tablet strength for each product was 10% or less. These estimates of T3 and T4 content are 1.5- to 2-fold greater than those previously published. This difference probably results from the more sophisticated methodology now available which does not require chromatographic separation of T3 and T4 or iodometry. Using calculations based on published estimates of T4 and T3 absorption and of the T3/T4 potency ratio, it would appear that the T3 content of desiccated thyroid and thyroglobulin provide approximately 39% and 51%, respectively, of the thyromimetic activity of these two medications.

  16. Experimental performance of indirect air–liquid membrane contactors for liquid desiccant cooling systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Das, Rajat Subhra; Jain, Sanjeev

    2013-01-01

    Owing to the stringent indoor air quality (IAQ) requirements and high cost of desiccants, one of the major concerns in liquid desiccant technology has been the carryover, which can be eliminated through indirect contact between desiccant and air. Membrane contactors using microporous semipermeable hydrophobic membranes have a great potential in this regard. This communication investigates the performance of semipermeable membrane based indirect contactors as dehumidifiers in liquid desiccant cooling applications. Experiments on different types of membrane contactors are carried out using lithium chloride (LiCl) solution as desiccant. The membrane contactors consist of alternate channels of air and liquid desiccant flowing in cross-flow direction. Hydrophobic membranes form a liquid tight, vapor permeable porous barrier between hygroscopic solution and moist air, thus eliminating carryover of desiccant droplets. In order to provide maximum contact area for air–desiccant interaction, a wicking material is sandwiched between two membranes in the liquid channel. It is observed that vapor flux upto 1300 g/m 2 h can be achieved in a membrane contactor with polypropylene (PP) membranes, although the dehumidification effectiveness remains low. The effect of key parameters on the transmembrane vapor transport is presented in the paper. - Highlights: • Indirect membrane contactors developed to avoid carryover in liquid desiccant system. • Dehumidification effectiveness and vapor flux reported under varying conditions. • Vapor flux upto 1295 g/m 2 h in polypropylene contactor with high area density. • Dehumidification effectiveness with LiCl solution varies within 23% to 45%

  17. Evaluation of High-Performance Rooftop HVAC Unit Naval Air Station Key West, Florida

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Howett, Daniel H. [ORNL; Desjarlais, Andre Omer [ORNL; Cox, Daryl [ORNL

    2018-01-01

    This report documents performance of a high performance rooftop HVAC unit (RTU) at Naval Air Station Key West, FL. This report was sponsored by the Federal Energy Management Program as part of the "High Performance RTU Campaign".

  18. Review of Desiccant Dehumidification Technology

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pesaran, A. A.

    1994-10-01

    This paper overviews applications of desiccant technology for dehumidifying commercial and institutional buildings. Because of various market, policy, and regulatory factors, this technology is especially attractive for dehumidification applications in the I990s.

  19. Energy saving effect of desiccant ventilation system using Wakkanai siliceous shale

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nabeshima, Yuki; Togawa, Jun-ya; Nagano, Katsunori; Kazuyo, Tsuzuki

    2017-10-01

    The nuclear power station accident resulting from the Great East Japan Earthquake disaster has resulted in a constrained electricity supply. However, in this Asian region there is high temperature and high humidity and consequently dehumidification process requires a huge amount of energy. This is the reason for the increasing energy consumption in the residential and commercial sectors. Accordingly, a high efficiency air-conditioning system is needed to be developed. The desiccant ventilation system is effective to reduce energy consumption for the dehumidification process. This system is capable of dehumidifying without dew condensing unlike a conventional air-conditioning system. Then we focused on Wakkanai Siliceous Shale (WSS) as a desiccant material to develop a new desiccant ventilation system. This is low priced, high performance, new type of thing. The aim of this study is to develop a desiccant ventilation unit using the WSS rotor which can be regenerated with low-temperature by numerical calculation. The results of performance prediction of the desiccant unit, indicate that it is possible to regenerate the WSS rotor at low-temperature of between 35 - 45 °C. In addition, we produced an actual measurement for the desiccant unit and air-conditioning unit. This air-conditioning system was capable to reduce roughly 40 % of input energy consumption.

  20. Citywide Impacts of Cool Roof and Rooftop Solar Photovoltaic Deployment on Near-Surface Air Temperature and Cooling Energy Demand

    Science.gov (United States)

    Salamanca, F.; Georgescu, M.; Mahalov, A.; Moustaoui, M.; Martilli, A.

    2016-10-01

    Assessment of mitigation strategies that combat global warming, urban heat islands (UHIs), and urban energy demand can be crucial for urban planners and energy providers, especially for hot, semi-arid urban environments where summertime cooling demands are excessive. Within this context, summertime regional impacts of cool roof and rooftop solar photovoltaic deployment on near-surface air temperature and cooling energy demand are examined for the two major USA cities of Arizona: Phoenix and Tucson. A detailed physics-based parametrization of solar photovoltaic panels is developed and implemented in a multilayer building energy model that is fully coupled to the Weather Research and Forecasting mesoscale numerical model. We conduct a suite of sensitivity experiments (with different coverage rates of cool roof and rooftop solar photovoltaic deployment) for a 10-day clear-sky extreme heat period over the Phoenix and Tucson metropolitan areas at high spatial resolution (1-km horizontal grid spacing). Results show that deployment of cool roofs and rooftop solar photovoltaic panels reduce near-surface air temperature across the diurnal cycle and decrease daily citywide cooling energy demand. During the day, cool roofs are more effective at cooling than rooftop solar photovoltaic systems, but during the night, solar panels are more efficient at reducing the UHI effect. For the maximum coverage rate deployment, cool roofs reduced daily citywide cooling energy demand by 13-14 %, while rooftop solar photovoltaic panels by 8-11 % (without considering the additional savings derived from their electricity production). The results presented here demonstrate that deployment of both roofing technologies have multiple benefits for the urban environment, while solar photovoltaic panels add additional value because they reduce the dependence on fossil fuel consumption for electricity generation.

  1. Numerical and experimental analysis of a solid desiccant wheel

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Koronaki Irene P.

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The rotary desiccant dehumidifier is an important component which can be used in air conditioning systems in order to reduce the electrical energy consumption and introduce renewable energy sources. In this study a one dimensional gas side resistance model is presented for predicting the performance of the desiccant wheel. Measurements from two real sorption wheels are used in order to validate the model. One wheel uses silica gel as desiccant material and the other lithium chloride. The simulation results are in good agreement with the experimental data. The model is used to compare the counter flow with the co-current wheel arrangements and to explain why the counter flow one is more efficient for air dehumidification.

  2. Experimental analysis on performance of high temperature heat pump and desiccant wheel system

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sheng, Ying; Zhang, Yufeng; Deng, Na

    2013-01-01

    In order to solve the problem of high energy consumption for regeneration of desiccant wheel in the rotary desiccant system, high temperature heat pump and desiccant wheel (HTHP&DW) system and corresponding air conditioning unit is built and tested in the extensive thermal hygrometric environment...

  3. Market Transformation Pathways for Grid-Connected Rooftop Solar PV in Minnesota

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Abbey, Ross [Fresh Energy, St. Paul, MN (United States); Ross, Brian [CR Planning, Minneapolis, MN (United States)

    2013-06-03

    This report presents the market and policy findings of the Minnesota Solar Challenge program. The report draws on information collected from state agencies, local government units, solar industry participants, rooftop photovoltaic (PV) adopters (sometimes called customer-generators), state and national experts, the Commerce distributed generation stakeholder process, and the numerous reports and data sets referenced herein.

  4. An Experimental Evolution Test of the Relationship between Melanism and Desiccation Survival in Insects.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Subhash Rajpurohit

    Full Text Available We used experimental evolution to test the 'melanism-desiccation' hypothesis, which proposes that dark cuticle in several Drosophila species is an adaptation for increased desiccation tolerance. We selected for dark and light body pigmentation in replicated populations of D. melanogaster and assayed several traits related to water balance. We also scored pigmentation and desiccation tolerance in populations selected for desiccation survival. Populations in both selection regimes showed large differences in the traits directly under selection. However, after over 40 generations of pigmentation selection, dark-selected populations were not more desiccation-tolerant than light-selected and control populations, nor did we find significant changes in mass or carbohydrate amounts that could affect desiccation resistance. Body pigmentation of desiccation-selected populations did not differ from control populations after over 140 generations of selection, although selected populations lost water less rapidly. Our results do not support an important role for melanization in Drosophila water balance.

  5. Desiccation induces accumulations of antheraxanthin and zeaxanthin in intertidal macro-alga Ulva pertusa (Chlorophyta.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiujun Xie

    Full Text Available For plants and algae, exposure to high light levels is deleterious to their photosynthetic machineries. It also can accelerate water evaporation and thus potentially lead to drought stress. Most photosynthetic organisms protect themselves against high light caused photodamages by xanthophyll cycle-dependent thermal energy dissipation. It is generally accepted that high light activates xanthophyll cycle. However, the relationship between xanthophyll cycle and drought stress remains ambiguous. Herein, Ulva pertusa (Chlorophyta, a representative perennial intertidal macro-algae species with high drought-tolerant capabilities and simple structures, was used to investigate the operation of xanthophyll cycle during desiccation in air. The results indicate that desiccation under dim light induced accumulation of antheraxanthin (Ax and zeaxanthin (Zx at the expense of violaxanthin (Vx. This accumulation could be arrested by dithiothreitol completely and by uncoupler (carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone partially, implying the participation of Vx de-epoxidase in conversion of Vx to Ax and Zx. Treatment with inhibitors of electron transport along thylakoid membrane, e.g. DCMU, PG and DBMIB, did not significantly arrest desiccation-induced accumulation of Ax and Zx. We propose that for U. pertusa, besides excess light, desiccation itself could also induce accumulation of Ax and Zx. This accumulation could proceed without electron transport along thylakoid membrane, and is possibly resulting from the reduction of thylakoid lumen volume during desiccation. Considering the pleiotropic effects of Ax and Zx, accumulated Ax and Zx may function in protecting thylakoid membrane and enhancing thermal quenching during emersion in air.

  6. Identification of Novel Desiccation-Tolerant S. cerevisiae Strains for Deep Space Biosensors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tieze, Sofia Massaro; Santa Maria, Sergio R.; Liddell, Lauren; Bhattacharya, Sharmila

    2017-01-01

    NASA's BioSentinel mission, a secondary payload that will fly on the Space Launch Systems first Exploration Mission (EM-1), utilizes the budding yeast S. cerevisiae to study the biological response to the deep space radiation environment. Yeast samples are desiccated prior to launch to suspend growth and metabolism while the spacecraft travels to its target heliocentric orbit beyond Low Earth Orbit. Each sample is then rehydrated at the desired time points to reactivate the cells. A major risk in this mission is the loss of cell viability that occurs in the recovery period following the desiccation and rehydration process. Cell survival is essential for the detection of the biological response to features in the deep space environment, including ionizing radiation.The aim of this study is to mitigate viable cell loss in future biosensors by identifying mutations and genes that confer tolerance to desiccation stress in rad51, a radiation-sensitive yeast strain. We initiated a screen for desiccation-tolerance after rehydrating cells that were desiccated for three years, and selected various clones exhibiting robust growth. To verify retention of radiation sensitivity in the isolated clonesa crucial feature for a successful biosensorwe exposed them to ionizing radiation. Finally, to elucidate the genetic and molecular bases for observed desiccation-tolerance, we will perform whole-genome sequencing of those rad51 clones that exhibit both robust growth and radiation sensitivity following desiccation. The identification and characterization of desiccation-tolerant strains will allow us to engineer a biological model that will be resilient in face of the challenges of the deep space environment, and will thus ensure the experimental success of future biosensor missions.

  7. Developing a Standard Method of Test for Packaged, Solid-Desiccant Based Dehumidification Systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sand, J.R.

    2001-01-01

    A draft Method of Test (MOT) has been proposed for packaged, air-to-air, desiccant-based dehumidifier systems that incorporate a thermally-regenerated desiccant material for dehumidification. This MOT is intended to function as the ''system'' testing and rating compliment to the desiccant ''component'' (desiccant wheels and/or cassettes) MOT (ASHRAE 1998) and rating standard (ARI 1998) already adopted by industry. This draft standard applies to ''packaged systems'' that: Use desiccants for dehumidification of conditioned air for buildings; Use heated air for regeneration of the desiccant material; Include fans for moving process and regeneration air; May include other system components for filtering, pre-cooling, post-cooling, or heating conditioned air; and May include other components for humidification of conditioned air. The proposed draft applies to four different system operating modes depending on whether outdoor or indoor air is used for process air and regeneration air streams . Only the ''ventilation'' mode which uses outdoor air for both process and regeneration inlets is evaluated in this paper. Performance of the dehumidification system is presented in terms that would be most familiar and useful to designers of building HVAC systems to facilitate integration of desiccant equipment with more conventional hardware. Parametric performance results from a modified, commercial desiccant dehumidifier undergoing laboratory testing were used as data input to evaluate the draft standard. Performance results calculated from this experimental input, results from an error-checking/heat-balance verification test built into the standard, and estimated comparisons between desiccant and similarly performing conventional dehumidification equipment are calculated and presented. Some variations in test procedures are suggested to aid in analytical assessment of individual component performance

  8. Proteomic analysis of oil body membrane proteins accompanying the onset of desiccation phase during sunflower seed development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thakur, Anita; Bhatla, Satish C

    2015-01-01

    A noteworthy metabolic signature accompanying oil body (OB) biogenesis during oilseed development is associated with the modulation of the oil body membranes proteins. Present work focuses on 2-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2-D PAGE)-based analysis of the temporal changes in the OB membrane proteins analyzed by LC-MS/MS accompanying the onset of desiccation (20–30 d after anthesis; DAA) in the developing seeds of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.). Protein spots unique to 20–30 DAA stages were picked up from 2-D gels for identification and the identified proteins were categorized into 7 functional classes. These include proteins involved in energy metabolism, reactive oxygen scavenging, proteolysis and protein turnover, signaling, oleosin and oil body biogenesis-associated proteins, desiccation and cytoskeleton. At 30 DAA stage, exclusive expressions of enzymes belonging to energy metabolism, desiccation and cytoskeleton were evident which indicated an increase in the metabolic and enzymatic activity in the cells at this stage of seed development (seed filling). Increased expression of cruciferina-like protein and dehydrin at 30 DAA stage marks the onset of desiccation. The data has been analyzed and discussed to highlight desiccation stage-associated metabolic events during oilseed development. PMID:26786011

  9. Economic and environmental assessment of rooftops regarding suitability for photovoltaic systems installation based on remote sensing data

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lukač, Niko; Seme, Sebastijan; Dežan, Katarina; Žalik, Borut; Štumberger, Gorazd

    2016-01-01

    Within the last few years, the increase of the world's energy consumption has substantially impacted the environment. Solar energy initiative is more than ever involved to tackle this issue, especially when deploying PV (photovoltaic) systems over large-scale residential areas. However, not all surfaces in these areas are economically suitable, while some surfaces have low CO_2 mitigation. With the availability of high-resolution remote sensing data, the estimation of suitable rooftops for PV systems installation can be performed automatically by estimating the PV potential. This paper presents a novel method for estimating NPV (net present value) of the potential PV systems installed on rooftops by using LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) data and PV systems' nonlinear efficiency characteristics. More importantly, the environmental impact is estimated for each rooftop through EPBT (energy payback time) and GGER (greenhouse gas emission rate), based on the life-cycle of a specific PV system. This is combined with NPV in order to find rooftops that are both economically and environmentally viable candidates for PV systems deployment. Results demonstrate a case study LiDAR data for predicting each building's economical and environmental impact, as well as providing an overall view of resulting cumulative CO_2 mitigation over large residential area. - Highlights: • The method relies on PV potential estimation over LiDAR remote sensing data. • Novel economic assessment of PV systems using remote sensing data is proposed. • Environmental analysis of PV systems based on EPBT and GGER is performed. • Estimation of CO_2 mitigation over LiDAR data by considering national energy network.

  10. Desiccation tolerance in bryophytes: The dehydration and rehydration transcriptomes in the desiccation-tolerant bryophyte Bryum argenteum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, Bei; Li, Xiaoshuang; Zhang, Daoyuan; Liang, Yuqing; Yang, Honglan; Chen, Moxian; Zhang, Yuanming; Zhang, Jianhua; Wood, Andrew J

    2017-08-08

    The desiccation tolerant bryophyte Bryum argenteum is an important component of desert biological soil crusts (BSCs) and is emerging as a model system for studying vegetative desiccation tolerance. Here we present and analyze the hydration-dehydration-rehydration transcriptomes in B. argenteum to establish a desiccation-tolerance transcriptomic atlas. B. argenteum gametophores representing five different hydration stages (hydrated (H0), dehydrated for 2 h (D2), 24 h (D24), then rehydrated for 2 h (R2) and 48 h (R48)), were sampled for transcriptome analyses. Illumina high throughput RNA-Seq technology was employed and generated more than 488.46 million reads. An in-house de novo transcriptome assembly optimization pipeline based on Trinity assembler was developed to obtain a reference Hydration-Dehydration-Rehydration (H-D-R) transcriptome comprising of 76,206 transcripts, with an N50 of 2,016 bp and average length of 1,222 bp. Comprehensive transcription factor (TF) annotation discovered 978 TFs in 62 families, among which 404 TFs within 40 families were differentially expressed upon dehydration-rehydration. Pfam term enrichment analysis revealed 172 protein families/domains were significantly associated with the H-D-R cycle and confirmed early rehydration (i.e. the R2 stage) as exhibiting the maximum stress-induced changes in gene expression.

  11. Estimating rooftop solar technical potential across the US using a combination of GIS-based methods, lidar data, and statistical modeling

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gagnon, Pieter; Margolis, Robert; Melius, Jennifer; Phillips, Caleb; Elmore, Ryan

    2018-02-01

    We provide a detailed estimate of the technical potential of rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) electricity generation throughout the contiguous United States. This national estimate is based on an analysis of select US cities that combines light detection and ranging (lidar) data with a validated analytical method for determining rooftop PV suitability employing geographic information systems. We use statistical models to extend this analysis to estimate the quantity and characteristics of roofs in areas not covered by lidar data. Finally, we model PV generation for all rooftops to yield technical potential estimates. At the national level, 8.13 billion m2 of suitable roof area could host 1118 GW of PV capacity, generating 1432 TWh of electricity per year. This would equate to 38.6% of the electricity that was sold in the contiguous United States in 2013. This estimate is substantially higher than a previous estimate made by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The difference can be attributed to increases in PV module power density, improved estimation of building suitability, higher estimates of total number of buildings, and improvements in PV performance simulation tools that previously tended to underestimate productivity. Also notable, the nationwide percentage of buildings suitable for at least some PV deployment is high—82% for buildings smaller than 5000 ft2 and over 99% for buildings larger than that. In most states, rooftop PV could enable small, mostly residential buildings to offset the majority of average household electricity consumption. Even in some states with a relatively poor solar resource, such as those in the Northeast, the residential sector has the potential to offset around 100% of its total electricity consumption with rooftop PV.

  12. Desiccation-crack-induced salinization in deep clay sediment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. Baram

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available A study on water infiltration and solute transport in a clayey vadose zone underlying a dairy farm waste source was conducted to assess the impact of desiccation cracks on subsurface evaporation and salinization. The study is based on five years of continuous measurements of the temporal variation in the vadose zone water content and on the chemical and isotopic composition of the sediment and pore water in it. The isotopic composition of water stable isotopes (δ18O and δ2H in water and sediment samples, from the area where desiccation crack networks prevail, indicated subsurface evaporation down to ~ 3.5 m below land surface, and vertical and lateral preferential transport of water, following erratic preferential infiltration events. Chloride (Cl− concentrations in the vadose zone pore water substantially increased with depth, evidence of deep subsurface evaporation and down flushing of concentrated solutions from the evaporation zones during preferential infiltration events. These observations led to development of a desiccation-crack-induced salinization (DCIS conceptual model. DCIS suggests that thermally driven convective air flow in the desiccation cracks induces evaporation and salinization in relatively deep sections of the subsurface. This conceptual model supports previous conceptual models on vadose zone and groundwater salinization in fractured rock in arid environments and extends its validity to clayey soils in semi-arid environments.

  13. Antistranspirant compounds alleviate the mild-desiccation-induced reduction of vase life in cut roses

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Fanourakis, D.; Gebraegziabher, Habtamu; Li, Tao; Kambourakis, Emmanouil; Ligoxigakis, Eleftherios K.; Padadimitriou, Michael; Strataridaki, Argiro; Bouranis, Dimitrios; Fiorani, F.; Heuvelink, E.; Ottosen, Carl-Otto

    2016-01-01

    The vase life sensitivity to mild desiccation (12% weight loss) was addressed in rose, together with alleviation possibilities. The postharvest longevity upon arrival or following mild desiccation was determined on eight cultivars, combined with several morpho-physiological traits. Mild desiccation

  14. Low-Flow Liquid Desiccant Air-Conditioning: Demonstrated Performance and Cost Implications

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kozubal, E.; Herrmann, L.; Deru, M.; Clark, J.; Lowenstein, A.

    2014-09-01

    Cooling loads must be dramatically reduced when designing net-zero energy buildings or other highly efficient facilities. Advances in this area have focused primarily on reducing a building's sensible cooling loads by improving the envelope, integrating properly sized daylighting systems, adding exterior solar shading devices, and reducing internal heat gains. As sensible loads decrease, however, latent loads remain relatively constant, and thus become a greater fraction of the overall cooling requirement in highly efficient building designs, particularly in humid climates. This shift toward latent cooling is a challenge for heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems. Traditional systems typically dehumidify by first overcooling air below the dew-point temperature and then reheating it to an appropriate supply temperature, which requires an excessive amount of energy. Another dehumidification strategy incorporates solid desiccant rotors that remove water from air more efficiently; however, these systems are large and increase fan energy consumption due to the increased airside pressure drop of solid desiccant rotors. A third dehumidification strategy involves high flow liquid desiccant systems. These systems require a high maintenance separator to protect the air distribution system from corrosive desiccant droplet carryover and so are more commonly used in industrial applications and rarely in commercial buildings. Both solid desiccant systems and most high-flow liquid desiccant systems (if not internally cooled) add sensible energy which must later be removed to the air stream during dehumidification, through the release of sensible heat during the sorption process.

  15. Effect of operating conditions on performance of silica gel-water air-fluidised desiccant cooler

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rogala Zbigniew

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Fluidised desiccant cooling is reported in the literature as an efficient way to provide cooling for air-conditioning purposes. The performance of this technology can be described by electric and thermal Coefficients of Performance (COP and Specific Cooling Power (SCP. In this paper comprehensive theoretical study was carried out in order to assess the effect of operating conditions such as: superficial air velocity, desiccant particle diameter, bed switching time and desiccant filling height on the performance of fluidised desiccant cooler (FDC. It was concluded that FDC should be filled with as small as possible desiccant particles featuring diameters and should not be operated with shorter switching times than optimum. Moreover in order to efficiently run such systems superficial air velocities during adsorption and desorption should be similar. At last substantial effect of desiccant filling height on performance of FDC was presented.

  16. Dry air preservation and corrosion prevention using desiccant dehumidification

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tykesson, M.; Ashworth, C.

    1991-01-01

    The preservation and longevity of power station plants is a significant problem, particularly in cold shut down situations for prolonged periods of time, and also in storage of parts prior to installation. Power station protection and equipment preservation using the desiccant method is not new. For many years dehumidification machinery has been employed as a barrier to moisture related degradation. The first rotary desiccant dehumidifiers were installed within the power plant industry in the mid 1960s. Many of these first installations remain in operation today. In order to understand the functioning of a desiccant unit as compared with other air handling systems, it is essential to understand the fundamentals of a psychrometric chart. This article will attempt to give the reader an understanding of the subject. (author)

  17. The effects of gamma irradiation on the volatile components of desiccated coconut during storage

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Acevedo, T.P.; Azanza, M.P.

    1989-11-01

    Flavor volatiles of desiccated and irradiated desiccated coconut stored for 24 weeks at room temperature were identified and quantified by gas chromatography. Chromatograms of fresh coconut meat revealed sone esters, ketones, aldehydes and alcohols which were responsible for its fruity odor. The oily odor of fresh coconut meat was attributed to minimal amount of delta lactones. Freshly desiccated coconut contained the same volatiles responsible for the fresh fruity odor but the concentration of the delta lactones was considerably higher. The newly irradiated desiccated coconut had the highest concentration of the delta lactones with other volatiles such as ethyl caproate, 1-hexanol, and caprylic aldehyde being also present. With storage, development of oily odor to rancid odor was noted due to increasing amount of delta lactones. Corresponding decrease of volatiles responsible for the fresh fruity odor was noted as shown by the chromatographic profiles of both irradiated and unirradiated samples. Odor deterioration was more pronounced in the irradiated sample. Significant changes in moisture content, peroxide and iodine values, and free acid were observed during storage. No significant changes, however were noted in percent oil, pH and water activity. Significant difference in color, taste and general acceptability were noted at the start of storage with odor changes becoming more evident only after 4 weeks of storage. (Auth.). 69 refs.; 15 figs.; 14 tabs.; Appendix p. 90-205

  18. Low-Flow Liquid Desiccant Air Conditioning: General Guidance and Site Considerations

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kozubal, E.; Herrmann, L.; Deru, M.; Clark, J.

    2014-09-01

    Dehumidification or latent cooling in buildings is an area of growing interest that has been identified as needing more research and improved technologies for higher performance. Heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems typically expend excessive energy by using overcool-and-reheat strategies to dehumidify buildings. These systems first overcool ventilation air to remove moisture and then reheat the air to meet comfort requirements. Another common strategy incorporates solid desiccant rotors that remove moisture from the air more efficiently; however, these systems increase fan energy consumption because of the high airside pressure drop of solid desiccant rotors and can add heat of absorption to the ventilation air. Alternatively, liquid desiccant air-conditioning (LDAC) technology provides an innovative dehumidification solution that: (1) eliminates the need for overcooling and reheating from traditional cooling systems; and (2) avoids the increased fan energy and air heating from solid desiccant rotor systems.

  19. The effects of regeneration temperature of the desiccant wheel on the performance of desiccant cooling cycles for greenhouse thermally insulated

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rjibi, Amel; Kooli, Sami; Guizani, Amenaallah

    2018-05-01

    The use of solar energy for cooling greenhouses in the hot period in Mediterranean climate is an important issue. Desiccant evaporative cooling (DEC) system is advantageous because it uses a low grade thermal energy and preserves the merits to be friendly environmentally technology. In this paper, a numerical investigation was carried out on a desiccant cooling system powered by air solar collectors coupled to an insulated greenhouse. The influence of the regeneration temperature on the air stream properties at every system component state point was studied. The performance of the desiccant cooling system was evaluated in terms of thermal and electric coefficient of performance. Results show that the best performance of the system (COPel = 14 and COPth = 0.94) was obtained for a 60 °C regeneration temperature and a supply flow rate ratio of 0.2. An economic analysis shows that the use of the DEC system for greenhouse cooling is attractive and profitable since the payback period is 1 years. The use of the proposed system allows saving 9396 kWh/year of electric energy compared to conventional system.

  20. Global Trends and Current Status of Commercial Urban Rooftop Farming

    OpenAIRE

    Devi Buehler; Ranka Junge

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study was to analyze current practices in commercial urban rooftop farming (URF). In recent years, URF has been experiencing increasing popularity. It is a practice that is well-suited to enhancing food security in cities and reducing the environmental impact that results from long transportation distances that are common in conventional agriculture. To date, most URF initiatives have been motivated by social and educational factors rather than the aim of creating large sustai...

  1. Surviving metabolic arrest: photosynthesis during desiccation and rehydration in resurrection plants.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Challabathula, Dinakar; Puthur, Jos T; Bartels, Dorothea

    2016-02-01

    Photosynthesis is the key process that is affected by dehydration in plants. Desiccation-tolerant resurrection plants can survive conditions of very low relative water content. During desiccation, photosynthesis is not operational, but is recovered within a short period after rehydration. While homoiochlorophyllous resurrection plants retain their photosynthetic apparatus during desiccation, poikilochlorophyllous resurrection species dismantle chloroplasts and degrade chlorophyll but resynthesize them again during rehydration. Dismantling the chloroplasts avoids the photooxidative stress in poikilochlorophyllous resurrection plants, whereas it is minimized in homoiochlorophyllous plants through the synthesis of antioxidant enzymes and protective proteins or metabolites. Although the cellular protection mechanisms in both of these species vary, these mechanisms protect cells from desiccation-induced damage and restore photosynthesis upon rehydration. Several of the proteins synthesized during dehydration are localized in chloroplasts and are believed to play major roles in the protection of photosynthetic structures and in recovery in resurrection species. This review focuses on the strategies of resurrection plants in terms of how they protect their photosynthetic apparatus from oxidative stress during desiccation without membrane damage and with full recovery during rehydration. We review the role of the dehydration-induced protection mechanisms in chloroplasts and how photosynthesis is restored during rehydration. © 2015 New York Academy of Sciences.

  2. Advanced Rooftop Control (ARC) Retrofit: Field-Test Results

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wang, Weimin; Katipamula, Srinivas; Ngo, Hung; Underhill, Ronald M.; Taasevigen, Danny J.; Lutes, Robert G.

    2013-07-31

    The multi-year research study was initiated to find solutions to improve packaged equipment operating efficiency in the field. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Building Technologies Office (BTO) and Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) conducted this research, development and demonstration (RD&D) study. Packaged equipment with constant speed supply fans is designed to provide ventilation at the design rate at all times when the fan is operating as required by building code. Although there are a number of hours during the day when a building may not be fully occupied or the need for ventilation is lower than designed, the ventilation rate cannot be adjusted easily with a constant speed fan. Therefore, modulating the supply fan in conjunction with demand controlled ventilation (DCV) will not only reduce the coil energy but also reduce the fan energy. The objective of this multi-year research, development and demonstration project was to determine the magnitude of energy savings achievable by retrofitting existing packaged rooftop air conditioners with advanced control strategies not ordinarily used for packaged units. First, through detailed simulation analysis, it was shown that significant energy (between 24% and 35%) and cost savings (38%) from fan, cooling and heating energy consumption could be realized when packaged air conditioning units with gas furnaces are retrofitted with advanced control packages (combining multi-speed fan control, integrated economizer controls and DCV). The simulation analysis also showed significant savings for heat pumps (between 20% and 60%). The simulation analysis was followed by an extensive field test of a retrofittable advanced rooftop unit (RTU) controller.

  3. Rooftop photovoltaic (PV) systems for industrial halls: Achieving economic benefit via lowering energy demand

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lee, B.; Trcka, M.; Hensen, J.L.M.

    2012-01-01

    Industrial halls are characterized with their relatively high roof-to-floor ratio, which facilitates ready deployment of renewable energy generation, such as photovoltaic (PV) systems, on the rooftop. To promote deployment of renewable energy generation, feed-in tariff (FIT) higher than the

  4. Key genes involved in desiccation tolerance and dormancy across life forms

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Costa, M.C.D.; Farrant, Jill M.; Oliver, Melvin J.; Ligterink, Wilco; Buitink, Julia; Hilhorst, H.M.W.

    2016-01-01

    Desiccation tolerance (DT, the ability of certain organisms to survive severe dehydration) was a key trait in the evolution of life in terrestrial environments. Likely, the development of desiccation-tolerant life forms was accompanied by the acquisition of dormancy or a dormancy-like stage as a

  5. Proteomic analysis of embryonic axis of Pisum sativum seeds during germination and identification of proteins associated with loss of desiccation tolerance

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wang, Wei-Qing; Møller, Ian Max; Song, Song-Quan

    2012-01-01

    Seed germination is an important stage in life cycle of higher plants. The germination processes and its associated loss of desiccation tolerance, however, are still poorly understood. In present study, pea seeds were used to study changes in embryonic axis proteome during germination by 2-DE...... and mass spectrometry. We identified a total of 139 protein spots showing a significant (>2-fold) change during germination. The results show that seed germination is not only the activation of a series of metabolic processes, but also involves reorganization of cellular structure and activation...... of protective systems. To uncouple the physiological processes of germination and its associated loss of desiccation tolerance, we used the fact that pea seeds have different desiccation tolerance when imbibed in water, CaCl2 and methylviologen at the same germination stage. We compared the proteome amongst...

  6. Performance assessment and transient optimization of air precooling in multi-stage solid desiccant air conditioning systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gadalla, Mohamed; Saghafifar, Mohammad

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • Studying three two-stage solid desiccant cooling systems using Maisotsenko cooler. • Proposing precooling to improve two-stage desiccant systems’ COP for humid climates. • Performing transient analysis for a two-stage solid desiccant cooler in UAE. • Optimizing daily performance of a two-stage solid desiccant cooler for UAE. - Abstract: Renewable energy is one of the most promising solutions to both energy and global warming crisis. Energy consumption can be minimized considerably by utilizing solar energy in air conditioning systems operation. One of the popular solar air conditioning technologies is desiccant air conditioning. Nonetheless, conventional desiccant air conditioning systems have a relatively low coefficient of performance (COP). In consequence, two-stage desiccant air-conditioning systems are proposed to improve desiccant air conditioning systems’ COP. Moreover, a recently commercialized cooling method named Maisotsenko cooling cycle which is capable of cooling air near to its dew point temperature is considered to be integrated within the proposed multi-stage desiccant cooling systems. In this paper, three new two-stage desiccant air conditioning systems incorporating Maisotsenko cooling cycle are proposed and investigated in details for hot and humid climates such as UAE. Furthermore, air precooling is considered to improve two stage desiccant air conditioning systems’ COP. Moreover, full transient analysis and optimization are carried out in UAE within June–October. The proposed system can minimize the required solar heating during noon time as the ambient air dry bulb temperature rises. Average COP of the system during electricity load peak hours (10:00–14:00) for all five considered and combined months is 1.77. Average rate of heat input required to operate the system and average building cooling load are determined to be 100.3 kW and 46.2 kW, respectively. Therefore, system average COP is computed to be 0.46.

  7. Molecular mechanisms of desiccation tolerance in the resurrection glacial relic Haberlea rhodopensis

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gechev, Tsanko S.; Benina, Maria; Obata, Toshihiro; Tohge, Takayuki; Sujeeth, Neerakkal; Minkov, Ivan; Hille, Jacques; Temanni, Mohamed-Ramzi; Marriott, Andrew S.; Bergstrom, Ed; Thomas-Oates, Jane; Antonio, Carla; Mueller-Roeber, Bernd; Schippers, Jos H. M.; Fernie, Alisdair R.; Toneva, Valentina

    Haberlea rhodopensis is a resurrection plant with remarkable tolerance to desiccation. Haberlea exposed to drought stress, desiccation, and subsequent rehydration showed no signs of damage or severe oxidative stress compared to untreated control plants. Transcriptome analysis by next-generation

  8. Triple-bore hollow fiber membrane contactor for liquid desiccant based air dehumidification

    KAUST Repository

    Bettahalli Narasimha, Murthy Srivatsa; Lefers, Ryan; Fedoroff, Nina V.; Leiknes, TorOve; Nunes, Suzana Pereira

    2016-01-01

    the potential for desiccant carryover to the air and the potential for contamination of the liquid desiccant by dust and other airborne materials, as well as minimizing corrosion. However, the expected additional mass transport barrier of the membrane surface

  9. Desiccation resistance: effect of cuticular hydrocarbons and water content in Drosophila melanogaster adults

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jean-Francois Ferveur

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available Background The insect cuticle covers the whole body and all appendages and has bi-directionnal selective permeability: it protects against environmental stress and pathogen infection and also helps to reduce water loss. The adult cuticle is often associated with a superficial layer of fatty acid-derived molecules such as waxes and long chain hydrocarbons that prevent rapid dehydration. The waterproofing properties of cuticular hydrocarbons (CHs depend on their chain length and desaturation number. Drosophila CH biosynthesis involves an enzymatic pathway including several elongase and desaturase enzymes. Methods The link between desiccation resistance and CH profile remains unclear, so we tested (1 experimentally selected desiccation-resistant lines, (2 transgenic flies with altered desaturase expression and (3 natural and laboratory-induced CH variants. We also explored the possible relationship between desiccation resistance, relative water content and fecundity in females. Results We found that increased desiccation resistance is linked with the increased proportion of desaturated CHs, but not with their total amount. Experimentally-induced desiccation resistance and CH variation both remained stable after many generations without selection. Conversely, flies with a higher water content and a lower proportion of desaturated CHs showed reduced desiccation resistance. This was also the case in flies with defective desaturase expression in the fat body. Discussion We conclude that rapidly acquired desiccation resistance, depending on both CH profile and water content, can remain stable without selection in a humid environment. These three phenotypes, which might be expected to show a simple relationship, turn out to have complex physiological and genetic links.

  10. Selection for increased desiccation resistance in Drosophila melanogaster: Additive genetic control and correlated responses for other stresses

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hoffmann, A.A.; Parsons, P.A.

    1989-01-01

    Previously we found that Drosophila melanogaster lines selected for increased desiccation resistance have lowered metabolic rate and behavioral activity levels, and show correlated responses for resistance to starvation and a toxic ethanol level. These results were consistent with a prediction that increased resistance to many environmental stresses may be genetically correlated because of a reduction in metabolic energy expenditure. Here we present experiments on the genetic basis of the selection response and extend the study of correlated responses to other stresses. The response to selection was not sex-specific and involved X-linked and autosomal genes acting additively. Activity differences contributed little to differences in desiccation resistance between selected and control lines. Selected lines had lower metabolic rates than controls in darkness when activity was inhibited. Adults from selected lines showed increased resistance to a heat shock, 60 Co-gamma-radiation, and acute ethanol and acetic acid stress. The desiccation, ethanol and starvation resistance of isofemale lines set up from the F2s of a cross between one of the selected and one of the control lines were correlated. Selected and control lines did not differ in ether-extractable lipid content or in resistance to acetone, ether or a cold shock

  11. Innovative PCM-desiccant packet to provide dry microclimate and improve performance of cooling vest in hot environment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Itani, Mariam; Ghaddar, Nesreen; Ghali, Kamel

    2017-01-01

    Highlights: • A PCM and desiccant packet is proposed for use in personal cooling vest to keep dry air next to skin. • A PCM-Desiccant model for clothed heated wet cylinder is developed and validated experimentally. • The microclimate air temperature was 0.6 °C higher in PCM-Desiccant case compared to PCM-only case. • Microclimate humidity content decreased due to desiccant from 21.23 to 19.74 g/kg dry air. • PCM melted fraction increased due to desiccant from 0.24 to 0.5. - Abstract: A novel combination of phase change material (PCM) and a solid desiccant layer is proposed for the aim of maintaining dry cool microclimate air adjacent to wet warm skin and hence improve PCM performance in cooling vests used in hot humid environment. A fabric-PCM-Desiccant model is developed to predict the temperature and moisture content of the microclimate air layer in the presence of a PCM-Desiccant packet. The developed model is validated through experiments conducted on a wet clothed heated cylinder for the two cases of using (i) a PCM only packet and (ii) a PCM-Desiccant packet. Microclimate air temperatures and humidity content as well as PCM and desiccant temperatures were measured experimentally and were compared with predicted values by the fabric-PCM-Desiccant model. Good agreement was attained with a maximum relative error of 7% in measured temperatures. A decrease is observed in the humidity content of the microclimate air in the presence of the solid desiccant from 21.23 g/kg dry air to 19.74 g/kg dry air and an increase in the melted fraction of the PCM at the end of the experiment from 0.24 to 0.5.

  12. Freezing and desiccation tolerance in entomopathogenic nematodes: diversity and correlation of traits.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shapiro-Ilan, David I; Brown, Ian; Lewis, Edwin E

    2014-03-01

    The ability of entomopathogenic nematodes to tolerate environmental stress such as desiccating or freezing conditions, can contribute significantly to biocontrol efficacy. Thus, in selecting which nematode to use in a particular biocontrol program, it is important to be able to predict which strain or species to use in target areas where environmental stress is expected. Our objectives were to (i) compare inter- and intraspecific variation in freeze and desiccation tolerance among a broad array of entomopathogenic nematodes, and (ii) determine if freeze and desiccation tolerance are correlated. In laboratory studies we compared nematodes at two levels of relative humidity (RH) (97% and 85%) and exposure periods (24 and 48 h), and nematodes were exposed to freezing temperatures (-2°C) for 6 or 24 h. To assess interspecific variation, we compared ten species including seven that are of current or recent commercial interest: Heterorhabditis bacteriophora (VS), H. floridensis, H. georgiana, (Kesha), H. indica (HOM1), H. megidis (UK211), Steinernema carpocapsae (All), S. feltiae (SN), S. glaseri (VS), S. rarum (17C&E), and S. riobrave (355). To assess intraspecific variation we compared five strains of H. bacteriophora (Baine, Fl1-1, Hb, Oswego, and VS) and four strains of S. carpocapsae (All, Cxrd, DD136, and Sal), and S. riobrave (355, 38b, 7-12, and TP). S. carpocapsae exhibited the highest level of desiccation tolerance among species followed by S. feltiae and S. rarum; the heterorhabditid species exhibited the least desiccation tolerance and S. riobrave and S. glaseri were intermediate. No intraspecific variation was observed in desiccation tolerance; S. carpocapsae strains showed higher tolerance than all H. bacteriophora or S. riobrave strains yet there was no difference detected within species. In interspecies comparisons, poor freeze tolerance was observed in H. indica, and S. glaseri, S. rarum, and S. riobrave whereas H. georgiana and S. feltiae exhibited the

  13. Effect of Water Content Components on Desiccation and Recovery in Sphagnum Mosses

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hájek, Tomáš; Beckett, Richard P.

    2008-01-01

    Background and Aims The basic parameters of water relations were measured in Sphagnum mosses. The relationships of these parameters to the photosynthetic response to desiccation and the ecology of these mosses were then tested. Methods The water relations parameters of six Sphagnum species (mosses typical of wet habitats) and Atrichum androgynum (a moss more typical of mesophytic conditions) were calculated from pressure–volume isotherms. Photosynthetic properties during and after moderate desiccation were monitored by chlorophyll fluorescence. Key Results When desiccated, the hummock-forming species S. fuscum and S. magellanicum lost more water before turgor started dropping than other sphagna inhabiting less exposed habitats (73 % compared with 56 % on average). Osmotic potentials at full turgor were similar in all species, with an average value of −1·1 MPa. Hummock sphagna had clearly more rigid cell walls than species of wet habitats (ε = 3·55 compared with 1·93 MPa). As a result, their chlorophyllous cells lost turgor at higher relative water contents (RWCs) than species of wet habitats (0·61 compared with 0·46) and at less negative osmotic potentials (–2·28 compared with −3·00 MPa). During drying, ΦPSII started declining earlier in hummock species (at an RWC of 0·65 compared with 0·44), and Fv/Fm behaved similarly. Compared with other species, hummock sphagna desiccated to −20 or −40 MPa recovered more completely after rehydration. Atrichum androgynum responded to desiccation similarly to hummock sphagna, suggesting that their desiccation tolerance may have a similar physiological basis. Conclusions Assuming a fixed rate of desiccation, the higher water-holding capacities of hummock sphagna will allow them to continue metabolism for longer than other species. While this could be viewed as a form of ‘desiccation avoidance’, hummock species also recover faster than other species during rehydration, suggesting that they have higher

  14. Biosentinel: Improving Desiccation Tolerance of Yeast Biosensors for Deep-Space Missions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dalal, Sawan; Santa Maria, Sergio R.; Liddell, Lauren; Bhattacharya, Sharmila

    2017-01-01

    BioSentinel is one of 13 secondary payloads to be deployed on Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1) in 2019. We will use the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a biosensor to determine how deep-space radiation affects living organisms and to potentially quantify radiation levels through radiation damage analysis. Radiation can damage DNA through double strand breaks (DSBs), which can normally be repaired by homologous recombination. Two yeast strains will be air-dried and stored in microfluidic cards within the payload: a wild-type control strain and a radiation sensitive rad51 mutant that is deficient in DSB repairs. Throughout the mission, the microfluidic cards will be rehydrated with growth medium and an indicator dye. Growth rates of each strain will be measured through LED detection of the reduction of the indicator dye, which correlates with DNA repair and the amount of radiation damage accumulated. Results from BioSentinel will be compared to analog experiments on the ISS and on Earth. It is well known that desiccation can damage yeast cells and decrease viability over time. We performed a screen for desiccation-tolerant rad51 strains. We selected 20 re-isolates of rad51 and ran a weekly screen for desiccation-tolerant mutants for five weeks. Our data shows that viability decreases over time, confirming previous research findings. Isolates L2, L5 and L14 indicate desiccation tolerance and are candidates for whole-genome sequencing. More time is needed to determine whether a specific strain is truly desiccation tolerant. Furthermore, we conducted an intracellular trehalose assay to test how intracellular trehalose concentrations affect or protect the mutant strains against desiccation stress. S. cerevisiae cell and reagent concentrations from a previously established intracellular trehalose protocol did not yield significant absorbance measurements, so we tested varying cell and reagent concentrations and determined proper concentrations for successful

  15. Potential Evaluation of Solar Heat Assisted Desiccant Hybrid Air Conditioning System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tran, Thien Nha; Hamamoto, Yoshinori; Akisawa, Atsushi; Kashiwagi, Takao

    The solar thermal driven desiccant dehumidification-absorption cooling hybrid system has superior advantage in hot-humid climate regions. The reasonable air processing of desiccant hybrid air conditioning system and the utility of clean and free energy make the system environment friendly and energy efficient. The study investigates the performance of the desiccant dehumidification air conditioning systems with solar thermal assistant. The investigation is performed for three cases which are combinations of solar thermal and absorption cooling systems with different heat supply temperature levels. Two solar thermal systems are used in the study: the flat plate collector (FPC) and the vacuum tube with compound parabolic concentrator (CPC). The single-effect and high energy efficient double-, triple-effect LiBr-water absorption cooling cycles are considered for cooling systems. COP of desiccant hybrid air conditioning systems are determined. The evaluation of these systems is subsequently performed. The single effect absorption cooling cycle combined with the flat plate collector solar system is found to be the most energy efficient air conditioning system.

  16. Assessment of radiofrequency/microwave radiation emitted by the antennas of rooftop-mounted mobile phone base stations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Keow, M. A.; Radiman, S.

    2006-01-01

    Radiofrequency (RF) and microwave (MW) radiation exposures from the antennas of rooftop-mounted mobile telephone base stations have become a serious issue in recent years due to the rapidly evolving technologies in wireless telecommunication systems. In Malaysia, thousands of mobile telephone base stations have been erected all over the country, most of which are mounted on the rooftops. In view of public concerns, measurements of the RF/MW levels emitted by the base stations were carried out in this study. The values were compared with the exposure limits set by several organisations and countries. Measurements were performed at 200 sites around 47 mobile phone base stations. It was found that the RF/MW radiation from these base stations were well below the maximum exposure limits set by various agencies. (authors)

  17. Moss antheridia are desiccation tolerant: Rehydration dynamics influence sperm release in Bryum argenteum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stark, Lloyd R; McLetchie, D Nicholas; Greenwood, Joshua L; Eppley, Sarah M

    2016-05-01

    Free-living sperm of mosses are known to be partially desiccation tolerant. We hypothesized that mature moss antheridia should also tolerate desiccation and that rehydration to partial turgor (prehydration) or rehydration to full turgor (rehydration) before immersion in water is required for full recovery from any damaging effects of prior desiccation. Bryum argenteum (silvery-thread moss) was grown in continuous culture for several months, produced mature perigonia (clusters of antheridia), and these were subjected to a slow rate of drying (∼36 h from full turgor to desiccation) and equilibration with 50% relative humidity. Perigonia were prehydrated (exposed to a saturated atmosphere) or rehydrated (planted upright in saturated media) for 0, 45, 90, 135, 180, and 1440 min, then immersed in sterile water. Time to first sperm mass release, number of antheridia releasing sperm masses, and the integrity of the first sperm mass released were assessed. Rehydration of dried antheridia for at least 3 h before immersion in water resulted in antheridia functioning similar to control undried antheridia. Compared with rehydration, prehydration was not effective in the recovery of antheridia from desiccation. For the first time, moss antheridia are shown to be fully desiccation tolerant at a functional level, capable of releasing fully functional sperm following a slow drying event provided the antheridia are allowed to rehydrate at least 3 h before immersion in water. © 2016 Botanical Society of America.

  18. Improvement of embryogenesis and regeneration by air desiccation in maize (zea mays l.)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Morshed, S.; Siddique, B.; Islam, S.M.S.

    2016-01-01

    Calli derived from mature embryos of four maize varieties viz. Mohar, Khoi bhutta, Barnali and Shuvra were cultured in three basal media for regeneration (MS, N6 and 6N1) which individually supplemented with four hormonal combinations e.g. H1 = BAP 0.5 mg/l + IAA 0.0 mg/l, H2 = BAP 1.0 mg/l + IAA 0.5 mg/l, H3 = BAP 1.5 mg/l + IAA 1.0 mg/l and H4 = BAP 2.0 mg/l + IAA 1.5 mg/l. The highest frequency of regeneration was found with MS + H2 (41.35%) in Mohar, while the lowest was 17.37% in 6N1 + H1 for Barnali. To enhance the capability of regeneration, calli were pretreated by ten groups (6, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36, 42, 48, 54 and 60 h) of desiccation periods. The degrees of desiccation of pretreated calli were determined; and it was ranged as 6.23 to 40.52% where Khoi bhutta showed the maximum value at 60 h desiccation. The callus of Mohar exhibited the highest frequency of regeneration (75.24%) which desiccated for 48 h; and it was around 2 fold higher than the control. The variety Khoi bhutta showed the lowest efficiency (31.80%) when the callus was desiccated for 6 h. All the varieties performed their maximum regeneration at different periods, where 36, 30 and 42 h desiccation were optimal for Barnali (67.23%), Khoi bhutta (68.03%) and Shuvra (73.98%) accordingly. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed significant effect of maize genotype and periods of partial air desiccation to enhance regeneration at p<0.05 level. (author)

  19. Comfortable, high-efficiency heat pump with desiccant-coated, water-sorbing heat exchangers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tu, Y D; Wang, R Z; Ge, T S; Zheng, X

    2017-01-12

    Comfortable, efficient, and affordable heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems in buildings are highly desirable due to the demands of energy efficiency and environmental friendliness. Traditional vapor-compression air conditioners exhibit a lower coefficient of performance (COP) (typically 2.8-3.8) owing to the cooling-based dehumidification methods that handle both sensible and latent loads together. Temperature- and humidity-independent control or desiccant systems have been proposed to overcome these challenges; however, the COP of current desiccant systems is quite small and additional heat sources are usually needed. Here, we report on a desiccant-enhanced, direct expansion heat pump based on a water-sorbing heat exchanger with a desiccant coating that exhibits an ultrahigh COP value of more than 7 without sacrificing any comfort or compactness. The pump's efficiency is doubled compared to that of pumps currently used in conventional room air conditioners, which is a revolutionary HVAC breakthrough. Our proposed water-sorbing heat exchanger can independently handle sensible and latent loads at the same time. The desiccants adsorb moisture almost isothermally and can be regenerated by condensation heat. This new approach opens up the possibility of achieving ultrahigh efficiency for a broad range of temperature- and humidity-control applications.

  20. Comparison of desiccant air conditioning systems with different indirect evaporative air coolers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pandelidis, Demis; Anisimov, Sergey; Worek, William M.; Drąg, Paweł

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • A numerical study of desiccant air conditioning systems is presented. • The ε-NTU model is used for the analysis. • Different arrangements of the desiccant systems were compared. • The systems were compared under different operating conditions. - Abstract: This paper presents a numerical analysis of three desiccant air-conditioning systems equipped with different indirect evaporative air coolers: (1) the cross-flow Maisotsenko cycle heat and mass exchanger (HMX), (2) the regenerative counter-flow Maisotsenko cycle heat and mass exchanger and (3) the standard cross-flow evaporative air cooler. To analyze the desiccant wheel and the indirect evaporative air coolers, the modified ε-NTU-model was used. The simulations were performed under assumption that the desiccant wheel is regenerated with air heated to relatively low temperature values (50–60 °C), which can be produced with solar panels in typical moderate climatic conditions. It was established that the main advantage of the presented solutions is that they can provide comfort conditions even with less effective dehumidification. The different systems were compared under variable selected operational factors (i.e. inlet air temperature, humidity and regeneration air temperature). The analysis allowed establishing the advantages and disadvantages of presented solutions and allowed estimating their application potential.

  1. Chemical desiccation for early harvest in soybean cultivars

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tamara Pereira

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available The use of desiccants is an alternative to anticipate the soybean harvest and keep the physiological quality of seed. The objective of this work was to assess the production performance and germination seeds in response to differents stages and desiccation chemicals products to early harvest of soybean cultivars. The experiment was conducted in Campos Novos, in two harvests, it was used a randomized complete block design disposed in split-split-plots. Two phenological stages of application (stage R7.1 and R7.3 were tested in the main plot. Five soybean cultivars (NA 5909 RG, CD 2585 RR, BMX Turbo RR, SYN 1059 RR and BENSO 1RR were evaluated in the subplots, and three desiccants ammonium glufosinate, paraquat, carfentrazone-ethyl in the 2011/12 season and one control (without the desiccant application were evaluated in the sub-subplots. In the 2012/13 season the carfentrazone-ethyl was substituted by diquat. It were evaluated the number of the days in the early harvest, yield, number of pods per plant, number of seeds per pod, mass of 100 seeds and germination percentage. The chemical dessecation with the use of glufosinate ammonium and paraquat applied in R7.1 stage allowed to anticipate the harvest in six days (2011/12 and provided maintenance germination percentage (90% and 92% compared to control (76%. The dessecation didn’t influence negatively on seeds productivity, but reduced the mass of seeds in the two growing seasons, and early harvest was dependent of pre-harvest rain absence, with this preamble. The use of dessicants is a possibility of early harvest in production field of soybean seeds.

  2. Variation of structures of ingredients of desiccated coconut during hydrolysis by hydrochloric acid at low temperature

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jian XIONG

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Owing to the high content of lignocellulose, desiccated coconut become a healthy material for dietary fiber supplementation. In this study, the changes in solubility of the fibers of desiccated coconut were evaluated. The changes of the pHs and weight losses were studied. Furthermore, variations of the ingredient structures of desiccated coconut by hydrolysis by hydrochloric acid were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR, X-ray diffraction (XRD and scanning electron microscopy (SEM. After hydrolysis 30 s, the pHs of all systems increased, while six hours later, the pH of only system with initial pH = 1.00 decreased. The decline of pH only existed in hydrolysis systems with initial pH = 1.00, there is no relevant with the quantities of desiccated coconut. The lower initial pH of hydrolysis system was, the less the intrinsic viscosity of the desiccated coconut after hydrolysis was, the small the crystallinity was. After hydrolysis, the microstructure of the desiccated coconut become looser, and the secondary structure of the coconut protein became more stable and ordered. The results suggest that the hydrolysis of desiccated coconut mainly occurred in the branched chain and the non-crystalline region of lignocellulose, which transforms some insoluble dietary fiber into soluble dietary fiber. This improves the nutritional value of desiccated coconut.

  3. Optimizing economic benefit of rooftop photovoltaic (PV) systems through lowering energy demand of industrial halls

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lee, B.; Trcka, M.; Hensen, J.L.M.

    2012-01-01

    Industrial halls are characterized with their relatively high roof-to-floor ratio, which facilitates ready deployment of photovoltaic (PV) systems on the rooftop. To promote deployment of PV systems, feed-in tariff (FIT) higher than the electricity rate is available in many countries to subsidize

  4. Desiccating Stress-Induced MMP Production and Activity Worsens Wound Healing in Alkali-Burned Corneas

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bian, Fang; Pelegrino, Flavia S. A.; Pflugfelder, Stephen C.; Volpe, Eugene A.; Li, De-Quan; de Paiva, Cintia S.

    2015-01-01

    Purpose To evaluate the effects of dry eye on ocular surface protease activity and sight threatening corneal complications following ocular surface chemical injury. Methods C57BL/6 mice were subjected to unilateral alkali burn (AB) with or without concomitant dry eye for 2 or 5 days. Mice were observed daily for appearance of corneal perforation. Whole corneas were harvested and lysed for RNA extraction. Quantitative real-time PCR was performed to measure expression of inflammation cytokines, matrix metalloproteinases (MMP). Matrix metalloproteinase–9 activity, gelatinase activity, and myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity were evaluated in corneal lysates. Presence of infiltrating neutrophils was evaluated by immunohistochemistry and flow cytometry. Results Eyes subjected to the combined model of AB and dry eye (CM) had 20% sterile corneal perforation rate as soon as 1 day after the initial injury, which increased to 35% by 5 days, delayed wound closure and increased corneal opacity. Increased levels of IL-1β, -6, and MMPs-1, -3, -8, -9, and -13, and chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 1 (CSCL1) transcripts were found after 2 days in CM compared with AB corneas. Increased MMP-1, -3, -9, and -13 immunoreactivity and gelatinolytic activity were seen in CM corneas compared with AB. Increased neutrophil infiltration and MPO activity was noted in the CM group compared with AB 2 days post injury. Conclusions Desiccating stress worsens outcome of ocular AB, creating a cytokine and protease storm with greater neutrophil infiltration, increasing the risk of corneal perforation. PMID:26225631

  5. Desiccation tolerance in seeds and plants

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dias Costa, M.C.

    2016-01-01

    The interest of research groups in desiccation tolerance (DT) has increased substantially over the last decades. The emergence of germinated orthodox seeds and resurrection plants as main research models has pushed the limits of our knowledge beyond boundaries. At the same time, new questions and

  6. Shrinkage-reducing admixtures and early-age desiccation in cement pastes and mortars

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bentz, D. P.; Geiker, Mette Rica; Hansen, Kurt Kielsgaard

    2001-01-01

    Fundamental studies of the early-age desiccation of cement-based materials with and without a shrinkage-reducing admixture (SRA) have been performed. Studies have been conducted under both sealed and drying conditions. Physical measurements include mass loss, surface tension, X-ray absorption to ...... to low w/c ratio concretes undergoing self-desiccation, in addition to their normal usage to reduce drying shrinkage.......Fundamental studies of the early-age desiccation of cement-based materials with and without a shrinkage-reducing admixture (SRA) have been performed. Studies have been conducted under both sealed and drying conditions. Physical measurements include mass loss, surface tension, X-ray absorption...

  7. Applicability of a desiccant dew-point cooling system independent of external water sources

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bellemo, Lorenzo; Elmegaard, Brian; Kærn, Martin Ryhl

    2015-01-01

    The applicability of a technical solution for making desiccant cooling systems independent of external water sources is investigated. Water is produced by condensing the desorbed water vapour in a closed regeneration circuit. Desorbed water recovery is applied to a desiccant dew-point cooling...... system, which includes a desiccant wheel and a dew point cooler. The system is simulated during the summer period in the Mediterranean climate of Rome and it results completely independent of external water sources. The seasonal thermal COP drops 8% in comparison to the open regeneration circuit solution...

  8. Investigation on a two-stage solar liquid-desiccant (LiBr) dehumidification system assisted by CaCl2 solution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xiong, Z.Q.; Dai, Y.J.; Wang, R.Z.

    2009-01-01

    A two-stage solar powered liquid-desiccant dehumidification system, for which two kinds of desiccant solution (lithium chloride and calcium bromide) are fed to the two dehumidification stages separately, has been studied. In the studied system air moisture (latent) load is separately removed by a pre-dehumidifier using cheap calcium chloride (CaCl 2 ) and a main dehumidifier using stable lithium bromide (LiBr). Side-effect of mixing heat rejected during dehumidification process is considerably alleviated by an indirect evaporative cooling unit added between the two dehumidification stages. The feasibility of high-desiccant concentration difference achieved by reusing desiccant solution to dehumidify air and regenerating desiccant repeatedly is analyzed. By increasing desiccant concentration difference, desiccant storage capacity is effectively explored. It is found that the pre-dehumidification effect of CaCl 2 solution is significant in high ambient humidity condition. Also seen is that the desiccant investment can be decreased by 53%, though the cost of equipments is somewhat increased, and the Tcop and COP of the proposed system can reach 0.97 and 2.13, respectively

  9. Experimental performance study of a proposed desiccant based air conditioning system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bassuoni, M M

    2014-01-01

    An experimental investigation on the performance of a proposed hybrid desiccant based air conditioning system referred as HDBAC is introduced in this paper. HDBAC is mainly consisted of a liquid desiccant dehumidification unit integrated with a vapor compression system (VCS). The VCS unit has a cooling capacity of 5.27 kW and uses 134a as refrigerant. Calcium chloride (CaCl2) solution is used as the working desiccant material. HDBAC system is used to serve low sensible heat factor applications. The effect of different parameters such as, process air flow rate, desiccant solution flow rate, evaporator box and condenser box solution temperatures, strong solution concentration and regeneration temperature on the performance of the system is studied. The performance of the system is evaluated using some parameters such as: the coefficient of performance (COPa), specific moisture removal and energy saving percentage. A remarkable increase of about 54% in the coefficient of performance of the proposed system over VCS with reheat is achieved. A maximum overall energy saving of about 46% is observed which emphasizes the use of the proposed system as an energy efficient air conditioning system.

  10. [Desiccation tolerance in seeds of Prosopisferox and Pterogyne nitens (Fabaceae)].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morandini, Marcelo Nahuel; Giamminola, Eugenia Mabel; de Viana, Marta Leonor

    2013-03-01

    The high number of endemisms and species diversity together with the accelerated biodiversity loss by deforestation, especially in North Western Argentina, points out the need to work on species conservation combining ex situ and in situ strategies. The aim of this work was to study the desiccation tolerance in seeds of P ferox and P nitens for long term ex situ conservation at the Germplasm Bank of Native Species (BGEN) of the National University of Salta (Argentina). The fruits were collected from ten individuals in P ferox at the National Park Los Cardones and from two sites (Orán and Rivadavia) for P nitens. Desiccation tolerance was assessed following previous established methodologies. The moisture content (MC) of the seeds was determined by keeping them in oven at 103 degreeC and weighting the samples at different intervals till constant weight. Germination essays were carried out with two treatments (control and scarification), with different seed MC (fresh, 10-12%, 3-5%) and in desiccated seeds (3-5% MC) stored six months at -20 degreeC. The MC in P ferox seeds was 14.2% and 10% in P nitens, for both populations studied. Percentage germination in P ferox was higher in the scarification treatments (<82%). The difference between treatments increased with the reduction in MC and the storage for six months at -20 degreeC. Fresh seeds of P nitens do not need scarification treatment, but it is required with the reduction in MC and storage. Mean germination percentage of desiccated seeds stored six months at -20 degreeC was similar in both populations and greater than 82%.We concluded that both species are probably orthodox because seeds tolerated desiccation to 3-5% and storage for six months at -20 degree C.

  11. Handling zone dividing method in packed bed liquid desiccant dehumidification/regeneration process

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu, X.H.; Jiang, Y.

    2009-01-01

    Dehumidifier and regenerator are the most significant components in liquid desiccant air-conditioning systems, in which air directly contacts liquid desiccant and heat and mass transfer process occurs between the two fluids. Heat transfer process and mass transfer process within dehumidifier/regenerator influence each other and should not be separately considered. Based on the previous reachable handling region analysis, a zonal method is proposed in present study. Four zones are divided in the psychrometric chart according to the relative position of inlet air to inlet desiccant including two dehumidification zones, zone A and zone D, and two regeneration zones, zone B and zone C. In zone A or C, mass transfer is key process, and counter-flow configuration has the best mass transfer performance and parallel-flow is the poorest in the same operating conditions. In zone B or D, heat transfer is governing process, parallel-flow has the best mass transfer performance and counter-flow is the poorest. In order to obtain better mass transfer performance, liquid desiccant should be cooled (in zone A) rather than air (in zone D) in dehumidifier, and liquid desiccant should be heated (in zone C) rather than air (in zone B) in regenerator. The divided zones and the corresponding zonal properties will be helpful to the design and optimization of dehumidifiers and regenerators.

  12. Formulation and validation of a two-dimensional steady-state model of desiccant wheels

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bellemo, Lorenzo; Elmegaard, Brian; Kærn, Martin R.

    2015-01-01

    Desiccant wheels are rotary desiccant dehumidifiers used in air-conditioning and drying applications. The modeling of simultaneous heat and mass transfer in these components is crucial for estimating their performances, as well as for simulating and optimizing their implementation in complete...

  13. Compatible bacterial mixture, tolerant to desiccation, improves maize plant growth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Molina-Romero, Dalia; Baez, Antonino; Quintero-Hernández, Verónica; Castañeda-Lucio, Miguel; Fuentes-Ramírez, Luis Ernesto; Bustillos-Cristales, María Del Rocío; Rodríguez-Andrade, Osvaldo; Morales-García, Yolanda Elizabeth; Munive, Antonio; Muñoz-Rojas, Jesús

    2017-01-01

    Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) increase plant growth and crop productivity. The inoculation of plants with a bacterial mixture (consortium) apparently provides greater benefits to plant growth than inoculation with a single bacterial strain. In the present work, a bacterial consortium was formulated containing four compatible and desiccation-tolerant strains with potential as PGPR. The formulation had one moderately (Pseudomonas putida KT2440) and three highly desiccation-tolerant (Sphingomonas sp. OF178, Azospirillum brasilense Sp7 and Acinetobacter sp. EMM02) strains. The four bacterial strains were able to adhere to seeds and colonize the rhizosphere of plants when applied in both mono-inoculation and multi-inoculation treatments, showing that they can also coexist without antagonistic effects in association with plants. The effects of the bacterial consortium on the growth of blue maize were evaluated. Seeds inoculated with either individual bacterial strains or the bacterial consortium were subjected to two experimental conditions before sowing: normal hydration or desiccation. In general, inoculation with the bacterial consortium increased the shoot and root dry weight, plant height and plant diameter compared to the non-inoculated control or mono-inoculation treatments. The bacterial consortium formulated in this work had greater benefits for blue maize plants even when the inoculated seeds underwent desiccation stress before germination, making this formulation attractive for future field applications.

  14. Compatible bacterial mixture, tolerant to desiccation, improves maize plant growth.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dalia Molina-Romero

    Full Text Available Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR increase plant growth and crop productivity. The inoculation of plants with a bacterial mixture (consortium apparently provides greater benefits to plant growth than inoculation with a single bacterial strain. In the present work, a bacterial consortium was formulated containing four compatible and desiccation-tolerant strains with potential as PGPR. The formulation had one moderately (Pseudomonas putida KT2440 and three highly desiccation-tolerant (Sphingomonas sp. OF178, Azospirillum brasilense Sp7 and Acinetobacter sp. EMM02 strains. The four bacterial strains were able to adhere to seeds and colonize the rhizosphere of plants when applied in both mono-inoculation and multi-inoculation treatments, showing that they can also coexist without antagonistic effects in association with plants. The effects of the bacterial consortium on the growth of blue maize were evaluated. Seeds inoculated with either individual bacterial strains or the bacterial consortium were subjected to two experimental conditions before sowing: normal hydration or desiccation. In general, inoculation with the bacterial consortium increased the shoot and root dry weight, plant height and plant diameter compared to the non-inoculated control or mono-inoculation treatments. The bacterial consortium formulated in this work had greater benefits for blue maize plants even when the inoculated seeds underwent desiccation stress before germination, making this formulation attractive for future field applications.

  15. Survival of methanogens during desiccation: implications for life on Mars.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kendrick, Michael G; Kral, Timothy A

    2006-08-01

    The relatively recent discoveries that liquid water likely existed on the surface of past Mars and that methane currently exists in the martian atmosphere have fueled the possibility of extant or extinct life on Mars. One possible explanation for the existence of the methane would be the presence of methanogens in the subsurface. Methanogens are microorganisms in the domain Archaea that can metabolize molecular hydrogen as an energy source and carbon dioxide as a carbon source and produce methane. One factor of importance is the arid nature of Mars, at least at the surface. If one is to assume that life exists below the surface, then based on the only example of life that we know, liquid water must be present. Realistically, however, that liquid water may be seasonal just as it is at some locations on our home planet. Here we report on research designed to determine how long certain species of methanogens can survive desiccation on a Mars soil simulant, JSC Mars-1. Methanogenic cells were grown on JSC Mars-1, transferred to a desiccator within a Coy anaerobic environmental chamber, and maintained there for varying time periods. Following removal from the desiccator and rehydration, gas chromatographic measurements of methane indicated survival for varying time periods. Methanosarcina barkeri survived desiccation for 10 days, while Methanobacterium formicicum and Methanothermobacter wolfeii were able to survive for 25 days.

  16. Trehalose as an indicator of desiccation stress in Drosophila melanogaster larvae: A potential marker of anhydrobiosis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Thorat, Leena J. [Centre for Advanced Studies, Department of Zoology, University of Pune, Pune 411007 (India); Gaikwad, Sushama M. [Division of Biochemical Sciences, National Chemical Laboratory, Pune 411008 (India); Nath, Bimalendu B., E-mail: bbnath@unipune.ac.in [Centre for Advanced Studies, Department of Zoology, University of Pune, Pune 411007 (India)

    2012-03-23

    Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer First report confirming anhydrobiosis in Drosophila melanogaster larvae. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Trehalose synthesis and accumulation in larvae that hydrolyzed on rehydration. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Trehalose synthesis in concert with the enzymes involved in trehalose metabolism. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Inhibition of trehalose hydrolysis in presence of a specific trehalase inhibitor. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Trehalose proposed as a reliable marker for biomonitoring of climate change studies. -- Abstract: In the current scenario of global climate change, desiccation is considered as one of the major environmental stressors for the biota exposed to altered levels of ambient temperature and humidity. Drosophila melanogaster, a cosmopolitan terrestrial insect has been chosen as a humidity-sensitive bioindicator model for the present study since its habitat undergoes frequent stochastic and/or seasonally aggravated dehydration regimes. We report here for the first time the occurrence of anhydrobiosis in D. melanogaster larvae by subjecting them to desiccation stress under laboratory conditions. Larvae desiccated for ten hours at <5% relative humidity could enter anhydrobiosis and could revive upon rehydration followed by resumption of active metabolism. As revealed by FTIR and HPLC analyzes, our findings strongly indicated the synthesis and accumulation of trehalose in the desiccating larvae. Biochemical measurements pointed out the desiccation-responsive trehalose metabolic pathway that was found to be coordinated in concert with the enzymes trehalose 6-phosphate synthase and trehalase. Further, an inhibitor-based experimental approach using deoxynojirimycin, a specific trehalase inhibitor, demonstrated the pivotal role of trehalose in larval anhydrobiosis of D. melanogaster. We therefore propose trehalose as a potential marker for the assessment of anhydrobiosis in Drosophila. The present findings thus add

  17. Trehalose as an indicator of desiccation stress in Drosophila melanogaster larvae: A potential marker of anhydrobiosis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thorat, Leena J.; Gaikwad, Sushama M.; Nath, Bimalendu B.

    2012-01-01

    Highlights: ► First report confirming anhydrobiosis in Drosophila melanogaster larvae. ► Trehalose synthesis and accumulation in larvae that hydrolyzed on rehydration. ► Trehalose synthesis in concert with the enzymes involved in trehalose metabolism. ► Inhibition of trehalose hydrolysis in presence of a specific trehalase inhibitor. ► Trehalose proposed as a reliable marker for biomonitoring of climate change studies. -- Abstract: In the current scenario of global climate change, desiccation is considered as one of the major environmental stressors for the biota exposed to altered levels of ambient temperature and humidity. Drosophila melanogaster, a cosmopolitan terrestrial insect has been chosen as a humidity-sensitive bioindicator model for the present study since its habitat undergoes frequent stochastic and/or seasonally aggravated dehydration regimes. We report here for the first time the occurrence of anhydrobiosis in D. melanogaster larvae by subjecting them to desiccation stress under laboratory conditions. Larvae desiccated for ten hours at <5% relative humidity could enter anhydrobiosis and could revive upon rehydration followed by resumption of active metabolism. As revealed by FTIR and HPLC analyzes, our findings strongly indicated the synthesis and accumulation of trehalose in the desiccating larvae. Biochemical measurements pointed out the desiccation-responsive trehalose metabolic pathway that was found to be coordinated in concert with the enzymes trehalose 6-phosphate synthase and trehalase. Further, an inhibitor-based experimental approach using deoxynojirimycin, a specific trehalase inhibitor, demonstrated the pivotal role of trehalose in larval anhydrobiosis of D. melanogaster. We therefore propose trehalose as a potential marker for the assessment of anhydrobiosis in Drosophila. The present findings thus add to the growing list of novel biochemical markers in specific bioindicator organisms for fulfilling the urgent need of

  18. Optimal Residential Load Scheduling Under Utility and Rooftop Photovoltaic Units

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ghulam Hafeez

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available With the rapid advancement in technology, electrical energy consumption is increasing rapidly. Especially, in the residential sector, more than 80% of electrical energy is being consumed because of consumer negligence. This brings the challenging task of maintaining the balance between the demand and supply of electric power. In this paper, we focus on the problem of load balancing via load scheduling under utility and rooftop photovoltaic (PV units to reduce electricity cost and peak to average ratio (PAR in demand-side management. For this purpose, we adopted genetic algorithm (GA, binary particle swarm optimization (BPSO, wind-driven optimization (WDO, and our proposed genetic WDO (GWDO algorithm, which is a hybrid of GA and WDO, to schedule the household load. For energy cost estimation, combined real-time pricing (RTP and inclined block rate (IBR were used. The proposed algorithm shifts load from peak consumption hours to off-peak hours based on combined pricing scheme and generation from rooftop PV units. Simulation results validate our proposed GWDO algorithm in terms of electricity cost and PAR reduction while considering all three scenarios which we have considered in this work: (1 load scheduling without renewable energy sources (RESs and energy storage system (ESS, (2 load scheduling with RESs, and (3 load scheduling with RESs and ESS. Furthermore, our proposed scheme reduced electricity cost and PAR by 22.5% and 29.1% in scenario 1, 47.7% and 30% in scenario 2, and 49.2% and 35.4% in scenario 3, respectively, as compared to unscheduled electricity consumption.

  19. Desiccant-Based Preconditioning Market Analysis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fischer, J.

    2001-01-11

    A number of important conclusions can be drawn as a result of this broad, first-phase market evaluation. The more important conclusions include the following: (1) A very significant market opportunity will exist for specialized outdoor air-handling units (SOAHUs) as more construction and renovation projects are designed to incorporate the recommendations made by the ASHRAE 62-1989 standard. Based on this investigation, the total potential market is currently $725,000,000 annually (see Table 6, Sect. 3). Based on the market evaluations completed, it is estimated that approximately $398,000,000 (55%) of this total market could be served by DBC systems if they were made cost-effective through mass production. Approximately $306,000,000 (42%) of the total can be served by a non-regenerated, desiccant-based total recovery approach, based on the information provided by this investigation. Approximately $92,000,000 (13%) can be served by a regenerated desiccant-based cooling approach (see Table 7, Sect. 3). (2) A projection of the market selling price of various desiccant-based SOAHU systems was prepared using prices provided by Trane for central-station, air-handling modules currently manufactured. The wheel-component pricing was added to these components by SEMCO. This resulted in projected pricing for these systems that is significantly less than that currently offered by custom suppliers (see Table 4, Sect. 2). Estimated payback periods for all SOAHU approaches were quite short when compared with conventional over-cooling and reheat systems. Actual paybacks may vary significantly depending on site-specific considerations. (3) In comparing cost vs benefit of each SOAHU approach, it is critical that the total system design be evaluated. For example, the cost premium of a DBC system is very significant when compared to a conventional air handling system, yet the reduced chiller, boiler, cooling tower, and other expense often equals or exceeds this premium, resulting in a

  20. Death by desiccation: Effects of hermetic storage on cowpea bruchids

    KAUST Repository

    Murdock, Larry L.

    2012-04-01

    When cowpea grain is stored in airtight containers, destructive populations of the cowpea bruchid (. Callosobruchus maculatus) don\\'t develop even though the grain put into the store is already infested with sufficient . C. maculatus to destroy the entire store within a few months. The surprising effectiveness of hermetic storage for preserving grain against insect pests has long been linked with the depletion of oxygen in the hermetic container and with the parallel rise in carbon dioxide. With . C. maculatus, low oxygen (hypoxia) leads to cessation of larval feeding activity, whereas elevated levels of carbon dioxide (hypercarbia) have little or no effect on feeding. Cessation of feeding arrests the growth of the insects, which don\\'t mature and don\\'t reproduce. As a result, population growth ceases and damaging infestations don\\'t develop. . C. maculatus eggs, larvae, and pupae subjected to hypoxia eventually die after exposures of various duration. The cause of death is desiccation resulting from an inadequate supply of water. We demonstrate that blocking the supply of oxygen interdicts the main supply of water for . C. maculatus. This leads to inactivity, cessation of population growth, desiccation and eventual death. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.

  1. Mass transfer performance comparison of two commonly used liquid desiccants: LiBr and LiCl aqueous solutions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu, X.H.; Yi, X.Q.; Jiang, Y.

    2011-01-01

    Mass transfer performance of two commonly used liquid desiccants, LiBr aqueous solution and LiCl aqueous solution, is compared in this paper on the basis of the same solution temperature and surface vapor pressure. According to the analysis of the analytical solutions of heat and mass transfer processes, the key performance influencing factors are heat capacity ratio of air to desiccant m * and mass transfer unit NTU m . The heat capacities of the two liquid desiccants are about the same at same volumetric flow rate, and LiBr solution has higher density and smaller specific heat capacity. The variance of mass transfer unit with different operating conditions and liquid desiccants are derived based on the experimental results. In the condition of the same desiccant mass flow rate, the dehumidification performance of LiCl solution is better, and the regeneration performance of LiBr solution is a little better or almost the same as that of LiCl solution. In the condition of the same desiccant volumetric flow rate, the dehumidification performance of LiCl solution is a little better or about the same compared with LiBr solution, and the regeneration performance of LiBr solution is better. The COPs of the liquid desiccant systems using these two desiccants are similar; while LiCl solution costs 18% lower than LiBr solution at current Chinese price.

  2. Experimental study on mass transfer performances of cross flow dehumidifier using liquid desiccant

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu, X.H.; Zhang, Y.; Qu, K.Y.; Jiang, Y.

    2006-01-01

    The liquid desiccant air conditioning system is drawing more and more attention due to its advantages in energy saving and environmental friendliness. The dehumidifier is one of the essential parts of the system, which affects the whole system performance severely. This paper experimentally studies the performance of the cross flow dehumidifier, which has been less studied than the counter flow dehumidifier, although it is more applicable in practice. Celdek structured packings were used in the dehumidifier, and a LiBr aqueous solution was used as the liquid desiccant. The moisture removal rate and dehumidifier effectiveness were adopted as the dehumidifier performance indices. The effects of the dehumidifier inlet parameters, including air and desiccant flow rates, air inlet temperature and humidity ratio and desiccant inlet temperature and concentration, on the two indices were investigated. Correlations are proposed to predict the cross flow dehumidifier performance, which give results in good agreement with the present experimental findings

  3. What distinguishes cyanobacteria able to revive after desiccation from those that cannot: the genome aspect.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murik, Omer; Oren, Nadav; Shotland, Yoram; Raanan, Hagai; Treves, Haim; Kedem, Isaac; Keren, Nir; Hagemann, Martin; Pade, Nadin; Kaplan, Aaron

    2017-02-01

    Filamentous cyanobacteria are the main founders and primary producers in biological desert soil crusts (BSCs) and are likely equipped to cope with one of the harshest environmental conditions on earth including daily hydration/dehydration cycles, high irradiance and extreme temperatures. Here, we resolved and report on the genome sequence of Leptolyngbya ohadii, an important constituent of the BSC. Comparative genomics identified a set of genes present in desiccation-tolerant but not in dehydration-sensitive cyanobacteria. RT qPCR analyses showed that the transcript abundance of many of them is upregulated during desiccation in L. ohadii. In addition, we identified genes where the orthologs detected in desiccation-tolerant cyanobacteria differs substantially from that found in desiccation-sensitive cells. We present two examples, treS and fbpA (encoding trehalose synthase and fructose 1,6-bisphosphate aldolase respectively) where, in addition to the orthologs present in the desiccation-sensitive strains, the resistant cyanobacteria also possess genes with different predicted structures. We show that in both cases the two orthologs are transcribed during controlled dehydration of L. ohadii and discuss the genetic basis for the acclimation of cyanobacteria to the desiccation conditions in desert BSC. © 2016 Society for Applied Microbiology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  4. Desiccation stress and tolerance in green algae: consequences for ultrastructure, physiological and molecular mechanisms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holzinger, Andreas; Karsten, Ulf

    2013-01-01

    Although most green algae typically occur in aquatic ecosystems, many species also live partly or permanently under aeroterrestrial conditions, where the cells are exposed to the atmosphere and hence regularly experience dehydration. The ability of algal cells to survive in an air-dried state is termed desiccation tolerance. The mechanisms involved in desiccation tolerance of green algae are still poorly understood, and hence the aim of this review is to summarize recent findings on the effects of desiccation and osmotic water loss. Starting from structural changes, physiological, and biochemical consequences of desiccation will be addressed in different green-algal lineages. The available data clearly indicate a range of strategies, which are rather different in streptophycean and non-streptophycean green algae. While members of the Trebouxiophyceae exhibit effective water loss-prevention mechanisms based on the biosynthesis and accumulation of particular organic osmolytes such as polyols, these compounds are so far not reported in representatives of the Streptophyta. In members of the Streptophyta such as Klebsormidium, the most striking observation is the appearance of cross-walls in desiccated samples, which are strongly undulating, suggesting a high degree of mechanical flexibility. This aids in maintaining structural integrity in the dried state and allows the cell to maintain turgor pressure for a prolonged period of time during the dehydration process. Physiological strategies in aeroterrestrial green algae generally include a rapid reduction of photosynthesis during desiccation, but also a rather quick recovery after rewetting, whereas aquatic species are sensitive to drying. The underlying mechanisms such as the affected molecular components of the photosynthetic machinery are poorly understood in green algae. Therefore, modern approaches based on transcriptomics, proteomics, and/or metabolomics are urgently needed to better understand the molecular

  5. Efficacy of Metarhizium anisopliae isolate MAX-2 from Shangri-la, China under desiccation stress

    Science.gov (United States)

    2014-01-01

    Background Metarhizium anisopliae, a soil-borne entomopathogen found worldwide, is an interesting fungus for biological control. However, its efficacy in the fields is significantly affected by environmental conditions, particularly moisture. To overcome the weakness of Metarhizium and determine its isolates with antistress capacity, the efficacies of four M. anisopliae isolates, which were collected from arid regions of Yunnan Province in China during the dry season, were determined at different moisture levels, and the efficacy of the isolate MAX-2 from Shangri-la under desiccation stress was evaluated at low moisture level. Results M. anisopliae isolates MAX-2, MAC-6, MAL-1, and MAQ-28 showed gradient descent efficacies against sterile Tenebrio molitor larvae, and gradient descent capacities against desiccation with the decrease in moisture levels. The efficacy of MAX-2 showed no significant differences at 35% moisture level than those of the other isolates. However, significant differences were found at 8% to 30% moisture levels. The efficacies of all isolates decreased with the decrease in moisture levels. MAX-2 was relatively less affected by desiccation stress. Its efficacy was almost unaffected by the decrease at moisture levels > 25%, but slowly decreased at moisture levels molitor larvae under desiccation stress and in wet microhabitat. Local black patches were found on the cuticles of the insects, and the cadavers dried without fungal growth under desiccation stress. However, dark black internodes and fungal growth were found after death of the insects in the wet microhabitat. Conclusions MAX-2 showed significantly higher efficacy and superior antistress capacity than the other isolates under desiccation stress. The infection of sterile T. molitor larvae at low moisture level constituted a valid laboratory bioassay system in evaluating M. anisopliae efficacy under desiccation stress. PMID:24383424

  6. Efficacy of Metarhizium anisopliae isolate MAX-2 from Shangri-la, China under desiccation stress.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Zi-Hong; Xu, Ling; Yang, Feng-lian; Ji, Guang-Hai; Yang, Jing; Wang, Jian-Yun

    2014-01-03

    Metarhizium anisopliae, a soil-borne entomopathogen found worldwide, is an interesting fungus for biological control. However, its efficacy in the fields is significantly affected by environmental conditions, particularly moisture. To overcome the weakness of Metarhizium and determine its isolates with antistress capacity, the efficacies of four M. anisopliae isolates, which were collected from arid regions of Yunnan Province in China during the dry season, were determined at different moisture levels, and the efficacy of the isolate MAX-2 from Shangri-la under desiccation stress was evaluated at low moisture level. M. anisopliae isolates MAX-2, MAC-6, MAL-1, and MAQ-28 showed gradient descent efficacies against sterile Tenebrio molitor larvae, and gradient descent capacities against desiccation with the decrease in moisture levels. The efficacy of MAX-2 showed no significant differences at 35% moisture level than those of the other isolates. However, significant differences were found at 8% to 30% moisture levels. The efficacies of all isolates decreased with the decrease in moisture levels. MAX-2 was relatively less affected by desiccation stress. Its efficacy was almost unaffected by the decrease at moisture levels > 25%, but slowly decreased at moisture levels molitor larvae under desiccation stress and in wet microhabitat. Local black patches were found on the cuticles of the insects, and the cadavers dried without fungal growth under desiccation stress. However, dark black internodes and fungal growth were found after death of the insects in the wet microhabitat. MAX-2 showed significantly higher efficacy and superior antistress capacity than the other isolates under desiccation stress. The infection of sterile T. molitor larvae at low moisture level constituted a valid laboratory bioassay system in evaluating M. anisopliae efficacy under desiccation stress.

  7. Desiccation stress and tolerance in green algae: Consequences for ultrastructure, physiological and molecular mechanisms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andreas eHolzinger

    2013-08-01

    Full Text Available Although most green algae typically occur in aquatic ecosystems, many species also live partly or permanently under aeroterrestrial conditions, where the cells are exposed to the atmosphere and hence regularly experience dehydration. The ability of algal cells to survive in an air-dried state is termed desiccation tolerance. The mechanisms involved in desiccation tolerance of green algae are still poorly understood, and hence the aim of this review is to summarize recent findings on the effects of desiccation and osmotic water loss. Starting from structural changes, physiological and biochemical consequences of desiccation will be addressed in different green-algal lineages. The available data clearly indicate a range of strategies, which are rather different in streptophycean and non-streptophycean green algae. For example, Trebouxiophyceae exhibit effective water loss-prevention mechanisms based on the biosynthesis and accumulation of particular organic osmolytes such as polyols, these compounds are so far not reported in representatives of the Streptophyta. In members of the Streptophyta such as Klebsormidium, the most striking observation is the appearance of cross-walls in desiccated samples, which are strongly undulating, suggesting a high degree of mechanical flexibility. This allows the cell to maintain turgor pressure for a prolonged period of time during the dehydration process. Physiological strategies in aeroterrestrial green algae generally include a rapid reduction of photosynthesis during desiccation, but also a rather quick recovery after rewetting, whereas aquatic species are sensitive to drying. The underlying mechanisms such as the affected molecular components of the photosynthetic machinery are poorly understood in green algae. Therefore, modern approaches based on transcriptomics, proteomics and/or metabolomics are urgently needed to better understand the molecular mechanisms involved in desiccation-stress physiology of

  8. A Liquid Desiccant Cycle for Dehumidification and Fresh Water Supply in Controlled Environment Agriculture

    KAUST Repository

    Lefers, Ryan

    2017-12-01

    Controlled environment agriculture allows the production of fresh food indoors from global locations and contexts where it would not otherwise be possible. Growers in extreme climates and urban areas produce food locally indoors, saving thousands of food import miles and capitalizing upon the demand for fresh, tasty, and nutritious food. However, the growing of food, both indoors and outdoors, consumes huge quantities of water - as much as 70-80% of global fresh water supplies. The utilization of liquid desiccants in a closed indoor agriculture cycle provides the possibility of capturing plant-transpired water vapor. The regeneration/desalination of these liquid desiccants offers the potential to recover fresh water for irrigation and also to re-concentrate the desiccants for continued dehumidification. Through the utilization of solar thermal energy, the process can be completed with a very small to zero grid-energy footprint. The primary research in this dissertation focused on two areas: the dehumidification of indoor environments utilizing liquid desiccants inside membrane contactors and the regeneration of these desiccants using membrane distillation. Triple-bore PVDF hollow fiber membranes yielded dehumidification permeance rates around 0.25-0.31 g m-2 h-1 Pa-1 in lab-scale trials. A vacuum membrane distillation unit utilizing PVDF fibers yielded a flux of 2.8-7.0 kg m-2 hr-1. When the membrane contactor dehumidification system was applied in a bench scale controlled environment agriculture setup, the relative humidity levels responded dynamically to both plant transpiration and dehumidification rates, reaching dynamic equilibrium levels during day and night cycles. In addition, recovered fresh water from distillation was successfully applied for irrigation of crops and concentrated desiccants were successfully reused for dehumidification. If applied in practice, the liquid desiccant system for controlled environment agriculture offers the potential to reduce

  9. Experimental analysis and regression prediction of desiccant wheel behavior in high temperature heat pump and desiccant wheel air-conditioning system

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sheng, Ying; Zhang, Yufeng; Sun, Yuexia

    2014-01-01

    The objectives of this study are to evaluate the performance of desiccant wheel (DW) in the running system and obtain the useful data for practical application. The combined influences of multiple variables on the performance of desiccant wheel are investigated based on evaluating the indexes...... of moisture removal capacity, dehumidification effectiveness, dehumidification coefficient of performance and sensible energy ratio. The results show that higher effect on the dehumidification is due to the regeneration temperature and outdoor air humidity ratio rather than the outdoor air temperature...... and the ratio between regeneration and process air flow rates. A simple method based on multiple linear regression theory for predicting the performance of the wheel has been proposed. The predicted values and the experimental data are compared and good agreements are obtained. Regression models are established...

  10. Desiccant wheels for air humidification: An experimental and numerical analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    De Antonellis, Stefano; Intini, Manuel; Joppolo, Cesare Maria; Molinaroli, Luca; Romano, Francesco

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • The use of desiccant wheel to humidify an air stream is investigated. • Air humidification is obtained by extracting water vapour from outdoor air. • Experimental tests in winter humidification conditions are performed. • The design of the proposed humidification system is numerically analyzed. • Effects of boundary conditions on humidification capacity are investigated. - Abstract: In this work the use of a desiccant wheel for air humidification is investigated through a numerical and experimental approach. In the proposed humidification system, water vapour is adsorbed from outdoor environment and it is released directly to the air stream supplied to the building. Such a system can be an interesting alternative to steam humidifiers in hospitals or, more generally, in applications where air contamination is a critical issue and therefore adiabatic humidifiers are not allowed. Performance of the proposed system is deeply investigated and optimal values of desiccant wheel configuration parameters are discussed. It is shown that in the investigated conditions, which are representative of Southern Europe winter climate, the system can properly match the latent load of the building. Finally, power consumption referred to the primary source of the proposed humidification system is compared to the one of steam humidifiers. The present analysis is carried out through experimental tests of a desiccant wheel in winter humidification conditions and through a phenomenological model of the device, based on heat and mass transfer equations.

  11. Evaluation of the source area of rooftop scalar measurements in London, UK using wind tunnel and modelling approaches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brocklehurst, Aidan; Boon, Alex; Barlow, Janet; Hayden, Paul; Robins, Alan

    2014-05-01

    The source area of an instrument is an estimate of the area of ground over which the measurement is generated. Quantification of the source area of a measurement site provides crucial context for analysis and interpretation of the data. A range of computational models exists to calculate the source area of an instrument, but these are usually based on assumptions which do not hold for instruments positioned very close to the surface, particularly those surrounded by heterogeneous terrain i.e. urban areas. Although positioning instrumentation at higher elevation (i.e. on masts) is ideal in urban areas, this can be costly in terms of installation and maintenance costs and logistically difficult to position instruments in the ideal geographical location. Therefore, in many studies, experimentalists turn to rooftops to position instrumentation. Experimental validations of source area models for these situations are very limited. In this study, a controlled tracer gas experiment was conducted in a wind tunnel based on a 1:200 scale model of a measurement site used in previous experimental work in central London. The detector was set at the location of the rooftop site as the tracer was released at a range of locations within the surrounding streets and rooftops. Concentration measurements are presented for a range of wind angles, with the spread of concentration measurements indicative of the source area distribution. Clear evidence of wind channeling by streets is seen with the shape of the source area strongly influenced by buildings upwind of the measurement point. The results of the wind tunnel study are compared to scalar concentration source areas generated by modelling approaches based on meteorological data from the central London experimental site and used in the interpretation of continuous carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration data. Initial conclusions will be drawn as to how to apply scalar concentration source area models to rooftop measurement sites and

  12. Rapid reactivation of cyanobacterial photosynthesis and migration upon rehydration of desiccated marine microbial mats

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Chennu, Arjun; Grinham, Alistair; Polerecky, Lubos; de Beer, Dirk; Al-Najjar, Mohammad A.A.

    2015-01-01

    Desiccated cyanobacterial mats are the dominant biological feature in the Earth's arid zones. While the response of desiccated cyanobacteria to rehydration is well-documented for terrestrial systems, information about the response in marine systems is lacking. We used high temporal resolution

  13. Physiological, cellular and molecular aspects of the desiccation tolerance in Anadenanthera colubrina seeds during germination

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    L. E. Castro

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract During germination, orthodox seeds become gradually intolerant to desiccation, and for this reason, they are a good model for recalcitrance studies. In the present work, physiological, biochemical, and ultrastructural aspects of the desiccation tolerance were characterized during the germination process of Anadenanthera colubrina seeds. The seeds were imbibed during zero (control, 2, 8, 12 (no germinated seeds, and 18 hours (germinated seeds with 1 mm protruded radicle; then they were dried for 72 hours, rehydrated and evaluated for survivorship. Along the imbibition, cytometric and ultrastructural analysis were performed, besides the extraction of the heat-stable proteins. Posteriorly to imbibition and drying, the evaluation of ultrastructural damages was performed. Desiccation tolerance was fully lost after root protrusion. There was no increase in 4C DNA content after the loss of desiccation tolerance. Ultrastructural characteristics of cells from 1mm roots resembled those found in the recalcitrant seeds, in both hydrated and dehydrated states. The loss of desiccation tolerance coincided with the reduction of heat-stable proteins.

  14. Changes in some thylakoid membrane proteins and pigments upon desiccation of the resurrection plant Haberlea rhodopensis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Georgieva, Katya; Röding, Anja; Büchel, Claudia

    2009-09-15

    The changes in some proteins involved in the light reactions of photosynthesis of the resurrection plant Haberlea rhodopensis were examined in connection with desiccation. Fully hydrated (control) and completely desiccated plants (relative water content (RWC) 6.5%) were used for thylakoid preparations. The chlorophyll (Chl) a to Chl b ratios of thylakoids isolated from control and desiccated leaves were very similar, which was also confirmed by measuring their absorption spectra. HPLC analysis revealed that beta-carotene content was only slightly enhanced in desiccated leaves compared with the control, but the zeaxanthin level was strongly increased. Desiccation of H. rhodopensis to an air-dried state at very low light irradiance led to a little decrease in the level of D1, D2, PsbS and PsaA/B proteins in thylakoids, but a relative increase in LHC polypeptides. To further elucidate whether the composition of the protein complexes of the thylakoid membranes had changed, we performed a separation of solubilized thylakoids on sucrose density gradients. In contrast to spinach, Haberlea thylakoids appeared to be much more resistant to the same solubilization procedure, i.e. complexes were not separated completely and complexes of higher density were found. However, the fractions analyzed provided clear evidence for a move of part of the antenna complexes from PSII to PSI when plants became desiccated. This move was also confirmed by low temperature emission spectra of thylakoids. Overall, the photosynthetic proteins remained comparatively stable in dried Haberlea leaves when plants were desiccated under conditions similar to their natural habitat. Low light during desiccation was enough to induce a rise in the xanthophyll zeaxanthin and beta-carotene. Together with the extensive leaf shrinkage and some leaf folding, increased zeaxanthin content and the observed shift in antenna proteins from PSII to PSI during desiccation of Haberlea contributed to the integrity of the

  15. Glutathione reductase in leaves of cowpea: cloning of two cDNAs, expression and enzymatic activity under progressive drought stress, desiccation and abscisic acid treatment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Contour-Ansel, Dominique; Torres-Franklin, Maria Lucia; Cruz DE Carvalho, Maria Helena; D'Arcy-Lameta, Agnès; Zuily-Fodil, Yasmine

    2006-12-01

    Reactive oxygen species are frequently produced when plants are exposed to abiotic stresses. Among the detoxication systems, two enzymes, ascorbate peroxidase and glutathione reductase (GR) play key roles. GR has also a central role in keeping the reduced glutathione pool during stress thus allowing the adjustments on the cellular redox reactions. The aim of this work was to study the variations in cytosolic and dual-targeted GR gene expression in the leaves of cowpea plants submitted to progressive drought, rapid desiccation and application of exogenous abscisic acid (ABA). Two cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) cultivars, one drought-resistant ('EPACE-1'), the other drought-sensitive ('1183') were submitted to progressive drought stress by withholding irrigation. Cut-off leaves were air-dried or treated with exogenous ABA. Two GR cDNAs, one cytosolic, the other dual-targeted to chloroplasts and mitochondria were isolated by PCR and cloned in plasmid vectors. Reverse-transcription PCR was used to study the variations in GR gene expression. Two new cDNAs encoding a putative dual-targeted and a cytosolic GR were cloned and sequenced from leaves of V. unguiculata. Drought stress induced an up-regulation of the expression of the cytosolic GR gene directly related to the intensity of the stress in both cultivars. The expression of dual-targeted GR was up-regulated by the drought treatment in the susceptible cultivar only. Under a fast desiccation, the '1183' cultivar responded later than the 'EPACE-1', although in 'EPACE-1' it was the cytosolic isoform which responded and in '1183' the dual-targeted one. Exogenous ABA enhanced significantly the activity and expression levels of GR in both cultivars after treatment for 24 h. These results demonstrate a noticeable activation in both cultivars of the antioxidant metabolism under a progressive water stress, which involves both GR genes in the case of the susceptible cultivar. Under a fast desiccation, the susceptible cultivar

  16. Expression profiling and cross-species RNA interference (RNAi of desiccation-induced transcripts in the anhydrobiotic nematode Aphelenchus avenae

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Culleton Bridget A

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Some organisms can survive extreme desiccation by entering a state of suspended animation known as anhydrobiosis. The free-living mycophagous nematode Aphelenchus avenae can be induced to enter anhydrobiosis by pre-exposure to moderate reductions in relative humidity (RH prior to extreme desiccation. This preconditioning phase is thought to allow modification of the transcriptome by activation of genes required for desiccation tolerance. Results To identify such genes, a panel of expressed sequence tags (ESTs enriched for sequences upregulated in A. avenae during preconditioning was created. A subset of 30 genes with significant matches in databases, together with a number of apparently novel sequences, were chosen for further study. Several of the recognisable genes are associated with water stress, encoding, for example, two new hydrophilic proteins related to the late embryogenesis abundant (LEA protein family. Expression studies confirmed EST panel members to be upregulated by evaporative water loss, and the majority of genes was also induced by osmotic stress and cold, but rather fewer by heat. We attempted to use RNA interference (RNAi to demonstrate the importance of this gene set for anhydrobiosis, but found A. avenae to be recalcitrant with the techniques used. Instead, therefore, we developed a cross-species RNAi procedure using A. avenae sequences in another anhydrobiotic nematode, Panagrolaimus superbus, which is amenable to gene silencing. Of 20 A. avenae ESTs screened, a significant reduction in survival of desiccation in treated P. superbus populations was observed with two sequences, one of which was novel, while the other encoded a glutathione peroxidase. To confirm a role for glutathione peroxidases in anhydrobiosis, RNAi with cognate sequences from P. superbus was performed and was also shown to reduce desiccation tolerance in this species. Conclusions This study has identified and characterised the

  17. Global Trends and Current Status of Commercial Urban Rooftop Farming

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Devi Buehler

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study was to analyze current practices in commercial urban rooftop farming (URF. In recent years, URF has been experiencing increasing popularity. It is a practice that is well-suited to enhancing food security in cities and reducing the environmental impact that results from long transportation distances that are common in conventional agriculture. To date, most URF initiatives have been motivated by social and educational factors rather than the aim of creating large sustainable food production systems in cities. The commercial operation of urban rooftop farms, should they become profitable, is likely to attract notable private investment, allowing a significant level of high quality urban food production to be achieved. There is a reasonable amount of literature available on urban farming that deals with its potential, and its limitations. However, it does not focus on commercial operations. In contrast to other surveys and theoretical papers, this study of URF focuses on large and commercial operations. The analysis showed that commercial URFs can be grouped into two main types: Firstly, hydroponic systems in greenhouses where mostly leafy greens, tomatoes, and herbs are grown; secondly, soil-based open-air farms that grow a large variety of vegetables. Hydroponics is frequently seen as the key technology for commercial urban food production. While the technology is not in and of itself sustainable, hydroponic farms often make an effort to implement environmentally friendly technologies and methods. However, there is still untapped potential to systemically integrate farms into buildings. The findings of this study identified where future research is needed in order to make URF a widespread sustainable solution.

  18. Analysis of urban land use in the megacity of Dhaka, Bangladesh: Roof-top detection in the context of assessing solar photovoltaic potential

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jaegermeyr, J.; Kabir, H.; Endlicher, W.

    2009-12-01

    The megacity of Dhaka, Bangladesh is considered to be one of the world’s fastest growing urban centers. With nearly 14 million people Dhaka currently faces tremendous power crisis. The available power supply of Dhaka Megacity is currently 1000-1200 MW against the maximum demand of nearly 2000 MW. The objective of this study is to classify land cover of Dhaka to locate roof-top areas which are adequate for solar photovoltaic applications. Usually this task is performed with additional building-heights data. With lack of that, we present an object-based classification approach which is based on high resolution Quickbird data only. Extensive formal buildings in Dhaka mostly have flat roof-tops made from concrete which are well suited for PV applications. The classification is focused to detect these ‘Bright Roof-Tops’ to assess a lower limit for potential PV areas. With that conservative approach bright roof-top areas of 10.554 km2 out of the city’s 134.282 km2 could be found. The overall classification accuracy is 0.918, the producer’s accuracy of ‘Bright Roof-Tops’ is 0.833. Preliminary result of the PhD work of Humayun Kabir indicates that the application of only 75 Wp stand-alone solar modules on these available bright roof-tops can generate nearly 1,000 MW of electricity. The application of solar modules with high capacity (i.e., >200 Wp) preferably through grid-connected PV systems can substantially meet-up the city’s power demand, although several techno-economic and socio-political factors are certainly involved.

  19. Self-desiccation mechanism of high-performance concrete.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Quan-Bing; Zhang, Shu-Qing

    2004-12-01

    Investigations on the effects of W/C ratio and silica fume on the autogenous shrinkage and internal relative humidity of high performance concrete (HPC), and analysis of the self-desiccation mechanisms of HPC showed that the autogenous shrinkage and internal relative humidity of HPC increases and decreases with the reduction of W/C respectively; and that these phenomena were amplified by the addition of silica fume. Theoretical analyses indicated that the reduction of RH in HPC was not due to shortage of water, but due to the fact that the evaporable water in HPC was not evaporated freely. The reduction of internal relative humidity or the so-called self-desiccation of HPC was chiefly caused by the increase in mole concentration of soluble ions in HPC and the reduction of pore size or the increase in the fraction of micro-pore water in the total evaporable water (T(r)/T(te) ratio).

  20. Performance Assessment of a Solar powered Air Quality and Weather Station Placed on a School Rooftop in Hong Kong

    Science.gov (United States)

    Summary of compact, roof version of a Village Green Project station installed on a secondary school rooftop in Hong Kong. Preliminary comparison of the station's data against nearby regulatory monitors are summarized.

  1. A comparative study between Solenopsis invicta and Solenopsis richteri on tolerance to heat and desiccation stresses.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jian Chen

    Full Text Available Solenopsis invicta and Solenopsis richteri are two very closely related invasive ant species; however, S. invicta is a much more successful invader. Physiological tolerance to abiotic stress has been hypothesized to be important to the success of an invasive species. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that S. invicta is more tolerant to heat and desiccation stress than S. richteri. The data strongly support our hypothesis. S. invicta was found to be significantly less vulnerable than S. richteri to both heat and desiccation stress. Despite S. richteri having significantly higher body water content, S. invicta was less sensitive to desiccation stress due to its significantly lower water loss rate (higher desiccation resistance. After the cuticular lipid was removed, S. invicta still had a significantly lower water loss rate than S. richteri, indicating that cuticular lipids were not the only factors accounting for difference in the desiccation resistance between these two species. Since multiple biological and/or ecological traits can contribute to the invasion success of a particular species, whether the observed difference in tolerance to heat and desiccation stresses is indeed associated with the variation in invasion success between these two species can only be confirmed by further extensive comparative study.

  2. A multi-objective optimization model for energy-efficiency building envelope retrofitting plan with rooftop PV system installation and maintenance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fan, Yuling; Xia, Xiaohua

    2017-01-01

    Highlights: • A multi-objective optimization model for building envelope retrofit is presented. • Facility performance degradation and maintenance is built into the model. • A rooftop PV system is introduced to produce electricity. • Economic factors including net present value and payback period are considered. - Abstract: Retrofitting existing buildings with energy-efficient facilities is an effective method to improve their energy efficiency, especially for old buildings. A multi-objective optimization model for building envelope retrofitting is presented. Envelope components including windows, external walls and roofs are considered to be retrofitted. Installation of a rooftop solar panel system is also taken into consideration in this study. Rooftop solar panels are modeled with their degradation and a maintenance scheme is studied for sustainability of energy and its long-term effect on the retrofitting plan. The purpose is to make the best use of financial investment to maximize energy savings and economic benefits. In particular, net present value, the payback period and energy savings are taken as the main performance indicators of the retrofitting plan. The multi-objective optimization problem is formulated as a non-linear integer programming problem and solved by a weighted sum method. Results of applying the designed retrofitting plan to a 50-year-old building consisting of 66 apartments demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed model.

  3. Nitrogen sources affect productivity, desiccation tolerance and storage stability of Beauveria bassiana blastospores.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mascarin, G M; Kobori, N N; Jackson, M A; Dunlap, C A; Delalibera, Í

    2018-03-01

    Nitrogen is a critical element in industrial fermentation media. This study investigated the influence of various nitrogen sources on blastospore production, desiccation tolerance and storage stability using two strains of the cosmopolitan insect-pathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana. Complex organic sources of nitrogen such as soy flour, autolysed yeast and cottonseed flour induced great numbers of blastospores after 2-3 days of fermentation, which also survived drying and remained viable (32-56% survival) after 9 months storage at 4°C, although variations were found between strains. Nitrogen availability in the form of free amino acids directly influenced blastospore production and resistance to desiccation. Increasing glucose and nitrogen concentrations up to 120 and 30 g l -1 , respectively, did not improve blastospore production but enhanced desiccation tolerance. Cell viability after drying and upon fast-rehydration was increased when ≥25 g acid-hydrolysed casein per litre was supplemented in the liquid culture medium. These findings indicate that low-cost complex nitrogen compounds are suitable to enhance yeast-like growth by B. bassiana with good desiccation tolerance and therefore support its further scale-up production as a mycoinsecticide. Nitrogen is the most expensive nutrient in liquid media composition, but this study underscores the feasibility of using low-cost nitrogen compounds composed mainly of agro-industrial by-products for rapid production of desiccation-tolerant B. bassiana blastospores by liquid culture fermentation. © 2018 The Society for Applied Microbiology.

  4. Aquatic insects dealing with dehydration: do desiccation resistance traits differ in species with contrasting habitat preferences?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Susana Pallarés

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Background Desiccation resistance shapes the distribution of terrestrial insects at multiple spatial scales. However, responses to drying stress have been poorly studied in aquatic groups, despite their potential role in constraining their distribution and diversification, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions. Methods We examined desiccation resistance in adults of four congeneric water beetle species (Enochrus, family Hydrophilidae with contrasting habitat specificity (lentic vs. lotic systems and different salinity optima from fresh- to hypersaline waters. We measured survival, recovery capacity and key traits related to desiccation resistance (fresh mass, % water content, % cuticle content and water loss rate under controlled exposure to desiccation, and explored their variability within and between species. Results Meso- and hypersaline species were more resistant to desiccation than freshwater and hyposaline ones, showing significantly lower water loss rates and higher water content. No clear patterns in desiccation resistance traits were observed between lotic and lentic species. Intraspecifically, water loss rate was positively related to specimens’ initial % water content, but not to fresh mass or % cuticle content, suggesting that the dynamic mechanism controlling water loss is mainly regulated by the amount of body water available. Discussion Our results support previous hypotheses suggesting that the evolution of desiccation resistance is associated with the colonization of saline habitats by aquatic beetles. The interespecific patterns observed in Enochrus also suggest that freshwater species may be more vulnerable than saline ones to drought intensification expected under climate change in semi-arid regions such as the Mediterranean Basin.

  5. Spreading the rooftop revolution: What policies enable solar-as-a-service?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Overholm, Harald

    2015-01-01

    Firms using third-party-ownership (TPO) business models transform solar rooftop installations into a simple service. TPO firms sign long-term agreements with building owners or users to install, finance and manage locally sited solar panels. Customers simply buy solar electricity. The business model can increase total PV market demand by removing central barriers to PV adoption including technology risk, financing needs, and learning costs. TPO is now the dominant US model for residential solar and attempts to use the business model are underway in Europe and Asia. This study discusses how policy makers can enable emergence of solar TPO business models in new markets, a theme novel to extant literature. The paper is based on a comprehensive study of the US solar TPO ecosystem including 50 interviews with key market actors. A downside to the TPO model is potential lock-out of innovative solar technology. Crucial policy actions to enable TPO emergence in new markets are to ensure the legality of the TPO model and to facilitate solar self-consumption (the ability of customers to offset grid electricity costs by using locally generated solar electricity). -- Highlights: •Solar third-party ownership (TPO) firms can boost solar rooftop growth. •5 in-depth cases of US TPO firms and their ecosystem of partners are analyzed. •Policy options to enable solar TPO emergence in new markets are suggested. •Avoiding prohibitive rules and facilitating solar self-consumption are key measures. •Lock-out of new and innovative solar technology is a downside to the TPO model

  6. A realistic appraisal of methods to enhance desiccation tolerance of entomopathogenic nematodes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Perry, Roland N; Ehlers, Ralf-Udo; Glazer, Itamar

    2012-06-01

    Understanding the desiccation survival attributes of infective juveniles of entomopathogenic nematodes (EPN) of the genera Steinernema and Heterorhabditis, is central to evaluating the reality of enhancing the shelf-life and field persistence of commercial formulations. Early work on the structural and physiological aspects of desiccation survival focused on the role of the molted cuticle in controlling the rate of water loss and the importance of energy reserves, particularly neutral lipids. The accumulation of trehalose was also found to enhance desiccation survival. Isolation of natural populations that can survive harsh environments, such as deserts, indicated that some populations have enhanced abilities to survive desiccation. However, survival abilities of EPN are limited compared with those of some species of plant-parasitic nematodes inhabiting aerial parts of plants. Research on EPN stress tolerance has expanded on two main lines: i) to select strains of species, currently in use commercially, which have increased tolerance to environmental extremes; and ii) to utilize molecular information, including expressed sequence tags and genome sequence data, to determine the underlying genetic factors that control longevity and stress tolerance of EPN. However, given the inherent limitations of EPN survival ability, it is likely that improved formulation will be the major factor to enhance EPN longevity and, perhaps, increase the range of applications.

  7. Variations in biofilm formation, desiccation resistance and Benzalkonium chloride susceptibility among Listeria monocytogenes strains isolated in Canada.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Piercey, Marta J; Ells, Timothy C; Macintosh, Andrew J; Truelstrup Hansen, Lisbeth

    2017-09-18

    Listeria monocytogenes is a pathogenic foodborne microorganism noted for its ability to survive in the environment and food processing facilities. Survival may be related to the phenotype of individual strains including the ability to form biofilms and resist desiccation and/or sanitizer exposure. The objectives of this research were to compare 14 L. monocytogenes strains isolated from blood (3), food (6) and water (5) with respect to their benzalkonium chloride (BAC) sensitivity, desiccation resistance, and ability to form biofilm. Correlations were tested between those responses, and the presence of the SSI-1 (Stress Survival Islet) and LGI1/CC8 (Listeria Genomic Island 1 in a clonal complex 8 background) genetic markers. Genetic sequences from four strains representing different phenotypes were also probed for predicted amino acid differences in biofilm, desiccation, and membrane related genes. The water isolates were among the most desiccation susceptible strains, while strains exhibiting desiccation resistance harboured SSI-1 or both the SSI-1 and LGI1/CC8 markers. BAC resistance was greatest in planktonic LGI1/CC8 cells (relative to non-LGI1/CC8 cells), and higher BAC concentrations were also needed to inhibit the formation of biofilm by LGI1/CC8 strains during incubation for 48h and 6days compared to other strains. Formation of biofilm on stainless steel was not significantly (p>0.05) different among the strains. Analysis of genetic sequence data from desiccation and BAC sensitive (CP4 5-1, CP5 2-3, both from water), intermediate (Lm568, food) and desiccation and BAC resistant (08 5578, blood, human outbreak) strains led to the finding of amino acid differences in predicted functional protein domains in several biofilm, desiccation and peptidoglycan related genes (e.g., lmo0263, lmo0433, lmo0434, lmo0771, lmo0973, lmo1080, lmo1224, lmo1370, lmo1744, and lmo2558). Notably, the LGI1/CC8 strain 08-5578 had a frameshift mutation in lmo1370, a gene previously

  8. Large-scale proteome analysis of abscisic acid and ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE3-dependent proteins related to desiccation tolerance in Physcomitrella patens

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yotsui, Izumi; Serada, Satoshi; Naka, Tetsuji; Saruhashi, Masashi; Taji, Teruaki; Hayashi, Takahisa; Quatrano, Ralph S.; Sakata, Yoichi

    2016-01-01

    Desiccation tolerance is an ancestral feature of land plants and is still retained in non-vascular plants such as bryophytes and some vascular plants. However, except for seeds and spores, this trait is absent in vegetative tissues of vascular plants. Although many studies have focused on understanding the molecular basis underlying desiccation tolerance using transcriptome and proteome approaches, the critical molecular differences between desiccation tolerant plants and non-desiccation plants are still not clear. The moss Physcomitrella patens cannot survive rapid desiccation under laboratory conditions, but if cells of the protonemata are treated by the phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA) prior to desiccation, it can survive 24 h exposure to desiccation and regrow after rehydration. The desiccation tolerance induced by ABA (AiDT) is specific to this hormone, but also depends on a plant transcription factor ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE3 (ABI3). Here we report the comparative proteomic analysis of AiDT between wild type and ABI3 deleted mutant (Δabi3) of P. patens using iTRAQ (Isobaric Tags for Relative and Absolute Quantification). From a total of 1980 unique proteins that we identified, only 16 proteins are significantly altered in Δabi3 compared to wild type after desiccation following ABA treatment. Among this group, three of the four proteins that were severely affected in Δabi3 tissue were Arabidopsis orthologous genes, which were expressed in maturing seeds under the regulation of ABI3. These included a Group 1 late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) protein, a short-chain dehydrogenase, and a desiccation-related protein. Our results suggest that at least three of these proteins expressed in desiccation tolerant cells of both Arabidopsis and the moss are very likely to play important roles in acquisition of desiccation tolerance in land plants. Furthermore, our results suggest that the regulatory machinery of ABA- and ABI3-mediated gene expression for desiccation

  9. Large-scale proteome analysis of abscisic acid and ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE3-dependent proteins related to desiccation tolerance in Physcomitrella patens

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yotsui, Izumi, E-mail: izumi.yotsui@riken.jp [Department of BioScience, Tokyo University of Agriculture 1-1-1 Sakuragaoka, Setagayaku, Tokyo, 156-8502 (Japan); Serada, Satoshi, E-mail: serada@nibiohn.go.jp [Laboratory of Immune Signal, National Institute of Biomedical Innovation, Health and Nutrition, 7-6-8 Saito-Asagi, Ibaraki, Osaka, 567-0085 (Japan); Naka, Tetsuji, E-mail: tnaka@nibiohn.go.jp [Laboratory of Immune Signal, National Institute of Biomedical Innovation, Health and Nutrition, 7-6-8 Saito-Asagi, Ibaraki, Osaka, 567-0085 (Japan); Saruhashi, Masashi, E-mail: s13db001@mail.saitama-u.ac.jp [Department of BioScience, Tokyo University of Agriculture 1-1-1 Sakuragaoka, Setagayaku, Tokyo, 156-8502 (Japan); Taji, Teruaki, E-mail: t3teruak@nodai.ac.jp [Department of BioScience, Tokyo University of Agriculture 1-1-1 Sakuragaoka, Setagayaku, Tokyo, 156-8502 (Japan); Hayashi, Takahisa, E-mail: t4hayash@nodai.ac.jp [Department of BioScience, Tokyo University of Agriculture 1-1-1 Sakuragaoka, Setagayaku, Tokyo, 156-8502 (Japan); Quatrano, Ralph S., E-mail: rsq@wustl.edu [Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, 63130-4899 (United States); Sakata, Yoichi, E-mail: sakata@nodai.ac.jp [Department of BioScience, Tokyo University of Agriculture 1-1-1 Sakuragaoka, Setagayaku, Tokyo, 156-8502 (Japan)

    2016-03-18

    Desiccation tolerance is an ancestral feature of land plants and is still retained in non-vascular plants such as bryophytes and some vascular plants. However, except for seeds and spores, this trait is absent in vegetative tissues of vascular plants. Although many studies have focused on understanding the molecular basis underlying desiccation tolerance using transcriptome and proteome approaches, the critical molecular differences between desiccation tolerant plants and non-desiccation plants are still not clear. The moss Physcomitrella patens cannot survive rapid desiccation under laboratory conditions, but if cells of the protonemata are treated by the phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA) prior to desiccation, it can survive 24 h exposure to desiccation and regrow after rehydration. The desiccation tolerance induced by ABA (AiDT) is specific to this hormone, but also depends on a plant transcription factor ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE3 (ABI3). Here we report the comparative proteomic analysis of AiDT between wild type and ABI3 deleted mutant (Δabi3) of P. patens using iTRAQ (Isobaric Tags for Relative and Absolute Quantification). From a total of 1980 unique proteins that we identified, only 16 proteins are significantly altered in Δabi3 compared to wild type after desiccation following ABA treatment. Among this group, three of the four proteins that were severely affected in Δabi3 tissue were Arabidopsis orthologous genes, which were expressed in maturing seeds under the regulation of ABI3. These included a Group 1 late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) protein, a short-chain dehydrogenase, and a desiccation-related protein. Our results suggest that at least three of these proteins expressed in desiccation tolerant cells of both Arabidopsis and the moss are very likely to play important roles in acquisition of desiccation tolerance in land plants. Furthermore, our results suggest that the regulatory machinery of ABA- and ABI3-mediated gene expression for desiccation

  10. The effect of wounds on desiccation of prey: implications for a predator with extra-oral digestion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morse, Douglass H

    1998-06-01

    Predators that inject prey with proteolytic enzymes, thereby breaking down their tissues for subsequent ingestion, run the risk that desiccation will hinder eventual retrieval of resources from these prey. Wounds made in capture might exacerbate this problem. However, desiccation rates of small syrphid flies Toxomerusmarginatus (Diptera: Syrphidae) killed by juvenile crab spiders Misumena vatia (Araneae: Thomisidae) and intact dead syrphid flies did not differ over the normal period of feeding, though desiccation rates in shade and sun differed several-fold. Neither the size of the spider (and presumably the size of the wounds it inflicted) nor the location of the wounds on the flies' bodies affected desiccation rates. Thus, this tactic of prey handling does not exact an added processing cost on Misumena.

  11. Slow desiccation improves dehydration tolerance and accumulation of compatible osmolytes in earthworm cocoons (Dendrobaena octaedra Savigny)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Petersen, Christina R; Holmstrup, Martin; Malmendal, Anders

    2008-01-01

    The earthworm, Dendrobaena octaedra, is a common species in temperate and subarctic regions of the northern hemisphere. The egg capsules ('cocoons') of D. octaedra are deposited in the upper soil layers where they may be exposed to desiccation. Many previous studies on desiccation tolerance in soil...... anhydrobiotic organism we propose that they belong in a transition zone between the desiccation sensitive and the truly anhydrobiotic organisms. Clearly, these earthworm embryos share many physiological traits with anhydrobiotic organisms....

  12. Feasibility study on an energy-saving desiccant wheel system with CO2 heat pump

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Yefeng; Meng, Deren; Chen, Shen

    2018-02-01

    In traditional desiccant wheel, air regeneration process occurs inside an open loop, and lots of energy is consumed. In this paper, an energy-saving desiccant wheel system with CO2 heat pump and closed loop air regeneration is proposed. The general theory and features of the desiccant wheel are analysed. The main feature of the proposed system is that the air regeneration process occurs inside a closed loop, and a CO2 heat pump is utilized inside this loop for the air regeneration process as well as supplying cooling for the process air. The simulation results show that the proposed system can save significant energy.

  13. RM12-2703 Advanced Rooftop Unit Control Retrofit Kit Field Demonstration: Hawaii and Guam Energy Improvement Technology Demonstration Project

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Doebber, I. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Dean, J. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Dominick, J. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Holland, G. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2014-03-01

    As part of its overall strategy to meet its energy goals, the Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) partnered with U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to rapidly demonstrate and deploy cost-effective renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies. This was one of several demonstrations of new and underutilized commercial energy efficiency technologies. The consistent year-round demand for air conditioning and dehumidification in Hawaii provides an advantageous demonstration location for advanced rooftop control (ARC) retrofit kits to packaged rooftop units (RTUs). This report summarizes the field demonstration of ARCs installed on nine RTUs serving a 70,000-ft2 exchange store (large retail) and two RTUs, each serving small office buildings located on Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH).

  14. Deep Vadose Zone Treatability Test for the Hanford Central Plateau: Interim Post-Desiccation Monitoring Results, Fiscal Year 2014

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Truex, Michael J. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Strickland, Christopher E. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Johnson, Christian D. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Johnson, Timothy C. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Clayton, Ray E. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Chronister, Glen B. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2014-09-01

    Over decades of operation, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and its predecessors have released nearly 2 trillion L (450 billion gal.) of liquid into the vadose zone at the Hanford Site. Much of this discharge of liquid waste into the vadose zone occurred in the Central Plateau, a 200 km2 (75 mi2) area that includes approximately 800 waste sites. Some of the inorganic and radionuclide contaminants in the deep vadose zone at the Hanford Site are at depths below the limit of direct exposure pathways, but may need to be remediated to protect groundwater. The Tri-Party Agencies (DOE, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and Washington State Department of Ecology) established Milestone M 015 50, which directed DOE to submit a treatability test plan for remediation of technetium-99 (Tc-99) and uranium in the deep vadose zone. These contaminants are mobile in the subsurface environment and have been detected at high concentrations deep in the vadose zone, and at some locations have reached groundwater. Testing technologies for remediating Tc-99 and uranium will also provide information relevant for remediating other contaminants in the vadose zone. A field test of desiccation is being conducted as an element of the DOE test plan published in March 2008 to meet Milestone M 015 50. The active desiccation portion of the test has been completed. Monitoring data have been collected at the field test site during the post-desiccation period and are reported herein. This is an interim data summary report that includes about 3 years of post-desiccation monitoring data. The DOE field test plan proscribes a total of 5 years of post-desiccation monitoring.

  15. Desiccation of adhering and biofilm Listeria monocytogenes on stainless steel: Survival and transfer to salmon products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hansen, Lisbeth Truelstrup; Vogel, Birte Fonnesbech

    2011-03-15

    The foodborne bacterial pathogen, Listeria monocytogenes, commonly contaminates foods during processing, where the microorganisms are potentially subjected to low relative humidity (RH) conditions for extended periods of time. The objective of this study was to examine survival during desiccation (43% RH and 15 °C) of biofilm L. monocytogenes N53-1 cells on stainless steel coupons and to assess subsequent transfer to salmon products. Formation of static biofilm (2 days at 100% RH and 15 °C) prior to desiccation for 23 days significantly (Pbiofilm cells also desiccated in low salt, indicating the protective effect of the biofilm matrix. Osmoadaptation of cells in 5% NaCl before formation of the static biofilm significantly (Pbiofilm cells was significantly (Pbiofilm bacteria, however, as biofilm formation enhanced desiccation survival more bacteria were still transferred to smoked and fresh salmon. In conclusion, the current work shows the protective effect of biofilm formation, salt and osmoadaptation on the desiccation survival of L. monocytogenes, which in turn increases the potential for cross-contamination during food processing. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. Salinity effects on the dynamics and patterns of desiccation cracks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shokri, N.; Zhou, P.

    2012-12-01

    Cracking arising from desiccation is a ubiquitous phenomenon encountered in various industrial and geo-environmental applications including drying of clayey soil, cement, ceramics, gels, and many more colloidal suspensions. Presence of cracks in muddy sediments modifies the characteristics of the medium such as pore structure, porosity, and permeability which in turn influence various flow and transport processes. Thus it remains a topic of great interest in many disciplines to describe the dynamics of desiccation cracking under various boundary conditions. To this end, we conducted a comprehensive study to investigate effects of NaCl concentrations on cracking dynamics and patterns during desiccation of Bentonite. Mixtures of Bentonite and NaCl solutions were prepared with NaCl concentration varying from 2 to 10 percent in 0.5 percent increment (totally 17 configurations). The slurry was placed in a Petri dish mounted on a digital balance to record the evaporation dynamics. The atmospheric conditions were kept constant using an environmental chamber. An automatic camera was used to record the dynamics of macro-cracks (mm scale) at the surface of desiccating clay each minute. The obtained results illustrate the significant effects of salt concentration on the initiation, propagation, morphology and general dynamics of macro-cracks. We found that higher salt concentrations results in larger macro cracks' lengths attributed to the effects of NaCl on compressing the electric double layer of particles at increasing electrolyte concentrations which reduce considerably the repulsive forces among the particles and causing instability of the slurry and flocculation of the colloidal particles. Rheological measurements by means of a stress controlled rheometer revealed that the yield stress of the slurry decreases as NaCl concentration increases which may indicate aggregation of larger units in the slurry as a result of flocculation causing larger cracks' lengths due to

  17. Large-scale proteome analysis of abscisic acid and ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE3-dependent proteins related to desiccation tolerance in Physcomitrella patens.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yotsui, Izumi; Serada, Satoshi; Naka, Tetsuji; Saruhashi, Masashi; Taji, Teruaki; Hayashi, Takahisa; Quatrano, Ralph S; Sakata, Yoichi

    2016-03-18

    Desiccation tolerance is an ancestral feature of land plants and is still retained in non-vascular plants such as bryophytes and some vascular plants. However, except for seeds and spores, this trait is absent in vegetative tissues of vascular plants. Although many studies have focused on understanding the molecular basis underlying desiccation tolerance using transcriptome and proteome approaches, the critical molecular differences between desiccation tolerant plants and non-desiccation plants are still not clear. The moss Physcomitrella patens cannot survive rapid desiccation under laboratory conditions, but if cells of the protonemata are treated by the phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA) prior to desiccation, it can survive 24 h exposure to desiccation and regrow after rehydration. The desiccation tolerance induced by ABA (AiDT) is specific to this hormone, but also depends on a plant transcription factor ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE3 (ABI3). Here we report the comparative proteomic analysis of AiDT between wild type and ABI3 deleted mutant (Δabi3) of P. patens using iTRAQ (Isobaric Tags for Relative and Absolute Quantification). From a total of 1980 unique proteins that we identified, only 16 proteins are significantly altered in Δabi3 compared to wild type after desiccation following ABA treatment. Among this group, three of the four proteins that were severely affected in Δabi3 tissue were Arabidopsis orthologous genes, which were expressed in maturing seeds under the regulation of ABI3. These included a Group 1 late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) protein, a short-chain dehydrogenase, and a desiccation-related protein. Our results suggest that at least three of these proteins expressed in desiccation tolerant cells of both Arabidopsis and the moss are very likely to play important roles in acquisition of desiccation tolerance in land plants. Furthermore, our results suggest that the regulatory machinery of ABA- and ABI3-mediated gene expression for desiccation

  18. Influence of desiccation procedures on the surface wettability and corrosion resistance of porous aluminium anodic oxide films

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zheng Meng, E-mail: ZhengMeng@eng.hokudai.ac.jp [Graduate School of Engineering, Hokkaido University, Kita-13, Nishi-8, Kita-Ku, Sapporo 060-8628 (Japan); Sakairi, Masatoshi [Faculty of Engineering, Hokkaido University, Kita-13, Nishi-8, Kita-Ku, Sapporo 060-8628 (Japan); Jha, Himendra [Technische Universitaet Muenchen, Lichtenbergstrasse 4, D-85748 Garching (Germany)

    2012-02-15

    Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Simple desiccation treatment without coating or etching produces hydrophobicity of porous anodic oxide film. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Treatment time can be shortened by controlling desiccation condition. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Surface microstructure is the key point to determine the wettability. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The hydrophobic surfaces show better corrosion resistance than oxide aluminium. - Abstract: A hydrophobic oxide film was formed on aluminium by anodizing followed by desiccation treatment. Films subjected to gradual heating and cooling exhibit larger water contact angles than samples exposed to fast heating and cooling at the same temperature. From SEM and Auger Electron Spectroscopic observations, the low wettability surface shows a regular porous morphology with no significant chemical composition differences due to the different treatments. The desiccation process improves the corrosion resistance, shown by immersion in NaCl. The change in morphology by the desiccation processes is considered a main reason to lower the wettability, which further affects the corrosion properties.

  19. Desiccation of sludges as instruments for solid radioactive wastes reduction

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Perez, C.

    2003-01-01

    In order to maintain as well as possible and optimize use of the radioactive waste storage capacity of El Carbil ENRESA and the Electric Sector put a series of actions into motion in 1994 to reduce and optimize radioactive waste processing. As a result of this strategy, a moist waste desiccation system has been developed with Spanish technology by ENSA. This system was installed in Trillo NPP in 2001 and has operated satisfactorily for the past year, having significantly reduced the volume of waste generated by evaporator concentrates. This article describes the objectives, design and implementation of the desiccation system installed in Trillo NPP. (Author)

  20. Desiccation and freezing tolerance of embryonic axes from Citrus sinensis [L.] osb. pretreated with sucrose.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Santos, Izulmé R I; Stushnoff, Cecil

    2003-01-01

    Embryonic axes of Citrus sinensis L. were successfully cryopreserved. While fully hydrated unfrozen axes germinated 100%, survival decreased as axes water content dropped, and total loss of viability was observed when the water content dropped to 0.04 and 0.10 mg H2O/mg dry mass, for axes without and with sucrose preculture, respectively. Fully hydrated axes did not survive exposure to liquid nitrogen. Highest seedling recovery (93-100%) for untreated axes was observed at 0.26 to 0.15 mg H2O/mg dry mass. Differential scanning calorimetry revealed the presence of broad melting peaks in fully hydrated embryonic axes. The size of the melting peak diminished as water was removed by desiccation. Minimum melting of water was observed at the point axes survived cryopreservation. Occurrence of a glass transition upon warming was not a condition for axes to survive liquid nitrogen exposure. In untreated axes, glucose, increased with desiccation to 0.2 mg H2O/mg dry mass, and decreased as the axes were desiccated to lower water contents. Fructose and sucrose levels did not increase when untreated samples were desiccated for the same periods of time. Raffinose and stachyose levels decreased as untreated and precultured embryonic axes were desiccated. In sucrose precultured axes, sucrose and fructose levels increased when they were dehydrated, reaching maximum levels at 0.2 mg H2O/mg dry mass. Tissue glucose did not change significantly with desiccation. Raffinose and stachyose levels dropped as precultured embryonic axes were dried.

  1. A Framework for Evaluating Economic Impacts of Rooftop PV Systems with or without Energy Storage on Thai Distribution Utilities and Ratepayers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chaianong, A.; Bangviwat, A.; Menke, C.

    2017-07-01

    Driven by decreasing PV and energy storage prices, increasing electricity costs and policy supports from Thai government (self-consumption era), rooftop PV and energy storage systems are going to be deployed in the country rapidly that may disrupt existing business models structure of Thai distribution utilities due to revenue erosion and lost earnings opportunities. The retail rates that directly affect ratepayers (non-solar customers) are expected to increase. This paper focuses on a framework for evaluating impacts of PV with and without energy storage systems on Thai distribution utilities and ratepayers by using cost-benefit analysis (CBA). Prior to calculation of cost/benefit components, changes in energy sales need to be addressed. Government policies for the support of PV generation will also help in accelerating the rooftop PV installation. Benefit components include avoided costs due to transmission losses and deferring distribution capacity with appropriate PV penetration level, while cost components consist of losses in revenue, program costs, integration costs and unrecovered fixed costs. It is necessary for Thailand to compare total costs and total benefits of rooftop PV and energy storage systems in order to adopt policy supports and mitigation approaches, such as business model innovation and regulatory reform, effectively.

  2. The role of macromolecular stability in desiccation tolerance

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wolkers, W.F.

    1998-01-01

    The work presented in this thesis concerns a study on the molecular interactions that play a role in the macromolecular stability of desiccation-tolerant higher plant organs. Fourier transform infrared microspectroscopy was used as the main experimental technique to assess macromolecular

  3. Soil Desiccation Techniques Strategies For Immobilization Of Deep Vadose Contaminants At The Hanford Central Plateau

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Benecke, M.W.; Chronister, G.B.; Truex, M.J.

    2012-01-01

    Deep vadose zone contamination poses some of the most difficult remediation challenges for the protection of groundwater at the Hanford Site where processes and technologies are being developed and tested for use in the on-going effort to remediate mobile contamination in the deep vadose zone, the area deep beneath the surface. Historically, contaminants were discharged to the soil along with significant amounts of water, which continues to drive contaminants deeper in the vadose zone toward groundwater. Soil desiccation is a potential in situ remedial technology well suited for the arid conditions and the thick vadose zone at the Hanford Site. Desiccation techniques could reduce the advance of contaminants by removing the pore water to slow the rate of contaminants movement toward groundwater. Desiccation technologies have the potential to halt or slow the advance of contaminants in unsaturated systems, as well as aid in reduction of contaminants from these same areas. Besides reducing the water flux, desiccation also establishes capillary breaks that would require extensive rewetting to resume pore water transport. More importantly, these techniques have widespread application, whether the need is to isolate radio nuclides or address chemical contaminant issues. Three different desiccation techniques are currently being studied at Hanford.

  4. Design of Air Ventilation System for Cargo Hold Vessels Using Solar Desiccant

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alam Baheramsyah

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available One of the facilities and infrastructure of the vessel is the ventilation system in the cargo hold to maintain the quality. One attempt to avoid high moisture ratios is to provide a dry air supply by using desiccants. The purpose of this thesis is to design the system of air ventilation with solar desiccant by analysis the calculation with decrease air humidity ratio after passing desiccant rotor as well as fulfillment needs of heater and cooling system using heat of exhaust gas and seawater as well as fulfillment of electricity need using solar energy. From the result of analysis obtain to provide air supply in the cargo hold of 437.5 m3 / hour, the specification of rotor desiccant has a diameter of 550 mm with thickness 200 mm to decrease ratio of outside air humidity equal to 83.1% become 46.5%. Dehumidification air temperature of 47.7oC will be lowered to 35oC by using the sea water cooling media. As for the reactivation air heater requirement of 24.292 kW would be to fulfilled by utilizing the exhaust power of 498.12 kW. And for the electric power needs of the syetm is 34,488 wp will be supplied from the total solar module is 33 units with 345 wp per-capacity.

  5. INTERGRATION OF LiDAR DATA WITH AERIAL IMAGERY FOR ESTIMATING ROOFTOP SOLAR PHOTOVOLTAIC POTENTIALS IN CITY OF CAPE TOWN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. K. Adeleke

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Apart from the drive to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by carbon-intensive economies like South Africa, the recent spate of electricity load shedding across most part of the country, including Cape Town has left electricity consumers scampering for alternatives, so as to rely less on the national grid. Solar energy, which is adequately available in most part of Africa and regarded as a clean and renewable source of energy, makes it possible to generate electricity by using photovoltaics technology. However, before time and financial resources are invested into rooftop solar photovoltaic systems in urban areas, it is important to evaluate the potential of the building rooftop, intended to be used in harvesting the solar energy. This paper presents methodologies making use of LiDAR data and other ancillary data, such as high-resolution aerial imagery, to automatically extract building rooftops in City of Cape Town and evaluate their potentials for solar photovoltaics systems. Two main processes were involved: (1 automatic extraction of building roofs using the integration of LiDAR data and aerial imagery in order to derive its’ outline and areal coverage; and (2 estimating the global solar radiation incidence on each roof surface using an elevation model derived from the LiDAR data, in order to evaluate its solar photovoltaic potential. This resulted in a geodatabase, which can be queried to retrieve salient information about the viability of a particular building roof for solar photovoltaic installation.

  6. The chicken or the egg? Adaptation to desiccation and salinity tolerance in a lineage of water beetles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pallarés, Susana; Arribas, Paula; Bilton, David T; Millán, Andrés; Velasco, Josefa; Ribera, Ignacio

    2017-10-01

    Transitions from fresh to saline habitats are restricted to a handful of insect lineages, as the colonization of saline waters requires specialized mechanisms to deal with osmotic stress. Previous studies have suggested that tolerance to salinity and desiccation could be mechanistically and evolutionarily linked, but the temporal sequence of these adaptations is not well established for individual lineages. We combined molecular, physiological and ecological data to explore the evolution of desiccation resistance, hyporegulation ability (i.e., the ability to osmoregulate in hyperosmotic media) and habitat transitions in the water beetle genus Enochrus subgenus Lumetus (Hydrophilidae). We tested whether enhanced desiccation resistance evolved before increases in hyporegulation ability or vice versa, or whether the two mechanisms evolved in parallel. The most recent ancestor of Lumetus was inferred to have high desiccation resistance and moderate hyporegulation ability. There were repeated shifts between habitats with differing levels of salinity in the radiation of the group, those to the most saline habitats generally occurring more rapidly than those to less saline ones. Significant and accelerated changes in hyporegulation ability evolved in parallel with smaller and more progressive increases in desiccation resistance across the phylogeny, associated with the colonization of meso- and hypersaline waters during global aridification events. All species with high hyporegulation ability were also desiccation-resistant, but not vice versa. Overall, results are consistent with the hypothesis that desiccation resistance mechanisms evolved first and provided the physiological basis for the development of hyporegulation ability, allowing these insects to colonize and diversify across meso- and hypersaline habitats. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  7. Energy performance of an innovative liquid desiccant dehumidification system with a counter-flow heat and mass exchanger using potassium formate

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jradi, Muhyiddine; Riffat, Saffa

    2014-01-01

    An innovative micro-scale liquid desiccant dehumidification system is numerically investigated. The liquid desiccant dehumidification unit employs a counter-flow low-cost and efficient heat and mass exchange core, improving the thermal performance and eliminating desiccant carryover...... that the dehumidifier effectiveness is directly proportional to the intake air temperature, intake air relative humidity and liquid desiccant flow rate where the effectiveness is inversely proportional to the intake air velocity and the heat exchanger air channel height....

  8. Desiccation-induced changes in viability, lipid peroxidation and ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    user

    2012-05-31

    May 31, 2012 ... Key words: Intermediate seeds, desiccation, reactive oxygen species, antioxidant enzymes, lipid peroxidation,. Mimusops ... between ROS production and cell defenses determines ... needed for reduction of dehydroascorbate, which is .... was calculated using the extinction coefficient (6.2 mM-1cm-1) for.

  9. General response of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium to desiccation: A new role for the virulence factors sopD and sseD in survival.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alice Maserati

    Full Text Available Salmonella can survive for long periods under extreme desiccation conditions. This stress tolerance poses a risk for food safety, but relatively little is known about the molecular and cellular regulation of this adaptation mechanism. To determine the genetic components involved in Salmonella's cellular response to desiccation, we performed a global transcriptomic analysis comparing S. enterica serovar Typhimurium cells equilibrated to low water activity (aw 0.11 and cells equilibrated to high water activity (aw 1.0. The analysis revealed that 719 genes were differentially regulated between the two conditions, of which 290 genes were up-regulated at aw 0.11. Most of these genes were involved in metabolic pathways, transporter regulation, DNA replication/repair, transcription and translation, and, more importantly, virulence genes. Among these, we decided to focus on the role of sopD and sseD. Deletion mutants were created and their ability to survive desiccation and exposure to aw 0.11 was compared to the wild-type strain and to an E. coli O157:H7 strain. The sopD and sseD mutants exhibited significant cell viability reductions of 2.5 and 1.3 Log (CFU/g, respectively, compared to the wild-type after desiccation for 4 days on glass beads. Additional viability differences of the mutants were observed after exposure to aw 0.11 for 7 days. E. coli O157:H7 lost viability similarly to the mutants. Scanning electron microscopy showed that both mutants displayed a different morphology compared to the wild-type and differences in production of the extracellular matrix under the same conditions. These findings suggested that sopD and sseD are required for Salmonella's survival during desiccation.

  10. Desiccant wheels as gas-phase absorption (GPA) air cleaners: evaluation by PTR-MS and sensory assessment

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fang, Lei; Zhang, G.; Wisthaler, A.

    2008-01-01

    Two experiments were conducted to investigate the use of the co-sorption effect of a desiccant wheel for improving indoor air quality. One experiment was conducted in a climate chamber to investigate the co-sorption effect of a desiccant wheel on the chemical removal of indoor air pollutants......; another experiment was conducted in an office room to investigate the resulting effect on perceived air quality. A dehumidifier with a silica-gel desiccant wheel was installed in the ventilation system of the test chamber and office room to treat the recirculation airflow. Human subjects, flooring...

  11. Solar hybrid cooling system for high-tech offices in subtropical climate - Radiant cooling by absorption refrigeration and desiccant dehumidification

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fong, K.F.; Chow, T.T.; Lee, C.K.; Lin, Z.; Chan, L.S.

    2011-01-01

    Highlights: → A solar hybrid cooling system is proposed for high-tech offices in subtropical climate. → An integration of radiant cooling, absorption refrigeration and desiccant dehumidification. → Year-round cooling and energy performances were evaluated through dynamic simulation. → Its annual primary energy consumption was lower than conventional system up to 36.5%. → The passive chilled beams were more energy-efficient than the active chilled beams. - Abstract: A solar hybrid cooling design is proposed for high cooling load demand in hot and humid climate. For the typical building cooling load, the system can handle the zone cooling load (mainly sensible) by radiant cooling with the chilled water from absorption refrigeration, while the ventilation load (largely latent) by desiccant dehumidification. This hybrid system utilizes solar energy for driving the absorption chiller and regenerating the desiccant wheel. Since a high chilled water temperature generated from the absorption chiller is not effective to handle the required latent load, desiccant dehumidification is therefore involved. It is an integration of radiant cooling, absorption refrigeration and desiccant dehumidification, which are powered up by solar energy. In this study, the application potential of the solar hybrid cooling system was evaluated for the high-tech offices in the subtropical climate through dynamic simulation. The high-tech offices are featured with relatively high internal sensible heat gains due to the intensive office electric equipment. The key performance indicators included the solar fraction and the primary energy consumption. Comparative study was also carried out for the solar hybrid cooling system using two common types of chilled ceilings, the passive chilled beams and active chilled beams. It was found that the solar hybrid cooling system was technically feasible for the applications of relatively higher cooling load demand. The annual primary energy

  12. Experimental and Numerical Investigations of Soil Desiccation for Vadose Zone Remediation: Report for Fiscal Year 2007

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ward, Andy L.; Oostrom, Mart; Bacon, Diana H.

    2008-02-04

    Apart from source excavation, the options available for the remediation of vadose zone metal and radionuclide contaminants beyond the practical excavation depth (0 to 15 m) are quite limited. Of the available technologies, very few are applicable to the deep vadose zone with the top-ranked candidate being soil desiccation. An expert panel review of the work on infiltration control and supplemental technologies identified a number of knowledge gaps that would need to be overcome before soil desiccation could be deployed. The report documents some of the research conducted in the last year to fill these knowledge gaps. This work included 1) performing intermediate-scale laboratory flow cell experiments to demonstrate the desiccation process, 2) implementing a scalable version of Subsurface Transport Over Multiple Phases–Water-Air-Energy (STOMP-WAE), and 3) performing numerical experiments to identify the factors controlling the performance of a desiccation system.

  13. Impact of Desiccation of Aral Sea on the Regional Climate of Central Asia Using WRF Model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sharma, Ashish; Huang, Huei-Ping; Zavialov, Peter; Khan, Valentina

    2018-01-01

    This study explores the impacts of the desiccation of the Aral Sea and large-scale climate change on the regional climate of Central Asia in the post-1960 era. A series of climate downscaling experiments for the 1960's and 2000's decades were performed using the Weather Research and Forecast model at 12-km horizontal resolution. To quantify the impacts of the changing surface boundary condition, a set of simulations with an identical lateral boundary condition but different extents of the Aral Sea were performed. It was found that the desiccation of the Aral Sea leads to more snow (and less rain) as desiccated winter surface is relatively much colder than water surface. In summer, desiccation led to substantial warming over the Aral Sea. These impacts were largely confined to within the area covered by the former Aral Sea and its immediate vicinity, although desiccation of the Sea also led to minor cooling over the greater Central Asia in winter. A contrasting set of simulations with an identical surface boundary condition but different lateral boundary conditions produced more identifiable changes in regional climate over the greater Central Asia which was characterized by a warming trend in both winter and summer. Simulations also showed that while the desiccation of the Aral Sea has significant impacts on the local climate over the Sea, the climate over the greater Central Asia on inter-decadal time scale was more strongly influenced by the continental or global-scale climate change on that time scale.

  14. Thermodynamic analysis of an innovative liquid desiccant air conditioning system to supply potable water

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ahmed, M.A.; Gandhidasan, P.; Zubair, Syed M.; Bahaidarah, Haitham M.

    2017-01-01

    Highlights: • The study objective is to reduce the energy consumption of desiccant AC system. • Heat and mass losses are recovered in the proposed system using a condenser. • The conventional and the proposed systems are compared in terms of COP. • The proposed system performance is better than the conventional system. • The proposed system produces freshwater in addition to space cooling. - Abstract: Liquid desiccant air conditioning systems are cost-effective, environmentally friendly and energy efficient techniques, especially in coastal areas. In the conventional liquid desiccant air conditioning system, the scavenging air is expelled into the atmosphere carrying a considerable amount of energy and water vapor. Thus, there is plenty of room to improve the system performance by recovering these losses. The proposed system consists of a conventional liquid desiccant air conditioning system plus a condenser. The aim of this study is to reduce the energy consumption by recovering the heat from the scavenging air using the condenser while also producing freshwater in addition to space cooling. Lithium chloride (LiCl) is used as the liquid desiccant for this study. The mathematical formulation for simultaneous heat and mass transfer between the condenser and the regenerator was developed to establish a comparison between the performance of the conventional and modified systems. Using the generated model, it is found that the modified system performance is 11.25% better than the conventional system and that it produces 86.4 kg of freshwater per hour as a by-product under the given conditions.

  15. Thermal analysis of a direct evaporative cooling system enhancement with desiccant dehumidification for vehicular air conditioning

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alahmer, Ali

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • Thermal analysis was conducted to design a desiccant evaporative cooling system for vehicular air conditioning. • EC is more efficient than the conventional air conditioning when the gasoline price is more than 0.34 $/liter. • Drawbacks of evaporative cooler of increased weight and reduced COP. • A rotary desiccant dehumidifier with generation was combined with evaporative cooling to be more efficient. - Abstract: This manuscript analyzes the sub-systems of evaporative cooler (EC) combined with desiccant dehumidification and regeneration for automotive air conditioning purpose. The thermodynamic and psychometric analysis was conducted to design all evaporative cooling system components in terms of desiccant selection, regeneration process, compact heat exchanger and evaporative cooler. Moreover, the effect of the desiccant, heat exchanger and evaporative performances on the mass flow rate and water sprayed required for evaporative cooling system was investigated. The results show that the theoretical evaporative cooling design will achieve two main objectives: lower fuel consumption and less environmental pollutants. However, it has the two drawbacks in terms of increased weight and reduces the coefficient of performance (COP). The main remark is that evaporating cooling system is more efficient than the conventional air conditioning when the gasoline price is more than 0.34 $/liter.

  16. Development of a desiccated cadaver delivery system to apply entomopathogenic nematodes for control of soil pests

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pentomopathogenic nematodes may be more capable of controlling soil pests when they are harbored by desiccated cadavers. A small-scale system was developed from a modified crop seed planter to effectively deliver desiccated nematode-infected cadavers into the soil. The system mainly consists of a me...

  17. Resilience of roof-top Plant-Microbial Fuel Cells during Dutch winter

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Helder, Marjolein; Strik, David P.B.T.B.; Timmers, Ruud A.; Raes, Sanne M.T.; Hamelers, Hubertus V.M.; Buisman, Cees J.N.

    2013-01-01

    The Plant-Microbial Fuel Cell (P-MFC) is in theory a technology that could produce sustainable electricity continuously. We operated two designs of the P-MFC under natural roof-top conditions in the Netherlands for 221 days, including winter, to test its resilience. Current and power densities are not stable under outdoor conditions. Highest obtained power density was 88 mW m −2 , which is lower than was achieved under lab-conditions (440 mW m −2 ). Cathode potential was in our case dependent on solar radiation, due to algae growth, making the power output dependent on a diurnal cycle. The anode potential of the P-MFC is influenced by temperature, leading to a decrease in electricity production during low temperature periods and no electricity production during frost periods. Due to freezing of the roots, plants did not survive winter and therefore did not regrow in spring. In order to make a sustainable, stable and weather independent electricity production system of the P-MFC attention should be paid to improving cathode stability and cold insulation of anode and cathode. Only when power output of the Plant-Microbial Fuel Cell can be increased under outdoor conditions and plant-vitality can be sustained over winter, it can be a promising sustainable electricity technology for the future. -- Highlights: ► Plant-Microbial Fuel Cells (P-MFCs) produce sustainable electricity under outdoor conditions. ► During frost periods no electricity is produced in P-MFCs. ► Cathodes limit performance of P-MFCs under outdoor conditions. ► Spartina anglica in P-MFCs does not survive on a roof-top during Dutch winter. ► The P-MFC needs optimization of power output to be a promising sustainable electricity technology

  18. Sensitivity of Rooftop PV Projections in the SunShot Vision Study to Market Assumptions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Drury, E.; Denholm, P.; Margolis, R.

    2013-01-01

    The SunShot Vision Study explored the potential growth of solar markets if solar prices decreased by about 75% from 2010 to 2020. The SolarDS model was used to simulate rooftop PV demand for this study, based on several PV market assumptions--future electricity rates, customer access to financing, and others--in addition to the SunShot PV price projections. This paper finds that modeled PV demand is highly sensitive to several non-price market assumptions, particularly PV financing parameters.

  19. Effect of wetting-drying cycles on soil desiccation cracking behaviour

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tang Chao-Sheng

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Better understanding the desiccation cracking process is essential in analysing drought effects on soil hydraulic and mechanical properties through consideration of the atmosphere-ground interaction. Laboratory tests were conducted to investigate the consequence of wetting-drying cycles on the initiation and propagation characteristics of desiccation cracks on soil surface. Initially saturated slurry specimens were prepared and subjected to five subsequent wetting-drying cycles. Image processing technique was employed to quantitatively analyze the morphology characteristics of crack patterns formed during each drying path. The results show that the desiccation cracking behaviour of soil is significantly affected by the wetting-drying cycles. Before the third wetting-drying cycle is reached, the surface crack ratio and the average crack width increases while the average clod area decreases with increasing the number of wetting-drying cycles. The number of intersections and crack segments per unit area reaches the peak values after the second wetting-drying cycle. After the third wetting-drying cycle is reached, the effect of increasing wetting-drying cycles on crack patterns is insignificant. Moreover, it is observed that the applied wetting-drying cycles are accompanied by a continual reconstruction of soil structure. The initial homogenous slurry structure is completely replaced with aggregated structure after the third cycles, and a significant increase in the inter-aggregate porosity can be observed.

  20. Desiccant Enhanced Evaporative Air-Conditioning (DEVap): Evaluation of a New Concept in Ultra Efficient Air Conditioning

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kozubal, E.; Woods, J.; Burch, J.; Boranian, A.; Merrigan, T.

    2011-01-01

    NREL has developed the novel concept of a desiccant enhanced evaporative air conditioner (DEVap) with the objective of combining the benefits of liquid desiccant and evaporative cooling technologies into an innovative 'cooling core.' Liquid desiccant technologies have extraordinary dehumidification potential, but require an efficient cooling sink. DEVap's thermodynamic potential overcomes many shortcomings of standard refrigeration-based direct expansion cooling. DEVap decouples cooling and dehumidification performance, which results in independent temperature and humidity control. The energy input is largely switched away from electricity to low-grade thermal energy that can be sourced from fuels such as natural gas, waste heat, solar, or biofuels.

  1. Experimental Investigation of Air Conditioner using the Desiccant Cooling System in Equatorial Climates

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Abdullah Kamaruddin

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Indonesia lies in the tropical climate which requires air conditioning to increase working productivity of the people. Up to now people are still using the compressive cooling system which uses Freon as the refrigerant, which have been known to have a negative environmental impact. Therefore, new cooling system which is environmentally friendly is now needed. Desiccant cooling system manipulates the humidity condition of outside air in such a way so that the final temperature should become at 25 °C and RH of 65 %. Since it does not require refrigerant, a desiccant cooling has the potential to be developed in a tropical country like Indonesia. In this study an experimental desiccant cooling system has been designed and constructed and tested under laboratory condition. Experimental results have shown that the resulting air temperature was 26.1 °C with RH of 55.6 %, and average cooling capacity was 0.425 kW. The COP was found to be 0.44.

  2. Effect of irreversible processes on the thermodynamic performance of open-cycle desiccant cooling cycles

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    La, Dong; Li, Yong; Dai, Yanjun; Ge, Tianshu; Wang, Ruzhu

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: ► Effects of irreversible processes on the performance of desiccant cooling cycle are identified. ► The exergy destructions involved are classified by the properties of the individual processes. ► Appropriate indexes for thermodynamic evaluation are proposed based on thermodynamic analyses. - Abstract: Thermodynamic analyses of desiccant cooling cycle usually focus on the overall cycle performance in previous study. In this paper, the effects of the individual irreversible processes in each component on thermodynamic performance are analyzed in detail. The objective of this paper is to reveal the elemental features of the individual components, and to show their effects on the thermodynamic performance of the whole cycle in a fundamental way. Appropriate indexes for thermodynamic evaluation are derived based on the first and second law analyses. A generalized model independent of the connection of components is developed. The results indicate that as the effectiveness of the desiccant wheel increases, the cycle performance is increased principally due to the significant reduction in exergy carried out by exhaust air. The corresponding exergy destruction coefficient of the cycle with moderate performance desiccant wheel is decreased greatly to 3.9%, which is more than 50% lower than that of the cycle with low performance desiccant wheel. The effect of the heat source is similar. As the temperature of the heat source increases from 60 °C to 90 °C, the percentage of exergy destruction raised by exhaust air increases sharply from 5.3% to 21.8%. High heat exchanger effectiveness improves the cycle performance mainly by lowering the irreversibility of the heat exchanger, using less regeneration heat and pre-cooling the process air effectively

  3. DEVELOPMENT OF A HYDRONIC ROOFTOP UNIT -- HYPAK

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Eric Lee; Dick Bourne; Mark Berman

    2004-03-25

    The majority of US commercial floor space is cooled by rooftop HVAC units (RTU's). RTU popularity derives chiefly from their low initial cost and relative ease of service access without disturbing building occupants. Unfortunately, current RTU's are inherently inefficient due to a combination of characteristics that unnecessarily increase cooling loads and energy use. Existing RTU's in the U.S. consume an estimated 2.4 quads annually. Inefficient RTU's create an estimated 3.5% of U.S. CO{sub 2} emissions, thus contributing significantly to global warming. Also, RTU's often fail to maintain adequate ventilation air and air filtration. This project was developed to evaluate the feasibility of a radically new ''HyPak'' RTU design that significantly and cost-effectively increases RTU performance and delivered air quality. The objective of the HyPak Project was to design, develop and test a hydronic RTU that provides a quantum improvement over conventional RTU performance. Our proposal targeted 60% and 50% reduction in electrical energy use by the HyPak RTU for dry and humid climates, respectively, when compared with a conventional unit.

  4. Cloning and baculovirus expression of a desiccation stress gene from the beetle, Tenebrio molitor.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Graham, L A; Bendena, W G; Walker, V K

    1996-02-01

    The cDNA sequence encoding a novel desiccation stress protein (dsp28) found in the hemolymph of the common yellow mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor, has been determined. The sequence encodes a 225 amino acid protein containing a 20 amino acid signal peptide. Dsp28 shows no significant similarity to any known nucleic acid or protein sequence. Levels of dsp28 mRNA were found to increase approx 5-fold following desiccation. Dsp28 cDNA has been cloned into a baculovirus expression vector and the expressed protein was compared to native dsp28. Both dsp28 expressed by recombinant baculovirus and native dsp28 are glycosylated and N-terminally processed. Although dsp28 is induced by cold in addition to desiccation stress, it does not contribute to the freezing point depression (thermal hysteresis) observed in Tenebrio hemolymph.

  5. Thermodynamic analysis of a novel energy-efficient refrigeration system subcooled by liquid desiccant dehumidification and evaporation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    She, Xiaohui; Yin, Yonggao; Zhang, Xiaosong

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • An energy-efficient refrigeration system with a novel subcooling method is proposed. • Thermodynamic analysis is conducted to discuss the effects of operation parameters. • Two different utilization ways of condensation heat are compared. • The system achieves much higher COP, even higher than reverse Carnot cycle. • Suggested mass concentration for LiCl–H 2 O is around 32% at a typical case. - Abstract: A new energy-efficient refrigeration system subcooled by liquid desiccant dehumidification and evaporation was proposed in this paper. In the system, liquid desiccant system could produce very dry air for an indirect evaporative cooler, which would subcool the vapor compression refrigeration system to get higher COP than conventional refrigeration system. The desiccant cooling system can use the condensation heat for the desiccant regeneration. Thermodynamic analysis is made to discuss the effects of operation parameters (condensing temperature, liquid desiccant concentration, ambient air temperature and relative humidity) on the system performance. Results show that the proposed hybrid vapor compression refrigeration system achieves significantly higher COP than conventional vapor compression refrigeration system, and even higher than the reverse Carnot cycle at the same operation conditions. The maximum COPs of the hybrid systems using hot air and ambient air are 18.8% and 16.3% higher than that of the conventional vapor compression refrigeration system under varied conditions, respectively

  6. Nitrogen limitation and slow drying induce desiccation tolerance in conjugating green algae (Zygnematophyceae, Streptophyta from polar habitats.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Martina Pichrtová

    Full Text Available Filamentous Zygnematophyceae are typical components of algal mats in the polar hydro-terrestrial environment. Under field conditions, they form senescent vegetative cells, designated as pre-akinetes, which are tolerant to desiccation and osmotic stress.Pre-akinete formation and desiccation tolerance was investigated experimentally under monitored laboratory conditions in four strains of Arctic and Antarctic isolates with vegetative Zygnema sp. morphology. Phylogenetic analyses of rbcL sequences revealed one Arctic strain as genus Zygnemopsis, phylogenetically distant from the closely related Zygnema strains. Algae were cultivated in liquid or on solidified medium (9 weeks, supplemented with or lacking nitrogen. Nitrogen-free cultures (liquid as well as solidified consisted of well-developed pre-akinetes after this period. Desiccation experiments were performed at three different drying rates (rapid: 10% relative humidity, slow: 86% rh and very slow; viability, effective quantum yield of PS II, visual and ultrastructural changes were monitored. Recovery and viability of pre-akinetes were clearly dependent on the drying rate: slower desiccation led to higher levels of survival. Pre-akinetes survived rapid drying after acclimation by very slow desiccation.The formation of pre-akinetes in polar Zygnema spp. and Zygnemopsis sp. is induced by nitrogen limitation. Pre-akinetes, modified vegetative cells, rather than specialized stages of the life cycle, can be hardened by mild desiccation stress to survive rapid drying. Naturally hardened pre-akinetes play a key role in stress tolerance and dispersal under the extreme conditions of polar regions, where sexual reproduction and production of dormant stages is largely suppressed.

  7. Development of a novel rotary desiccant cooling cycle with isothermal dehumidification and regenerative evaporative cooling using thermodynamic analysis method

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    La, D.; Li, Y.; Dai, Y.J.; Ge, T.S.; Wang, R.Z.

    2012-01-01

    A novel rotary desiccant cooling cycle is proposed and studied using thermodynamic analysis method. The proposed cycle integrates the technologies of isothermal dehumidification and regenerative evaporative cooling, which are beneficial for irreversibility reduction. Thermodynamic investigation on the basic rotary desiccant cooling cycle shows that the exergy efficiency of the basic cycle is only 8.6%. The processes of desiccant dehumidification and evaporative cooling, which are essentially the basis for rotary desiccant cooling, affect the exergy performance of the cycle greatly and account for about one third of the total exergy destruction. The proposed cycle has potential to improve rotary desiccant cooling technology. It is advantageous in terms of both heat source utilization rate and space cooling capacity. The exergy efficiency of the new cycle is enhanced significantly to 29.1%, which is about three times that of the ventilation cycle, and 60% higher than that of the two-stage rotary desiccant cooling cycle. Furthermore, the regeneration temperature is reduced from 80 °C to about 60 °C. The corresponding specific exergy of the supply air is increased by nearly 30% when compared with the conventional cycles. -- Highlights: ► A novel rotary desiccant cooling cycle is developed using thermodynamic analysis method. ► Isothermal dehumidification and regenerative evaporative cooling have been integrated. ► The cycle is advantageous in terms of both heat source utilization rate and space cooling capacity. ► Cascaded energy utilization is beneficial for cycle performance improvement. ► Upper limits, which will be helpful to practical design and optimization, are obtained.

  8. Experimental Analysis on Solar Desiccant Air Conditioner

    OpenAIRE

    Dr. U. V. Kongre, C. M. Singh, A. B. Biswas

    2014-01-01

    The experiment investigated and evaluated the feasibility of an solar desiccant air conditioner. Its effectiveness as a possible air conditioner option used in household air conditioner or as an energy efficient and environmentally friendly alternative to conventional air conditioning units used in houses are evaluated. A solar water heater was used as heat gain. The model utilizes the technology of solar air conditioner system. The purpose in the long term wou...

  9. Effects of temperature, light, desiccation and cold storage on ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    In the present experiments, germination characteristics, desiccation, and low temperature tolerance of seeds of Sophora tonkinensis was studied; a traditional Chinese medicine on the edge of extinction, were investigated for the first time in attempt to interpret their storage behaviour. The results indicate that the temperature ...

  10. 41 CFR 102-79.65 - May Executive agencies outlease space on major public access levels, courtyards and rooftops of...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 41 Public Contracts and Property Management 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false May Executive agencies outlease space on major public access levels, courtyards and rooftops of public buildings? 102-79.65... Utilization of Space Outleasing § 102-79.65 May Executive agencies outlease space on major public access...

  11. Performance of desiccant air conditioning system with geothermal energy under different climatic conditions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    El-Agouz, S.A.; Kabeel, A.E.

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • The performance of the hybrid air conditioning system is studied. • The influence of important operating parameters are estimated. • The ventilation, makeup and mix cycles are investigated at different climate. • The highest COP of the hybrid air conditioning system is 1.03. • The hybrid system provides a human thermal comfort at different climates. - Abstract: Energy saving still and continue a major seek in our life, due to the continuous increase in energy consumptions. So, a desiccant air conditioning system with geothermal energy is conducted in the current study. The thermal analysis of air conditioning system with its different components desiccant wheel, solar collector, heat exchanger, ground heat exchanger and water spray evaporative cooler is presented. Three different air conditioning cycles are simulated in the current study for different zones like: hot-dry zone, warm-dry zone, hot-humid zone and the warm-humid zone. The results show that the desiccant air conditioning system successfully provides a better thermal comfort condition in different climates. This hybrid system significantly decreases the supplied air temperature from 12.7 to 21.7 °C at different climate zones. When ω in , air and T Reg increasing, COP decreases and the ventilation cycle provides the better COP. The highest COP value of the desiccant air conditioning system is about 1.03 while the lowest value is about 0.15. The SHR of makeup cycle is higher than that ventilation cycle at warm and hot-humid zone and vice versa at warm and hot-dry zone. The highest SHR value of the desiccant air conditioning system is about 0.99 while the lowest value is about 0.2. The T sup,air , ω sup,air , COP and SHR isolines may easily be used for pre-evaluating of various cooling cycles in different climates. The hybrid system provides a human thermal comfort at different climates

  12. Death by desiccation: Effects of hermetic storage on cowpea bruchids

    KAUST Repository

    Murdock, Larry L.; Margam, Venu; Baoua, Ibrahim B.; Balfe, Susan; Shade, Richard E.

    2012-01-01

    't reproduce. As a result, population growth ceases and damaging infestations don't develop. . C. maculatus eggs, larvae, and pupae subjected to hypoxia eventually die after exposures of various duration. The cause of death is desiccation resulting from

  13. Theoretical modelling and experimental study of air thermal conditioning process of a heat pump assisted solid desiccant cooling system

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nie, Jinzhe; Li, Zan; Hu, Wenju

    2017-01-01

    purification aimed at improving indoor air quality and reducing building energy consumption. The heat and moisture transfer in adsorption desiccant rotor was theoretical modelled with one-dimensional partial differential equations. The theoretical model was validated with experimental measurements...... system, the energy performance of HP-SDC was more efficient mainly due to high efficient air purification capacity, reduction of cooling load and raised evaporation temperature. The energy performance of HP-SDC was sensitive to outdoor humidity ratio. Further improvements of HP-SDC energy efficiency......Taking the integrated gaseous contaminants and moisture adsorption potential of desiccant material, a new heat pump assisted solid desiccant cooling system (HP-SDC) was proposed based on the combination of desiccant rotor with heat pump. The HP-SDC was designed for dehumidification, cooling and air...

  14. Natural convection liquid desiccant loop as an auxiliary air conditioning system: investigating the operational parameters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fazilati, Mohammad Ali; Alemrajabi, Ali Akbar; Sedaghat, Ahmad

    2018-03-01

    Liquid desiccant air conditioning system with natural convection was presented previously as a new generation of AC systems. The system consists of two three-fluid energy exchangers namely absorber and regenerator in which the action of air dehumidifying and desiccant regeneration is done, respectively. The influence of working parameters on system performance including the heat source and heat sink temperature, concentration of desiccant solution fills the system initially and humidity content of inlet air to regenerator is investigated experimentally. The heat source temperatures of 50 °C and 60 °C, heat sink temperatures of 15 °C and 20 °C and desiccant concentrations of 30% and 34%, are examined here. The inlet air to regenerator has temperature of 38.5 °C and three relative humidity of 14%, 38% and 44%. In all experiments, the inlet air to absorber has temperature of 31 °C and relative humidity of 75%. By inspecting evaluation indexes of system, it is revealed that higher startup desiccant concentration solution is more beneficial for all study cases. It is also observed although the highest/lowest temperature heat source/heat sink is most suitable for best system operation, increasing the heat source temperature should be accompanied with decreasing heat sink temperature. Using drier air stream for regenerator inlet does not necessarily improve system performance; and the air stream with proper value of humidity content should be employed. Finally after running the system in its best working condition, the coefficient of performance (COP) reached 4.66 which verified to be higher than when the same air conditioning task done by a conventional vapor compression system, in which case the COP was 3.38.

  15. Modelling and analysis of a desiccant cooling system using the regenerative indirect evaporative cooling process

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bellemo, Lorenzo; Elmegaard, Brian; Reinholdt, Lars O.

    2013-01-01

    This paper focuses on the numerical modeling and analysis of a Desiccant Cooling (DEC) system with regenerative indirect evaporative cooling, termed Desiccant Dewpoint Cooling (DDC) system. The DDC system includes a Desiccant Wheel (DW), Dew Point Coolers (DPCs), a heat recovery unit and a heat...... in different climates: temperate in Copenhagen and Mediterranean in Venice. Cheap and clean heat sources (e.g. solar energy) strongly increase the attractiveness of the DDC system. For the Mediterranean climate the DDC system represents a convenient alternative to chiller-based systems in terms of energy costs...... and CO2 emissions. The electricity consumption for auxiliaries in the DDC system is higher than in the chiller-based systems. The number of commercial-size DPC units required to cover the cooling load during the whole period is high: 8 in Copenhagen and 12 in Venice....

  16. Simultaneous measurements of new particle formation at 1 s time resolution at a street site and a rooftop site

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Yujiao; Yan, Caiqing; Zhang, Renyi; Wang, Zifa; Zheng, Mei; Gao, Huiwang; Gao, Yang; Yao, Xiaohong

    2017-08-01

    This study is the first to use two identical Fast Mobility Particle Sizers for simultaneous measurement of particle number size distributions (PNSDs) at a street site and a rooftop site within 500 m distance in wintertime and springtime to investigate new particle formation (NPF) in Beijing. The collected datasets at 1 s time resolution allow deduction of the freshly emitted traffic particle signal from the measurements at the street site and thereby enable the evaluation of the effects on NPF in an urban atmosphere through a site-by-site comparison. The number concentrations of 8 to 20 nm newly formed particles and the apparent formation rate (FR) in the springtime were smaller at the street site than at the rooftop site. In contrast, NPF was enhanced in the wintertime at the street site with FR increased by a factor of 3 to 5, characterized by a shorter NPF time and higher new particle yields than at the rooftop site. Our results imply that the street canyon likely exerts distinct effects on NPF under warm or cold ambient temperature conditions because of on-road vehicle emissions, i.e., stronger condensation sinks that may be responsible for the reduced NPF in the springtime but efficient nucleation and partitioning of gaseous species that contribute to the enhanced NPF in the wintertime. The occurrence or absence of apparent growth for new particles with mobility diameters larger than 10 nm was also analyzed. The oxidization of biogenic organics in the presence of strong photochemical reactions is suggested to play an important role in growing new particles with diameters larger than 10 nm, but sulfuric acid is unlikely to be the main species for the apparent growth. However, the number of datasets used in this study is relatively small, and larger datasets are essential to draw a general conclusion.

  17. Assessment of Energy, Environmental and Economic Performance of a Solar Desiccant Cooling System with Different Collector Types

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Giovanni Angrisani

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available Desiccant-based air handling units can achieve reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and energy savings with respect to conventional air conditioning systems. Benefits are maximized when they interact with renewable energy technologies, such as solar collectors. In this work, experimental tests and data derived from scientific and technical literature are used to implement a model of a solar desiccant cooling system, considering three different collector technologies (air, flat-plate and evacuated collectors. Simulations were then performed to compare the energy, environmental and economic performance of the system with those of a desiccant-based unit where regeneration thermal energy is supplied by a natural gas boiler, and with those of a conventional air-handling unit. The only solution that allows achieving the economic feasibility of the solar desiccant cooling unit consists of 16 m2 of evacuated solar collectors. This is able to obtain, with respect to the reference system, a reduction of primary energy consumption and of the equivalent CO2 emissions of 50.2% and 49.8%, respectively, but with a payback time of 20 years.

  18. Two Hymenophyllaceae species from contrasting natural environments exhibit a homoiochlorophyllous strategy in response to desiccation stress.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Flores-Bavestrello, Alejandra; Król, Marianna; Ivanov, Alexander G; Hüner, Norman P A; García-Plazaola, José Ignacio; Corcuera, Luis J; Bravo, León A

    2016-02-01

    Hymenophyllaceae is a desiccation tolerant family of Pteridophytes which are poikilohydric epiphytes. Their fronds are composed by a single layer of cells and lack true mesophyll cells and stomata. Although they are associated with humid and shady environments, their vertical distribution varies along the trunk of the host plant with some species inhabiting the drier sides with a higher irradiance. The aim of this work was to compare the structure and function of the photosynthetic apparatus during desiccation and rehydration in two species, Hymenophyllum dentatum and Hymenoglossum cruentum, isolated from a contrasting vertical distribution along the trunk of their hosts. Both species were subjected to desiccation and rehydration kinetics to analyze frond phenotypic plasticity, as well as the structure, composition and function of the photosynthetic apparatus. Minimal differences in photosynthetic pigments were observed upon dehydration. Measurements of ϕPSII (effective quantum yield of PSII), ϕNPQ (quantum yield of the regulated energy dissipation of PSII), ϕNO (quantum yield of non-regulated energy dissipation of PSII), and TL (thermoluminescence) indicate that both species convert a functional photochemical apparatus into a structure which exhibits maximum quenching capacity in the dehydrated state with minimal changes in photosynthetic pigments and polypeptide compositions. This dehydration-induced conversion in the photosynthetic apparatus is completely reversible upon rehydration. We conclude that H. dentatum and H. cruentum are homoiochlorophyllous with respect to desiccation stress and exhibited no correlation between inherent desiccation tolerance and the vertical distribution along the host tree trunk. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

  19. Large scale rooftop photovoltaics grid connected system at Charoenphol-Rama I green building

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ketjoy, N.; Rakwichian, W. [School of Renewable Energy Technology (SERT) (Thailand); Wongchupan, V. [Panya Consultants Co., Ltd (Thailand); Sankarat, T. [Tesco Lotus, Ek-Chai Distribution System Co., Ltd. (Thailand)

    2004-07-01

    This paper presents a technical feasibility study project for the large scale rooftop photovoltaics (PV) grid connected system at Charoenphol-Rama I green building super store of TESCO LOTUS (TL) in Thailand. The objective of this project is (i) to study the technical feasibility of installation 350 kWp PV systems on the top of the roof in this site (ii) and to determine the energy produce from this system. The technical factors are examined using a computerized PVS 2000 simulation and assessment tool. This super store building located in Bangkok, with latitude 14 N, longitude 100 E and the building direction is 16 from North direction. The building roof area is 14,000 m2; with 3 degree face East and 3 degree face West pitch. Average daily solar energy in this area is approximately 5.0 kWh. The study team for this project consists of educational institution as School of Renewable Energy Technology (SERT) and private institution as Panya Consultants (PC). TL is the project owner, PC is responsible for project management, and SERT is a third party and responsible for PV system study, conceptual design and all technical process. In this feasibility studies SERT will identify the most attractive scenarios of photovoltaic cell technology (mono, poly-crystalline or thin film amorphous), system design concepts for owners (TL) and determine possibility of the energy yield of the system from different module orientation and tilt angle. The result of this study is a guide to help TL to make decision to select proper rooftop PV system option for this store with proper technology view. The economic view will not be considered in this study. (orig.)

  20. Contrasting strategies used by lichen microalgae to cope with desiccation-rehydration stress revealed by metabolite profiling and cell wall analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Centeno, Danilo C; Hell, Aline F; Braga, Marcia R; Del Campo, Eva M; Casano, Leonardo M

    2016-05-01

    Most lichens in general, and their phycobionts in particular, are desiccation tolerant, but their mechanisms of desiccation tolerance (DT) remain obscure. The physiological responses and cell wall features of two putatively contrasting lichen-forming microalgae, Trebouxia sp. TR9 (TR9), isolated from Ramalina farinacea (adapted to frequent desiccation-rehydration cycles), and Coccomyxa solorina-saccatae (Csol), obtained from Solorina saccata (growing in usually humid limestone crevices, subjected to seasonal dry periods) was characterized. Microalgal cultures were desiccated under 25%-30% RH and then rehydrated. Under these conditions, RWC and ψw decreased faster and simultaneously during dehydration in Csol, whereas TR9 maintained its ψw until 70% RWC. The metabolic profile indicated that polyols played a key role in DT of both microalgae. However, TR9 constitutively accumulated higher amounts of polyols, whereas Csol induced the polyol synthesis under desiccation-rehydration. Csol also accumulated ascorbic acid, while TR9 synthesized protective raffinose-family oligosaccharides (RFOs) and increased its content of phenolics. Additionally, TR9 exhibited thicker and qualitatively different cell wall and extracellular polymeric layer compared with Csol, indicating higher water retention capability. The findings were consistent with the notion that lichen microalgae would have evolved distinct strategies to cope with desiccation-rehydration stress in correspondence with the water regime of their respective habitats. © 2016 Society for Applied Microbiology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  1. The regeneration of a liquid desiccant using direct contact membrane distillation to unlock the potential of coastal desert agriculture

    KAUST Repository

    Cribbs, Kimberly

    2018-01-01

    desiccant solution has been on configurations that release water vapor back to the atmosphere. Studies have shown that the amount of water captured by the liquid desiccant when used to dehumidify a greenhouse can supply a significant amount of the water

  2. Re-induction of desiccation tolerance after germination of Cedrela fissilis Vell. seeds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masetto, Tathiana E; Faria, Jose M; Fraiz, Ana C R

    2014-09-01

    This work aimed to characterize the re-induction of desiccation tolerance (DT) in germinated seeds, using polyethylene glycol (PEG 8000). Cell changes were investigated through cytological assays (cell viability and transmission electronic microscopy) as well as DNA integrity during loss and re-establishment of DT. The loss of DT was characterized by drying germinated seeds with different radicle lengths (1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 mm) in silica gel, decreasing the moisture content to ten percentage points intervals, followed by pre-humidification (100% RH / 24 h) and rehydration. To re-induce DT, germinated seeds were treated for 72 h with PEG (-2.04 MPa) and PEG (-2.04 MPa) + ABA (100 µM) before dehydration. Germinated seeds did not tolerate desiccation to 10% moisture content, irrespectively of the radicle length. However, when incubated in PEG, those with 1 and 2 mm long radicle attained 71% and 29% survival, respectively. The PEG+ABA treatment was efficient to re-establish DT in seeds with 1 mm long radicles (100% survival). The ultrastructural assays of the cells of germinated seeds with 2 and 5 mm length confirmed the obtained physiological results. Germinated seeds of C. fissilis constitute a useful tool for desiccation tolerance investigations.

  3. Re-induction of desiccation tolerance after germination of Cedrela fissilis Vell. seeds

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    TATHIANA E. MASETTO

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available This work aimed to characterize the re-induction of desiccation tolerance (DT in germinated seeds, using polyethylene glycol (PEG 8000. Cell changes were investigated through cytological assays (cell viability and transmission electronic microscopy as well as DNA integrity during loss and re-establishment of DT. The loss of DT was characterized by drying germinated seeds with different radicle lengths (1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 mm in silica gel, decreasing the moisture content to ten percentage points intervals, followed by pre-humidification (100% RH / 24 h and rehydration. To re-induce DT, germinated seeds were treated for 72 h with PEG (-2.04 MPa and PEG (-2.04 MPa + ABA (100 µM before dehydration. Germinated seeds did not tolerate desiccation to 10% moisture content, irrespectively of the radicle length. However, when incubated in PEG, those with 1 and 2 mm long radicle attained 71% and 29% survival, respectively. The PEG+ABA treatment was efficient to re-establish DT in seeds with 1 mm long radicles (100% survival. The ultrastructural assays of the cells of germinated seeds with 2 and 5 mm length confirmed the obtained physiological results. Germinated seeds of C. fissilis constitute a useful tool for desiccation tolerance investigations.

  4. Performance study of desiccant coated heat exchanger air conditioning system in winter

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ge, T.S.; Dai, Y.J.; Wang, R.Z.

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • Performance of desiccant coated heat exchanger AC system is predicted. • Effects of main operation parameters and climatic conditions are discussed. • Regeneration temperature of 30 °C is recommended under simulation condition. • Higher ambient humidity ratio results in increased humidity ratio of supply air. • Temperature of ambient air has neglectable effect on supply air. - Abstract: Conventional air source heat pump system faces several challenges when adopted in winter season. Solid desiccant air conditioning system can provide humidification and heating power simultaneously and can be driven by low grade thermal energy; it provides a good alternative for air source heat pump systems. However, conventional solid desiccant air conditioning system adopts desiccant wheel with high cost as core component, which hinders the development of such system. Recently, desiccant coated heat exchanger (DCHE) with low initial cost and high efficiency was developed and this paper aims to investigate performance of DCHE air conditioning system adopted in Shanghai winter season. Performance of the system is predicted by a developed mathematical model where supply air states, mass of humidification and coefficient of performance (COP) are adopted as performance indices to evaluate the feasibility and energy utilization ratio of the system. Effects of regeneration water temperature on system performance are analyzed. It is found that under the simulation condition, relatively low regeneration temperature (such as 20 °C) cannot meet the designed standard and relatively high regeneration temperature (such as 40 °C) provides too much extra heating power, thus moderate regeneration temperature around 30 °C is recommended. Meanwhile, switch time is a crucial operation parameter for the system to obtain satisfied supply air, switch time from 40 s to 80 s and from 70 s to 240 s are recommended for transient and average supply air states, respectively. Both

  5. Absorber and regenerator models for liquid desiccant air conditioning systems. Validation and comparison using experimental data

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Krause, M.; Heinzen, R.; Jordan, U.; Vajen, K. [Kassel Univ., Inst. of Thermal Engineering, Kassel (Germany); Saman, W.; Halawa, E. [Sustainable Energy Centre, Univ. of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, Adelaide (Australia)

    2008-07-01

    Solar assisted air conditioning systems using liquid desiccants represent a promising option to decrease high summer energy demand caused by electrically driven vapor compression machines. The main components of liquid desiccant systems are absorbers for dehumidifying and cooling of supply air and regenerators for concentrating the desiccant. However, high efficient and validated reliable components are required and the design and operation have to be adjusted to each respective building design, location, and user demand. Simulation tools can help to optimize component and system design. The present paper presents new developed numerical models for absorbers and regenerators, as well as experimental data of a regenerator prototype. The models have been compared with a finite-difference method model as well as experimental data. The data are gained from the regenerator prototype presented and an absorber presented in the literature. (orig.)

  6. Foliar Desiccators Glyphosate, Carfentrazone, and Paraquat Affect the Technological and Chemical Properties of Cowpea Grains.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lindemann, Igor da Silva; Lang, Gustavo Heinrich; Hoffmann, Jessica Fernanda; Rombaldi, Cesar Valmor; de Oliveira, Maurício; Elias, Moacir Cardoso; Vanier, Nathan Levien

    2017-08-16

    The effects of the use of glyphosate (GLY), glyphosate plus carfentrazone (GLY/CAR), and paraquat (PAR) as plant desiccators on the technological and chemical properties of cowpea grains were investigated. All studied desiccants provided lower cooking time to freshly harvested cowpea. However, the coat color of PAR- and GLY/CAR-treated cowpea was reddish in comparison to the control treatment. Principal component analysis (PCA) from liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) data sets showed a clear distinction among cowpea from the different treatments. Catechin-3-glucoside and epicatechin significantly contributed for discriminating GLY-treated cowpea, while citric acid was responsible for discriminating GLY/CAR-treated cowpea. Quercetin derivative and gluconic acid were responsible for discriminating control treatment. Residual glyphosate and paraquat content was higher than the maximum limits allowed by Codex Alimentarius and the European Union Commission. Improvements in the technological and chemical properties of cowpea may not be overlapped by the risks that those desiccants exhibit when exceeding the maximum limits of tolerance in food.

  7. Simultaneous measurements of new particle formation at 1 s time resolution at a street site and a rooftop site

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Y. Zhu

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available This study is the first to use two identical Fast Mobility Particle Sizers for simultaneous measurement of particle number size distributions (PNSDs at a street site and a rooftop site within 500 m distance in wintertime and springtime to investigate new particle formation (NPF in Beijing. The collected datasets at 1 s time resolution allow deduction of the freshly emitted traffic particle signal from the measurements at the street site and thereby enable the evaluation of the effects on NPF in an urban atmosphere through a site-by-site comparison. The number concentrations of 8 to 20 nm newly formed particles and the apparent formation rate (FR in the springtime were smaller at the street site than at the rooftop site. In contrast, NPF was enhanced in the wintertime at the street site with FR increased by a factor of 3 to 5, characterized by a shorter NPF time and higher new particle yields than at the rooftop site. Our results imply that the street canyon likely exerts distinct effects on NPF under warm or cold ambient temperature conditions because of on-road vehicle emissions, i.e., stronger condensation sinks that may be responsible for the reduced NPF in the springtime but efficient nucleation and partitioning of gaseous species that contribute to the enhanced NPF in the wintertime. The occurrence or absence of apparent growth for new particles with mobility diameters larger than 10 nm was also analyzed. The oxidization of biogenic organics in the presence of strong photochemical reactions is suggested to play an important role in growing new particles with diameters larger than 10 nm, but sulfuric acid is unlikely to be the main species for the apparent growth. However, the number of datasets used in this study is relatively small, and larger datasets are essential to draw a general conclusion.

  8. Effect of desiccation on the dynamics of genome-wide DNA methylation in orthodox seeds of Acer platanoides L.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Plitta, Beata P; Michalak, Marcin; Bujarska-Borkowska, Barbara; Barciszewska, Mirosława Z; Barciszewski, Jan; Chmielarz, Paweł

    2014-12-01

    5-methylcytosine, an abundant epigenetic mark, plays an important role in the regulation of plant growth and development, but there is little information about stress-induced changes in DNA methylation in seeds. In the present study, changes in a global level of m5C were measured in orthodox seeds of Acer platanoides L. during seed desiccation from a WC of 1.04 to 0.05-0.06 g H2O g g(-1) dry mass (g g(-1)). Changes in the level of DNA methylation were measured using 2D TLC e based method. Quality of desiccated seeds was examined by germination and seedling emergence tests. Global m5C content (R2)increase was observed in embryonic axes isolated from seeds collected at a high WC of 1.04 g g(-1) after their desiccation to significantly lower WC of 0.17 and 0.19 g g(-1). Further desiccation of these seeds to a WC of 0.06 g g(-1), however, resulted in a significant DNA demethylation to R2 ¼ 11.52-12.22%. Similar m5C decrease was observed in seeds which undergo maturation drying on the tree and had four times lower initial WC of 0.27 g g(-1) at the time of harvest, as they were dried to a WC of 0.05 g g(-1). These data confirm that desiccation induces changes in seed m5C levels. Results were validated by seed lots derived from tree different A. platanoides provenances. It is plausible that sine wave-like alterations in m5C amount may represent a specific response of orthodox seeds to drying and play a relevant role in desiccation tolerance in seeds.

  9. A new optical concentrator design and analysis for rooftop solar applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Cheng; Li, Qiyuan; Rosengarten, Gary; Hawkes, Evatt; Taylor, Robert A.

    2015-08-01

    In this paper, a new type of linear focus, linear-tracking, catadioptric concentrator system is proposed and analysed for roof-integrated solar thermal applications. The optical concentrator designs have a focal distance of less than 10cm and are analysed using optical simulation software (Zemax). The results show that a relatively high concentration ratio (4.5 ~ 5.9 times) can be obtained and that the concentrators are capable of achieving an average optical efficiency around 66 - 69% during the middle 6 hours of a sunny day (i.e. a day with ~1000W/m2 global irradiance). Optical efficiency is analysed for perfect and non-ideal optical components to predict the collector performance under different `practical' circumstances. Overall, we intend for this paper to catalyse the development of rooftop solar thermal concentrators with compact form factors, similar to PV panels.

  10. Energy and exergy performance analysis of a marine rotary desiccant air-conditioning system based on orthogonal experiment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhu, Jun; Chen, Wu

    2014-01-01

    A novel marine rotary desiccant A/C (air-conditioning) system was developed and studied to improve energy utilization efficiency of ship A/C. The orthogonal experiment was first carried out to investigate the influence of various parameters of the marine rotary desiccant A/C system. During the orthogonal experiment the analysis of variance was used to exclude interference from the secondary influencing factor on system performance. The significant influencing factors of system were studied in great detail using the first and second laws of thermodynamics to find optimal setting parameters for best system performance. It is suggested from the analysis results that as regeneration temperature increases, the COP th (thermal coefficient of performance) and exergy efficiency of system (η e ) decreases by 46.9% and 38.8% respectively. They decrease in proportion to the increase of the temperature. η e reaches its maximum value of about 23.5% when the inlet humidity ratio of process air is 22 g/kg. Besides, the exergy loss of system concentrates on the regeneration air heater, the desiccant wheel and the regeneration air leaving the desiccant wheel, which account for 68.4%–81% of the total exergy loss. It can be concluded that applying the marine rotary desiccant A/C in high-temperature and high-humidity marine environment is advantageous. - Highlights: • Significant influencing factors of the system are found by the analysis of variance. • The change trends of the COP th and the η e are nearly proportional with the regeneration temperature. • The η e reaches its maximum value (about 23.5%) when the inlet humidity ratio of process air is 22 g/kg. • The contribution rate of the dry-bulb temperature of fresh air is up to 73.91% for the COP th . • Applying the marine rotary desiccant A/C in high-temperature and high-humidity marine environment is advantageous

  11. Preparation of desiccation-resistant aquatic-living Nostoc flagelliforme (Cyanophyceae) for potential ecological application

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, Xiang; Yang, Yi-Wen; Cui, Li-Juan; Zhou, De-Bao; Qiu, Bao-Sheng

    2015-01-01

    Nostoc flagelliforme is a terrestrial edible cyanobacterium that grows in arid and semi-arid steppes. The continued over-exploitation in the last century has led to a sharp decline of this resource and a severe deterioration of the steppe ecology. Liquid-cultured N. flagelliforme serves as promising algal ‘seeds’ for resource restoration. In this study, macroscopic (or visible) aquatic-living colonies (MaACs) of N. flagelliforme were developed under weak light and high nitrogen conditions. In a 24 day shake-flask culture, MaACs were propagated by about 4.5-fold in biomass without loss of their macro-morphology; at the same time, the addition of weak UV-B treatment resulted in slightly bigger MaACs. Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) k30, a water-soluble polymer, was used to generate the coating around MaACs, and after full desiccation, the coated MaACs could recover their photosynthetic physiological activity when rehydrated, with 4% PVP k30 for coating being most effective. In contrast, PVP k30-coated microscopic aquatic-living colonies of N. flagelliforme and non-coated MaACs showed no resistance to full desiccation. The macroscopic morphology or structure of MaACs should be crucial for the formation of protection by PVP k30 coating. PVP k30-coated MaACs were more approaching to actual application for resource restoration. PMID:25847617

  12. The impact of land use on water loss and soil desiccation in the soil profile

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Jing; Wang, Li

    2018-02-01

    Farmlands have gradually been replaced by apple orchards in Shaanxi province, China, and there will be a risk of severe soil-water-storage deficit with the increasing age of the apple trees. To provide a theoretical basis for the sustainable development of agriculture and forestry in the Loess Plateau, soil water content in a 19-year-old apple orchard, a 9-year-old apple orchard, a cornfield and a wheat field in the Changwu Tableland was investigated at different depths from January to October 2014. The results showed that: (1) the soil moisture content is different across the soil profile—for the four plots, the soil moisture of the cornfield is the highest, followed by the 9-year-old apple orchard and the wheat field, and the 19-year-old apple orchard has the lowest soil moisture. (2) There are varying degrees of soil desiccation in the four plots: the most serious degree of desiccation is in the 19-year-old apple orchard, followed by the wheat field and the cornfield, with the least severe desiccation occurring in the 9-year-old apple orchard. Farmland should replace apple orchards for an indefinite period while there is an extremely desiccated soil layer in the apple orchard so as to achieve the purpose of sustainable development. It will be necessary to reduce tree densities, and to carry out other research, if development of the economy and ecology of Changwu is to be sustainable.

  13. Radiation and desiccation response motif mediates radiation induced gene expression in D. radiodurans

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anaganti, Narasimha; Basu, Bhakti; Apte, Shree Kumar

    2015-01-01

    Deinococcus radiodurans is an extremophile that withstands lethal doses of several DNA damaging agents such as gamma irradiation, UV rays, desiccation and chemical mutagens. The organism responds to DNA damage by inducing expression of several DNA repair genes. At least 25 radiation inducible gene promoters harbour a 17 bp palindromic sequence known as radiation and desiccation response motif (RDRM) implicated in gamma radiation inducible gene expression. However, mechanistic details of gamma radiation-responsive up-regulation in gene expression remain enigmatic. The promoters of highly radiation induced genes ddrB (DR0070), gyrB (DR0906), gyrA (DR1913), a hypothetical gene (DR1143) and recA (DR2338) from D. radiodurans were cloned in a green fluorescence protein (GFP)-based promoter probe shuttle vector pKG and their promoter activity was assessed in both E. coli as well as in D. radiodurans. The gyrA, gyrB and DR1143 gene promoters were active in E. coli although ddrB and recA promoters showed very weak activity. In D. radiodurans, all the five promoters were induced several fold following 6 kGy gamma irradiation. Highest induction was observed for ddrB promoter (25 fold), followed by DR1143 promoter (15 fold). The induction in the activity of gyrB, gyrA and recA promoters was 5, 3 and 2 fold, respectively. To assess the role of RDRM, the 17 bp palindromic sequence was deleted from these promoters. The promoters devoid of RDRM sequence displayed increase in the basal expression activity, but the radiation-responsive induction in promoter activity was completely lost. The substitution of two conserved bases of RDRM sequence yielded decreased radiation induction of PDR0070 promoter. Deletion of 5 bases from 5'-end of PDR0070 RDRM increased basal promoter activity, but radiation induction was completely abolished. Replacement of RDRM with non specific sequence of PDR0070 resulted in loss of basal expression and radiation induction. The results demonstrate that

  14. Performance of a desiccant assisted packed bed passive solar dryer for copra processing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Padmanaban Govindarajulu

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, the performance of a novel desiccant assisted packed bed passive solar dryer was evaluated for copra processing and compared with conventional passive solar dryer. This novel solar dryer consists of a desiccant assisted packed bed solar air heater attached with a dryer cabin. The desiccant and phase change materials packed in the solar air heater has control the humidity and retains the heat for longer duration, respectively. The performance of the dryer was evaluated (in terms of drying time to attain the final equilibrium moisture content, drying rate, specific moisture extraction rate, pick-up efficiency, and dryer efficiency under the meteorological conditions of Coimbatore city in India during March and April 2016. The copra was dried from initial moisture content (wet basis of about 52% to the final moisture content (wet basis of about 8% in 62 hours with specific moisture extraction rate of 0.82 kg/kWh. The drying time was reduced by about 44 hours when compared to the conventional passive solar dryer. The dryer pick-up efficiency was varied between about 10% and 65%. The average dryer thermal efficiency was calculated to be about 32%. The quality of final dried product was found to be good.

  15. Development of a Hydronic Rooftop Unit-HyPak-MA

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, Eric; Berman, Mark

    2009-11-14

    The majority of U.S. commercial floor space is cooled by rooftop HVAC units (RTUs). RTU popularity derives chiefly from their low initial cost and relative ease of service access without disturbing building occupants. Unfortunately, current RTUs are inherently inefficient due to a combination of characteristics that unnecessarily increase cooling loads and energy use. 36% percent of annual U.S. energy, and two-thirds of electricity, is consumed in and by buildings. Commercial buildings consume approximately 4.2 quads of energy each year at a cost of $230 billion per year, with HVAC equipment consuming 1.2 quads of electricity. More than half of all U.S. commercial floor space is cooled by packaged HVAC units, most of which are rooftop units (RTUs). Inefficient RTUs create an estimated 3.5% of U.S. CO{sub 2} emissions, thus contributing significantly to global warming5. Also, RTUs often fail to maintain adequate ventilation air and air filtration, reducing indoor air quality. This is the second HyPak project to be supported by DOE through NETL. The prior project, referred to as HyPak-1 in this report, had two rounds of prototype fabrication and testing as well as computer modeling and market research. The HyPak-1 prototypes demonstrated the high performance capabilities of the HyPak concept, but made it clear that further development was required to reduce heat exchanger cost and improve system reliability before HyPak commercialization can commence. The HyPak-1 prototypes were limited to about 25% ventilation air fraction, limiting performance and marketability. The current project is intended to develop a 'mixed-air' product that is capable of full 0-100% modulation in ventilation air fraction, hence it was referred to as HyPak-MA in the proposal. (For simplicity, the -MA has been dropped when referencing the current project.) The objective of the HyPak Project is to design, develop and test a hydronic RTU that provides a quantum improvement over

  16. Study on effectiveness of continuous solar dryer integrated with desiccant thermal storage for drying cocoa beans

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sari Farah Dina

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available The main objective is to assess effectiveness of continuous solar dryer integrated with desiccant thermal storage for drying cocoa beans. Two type of desiccants were tested, molecular sieve 13× (Na86 [(AlO286·(SiO2106]·264H2O as an adsorbent type and CaCl2 as an absorbent type. The results revealed that during sunshine hours, the maximum temperature within the drying chamber varied from 40 °C to 54 °C. In average, it was 9–12 °C higher than ambient temperature. These temperatures are very suitable for drying cocoa beans. During off-sunshine hours, humidity of air inside the drying chamber was lower than ambient because of the desiccant thermal storage. Drying times for intermittent directs sun drying, solar dryer integrated with adsorbent, and solar dryer integrated with absorbent were 55 h, 41 h, and 30 h, respectively. Specific energy consumptions for direct sun drying, solar dryer integrated with adsorbent, and solar dryer integrated with absorber were 60.4 MJ/kg moist, 18.94 MJ/kg moist, and 13.29 MJ/kg moist, respectively. The main conclusion can be drawn here is that a solar dryer integrated with desiccant thermal storage makes drying using solar energy more effective in term of drying time and specific energy consumption.

  17. Re-establishment of desiccation tolerance by PEG in germinated Arabidopsis thaliana seeds

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Maia de Oliveira, Julio; Dias Costa, Maria; Ligterink, Wilco; Hilhorst, Henk

    2015-01-01

    Mature seeds of Arabidopsis thaliana are desiccation tolerant, but they lose DT while progressing to germination. Yet, there is a small developmental window during which DT can be rescued by treatment with polyethylene glycol (PEG).

  18. Analyzing the Energy Performance, Wind Loading, and Costs of Photovoltaic Slat Modules on Commercial Rooftops

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Van Geet, Otto D. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Fu, Ran [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Horowitz, Kelsey A. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Kurup, Parthiv [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); MacAlpine, Sara M. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Silverman, Timothy J. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2018-02-13

    NREL studied a new type of photovoltaic (PV) module configuration wherein multiple narrow, tilted slats are mounted in a single frame. Each slat of the PV slat module contains a single row of cells and is made using ordinary crystalline silicon PV module materials and processes, including a glass front sheet and weatherproof polymer encapsulation. Compared to a conventional ballasted system, a system using slat modules offer higher energy production and lower weight at lower LCOE. The key benefits of slat modules are reduced wind loading, improved capacity factor and reduced installation cost. First, the individual slats allow air to flow through, which reduce wind loading. Using PV performance modeling software, we compared the performance of an optimized installation of slats modules to a typical installation of conventional modules in a ballasted rack mounting system. Based on the results of the performance modeling two different row tilt and spacing were tested in a wind tunnel. Scaled models of the PV Slat modules were wind tunnel tested to quantify the wind loading of a slat module system on a commercial rooftop, comparing the results to conventional ballasted rack mounted PV modules. Some commercial roofs do not have sufficient reserve dead load capacity to accommodate a ballasted system. A reduced ballast system design could make PV system installation on these roofs feasible for the first time without accepting the disadvantages of penetrating mounts. Finally, technoeconomic analysis was conducted to enable an economic comparison between a conventional commercial rooftop system and a reduced-ballast slat module installation.

  19. Isolation of Radiation-Resistant Bacteria from Mars Analog Antarctic Dry Valleys by Preselection, and the Correlation between Radiation and Desiccation Resistance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Musilova, Michaela; Wright, Gary; Ward, John M; Dartnell, Lewis R

    2015-12-01

    Extreme radiation-resistant microorganisms can survive doses of ionizing radiation far greater than are present in the natural environment. Radiation resistance is believed to be an incidental adaptation to desiccation resistance, as both hazards cause similar cellular damage. Desert soils are, therefore, promising targets to prospect for new radiation-resistant strains. This is the first study to isolate radiation-resistant microbes by using gamma-ray exposure preselection from the extreme cold desert of the Antarctic Dry Valleys (a martian surface analogue). Halomonads, identified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing, were the most numerous survivors of the highest irradiation exposures. They were studied here for the first time for both their desiccation and irradiation survival characteristics. In addition, the association between desiccation and radiation resistance has not been investigated quantitatively before for a broad diversity of microorganisms. Thus, a meta-analysis of scientific literature was conducted to gather a larger data set. A strong correlation was found between desiccation and radiation resistance, indicating that an increase in the desiccation resistance of 5 days corresponds to an increase in the room-temperature irradiation survival of 1 kGy. Irradiation at -79°C (representative of average martian surface temperatures) increases the microbial radiation resistance 9-fold. Consequently, the survival of the cold-, desiccation-, and radiation-resistant organisms isolated here has implications for the potential habitability of dormant or cryopreserved life on Mars. Extremophiles-Halomonas sp.-Antarctica-Mars-Ionizing radiation-Cosmic rays.

  20. Variations in biofilm formation, desiccation resistance and Benzalkonium chloride susceptibility among Listeria monocytogenes strains isolated in Canada

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Piercey, Marta J.; C. Ells, Timothy; Macintosh, Andrew J.

    2017-01-01

    needed to inhibit the formation of biofilm by LGI1/CC8 strains during incubation for 48 h and 6 days compared to other strains. Formation of biofilm on stainless steel was not significantly (p > 0.05) different among the strains. Analysis of genetic sequence data from desiccation and BAC sensitive (CP4 5......Listeria monocytogenes is a pathogenic foodborne microorganism noted for its ability to survive in the environment and food processing facilities. Survival may be related to the phenotype of individual strains including the ability to form biofilms and resist desiccation and/or sanitizer exposure....... The objectives of this research were to compare 14 L. monocytogenes strains isolated from blood (3), food (6) and water (5) with respect to their benzalkonium chloride (BAC) sensitivity, desiccation resistance, and ability to form biofilm. Correlations were tested between those responses, and the presence...

  1. Climate and anthropogenic contributions to the desiccation of the second largest saline lake in the twentieth century

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chaudhari, Suyog; Felfelani, Farshid; Shin, Sanghoon; Pokhrel, Yadu

    2018-05-01

    Urmia Lake, once the second largest saline lake in the world, is on the verge of complete desiccation. It has been suggested that the desiccation is caused by intensified human activities, especially irrigation, and prolonged droughts in the lake basin, but there is a lack of quantitative analysis to attribute the observed water level decline to natural and anthropogenic causes. In this study, we use remote sensing data, ground observations, and a hydrological model with human impact assessment capabilities (HiGW-MAT) to investigate the natural and human-induced changes in the hydrology of Urmia Lake basin from 1980 to 2010. Based on the analysis of remote sensing data, we find a ∼98% and ∼180% increase in agricultural lands and urban areas, respectively, from 1987 through 2016, with a corresponding shrinkage in lake area by ∼86%. Further, we use model results to examine the changes in terrestrial water storage (TWS) over the basin including the lake. Results indicate that TWS declined over the lake region and the lake lost water at a faster rate than the watershed did. Comparison of river inflow to the lake from two simulations-one with and the other without human activities-suggests that human water management activities caused a reduction in streamflow of ∼1.74 km3/year from 1995 to 2010, which accounts for ∼86% of the total depletion in lake volume during the same period. It is also found that irrigation water requirement almost tripled, causing high withdrawals from rivers. These results demonstrate that the on-going depletion of Urmia Lake is not solely due to prolonged droughts but also due to direct anthropogenic alterations which caused significant changes in land use, streamflow, and water storage within the basin. This study provides important insights on the natural and human-induced changes in the hydrology of Urmia Lake and highlights the need for a high resolution regional scale modeling approach for better understanding potential future

  2. Desiccation tolerance and sensitivity in Medicago truncatula and Inga vera seeds

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Faria, J.M.R.

    2006-01-01

    Orthodox seeds acquire desiccation tolerance (DT) during their development which enables them to pass through the phase of maturation drying by the end of their development and enter a state of quiescence. After harvesting, these seeds can be dried further and stored for the long-term without

  3. Abscisic acid (ABA) sensitivity regulates desiccation tolerance in germinated Arabidopsis seeds

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Maia de Oliveira, J.; Dekkers, S.J.W.; Dolle, M.; Ligterink, W.; Hilhorst, H.W.M.

    2014-01-01

    During germination, orthodox seeds lose their desiccation tolerance (DT) and become sensitive to extreme drying. Yet, DT can be rescued, in a well-defined developmental window, by the application of a mild osmotic stress before dehydration. A role for abscisic acid (ABA) has been implicated in this

  4. Genome-wide analysis of desiccation tolerance-related genes in Arabidopsis seeds

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Maia de Oliveira, Julio; Dekkers, Bas; Ligterink, Wilco; Provart, Nicholas J.; Hilhorst, Henk

    2013-01-01

    The combination of robust physiological models with “omics” studies holds promise for the discovery of genes and pathways linked to how organisms deal with drying. Here we used a transcriptomics approach in combination with an in vivo physiological model of re-establishment of desiccation tolerance

  5. Desiccation of adhering and biofilm Listeria monocytogenes on stainless steel: Survival and transfer to salmon products

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hansen, Lisbeth Truelstrup; Vogel, Birte Fonnesbech

    2011-01-01

    The foodborne bacterial pathogen, Listeria monocytogenes, commonly contaminates foods during processing, where the microorganisms are potentially subjected to low relative humidity (RH) conditions for extended periods of time. The objective of this study was to examine survival during desiccation...... (43% RH and 15°C) of biofilm L. monocytogenes N53-1 cells on stainless steel coupons and to assess subsequent transfer to salmon products. Formation of static biofilm (2days at 100% RH and 15°C) prior to desiccation for 23days significantly (P...

  6. Inactivation of Nondesiccated and Desiccated Cronobacter sakazakii in Reconstituted Infant Formula by Combination of Citral and Mild Heat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shi, Chao; Jia, Zhenyu; Sun, Yi; Chen, Yifei; Guo, Du; Liu, Zhiyuan; Wen, Qiwu; Guo, Xiao; Ma, Linlin; Yang, Baowei; Baloch, Allah Bux; Xia, Xiaodong

    2017-07-01

    The objective of this study was to evaluate the combined effect of citral plus mild heat on nondesiccated and desiccated Cronobacter sakazakii in reconstituted infant formula. Various concentrations of citral (0, 0.3, 0.6, and 0.9%) combined with various temperatures (25, 45, 50, and 55°C) were applied to nondesiccated and desiccated cocktails of three C. sakazakii strains (approximately 6.0 log CFU mL -1 ) in reconstituted infant formula, and the bacterial populations were assayed periodically. The combined treatments had marked antimicrobial effects on C. sakazakii compared with the control. Desiccated cells were more susceptible to citral than were nondesiccated cells in reconstituted infant formula. These findings suggest there is a potential application of citral in combination with mild heat to control C. sakazakii during preparation of reconstituted infant formula.

  7. De novo transcriptome characterization and gene expression profiling of the desiccation tolerant moss Bryum argenteum following rehydration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, Bei; Zhang, Daoyuan; Li, Xiaoshuang; Yang, Honglan; Zhang, Yuanming; Wood, Andrew J

    2015-05-28

    The desiccation-tolerant moss Bryum argenteum is an important component of the Biological Soil Crusts (BSCs) found in the Gurbantunggut desert. Desiccation tolerance is defined as the ability to revive from the air dried state. To elucidate the molecular mechanisms related to desiccation tolerance, we employed RNA-Seq and digital gene expression (DGE) technologies to study the genome-wide expression profiles of the dehydration and rehydration processes in this important desert plant. We applied a two-step approach to investigate the gene expression profile upon rehydration in the moss Bryum argenteum using Illumina HiSeq2000 sequencing platform. First, a total of 57,247 transcript assembly contigs (TACs) were obtained from 54.79 million reads by de novo assembly, with an average length of 863 bp and N50 of 1,372 bp. Among the reconstructed TACs, 36,916 (64.5%) revealed similarity with existing protein sequences in the public databases. 23,509 and 21,607 TACs were assigned GO and KEGG annotation information, respectively. Second, samples were taken from 3 hydration stages: desiccated (Dry), rehydrated 2 h (R2) and rehydrated 24 h (R24), and DEG libraries were constructed for Differentially Expressed Genes (DEGs) discovery. 4,081 and 6,709 DEGs were identified in R2 and R24, compared with Dry, respectively. Compared to the desiccated sample, up-regulated genes after two hours of hydration are primarily related to stress responses. GO function enrichment network, EKGG metabolic pathway and MapMan analysis supports the idea of the rapid recovery of photosynthesis after 24 h of rehydration. We identified 770 transcription factors (TFs) which were classified into 50 TF families. 142 TF transcripts were up-regulated upon rehydration including 23 members of the ERF family. In this study, we constructed a pioneering, high-quality reference transcriptome in B. argenteum and generated three DGE libraries to elucidate the changes of gene expression upon rehydration. Expression

  8. Soluble carbohydrate content variation in Sanionia uncinata and Polytrichastrum alpinum, two Antarctic mosses with contrasting desiccation capacities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paz Zúñiga-González

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Cryptogamic vegetation dominates the ice-free areas along the Antarctic Peninsula. The two mosses Sanionia uncinata and Polytrichastrum alpinum inhabit soils with contrasting water availability. Sanionia uncinata grows in soil with continuous water supply, while P. alpinum grows in sandy, non-flooded soils. Desiccation and rehydration experiments were carried out to test for differences in the rate of water loss and uptake, with non-structural carbohydrates analysed to test their role in these processes. RESULTS: Individual plants of S. uncinata lost water 60 % faster than P. alpinum; however, clumps of S. uncinata took longer to dry than those of P. alpinum (11 vs. 5 h, respectively. In contrast, rehydration took less than 10 min for both mosses. Total non-structural carbohydrate content was higher in P. alpinum than in S. uncinata, but sugar levels changed more in P. alpinum during desiccation and rehydration (60-50 % when compared to S. uncinata. We report the presence of galactinol (a precursor of the raffinose family for the first time in P. alpinum. Galactinol was present at higher amounts than all other non-structural sugars. CONCLUSIONS: Individual plants of S. uncinata were not able to retain water for long periods but by growing and forming carpets, this species can retain water the longest. In contrast individual P. alpinum plants required more time to lose water than S. uncinata, but as moss cushions they suffered desiccation faster than the later. On the other hand, both species rehydrated very quickly. We found that when both mosses lost 50 % of their water, carbohydrates content remained stable and the plants did not accumulate non-structural carbohydrates during the desiccation prosses as usually occurs in vascular plants. The raffinose family oligosaccarides decreased during desiccation, and increased during rehydration, suggesting they function as osmoprotectors.

  9. What land covers are effective in mitigating a heat island in urban building rooftop?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, S.; Ryu, Y.

    2014-12-01

    Since the 20th century, due to the rapid urbanization many urban environment problems have got blossomed and above all heat island has been recognized as an important issue. There are several causes of urban heat island, but land cover change occupies the largest portion of them. Owing to urban expansion, vegetation is changed into asphalt pavements and concrete buildings, which reduces latent heat flux. To mitigate the problems, people enlarge vegetation covers such as planting street trees, making rooftop gardens and constructing parks or install white roofs that feature high albedo on a building. While the white roofs reflect about 70% of solar radiation and absorb less radiation, vegetation has low albedo but cools the air through transpiration and fixes carbon dioxide through photosynthesis. There are some studies concerning which one is more effective to mitigate heat island between the green roof and white roof. This study compares the green roof and white roof and additionally considers carbon fixation that has not been treated in other studies. Furthermore, this study ascertains an efficiency of solar-cell panel that is used for building roof recently. The panel produces electric power but has low albedo which could warm the air. The experiment is conducted at the rooftop in Seoul, Korea and compares green roof (grass), white roof (painted cover), black roof (solar panel) and normal painted roof. Surface temperature and albedo are observed for the four roof types and incoming shortwave, outgoing longwave and carbon flux are measured in green roof solely. In the case of solar panels, the electricity generation is calculated from the incoming radiation. We compute global warming potentials for the four roof types and test which roof type is most effective in reducing global warming potential.

  10. Preparation of desiccation-resistant aquatic-living Nostoc flagelliforme (Cyanophyceae) for potential ecological application.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, Xiang; Yang, Yi-Wen; Cui, Li-Juan; Zhou, De-Bao; Qiu, Bao-Sheng

    2015-11-01

    Nostoc flagelliforme is a terrestrial edible cyanobacterium that grows in arid and semi-arid steppes. The continued over-exploitation in the last century has led to a sharp decline of this resource and a severe deterioration of the steppe ecology. Liquid-cultured N. flagelliforme serves as promising algal 'seeds' for resource restoration. In this study, macroscopic (or visible) aquatic-living colonies (MaACs) of N. flagelliforme were developed under weak light and high nitrogen conditions. In a 24 day shake-flask culture, MaACs were propagated by about 4.5-fold in biomass without loss of their macro-morphology; at the same time, the addition of weak UV-B treatment resulted in slightly bigger MaACs. Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) k30, a water-soluble polymer, was used to generate the coating around MaACs, and after full desiccation, the coated MaACs could recover their photosynthetic physiological activity when rehydrated, with 4% PVP k30 for coating being most effective. In contrast, PVP k30-coated microscopic aquatic-living colonies of N. flagelliforme and non-coated MaACs showed no resistance to full desiccation. The macroscopic morphology or structure of MaACs should be crucial for the formation of protection by PVP k30 coating. PVP k30-coated MaACs were more approaching to actual application for resource restoration. © 2015 The Authors. Microbial Biotechnology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd and Society for Applied Microbiology.

  11. Simulation and parameter analysis of a two-stage desiccant cooing/heating system driven by solar air collectors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li, H.; Dai, Y.J.; Köhler, M.; Wang, R.Z.

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: ► A solar desiccant cooling/heating system is simulation studied. ► The mean deviation is about 10.5% for temperature and 9.6% for humidity ratio. ► The 51.7% of humidity load and 76% of the total cooling can be handled. ► About 49.0% of heating load can be handled by solar energy. ► An optimization of solar air collector has been investigated. - Abstract: To increase the fraction of solar energy might be used in supplying energy for the operation of a building, a solar desiccant cooling and heating system was modeled in Simulink. First, base case performance models were programmed according to the configuration of the installed solar desiccant system and verified by the experimental data. Then, the year-round performance about the system was simulated. Last, design parameters of solar air collectors were optimized that include collector area, air leakage and thermal insulation. Comparison between numerical and experimental results shows good agreement. During the simulation, the humidity load for 63 days (51.7%) can be totally handled by the two-stage desiccant cooling unit. For seasonal total heating load, about 49.0% can be handled by solar energy. Based on optimized results, the thermal energy subsystem functioned to its expected performance in solar energy collection and thermal storage

  12. PCR detection of malaria parasites in desiccated Anopheles mosquitoes is uninhibited by storage time and temperature

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rider Mark A

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Reliable methods to preserve mosquito vectors for malaria studies are necessary for detecting Plasmodium parasites. In field settings, however, maintaining a cold chain of storage from the time of collection until laboratory processing, or accessing other reliable means of sample preservation is often logistically impractical or cost prohibitive. As the Plasmodium infection rate of Anopheles mosquitoes is a central component of the entomological inoculation rate and other indicators of transmission intensity, storage conditions that affect pathogen detection may bias malaria surveillance indicators. This study investigated the effect of storage time and temperature on the ability to detect Plasmodium parasites in desiccated Anopheles mosquitoes by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR. Methods Laboratory-infected Anopheles stephensi mosquitoes were chloroform-killed and stored over desiccant for 0, 1, 3, and 6 months while being held at four different temperatures: 28, 37, -20 and -80°C. The detection of Plasmodium DNA was evaluated by real-time PCR amplification of a 111 base pair region of block 4 of the merozoite surface protein. Results Varying the storage time and temperature of desiccated mosquitoes did not impact the sensitivity of parasite detection. A two-way factorial analysis of variance suggested that storage time and temperature were not associated with a loss in the ability to detect parasites. Storage of samples at 28°C resulted in a significant increase in the ability to detect parasite DNA, though no other positive associations were observed between the experimental storage treatments and PCR amplification. Conclusions Cold chain maintenance of desiccated mosquito samples is not necessary for real-time PCR detection of parasite DNA. Though field-collected mosquitoes may be subjected to variable conditions prior to molecular processing, the storage of samples over an inexpensive and logistically

  13. Uncertainty Model for Total Solar Irradiance Estimation on Australian Rooftops

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al-Saadi, Hassan; Zivanovic, Rastko; Al-Sarawi, Said

    2017-11-01

    The installations of solar panels on Australian rooftops have been in rise for the last few years, especially in the urban areas. This motivates academic researchers, distribution network operators and engineers to accurately address the level of uncertainty resulting from grid-connected solar panels. The main source of uncertainty is the intermittent nature of radiation, therefore, this paper presents a new model to estimate the total radiation incident on a tilted solar panel. Where a probability distribution factorizes clearness index, the model is driven upon clearness index with special attention being paid for Australia with the utilization of best-fit-correlation for diffuse fraction. The assessment of the model validity is achieved with the adoption of four goodness-of-fit techniques. In addition, the Quasi Monte Carlo and sparse grid methods are used as sampling and uncertainty computation tools, respectively. High resolution data resolution of solar irradiations for Adelaide city were used for this assessment, with an outcome indicating a satisfactory agreement between actual data variation and model.

  14. Alternative Refrigerant Evaluation for High-Ambient-Temperature Environments: R-22 and R-410A Alternatives for Rooftop Air Conditioners

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Abdelaziz, Omar [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Shrestha, Som S. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Shen, Bo [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Linkous, Randall Lee [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Goetzler, William [Navigant Consulting Inc., Burlington, MA (United States); Guernsey, Matt [Navigant Consulting Inc., Burlington, MA (United States); Bargach, Youssef [Navigant Consulting Inc., Burlington, MA (United States)

    2016-09-01

    The Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) High-Ambient-Temperature Evaluation Program for Low-Global Warming Potential (Low-GWP) Refrigerants aims to develop an understanding of the performance of low-GWP alternative refrigerants relative to hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) and hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants in packaged or Rooftop Unit (RTU) air conditioners under high-ambient-temperature conditions. This final report describes the parties involved, the alternative refrigerants selection process, the test procedures, and the final results.

  15. Identifying Potential Area and Financial Prospects of Rooftop Solar Photovoltaics (PV

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sarawut Ninsawat

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available In an urban area, the roof is the only available surface that can be utilized for installing solar photovoltaics (PV, and the active surface area depends on the type of roof. Shadows on a solar panel can be caused by nearby tall buildings, construction materials such as water tanks, or the roof configuration itself. The azimuth angle of the sun varies, based on the season and the time of day. Therefore, the simulation of shadow for one or two days or using the rule of thumb may not be sufficient to evaluate shadow effects on solar panels throughout the year. In this paper, a methodology for estimating the solar potential of solar PV on rooftops is presented, which is particularly applicable to urban areas. The objective of this method is to assess how roof type and shadow play a role in potentiality and financial benefit. The method starts with roof type extraction from high-resolution satellite imagery, using Object Base Image Analysis (OBIA, the generation of a 3D structure from height data and roof type, the simulation of shadow throughout the year, and the identification of potential and financial prospects. Based on the results obtained, the system seems to be adequate for calculating the financial benefits of solar PV to a very fine scale. The payback period varied from 7–13 years depending on the roof type, direction, and shadow impact. Based on the potentiality, a homeowner can make a profit of up to 200%. This method could help homeowners to identify potential roof area and economic interest.

  16. Repellent activity of desiccant dusts and conidia of the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana when tested against poultry red mites (Dermanyssus gallinae) in laboratory experiments

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kilpinen, Ole; Steenberg, Tove

    2016-01-01

    on both dose and relative humidity (RH). However, one desiccant dust was significantly less repellent compared to other dusts with similar levels of efficacy. Further, dry conidia of the fungus Beauveria bassiana were also shown to be repellent to poultry red mites, both when applied on its own and when...

  17. Responses of the Lichen Photobiont Trebouxia erici to Desiccation and Rehydration (II) Proteomics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lichen desiccation tolerance is associated with cellular protection mechanisms directed against the oxidative stress produced during dehydration and/or rehydration, however, these mechanisms are not well understood. In other poikilohydric organisms, changes in the synthesis of proteins have bee...

  18. Development and Analysis of Desiccant Enhanced Evaporative Air Conditioner Prototype

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kozubal, E.; Woods, J.; Judkoff, R.

    2012-04-01

    This report documents the design of a desiccant enhanced evaporative air conditioner (DEVAP AC) prototype and the testing to prove its performance. Previous numerical modeling and building energy simulations indicate a DEVAP AC can save significant energy compared to a conventional vapor compression AC (Kozubal et al. 2011). The purposes of this research were to build DEVAP prototypes, test them to validate the numerical model, and identify potential commercialization barriers.

  19. Commelina Species Control with Desiccants Alone and in Mixtures

    OpenAIRE

    FERREIRA, S.D.; SALVALAGGIO, A.C.; MORATELLI, G.; VASCONCELOS, E.D.; COSTA, N.V.

    2017-01-01

    ABSTRACT: The objective of this study was to evaluate the chemical control of the species C. benghalensis and C. erecta with desiccants alone and mixtures, as well as the spreading of spray droplets on the leaf surfaces. The experimental design was completely randomized in a 2 x 16 factorial arrangement with four replications, totaling 32 treatments and 128 plots. The first factor is related to the species C. benghalensis and C. erecta and the second factor corresponds to the treatments carfe...

  20. Toward an Urban Political Ecology of Energy Justice: The Case of Rooftop Solar in Tucson, AZ

    Science.gov (United States)

    Franklin, Remington Santiago

    A central challenge of the twenty-first century is to transition to a low-carbon energy system to reduce the risks of climate change. For Pima County, Arizona, where electricity accounts for the majority of greenhouse gas emissions, this requires rapid deployment of grid-tied renewable energy resources. In light of this challenge, photovoltaic solar has emerged as an important solution, providing the top source of new US electric generating capacity installed in 2016. However, there is still no consensus about the optimal scale for solar (centralized power plants, or small, decentralized systems) and the socio-economic implications for low income households. This thesis explores the implications of rooftop solar for energy justice through empirical research about a southern Arizona electric utility rate case. Utilities argue that existing rate structures shift costs from solar owners to lower-income ratepayers, while critics say the utility's proposed rate changes are unjust and that rooftop solar benefits all ratepayers. Drawing on my empirical data and an urban political ecology (UPE) approach, I analyze competing narratives that speak to three types of justice: distributive, procedural, and recognition. While dominant justice claims revolve around the distribution of costs through rates, competing narratives emphasize procedural and recognition (in)justice. Focusing on political economy, power relations, and the materiality of the grid, I reframe the utility's cost shift argument as a strategic narrative and explain why this justice claim is ultimately validated. I propose that UPE can further an energy justice analysis by understanding procedural and recognition injustice as systemic products of rate of return regulation and the material configuration of the electric grid.

  1. Modeling of a regenerative indirect evaporative cooler for a desiccant cooling system

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bellemo, Lorenzo; Elmegaard, Brian; Reinholdt, Lars O.

    This paper presents a numerical study of a regenerative indirect evaporative cooler, the so-called Dew Point Cooler (DPC), which is part of a Desiccant Cooling system that may both dehumidify and cool humid air. The DPC model is based on first principles using a 1D finite volume scheme...

  2. Giant desiccation fissures on the Black Rock and Smoke Creek Deserts, Nevada

    Science.gov (United States)

    Willden, R.; Mabey, D.R.

    1961-01-01

    Open fissures, from 100 to several hundred feet apart, that have produced polygonal patterns on the Black Rock Desert, Nevada, are believed to be giant desiccation cracks resulting from a secular trend toward aridity in the last few decades. Similar features on the Smoke Creek Desert probably have the same origin.

  3. Downregulation of dTps1 in Drosophila melanogaster larvae confirms involvement of trehalose in redox regulation following desiccation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thorat, Leena; Mani, Krishna-Priya; Thangaraj, Pradeep; Chatterjee, Suvro; Nath, Bimalendu B

    2016-03-01

    As a survival strategy to environmental water deficits, desiccation-tolerant organisms are commonly known for their ability to recruit stress-protective biomolecules such as trehalose. We have previously reported the pivotal role of trehalose in larval desiccation tolerance in Drosophila melanogaster. Trehalose has emerged as a versatile molecule, serving mainly as energy source in insects and also being a stress protectant. While several recent reports have revealed the unconventional role of trehalose in scavenging reactive oxygen species in yeast and plants, this aspect has not received much attention in animals. We examined the status of desiccation-induced generation of reactive oxygen species in D. melanogaster larvae and the possible involvement of trehalose in ameliorating the harmful consequences thereof. Insect trehalose synthesis is governed by the enzyme trehalose 6-phosphate synthase 1 (TPS1). Using the ubiquitous da-GAL4-driven expression of the dTps1-RNAi transgene, we generated dTps1-downregulated Drosophila larvae possessing depleted levels of dTps1 transcripts. This resulted in the inability of the larvae for trehalose synthesis, thereby allowing us to elucidate the significance of trehalose in the regulation of desiccation-responsive redox homeostasis. Furthermore, the results from molecular genetics studies, biochemical assays, electron spin resonance analyses and a simple, non-invasive method of whole larval live imaging suggested that trehalose in collaboration with superoxide dismutase (SOD) is involved in the maintenance of redox state in D. melanogaster.

  4. Moving Advanced Desiccant Materials into Mainstream Non-CFC Cooling Products

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sand, J. R. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Grossman, T. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Rice, C. K. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Fairchild, P. D. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Gross, I. L. [Engelhard/ICC, Hatboro, PA (United States). Fresh Air Solutions

    2004-12-30

    Desiccant dehumidification technology is emerging as a technically viable alternative for comfort conditioning in many commercial and institutional buildings. Attempts to improve the indoor air quality of buildings has resulted in increasingly stringent guidelines for occupant outdoor air ventilation rates. Additionally, revised building heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) design criteria based on regional peak dew point data highlight the important of the latent (moisture removal) building load relative to the sensible (temperature) building load.

  5. Simulation Analysis of the Four Configurations of Solar Desiccant Cooling System Using Evaporative Cooling in Tropical Weather in Malaysia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. M. S. Dezfouli

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available A high demand for air conditioning systems exists in hot and humid regions because of the warm climate during the year. The high energy consumption of conventional air conditioning system is the reason for our investigation of the solar desiccant cooling system as an energy-efficient cooling system. Four model configurations were considered to determine the best configuration of a solar desiccant cooling system: one-stage ventilation, one-stage recirculation, two-stage ventilation, and two-stage recirculation. These models were stimulated for 8,760 hr of operation under hot and humid weather in Malaysia. Several parameters (i.e., coefficient of performance or COP, room temperature and humidity ratio, and the solar fraction of each system were evaluated by detecting the temperature and humidity ratio of the different points of each configuration by TRNSYS simulation. The latent and sensible loads of the test room were 0.875 kW and 2.625 kW, respectively. By investigating the simulation results of the four systems, the ventilation modes were found to be higher than the recirculation modes in the one- and two-stage solar desiccant cooling systems. The isothermal dehumidification COP of the two-stage ventilation was higher than that of the two-stage recirculation. Hence, the two-stage ventilation mode desiccant cooling system in a hot and humid area has higher efficiency than the other configurations.

  6. PHYSIOLOGICAL AND SANITARY QUALITY OF DESICCATED AND STORED AZUKI BEAN SEEDS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    CÁSSIO JARDIM TAVARES

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this research was to evaluate the effects of using different herbicides as desiccants in pre - harvest and the effects of storage on the physiological and sanitary quality of azuki bean seeds ( Vigna angularis Willd. The experiment was arranged in a randomized complete block design in a split plot scheme, with four replications. Four herbicides were tested: paraquat (400 g a.i. ha - 1 , glufosinate ammonium (400 g a.i. ha - 1 , glyphosate (720 g a.i. ha - 1 , flumioxazin (30 g a.i. ha - 1 and a control without herbicide application. In the subplots seed quality was tested in two evaluation periods: at harvest and six months after harvest. Desiccant was applied when the azuki beans were physiologically mature. We assessed the physiological and sanitary quality of the seeds using a vigour and seed health test. The use of glyphosate resulted in a higher incidence of abnormal seedlings and reduced size and weight of the seedlings. With paraquat and flumioxazin the physiological quality was maintained and there was reduced pathogen infestation in the seeds six months after harvest. Storage affected the physiological quality of the azuki bean seeds.

  7. Thermodynamic analysis of an open cycle solid desiccant cooling system using Artificial Neural Network

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Koronaki, I.P.; Rogdakis, E.; Kakatsiou, T.

    2012-01-01

    Highlights: ► A neural network model based on experimental data was developed. ► Description of the experimental setup. ► Prediction of the state conditions of air at the process and regeneration stream. ► Sensitivity Analysis performed on these predicted results. ► Predicted output values in line with correlation model based on data from industry. - Abstract: This paper examines the performance of an installed open cycle air-conditioning system with a silica gel desiccant wheel which uses a conventional heat pump and heat exchangers for the improvement of the outlet air of the system. A neural network model based on the training of a black box model with experimental data was developed as a method based on experimental results predicting the state conditions of air at the process and regeneration stream. The model development was followed by a Sensitivity Analysis performed on these predicted results. The key parameters were the thermodynamic condition of process and regeneration air streams, the sensible heat factor of the room, and the mass air flow ratio of the regeneration and process streams. The results of this analysis revealed that all investigated parameters influenced the performance of the desiccant unit. Predicted output values of the proposed Neural Network Model for Desiccant Systems are in line with results from other correlation models based on the interpolation of experimental data obtained from industrial air conditioning installations.

  8. An easily reversible structural change underlies mechanisms enabling desert crust cyanobacteria to survive desiccation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bar-Eyal, Leeat; Eisenberg, Ido; Faust, Adam; Raanan, Hagai; Nevo, Reinat; Rappaport, Fabrice; Krieger-Liszkay, Anja; Sétif, Pierre; Thurotte, Adrien; Reich, Ziv; Kaplan, Aaron; Ohad, Itzhak; Paltiel, Yossi; Keren, Nir

    2015-10-01

    Biological desert sand crusts are the foundation of desert ecosystems, stabilizing the sands and allowing colonization by higher order organisms. The first colonizers of the desert sands are cyanobacteria. Facing the harsh conditions of the desert, these organisms must withstand frequent desiccation-hydration cycles, combined with high light intensities. Here, we characterize structural and functional modifications to the photosynthetic apparatus that enable a cyanobacterium, Leptolyngbya sp., to thrive under these conditions. Using multiple in vivo spectroscopic and imaging techniques, we identified two complementary mechanisms for dissipating absorbed energy in the desiccated state. The first mechanism involves the reorganization of the phycobilisome antenna system, increasing excitonic coupling between antenna components. This provides better energy dissipation in the antenna rather than directed exciton transfer to the reaction center. The second mechanism is driven by constriction of the thylakoid lumen which limits diffusion of plastocyanin to P700. The accumulation of P700(+) not only prevents light-induced charge separation but also efficiently quenches excitation energy. These protection mechanisms employ existing components of the photosynthetic apparatus, forming two distinct functional modes. Small changes in the structure of the thylakoid membranes are sufficient for quenching of all absorbed energy in the desiccated state, protecting the photosynthetic apparatus from photoinhibitory damage. These changes can be easily reversed upon rehydration, returning the system to its high photosynthetic quantum efficiency. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  9. Parameter analysis and optimization of the energy and economic performance of solar-assisted liquid desiccant cooling system under different climate conditions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qi, Ronghui; Lu, Lin; Huang, Yu

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Operation conditions significantly affect energy & economic performance of SLDCS. • Control parameters in three areas were optimized by Multi-Population Genetic Algorithm. • Solar collector area showed the greatest effect on system performance for humid areas. • Desiccant concentration showed greatest effect on system performance for dry areas. • Requirement of collector area, heating water and desiccant flow rates for humid areas is highest. - Abstract: Operation conditions significantly affect the energy and economic performance of solar-assisted liquid desiccant cooling systems. This study optimized the system control parameters for buildings in different climates, i.e., Singapore (hot and humid), Beijing (moderate) and Boulder (hot and dry), with a multi-parameter optimization based on the Multi-Population Genetic Algorithm to obtain optimal system performance in terms of relatively maximum electricity saving rate with a minimum cost payback period. The results indicated that the selection of operation parameters is significantly influenced by climatic conditions. The solar collector installation area exhibited the greatest effect on both energy and economic performance in humid areas, and the heating water flow rate was also important. For dry areas, a change in desiccant concentration had the largest effect on system performance. Although the effect of the desiccant flow rate was significant in humid cities, it appeared to have little influence over buildings in dry areas. Furthermore, the requirements of the solar collector installation area in humid areas were much higher. The optimized area was up to 70 m"2 in Singapore compared with 27.5 m"2 in Boulder. Similar results were found for the flow rates of heating water and the desiccant solution. Applying the optimization, humid cities could achieve an electricity saving of more than 40% with a six-year payback period. The optimal performance for hot and dry areas of a 38% electricity

  10. Desiccation as a mitigation tool to manage biofouling risks: trials on temperate taxa to elucidate factors influencing mortality rates.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hopkins, Grant A; Prince, Madeleine; Cahill, Patrick L; Fletcher, Lauren M; Atalah, Javier

    2016-01-01

    The desiccation tolerance of biofouling taxa (adults and early life-stages) was determined under both controlled and 'realistic' field conditions. Adults of the ascidian Ciona spp. died within 24 h. Mortality in the adult blue mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis occurred within 11 d under controlled conditions, compared with 7 d when held outside. The Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas was the most desiccation-tolerant taxon tested (up to 34 d under controlled conditions). Biofouling orientated to direct sunlight showed faster mortality rates for all the taxa tested. Mortality in Mytilus juveniles took up to 24 h, compared with 8 h for Ciona, with greater survival at the higher temperature (18.5°C) and humidity (~95% RH) treatment combination. This study demonstrated that desiccation can be an effective mitigation method for a broad range of fouling taxa, especially their early life-stages. Further work is necessary to assess risks from other high-risk species such as algae and cyst forming species.

  11. Low-carbon electricity production through the implementation of photovoltaic panels in rooftops in urban environments: A case study for three cities in Peru.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bazán, José; Rieradevall, Joan; Gabarrell, Xavier; Vázquez-Rowe, Ian

    2018-05-01

    Urban environments in Latin America must begin decarbonizing their activities to avoid increasing greenhouse gases (GHGs) emissions rates due to their reliance on fossil fuel-based energy to support economic growth. In this context, cities in Latin America have high potential to convert sunlight into energy. Hence, the main objective of this study was to determine the potential of electricity self-sufficiency production and mitigation of GHG emissions in three medium-sized cities in Peru through the revalorization of underutilized rooftop areas in urban environments. Each city represented a distinct natural area of Peru: Pacific coast, Andean region and Amazon basin. More specifically, photovoltaic solar systems were the technology selected for implementation in these rooftop areas. Data on incident solar energy, temperature and energy consumption were collected. Thereafter, ArcGis10.3 was used to quantify the total usable area in the cities. A series of correction factors, including tilt, orientation or roof profiles were applied to attain an accurate value of usable area. Finally, Life Cycle Assessment was the methodology chosen to calculate the reduction of environmental impacts as compared to the current context of using electricity from the regional grids. Results showed that the cities assessed have the potential to obtain their entire current electricity demand for residential, commercial and public lighting purposes, augmenting energy security and resilience to intermittent natural disasters, with the support of decentralized storage systems. This approach would also translate into substantial reductions in terms of GHG emissions. Annual reductions in GHG emissions ranged from 112ton CO 2 eq in the city of Ayacucho to over 523kton CO 2 eq in Pucallpa, showing that cities in the Amazon basin would be the ones that benefit the most in terms of climate change mitigation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. Phenotypic differentiation of species from Aspergillus section Flavi on neutral red desiccated coconut agar

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Atanda, O. O.; Adetunji, M. C.; Ezekiel, C. N.

    2014-01-01

    In order to facilitate easy and rapid identification of aflatoxin-producing Aspergillus species, the phenotypic traits of Aspergillus section Flavi isolates were examined on neutral red desiccated coconut agar (NRDCA). Phenotype variations in colony morphology and the relationship between colour...

  13. Effect of UV-B Radiation and Desiccation Stress on Photoprotective Compounds Accumulation in Marine Leptolyngbya sp.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Joshi, Devika; Mohandass, C; Dhale, Mohan

    2018-01-01

    Increased awareness regarding the harmful effects of ultraviolet (UV)-B radiation has led to the search for new sources of natural UV-B protecting compounds. Mycosporine-like amino acids are one of such promising compounds found in several organisms. Cyanobacteria are ideal organisms for isolation of these compounds due to their compatibility and adaptability to thrive under harsh environmental conditions. In the following investigation, we report the production of shinorine in Leptolyngbya sp. isolated from the intertidal region. Based on the spectral characteristics and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis, the UV-absorbing compound was identified as shinorine. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the occurrence of shinorine in Leptolyngbya sp. We also investigated the effect of artificial UV-B radiation and periodic desiccation on chlorophyll-a, total carotenoids, and mycosporine-like amino acids (MAAs) production. The UV-B radiation had a negative effect on growth and chlorophyll concentration, whereas it showed an inductive effect on the production of total carotenoids and MAAs. Desiccation along with UV-B radiation led to an increase in the concentration of photoprotective compounds. These results indicate that carotenoids and MAAs thus facilitate cyanobacteria to avoid and protect themselves from the deleterious effects of UV-B and desiccation.

  14. Deep Vadose Zone Treatability Test of Soil Desiccation for the Hanford Central Plateau: Final Report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Truex, Michael J. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Chronister, Glen B. [CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation Co., Richland, WA (United States); Strickland, Christopher E. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Johnson, Christian D. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Tartakovsky, Guzel D. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Oostrom, Martinus [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Clayton, Ray E. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Johnson, Timothy C. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Freedman, Vicky L. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Rockhold, Mark L. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Greenwood, William J. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Peterson, John E. [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Hubbard, Susan S. [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Ward, Anderson L. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2018-02-20

    Some of the inorganic and radionuclide contaminants in the deep vadose zone at the Hanford Site are at depths where direct exposure pathways are not of concern, but may need to be remediated to protect groundwater. The Department of Energy developed a treatability test program for technologies to address Tc-99 and uranium in the deep vadose zone. These contaminants are mobile in the subsurface environment, have been detected at high concentrations deep in the vadose zone, and at some locations have reached groundwater. The treatability test of desiccation described herein was conducted as an element of the deep vadose zone treatability test program. Desiccation was shown to be a potentially effective vadose zone remediation technology to protect groundwater when used in conjunction with a surface infiltration barrier.

  15. Man-portable personal cooling garment based on vacuum desiccant cooling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yang Yifan; Stapleton, Jill; Diagne, Barbara Thiané; Kenny, Glen P.; Lan, Christopher Q.

    2012-01-01

    A man-portable personal cooling garment based on the concept of vacuum desiccant cooling (VDC) was developed. It was demonstrated with cooling pads that a cooling capacity of 373.1 W/m 2 could be achieved in an ambient environment of 37 °C. Tests with human subjects wearing prototype cooling garments consisting of 12 VDC pads with an overall weight of 3.4 kg covering 0.4 m 2 body surface indicate that the garment could maintain a core temperature substantially lower than the control when the workload was walking on a treadmill of 2% inclination at 3 mph. The exercise was carried out in an environment of 40 °C and 50% relative humidity (RH) for 60 min. Tests also showed that the VDC garment could effectively reduce the metabolic heat accumulation in body with subject wearing heavily insulated nuclear, biological and chemical (NBC) suit working in the heat and allow the participant to work safely for 60 min, almost doubling the safe working time of the same participant when he wore NBC suit only. - Highlights: ► Heat stress mitigation is important for workers health, safety, and performance. ► Vacuum desiccant cooling (VDC) a novel concept for personal cooling. ► VDC garment man-portable and more efficient than commercial ice/pad vest. ► VDC garment suitable for personal cooling with NBC suit.

  16. The competence to acquire cellular desiccation tolerance is not dependent on seed morphological development

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Golovina, E.A.; Hoekstra, F.A.; Aelst, van A.C.

    2001-01-01

    Acquisition of desiccation tolerance and the related changes at the cellular level in wheat (Triticum aestivum cv. Priokskaya) kernels during normal development and premature drying on the ear were studied using a spin probe technique and low temperature scanning electron microscopy. During normal

  17. Energetic efficiency of the use of desiccant in sugarcane; Eficiencia energetica do uso de dessecante em cana-de-acucar

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cardoso, Gilda B.C.; Ripoli, Tomaz Caetano C.; Romanelli, Thiago L. [Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz(ESALQ/USP), Piracicaba, SP (Brazil)], E-mail: gildacardoso@usp.br

    2010-07-01

    Economically, sugarcane is one of the most important crop in Brazil, showing a great perspective of expansion in the cultivated area. In the last few years the sugarcane mechanical harvested area has increased, causing a series of inconveniences for the system of harvest of the sugarcane, such as: the increase in the percentage of extraneous matter and losses of sugarcane and/or fractions in the field. Due the high value invested in the system of harvest of the sugarcane, the desiccant is one of the alternatives used to minimize such inconveniences in the pre harvest. In order to quantify the demand of energy of the system, the present work used a base of energy pointers as tool for the planning process and production of sugarcane in two systems, one with application of desiccant (T1) and the other without (T2). The energy flows of entrance (EE) and exit had been established, allowing the identification of the energy rocking (BE), that quantifies the liquid profit of energy for area. The results had shown that the application of the desiccant resulted in a bigger EE in system T1 (86601.44 MJ ha{sup -1} versus 83345.45 MJ ha{sup -1}). The BE of T2 presented superior in 0.14% in relation the T1 (2241318.57 MJ ha{sup -1} against 2238062.57 MJ ha{sup -1}), indicating that the desiccant presents greater energy consumption. (author)

  18. The biggest rooftop PV plant in Latin America. An example of a pioneering project for the whole region

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2016-01-01

    About a year ago, the largest rooftop PV installation in Latin America came online in Honduras. Inaugurated by the country’s president, Juan Orlando Hernández, in March 2015, the plant is situated on the roof of the region’s PepsiCo bottling plant, EMSULA (Embotelladora de Sula S.A.) in the town of San Pedro Sula. The project, which has become a reference in the region, has been developed over two phases, the first of which corresponds to a 259 kWp pilot project, commissioned in November 2013, to which the second phase was added last year. (Author)

  19. One-Year Monitoring PV Power Plant Installed on Rooftop of Mineirão Fifa World Cup/Olympics Football Stadium

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luís G. Monteiro

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents results of one-year monitoring of AC side electrical parameters and the characterization of local solar radiation at the biggest rooftop PV Power Plant, with an installed capacity of 1.42 MWp, mounted at Mineirão Football Stadium in Brazil. This stadium is one of the sport facilities that hosted 2014 FIFA World Cup and Rio 2016 Summer Olympics Games in the country. Results showed how it is important to study and characterize the solar resource in the region of interest, based on historic data, to provide the understanding of solar radiation and thus project PV power plants with better performance. Furthermore, AC electrical data show the behavior of active, reactive and apparent powers and the influence of the PV system on the power factor at the local grid utility connection point. Finally, PV power plant performance data (as annual final yield, performance ratio and capacity factor are also presented and compared with data from PVsyst software simulations. The results over the monitoring period were good considering the specificities of the stadium

  20. The response of Asterochloris erici (Ahmadjian) Skaloud et Peksa to desiccation: a proteomic approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    The study of desiccation tolerance of lichens, and of their photobionts in particular, has frequently focused on the antioxidant system that protects the cell against photo-oxidative stress during dehydration/rehydration cycles. Thus, in this work we carried out proteomic and transcript analyses of ...

  1. Crassulacean acid metabolism, CO2-recycling, and tissue desiccation in the Mexican epiphyte Tillandsia schiedeana Steud (Bromeliaceae).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martin, C E; Adams, W W

    1987-01-01

    After 23 days without water in a greenhouse, rates of nocturnal CO2 uptake in Tillandsia schiedeana decreased substantially and maximum rates occurred later in the dark period eventually coinciding with the onset of illumination. Nocturnal CO2 uptake accounted for less than half the total nighttime increase in acidity measured in well-watered plants. With increased tissue desiccation, only 11-12% of measured acid accumulation was attributable to atmospheric CO2 uptake. Plants desiccated for 30 days regained initial levels of nocturnal acid accumulation and CO2 uptake after rehydration for 10h. These results stress the importance of CO2 recycling via CAM in this epiphytic bromeliad, especially during droughts.

  2. Performance analysis of ventilation systems with desiccant wheel cooling based on exergy destruction

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tu, Rang; Liu, Xiao-Hua; Hwang, Yunho; Ma, Fei

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • Ventilation systems with desiccant wheel were analyzed from exergy destruction. • Main performances influencing factors for ventilation systems are put forward. • Improved ventilation systems with lower exergy destruction are suggested. • Performances of heat pumps driven ventilation systems are greatly increased. - Abstract: This paper investigates the performances of ventilation systems with desiccant wheel cooling from the perspective of exergy destructions. Based on the inherent influencing factors for exergy destructions of heat and mass transfer and heat sources, provide guidelines for efficient system design. First, performances of a basic ventilation system are simulated, which is operated at high regeneration temperature and low coefficient of performance (COP). Then, exergy analysis of the basic ventilation system shows that exergy destructions mainly exist in the heat and mass transfer components and the heat source. The inherent influencing factors for the heat and mass transfer exergy destruction are heat and mass transfer capacities, which are related to over dehumidification of the desiccant wheel, and unmatched coefficients, which represent the uniformity of the temperature or humidity ratio differences fields for heat and mass transfer components. Based on these findings, two improved ventilation systems are suggested. For the first system, over dehumidification is avoided and unmatched coefficients for each component are reduced. With lower heat and mass transfer exergy destructions and lower regeneration temperature, COP and exergy efficiency of the first system are increased compared with the basic ventilation system. For the second system, a heat pump, which recovers heat from the process air to heat the regeneration air, is adopted to replace the electrical heater and cooling devices. The exergy destruction of the heat pump is considerably reduced as compared with heat source exergy destruction of the basic ventilation

  3. Transcriptome-Based Identification of the Desiccation Response Genes in Marine Red Algae Pyropia tenera (Rhodophyta) and Enhancement of Abiotic Stress Tolerance by PtDRG2 in Chlamydomonas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Im, Sungoh; Lee, Ha-Nul; Jung, Hyun Shin; Yang, Sunghwan; Park, Eun-Jeong; Hwang, Mi Sook; Jeong, Won-Joong; Choi, Dong-Woog

    2017-06-01

    Pyropia tenera (Kjellman) are marine red algae that grow in the intertidal zone and lose more than 90% of water during hibernal low tides every day. In order to identify the desiccation response gene (DRG) in P. tenera, we generated 1,444,210 transcriptome sequences using the 454-FLX platform from the gametophyte under control and desiccation conditions. De novo assembly of the transcriptome reads generated 13,170 contigs, covering about 12 Mbp. We selected 1160 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in response to desiccation stress based on reads per kilobase per million reads (RPKM) expression values. As shown in green higher plants, DEGs under desiccation are composed of two groups of genes for gene regulation networks and functional proteins for carbohydrate metabolism, membrane perturbation, compatible solutes, and specific proteins similar to higher plants. DEGs that show no significant homology with known sequences in public databases were selected as DRGs in P. tenera. PtDRG2 encodes a novel polypeptide of 159 amino acid residues locating chloroplast. When PtDRG2 was overexpressed in Chlamydomonas, the PtDRG2 confer mannitol and salt tolerance in transgenic cells. These results suggest that Pyropia may possess novel genes that differ from green plants, although the desiccation tolerance mechanism in red algae is similar to those of higher green plants. These transcriptome sequences will facilitate future studies to understand the common processes and novel mechanisms involved in desiccation stress tolerance in red algae.

  4. Desiccator Volume: A Vital Yet Ignored Parameter in CaCO3 Crystallization by the Ammonium Carbonate Diffusion Method

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joe Harris

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Employing the widely used ammonium carbonate diffusion method, we demonstrate that altering an extrinsic parameter—desiccator size—which is rarely detailed in publications, can alter the route of crystallization. Hexagonally packed assemblies of spherical magnesium-calcium carbonate particles or spherulitic aragonitic particles can be selectively prepared from the same initial reaction solution by simply changing the internal volume of the desiccator, thereby changing the rate of carbonate addition and consequently precursor formation. This demonstrates that it is not merely the quantity of an additive which can control particle morphogenesis and phase selectivity, but control of other often ignored parameters are vital to ensure adequate reproducibility.

  5. Performance study of a heat pump driven and hollow fiber membrane-based two-stage liquid desiccant air dehumidification system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang, Ning; Yin, Shao-You; Zhang, Li-Zhi

    2016-01-01

    Graphical abstract: A heat pump driven, hollow fiber membrane-based two-stage liquid desiccant air dehumidification system. - Highlights: • A two-stage hollow fiber membrane based air dehumidification is proposed. • It is heat pump driven liquid desiccant system. • Performance is improved 20% upon single stage system. • The optimal first to second stage dehumidification area ratio is 1.4. - Abstract: A novel compression heat pump driven and hollow fiber membrane-based two-stage liquid desiccant air dehumidification system is presented. The liquid desiccant droplets are prevented from crossing over into the process air by the semi-permeable membranes. The isoenthalpic processes are changed to quasi-isothermal processes by the two-stage dehumidification processes. The system is set up and a model is proposed for simulation. Heat and mass capacities in the system, including the membrane modules, the condenser, the evaporator and the heat exchangers are modeled in detail. The model is also validated experimentally. Compared with a single-stage dehumidification system, the two-stage system has a lower solution concentration exiting from the dehumidifier and a lower condensing temperature. Thus, a better thermodynamic system performance is realized and the COP can be increased by about 20% under the typical hot and humid conditions in Southern China. The allocations of heat and mass transfer areas in the system are also investigated. It is found that the optimal regeneration to dehumidification area ratio is 1.33. The optimal first to second stage dehumidification area ratio is 1.4; and the optimal first to second stage regeneration area ratio is 1.286.

  6. Urban planning and agriculture. Methodology for assessing rooftop greenhouse potential of non-residential areas using airborne sensors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nadal, Ana; Alamús, Ramón; Pipia, Luca; Ruiz, Antonio; Corbera, Jordi; Cuerva, Eva; Rieradevall, Joan; Josa, Alejandro

    2017-12-01

    The integration of rooftop greenhouses (RTGs) in urban buildings is a practice that is becoming increasingly important in the world for their contribution to food security and sustainable development. However, the supply of tools and procedures to facilitate their implementation at the city scale is limited and laborious. This work aims to develop a specific and automated methodology for identifying the feasibility of implementation of rooftop greenhouses in non-residential urban areas, using airborne sensors. The use of Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) and Long Wave Infrared (LWIR) data and the Leica ALS50-II and TASI-600 sensors allow for the identification of some building roof parameters (area, slope, materials, and solar radiation) to determine the potential for constructing a RTG. This development represents an improvement in time and accuracy with respect to previous methodology, where all the relevant information must be acquired manually. The methodology has been applied and validated in a case study corresponding to a non-residential urban area in the industrial municipality of Rubí, Barcelona (Spain). Based on this practical application, an area of 36,312m 2 out of a total area of 1,243,540m 2 of roofs with ideal characteristics for the construction of RTGs was identified. This area can produce approximately 600tons of tomatoes per year, which represents the average yearly consumption for about 50% of Rubí total population. The use of this methodology also facilitates the decision making process in urban agriculture, allowing a quick identification of optimal surfaces for the future implementation of urban agriculture in housing. It also opens new avenues for the use of airborne technology in environmental topics in cities. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  7. The relevance of rooftops: Analyzing the microscale surface energy balance in the Chicago region

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khosla, Radhika

    Spatial structure in climate variables often exist over very short length scales within an urban area, and this structure is a result of various site-specific features. In order to analyze the seasonal and diurnal energy flows that take place at a microclimatic surface, this work develops a semi-empirical energy balance model. For this, radiation fluxes and meteorological measurements are determined by direct observation; sensible heat and latent heat fluxes by parameterizations; and the heat storage flux by a 1-D mechanistic model that allows analysis of the temperature profile and heat storage within an underlying slab. Two sites receive detailed study: an anthropogenic site, being a University of Chicago building rooftop, and a natural site, outside Chicago in the open country. Two identical sets of instruments record measurements contemporaneously from these locations during June-November 2007, the entire period for which analyses are carried out. The study yields seasonal trends in surface temperature, surface-to-air temperature contrast and net radiation. At both sites, a temporal hysteresis between net radiation and heat storage flux indicates that surplus energy absorbed during daylight is released to the atmosphere later in the evening. The surface energy balance model responds well to site specific features for both locations. An analysis of the surface energy balance shows that the flux of sensible heat is the largest non-radiative contributor to the roof's surface cooling, while the flux of latent heat (also referred to as evaporative cooling) is the largest heat sink for the soil layer. In the latter part of the study, the surface energy balance model is upgraded by adding the capability to compute changes in surface temperature and non-radiative fluxes for any specified set of thermal and reflective roof properties. The results of this analysis allow an examination of the relationship between the roof temperature, the heat flux entering the building

  8. Role of initial contamination levels, biofilm maturity and presence of salt and fat on desiccation survival of Listeria monocytogenes on stainless steel surfaces.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hingston, Patricia A; Stea, Emma C; Knøchel, Susanne; Hansen, Truelstrup

    2013-10-01

    This study investigated the effect of initial contamination levels, biofilm maturity and presence of salt and fatty food soils on desiccation survival of Listeria monocytogenes on stainless steel (SS) coupons. L. monocytogenes cultures grown (at 15 °C for 48 h) in Tryptic Soy Broth with 1% glucose (TSB-glu) containing either 0.5 or 5% (w/v) NaCl were re-suspended in TSB-glu containing either 0.5 or 5% NaCl and used to contaminate SS coupons at levels of 3.5, 5.5, and 7.5 log CFU/cm². Desiccation (at 15 °C for 20 days, 43% RH) commenced immediately (non-biofilm) or following biofilm formation (at 15 °C for 48 h, 100% RH). To study the impact of food lipids, non-biofilm L. monocytogenes cells were suspended in TSB-glu containing either canola oil (5-10%) or lard (20-60%) and desiccated as above on SS coupons. Following desiccation for 20 days, survivors decreased by 1.4-3.7 log CFU/cm² for non-biofilm L. monocytogenes cells. The contamination level had no significant (p > 0.05) effect on survival kinetics. SEM micrographs showed mature biofilms on coupons initially contaminated with 5.5 and 7.5 log CFU/cm². Mature biofilm cells were significantly (p biofilms formed by the lowest contamination level. Besides biofilm maturity/formation, previous osmoadaptation, exposure to lard (20-60%) or salt (5%) during desiccation significantly (p biofilms and salty or fatty soils on food contact surfaces. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Combination of air-source heat pumps with liquid desiccant dehumidification of air

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang Li; Hihara, Eiji; Saikawa, Michiyuki

    2012-01-01

    Highlights: ► We propose a frost-free air-source heat pump system with integrated desiccant. ► The system can provide heating load continuously and humidify room. ► The coefficient of performance of the system is 2.6 at T a = −7 °C and RH = 80%. ► The heating load of solution is 3–4 times larger than cooling load of solution. - Abstract: This paper proposes a frost-free air source heat pump system with integrated liquid desiccant dehumidification, in which frosting can be retarded by dehumidifying air before entering an outdoor heat exchanger. And the water removed from the air is used to humidify a room. Simulation is carried out at a dry-bulb temperature of −7 to 5.5 °C and a relative humidity of 80% depending on the frosting conditions. The results show that the coefficient of performance (COP) is in the range of 2.6–2.9, which is 30–40% higher than that of heat pump heating integrated with an electric heater humidifying system. And it is found that the optimum value of the concentration of lithium chloride aqueous solution is 37% for the frost-free operation mode. Experiments are conducted for liquid desiccant system under low air temperature and high relative humidity conditions. Experimental results show that the dew point of the dehumidified air is decreased by 8 °C and the humidity ratio of the humidified air is kept at 8.1 g kg −1 , which ensures the frost-free operation of the heat pump evaporator and the comfortable level of room humidity simultaneously. The heating load of solution is 3–4.5 times larger than cooling load of solution, which agrees with the assumption given at the part of the simulation. Furthermore, the deviations between the calculated COP LHRU and the experimental results are within 33%.

  10. Theoretical study on volatile organic compound removal and energy performance of a novel heat pump assisted solid desiccant cooling system

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nie, Jinzhe; Fang, Lei; Zhang, Ge

    2015-01-01

    for cooling, dehumidification and indoor air cleaning in normal office, commercial or residential buildings. The desiccant rotor was used for dehumidification and indoor air cleaning; the heat pump provided sensible cooling and regeneration heat for the desiccant rotor. The theoretical model consisted of two...... and predicted. The theoretical model was validated by experimental data. Validating results showed that the model could be used to predict the performance of HP-SDC. The results also showed that the HP-SDC could clean air borne contaminants effectively and could provide an energy efficient choice...

  11. Time-series of the re-establishment of desiccation tolerance by ABA in germinated Arabidopsis thaliana seeds

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dias Costa, Maria; Righetti, K.; Ligterink, Wilco; Buitink, J.; Hilhorst, Henk

    2015-01-01

    Mature seeds of Arabidopsis thaliana are desiccation tolerant, but they lose DT while progressing to germination. Yet, there is a small developmental window during which DT can be rescued by treatment with abscisic acid (ABA).

  12. Effects of storage temperature on the physiological characteristics and vegetative propagation of desiccation-tolerant mosses

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guo, Yuewei; Zhao, Yunge

    2018-02-01

    Mosses, as major components of later successional biological soil crusts (biocrusts), play many critical roles in arid and semiarid ecosystems. Recently, some species of desiccation-tolerant mosses have been artificially cultured with the aim of accelerating the recovery of biocrusts. Revealing the factors that influence the vegetative propagation of mosses, which is an important reproductive mode of mosses in dry habitats, will benefit the restoration of moss crusts. In this study, three air-dried desiccation-tolerant mosses (Barbula unguiculata, Didymodon vinealis, and Didymodon tectorum) were hermetically sealed and stored at five temperature levels (0, 4, 17, 25, and 30 °C) for 40 days. Then, the vegetative propagation and physiological characteristics of the three mosses were investigated to determine the influence of storage temperature on the vegetative propagation of desiccation-tolerant mosses and the mechanism. The results showed that the vegetative propagation of the three mosses varied with temperature. The most variation in vegetative propagation among storage temperatures was observed in D. tectorum, followed by the variation observed in B. unguiculata. In contrast, no significant difference in propagation among temperatures was found in D. vinealis. The regenerative capacity of the three mosses increased with increasing temperature from 0 to 17 °C, accompanied by a decrease in malondialdehyde (MDA) content, and decreased thereafter. As the temperature increased, the chlorophyll and soluble protein contents increased in B. unguiculata but decreased in D. vinealis and D. tectorum. As to storage, the MDA and soluble sugar contents increased after storage. The MDA content of the three mosses increased at each of the investigated temperatures by more than 50 % from the initial values, and the soluble sugar content became higher than before in the three mosses. The integrity of cells and cell membranes is likely the most important factor influencing the

  13. Impact of PID on industrial rooftop PV-installations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buerhop, Claudia; Fecher, Frank W.; Pickel, Tobias; Patel, Tirth; Zetzmann, Cornelia; Camus, Christian; Hauch, Jens; Brabec, Christoph J.

    2017-08-01

    Potential induced degradation (PID) causes severe damage and financial losses even in modern PV-installations. In Germany, approximately 19% of PV-installations suffer from PID and resulting power loss. This paper focuses on the impact of PID in real installations and how different evaluated time intervals influence the performance ratio (PR) and the determined degradation rate. The analysis focuses exemplarily on a 314 kWp PV-system in the Atlantic coastal climate. IR-imaging is used for identifying PID without operation interruption. Historic electric performance data are available from a monitoring system for several years on system level, string level as well as punctually measured module string IV- curves. The data sets are combined for understanding the PID behavior of this PV plant. The number of PID affected cells within a string varies strongly between 1 to 22% with the string position on the building complex. With increasing number of PID-affected cells the performance ratio decreases down to 60% for daily and monthly periods. Local differences in PID evolution rates are identified. An average PR-reduction of -3.65% per year is found for the PV-plant. On the string level the degradation rate varied up to 8.8% per year depending on the string position and the time period. The analysis reveals that PID generation and evolution in roof-top installations on industrial buildings with locally varying operation conditions can be fairly complex. The results yield that local operating conditions, e.g. ambient weather conditions as well as surrounding conditions on an industrial building, seem to have a dominating impact on the PID evolution rate.

  14. Early-age acoustic emission measurements in hydrating cement paste: Evidence for cavitation during solidification due to self-desiccation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lura, Pietro; Couch, J.; Jensen, Ole Mejlhede

    2009-01-01

    . According to these experimental results, the acoustic emission measured around setting time was attributed to cavitation events occurring in the pores of the cement paste due to self-desiccation. This paper shows how acoustic emission might be used to indicate the time when the fluid–solid transition occurs......In this study, the acoustic emission activity of cement pastes was investigated during the first day of hydration. Deaired, fresh cement pastes were cast in sealed sample holders designed to minimize friction and restraint. The majority of acoustic emission events occurred in lower water to cement...... ratio pastes, while cement pastes with higher water to cement ratios showed significantly less acoustic activity. These acoustic events occurred around the time of setting. A layer of water on the surface of the cement pastes substantially reduced acoustic emission activity at the time of setting...

  15. Flexibility-Rigidity Coordination of the Dense Exopolysaccharide Matrix in Terrestrial Cyanobacteria Acclimated to Periodic Desiccation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Wen; Cui, Lijuan; Xu, Haiyan; Zhu, Zhaoxia; Gao, Xiang

    2017-11-15

    A dense exopolysaccharide (EPS) matrix is crucial for cyanobacterial survival in terrestrial xeric environments, in which cyanobacteria undergo frequent expansion and shrinkage processes during environmental desiccation-rehydration cycles. However, it is unclear how terrestrial cyanobacteria coordinate the structural dynamics of the EPS matrix upon expansion and shrinkage to avoid potential mechanical stress while benefiting from the matrix. In the present study, we sought to answer this question by investigating the gene expression, protein dynamics, enzymatic characteristics, and biological roles of WspA, an abundantly secreted protein, in the representative terrestrial cyanobacterium Nostoc flagelliforme The results demonstrated that WspA is a novel β-galactosidase that facilitates softening of the EPS matrix by breaking the polysaccharide backbone under substantial moisture or facilitates the thickening and relinkage of the broken matrix during the drying process, and thus these regulations are well correlated with moisture availability or desiccation-rehydration cycles. This coordination of flexibility and rigidity of the cyanobacterial extracellular matrix may contribute to a favorable balance of cell growth and stress resistance in xeric environments. IMPORTANCE How the exopolysaccharide matrix is dynamically coordinated by exoproteins to cope with frequent expansion and shrinkage processes in terrestrial colonial cyanobacteria remains unclear. Here we elucidated the biochemical identity and biological roles of a dominant exoprotein in these regulation processes. Our study thus gained insight into this regulative mechanism in cyanobacteria to combat periodic desiccation. In addition, the filamentous drought-adapted cyanobacterium Nostoc flagelliforme serves as an ideal model for us to explore this issue in this study. Copyright © 2017 American Society for Microbiology.

  16. ProP Is Required for the Survival of Desiccated Salmonella enterica Serovar Typhimurium Cells on a Stainless Steel Surface

    Science.gov (United States)

    Finn, Sarah; Händler, Kristian; Condell, Orla; Colgan, Aoife; Cooney, Shane; McClure, Peter; Amézquita, Aléjandro; Hinton, Jay C. D.

    2013-01-01

    Consumers trust commercial food production to be safe, and it is important to strive to improve food safety at every level. Several outbreaks of food-borne disease have been caused by Salmonella strains associated with dried food. Currently we do not know the mechanisms used by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium to survive in desiccated environments. The aim of this study was to discover the responses of S. Typhimurium ST4/74 at the transcriptional level to desiccation on a stainless steel surface and to subsequent rehydration. Bacterial cells were dried onto the same steel surfaces used during the production of dry foods, and RNA was recovered for transcriptomic analysis. Subsequently, dried cells were rehydrated and were again used for transcriptomic analysis. A total of 266 genes were differentially expressed under desiccation stress compared with a static broth culture. The osmoprotectant transporters proP, proU, and osmU (STM1491 to STM1494) were highly upregulated by drying. Deletion of any one of these transport systems resulted in a reduction in the long-term viability of S. Typhimurium on a stainless steel food contact surface. The proP gene was critical for survival; proP deletion mutants could not survive desiccation for long periods and were undetectable after 4 weeks. Following rehydration, 138 genes were differentially expressed, with upregulation observed for genes such as proP, proU, and the phosphate transport genes (pstACS). In time, this knowledge should prove valuable for understanding the underlying mechanisms involved in pathogen survival and should lead to improved methods for control to ensure the safety of intermediate- and low-moisture foods. PMID:23666329

  17. Numerical modelling of desiccation cracking of clayey soil

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vo Thi Dong

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The formation and propagation of desiccation cracks in soil is an extremely complex phenomenon because of the coupling between hydraulic and mechanical behaviour of soil, which are constituted here by the presence of capillary forces and discontinuities. The formation of a cracks network strongly influences the mechanical and hydraulic properties of soil. The main objective of this research is to study the evolution of suction and strain fields, the initiation and propagation of cracks under the effect of drying, using the finite element method. A simulation of a soil sample with four cohesive joints shows the results similar to experimental data. In addition, a simulation of multijoints shows that cracks does not open in all potentials positions and it gives similar spacing.

  18. Primary energy savings in desiccant and evaporative cooling-assisted 100% outdoor air system combined with a fuel cell

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Min-Hwi; Dong, Hae-Won; Park, Joon-Young; Jeong, Jae-Weon

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • A LD-IDECOAS integrated with a PEMFC was proposed. • A pilot system was installed and tested during cooling operation. • The proposed system powered by the PEMFC saved 21% of the primary energy consumption during cooling. - Abstract: The main purpose of this study involved investigating the primary energy saving potential of a liquid desiccant and evaporative cooling-assisted 100% outdoor air system (LD-IDECOAS) integrated with a proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). During the cooling season, the heat produced by the PEMFC was used to regenerate a weak desiccant solution, and the electricity generated was used to operate the LD-IDECOAS. A pilot LD-IDECOAS powered by a PEMFC was installed and operated in an office space to experimentally verify the annual operating energy savings of the proposed system. The findings indicated that the heat reclaimed from the PEMFC saved 42% of the desiccant solution regenerating energy when compared to that in the case of a conventional gas-fired water heater. The results also suggested that the LD-IDECOAS combined with a PEMFC consumed 21% less primary energy when compared with that of a system powered by grid electricity and a conventional gas-fired water heater.

  19. Simulation and energy efficiency analysis of desiccant wheel systems for drying processes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    De Antonellis, Stefano; Joppolo, Cesare Maria; Molinaroli, Luca; Pasini, Alberto

    2012-01-01

    In drying processes it is necessary to appropriately control air humidity and temperature in order to enhance water evaporation from product surface. The aim of this work is to investigate several HVAC configurations for product drying based on desiccant wheels, in order to find systems which reach high primary energy savings through the appropriate integration of refrigerating machines, adsorption wheels and cogenerative engines. Simulations are carried out for different values of sensible to latent ambient load ratio and the effect of ambient and outside air conditions is evaluated for each configuration. It is shown that primary energy savings can reach 70–80% compared to the reference technology based on a cooling coil. With respect to works available in literature, the results of this study keep a general approach and they can be used as a simple tool for preliminary assessment in a wide range of applications. -- Highlights: ► Several HVAC systems for product drying based on desiccant wheels are investigated. ► The sensible to latent ambient load ratio influences the choice of the best system. ► Energy savings can reach 80% compared to the technology based on a cooling coil. ► Simulation results can be used for preliminary assessment in many applications.

  20. Radiographic image analysis of Anacardium othonianum Rizz (anacardiaceae achenes subjected to desiccation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lílian Abadia da Silva

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Studies evaluating the internal morphology and seed quality of native species are essential for successful conservation programs. Our aim was to verify the efficiency of X-ray imagery in evaluating cashew-tree-of-the-cerrado (Anacardium othonianum Rizz. achene viability after desiccation. The achenes were collected at 12% water content (w.b. and dried in silica gel until they reached 10, 8, 6, and 4% (w.b.. The fruit morphology and the quality of the seeds were evaluated by X-ray test together with vigor, electrical conductivity and emergence tests. Achenes with different water contents were exposed to an X-ray machine at 18 kV for 11 s and were thereafter submitted to emergence tests. The images were analyzed, and the achenes were classified based on internal morphology as completely full, malformed, or empty. These results were compared to those from the emergence tests. The statistical design was a complete randomized factorial (5 x 3. Desiccation to 4% (w.b. did not damage or modify the internal structures. X-ray was efficient in evaluating the internal morphology and detecting achene quality, making it possible to remove empty and abnormal fruit and form vigorous seed lots, reducing the cost of storage and bedding plant production for this native species.

  1. Clinical and Molecular Inflammatory Response in Sjögren Syndrome-Associated Dry Eye Patients Under Desiccating Stress.

    Science.gov (United States)

    López-Miguel, Alberto; Tesón, Marisa; Martín-Montañez, Vicente; Enríquez-de-Salamanca, Amalia; Stern, Michael E; González-García, María J; Calonge, Margarita

    2016-01-01

    To evaluate the response of the lacrimal function unit in Sjögren syndrome (SS)-associated dry eye patients exposed to 2 simulated daily life environmental conditions. Prospective crossover pilot study. Fourteen female SS dry eye patients were exposed for 2 hours to a controlled normal condition (23 C, 45% relative humidity, and air flow 0.10 m/s) and a controlled adverse condition that simulates desiccating stress (23 C, 5% relative humidity, and air flow 0.10 m/s). The following dry eye tests were performed before and after the exposure: tear osmolarity, phenol red thread test, conjunctival hyperemia, fluorescein tear break-up time, corneal fluorescein staining, conjunctival lissamine green staining, and Schirmer test. Levels of 16 molecules were analyzed in tears by multiplex immunobead analysis. Clinical evaluation showed lacrimal functional unit impairment after the desiccating stress: significantly increased tear osmolarity (315.7 ± 3.0 vs 327.7 ± 5.1 mOsm/L, P = .03), conjunctival hyperemia (1.3 ± 0.1 vs 1.6 ± 0.1, P = .05), and corneal staining in temporal (3.5 ± 0.5 vs 4.7 ± 0.4, P = .01) and nasal (3.6 ± 0.5 vs 4.5 ± 0.5, P = .04) areas. Tear concentrations increased for interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (16 557.1 ± 4047.8 vs 31 895.3 ± 5916.5 pg/mL, P = .01), interleukin-6 (63.8 ± 20.2 vs 111.5 ± 29.6 pg/mL, P = .02), interleukin-8 (2196.1 ± 737.9 vs 3753.2 ± 1106.0 pg/mL, P = .03), and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (101 515.6 ± 37 088.4 vs 145 867.1 ± 41 651.5 pg/mL, P = .03). After the simulated normal condition, only a significant increase in nasal corneal staining (2.9 ± 0.5 vs 3.6 ± 0.5, P = .03) was observed. Even a short exposure to a desiccating environment can produce a significant deterioration of the lacrimal function unit in female SS dry eye patients. The often unnoticed exposure to these conditions during daily life may increase inflammatory activity rapidly, triggering an ocular surface deterioration. Copyright © 2016

  2. The Re-Establishment of Desiccation Tolerance in Germinated Arabidopsis thaliana Seeds and Its Associated Transcriptome

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Maia de Oliveira, J.; Dekkers, S.J.W.; Provart, N.J.; Ligterink, W.; Hilhorst, H.W.M.

    2011-01-01

    The combination of robust physiological models with “omics” studies holds promise for the discovery of genes and pathways linked to how organisms deal with drying. Here we used a transcriptomics approach in combination with an in vivo physiological model of re-establishment of desiccation tolerance

  3. Model-based optimization strategy of chiller driven liquid desiccant dehumidifier with genetic algorithm

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, Xinli; Cai, Wenjian; Lu, Jiangang; Sun, Youxian; Zhao, Lei

    2015-01-01

    This study presents a model-based optimization strategy for an actual chiller driven dehumidifier of liquid desiccant dehumidification system operating with lithium chloride solution. By analyzing the characteristics of the components, energy predictive models for the components in the dehumidifier are developed. To minimize the energy usage while maintaining the outlet air conditions at the pre-specified set-points, an optimization problem is formulated with an objective function, the constraints of mechanical limitations and components interactions. Model-based optimization strategy using genetic algorithm is proposed to obtain the optimal set-points for desiccant solution temperature and flow rate, to minimize the energy usage in the dehumidifier. Experimental studies on an actual system are carried out to compare energy consumption between the proposed optimization and the conventional strategies. The results demonstrate that energy consumption using the proposed optimization strategy can be reduced by 12.2% in the dehumidifier operation. - Highlights: • Present a model-based optimization strategy for energy saving in LDDS. • Energy predictive models for components in dehumidifier are developed. • The Optimization strategy are applied and tested in an actual LDDS. • Optimization strategy can achieve energy savings by 12% during operation

  4. Physiological Response of Wheat to Chemical Desiccants Used to Simulate Post-Anthesis Drought Stress

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nasrein Mohamed Kamal

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Post-anthesis drought stress is one of the main constraints on the production of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.. Because field screening for post-anthesis drought tolerance is difficult, effective and validated methods to simulate drought in order to identify sources of tolerance can facilitate screening of breeding materials. Chemical desiccants are widely used to simulate post-anthesis drought stress. We aimed to identify physiological traits that respond to desiccants as they do to drought. We examined the responses of ‘Norin 61’ to six treatments in a greenhouse: irrigated control, drought after anthesis, and 2% or 4% potassium chlorate (KClO3 at anthesis (A or grain filling (GF. We measured δ13C in leaves, aboveground fresh biomass, stomatal conductance, chlorophyll content, harvest index, and grain yield. Both 2% and 4% KClO3 at both A and GF simulated the effect of drought stress. Selection of drought-tolerant genotypes can be aided by chlorophyll content and δ13C measurement of leaves when 2% or 4% KClO3 is used to simulate drought.

  5. Techno-economic analysis of a 2.1 kW rooftop photovoltaic-grid-tied system based on actual performance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Adaramola, Muyiwa S.

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • The economic analysis of rooftop PV grid-tied installation is examined. • Based on actual performance, the LCOE of the system is estimated as US$0.246/kW h. • Feed-in-tariff of US$0.356/kW h is estimated with no financial support. • To encourage installation of PV system, financial support of up to 40% of the investment is suggested. - Abstract: As more attention is being focus on the development of renewable energy resources globally, technical and economic assessments of these resources are crucial to ascertain their viability. These assessments can be more meaningful, if they are based on field and actual performance of the renewable energy conversion systems. This study presents the economic analysis of a rooftop 2.07 kW grid-connected photovoltaic energy system installation located in Ås (59.65°N and longitude 10.76°E, and about 105 m above sea level), Norway. Both the annual and monthly costs of energy produced by the system are determined. In addition, the feed-in tariff that can give internal rate of return of about 7.5% on investment on this installation was examined. Based on assumptions used in this study, feed-in-tariff of US$0.356/kW h is estimated for a project with economic life of 25 years with no other financial support. This translates to US$0.110/kW h premium over the levelized cost of energy of US$0.246/kW h generated by the system. However, if the financial support is more than 45% of the initial investment cost, no further premium fee is necessary to support this type of system

  6. Analysis of the photovoltaic solar energy capacity of residential rooftops in Andalusia (Spain)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ordonez, J.; Jadraque, E.; Alegre, J.; Martinez, G. [Department of Civil Engineering, University of Granada (Spain)

    2010-09-15

    Fossil fuel energy resources are becoming increasingly scarce. Given the negative environmental impacts (e.g. greenhouse gas emissions) that accompany their use, it is hardly surprising that the development of renewable energies has become a major priority in the world today. Andalusia, with a mean solar radiation of 4.75 kWh/m{sup 2} per day and a surface area of 87,597 km{sup 2}, is the region in Europe with the highest solar energy potential. This research study determined the solar energy potential in Andalusia for grid-connected photovoltaic systems installed on residential rooftops. A methodology was developed for this purpose, which first involved a description of building characteristics, followed by the calculation of the useful roof surface area where photovoltaic arrays could be installed. In the next phase of the study, the mean solar irradiation characteristics were defined as well as the technical parameters of the photovoltaic systems. All of these factors allowed us to estimate the amount of electricity that could be potentially generated per year by solar panels. (author)

  7. Application of a diffusion model to measure ion leakage of resurrection plant leaves undergoing desiccation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mihailova, Gergana; Kocheva, Konstantina; Goltsev, Vasilij; Kalaji, Hazem M; Georgieva, Katya

    2018-04-01

    Haberlea rhodopensis is a chlorophyll-retaining resurrection plant, which can survive desiccation to air dry state under both low light and sunny environments. Maintaining the integrity of the membrane during dehydration of resurrection plants is extremely important. In the present study, the diffusion model was improved and used for a first time to evaluate the changes in ion leakage through different cellular compartments upon desiccation of H. rhodopensis and to clarify the reasons for significant increase of electrolyte leakage from dry leaves. The applied diffusion approach allowed us to distinguish the performance of plants subjected to dehydration and subsequent rehydration under different light intensities. Well-hydrated (control) shade plants had lower and slower electrolyte leakage compared to control sun plants as revealed by lower values of phase amplitudes, lower rate constants and ion concentration. In well-hydrated and moderately dehydrated plants (50% relative water content, RWC) ion efflux was mainly due to leakage from apoplast. The electrolyte leakage sharply increased in severely desiccated leaves (8% RWC) from both sun and shade plants mainly due to ion efflux from symplast. After 1 day of rehydration the electrolyte leakage was close to control values, indicating fast recovery of plants. We suggest that the enhanced leakage in air-dried leaves should not be considered as damage but rather as a survival mechanism based on a reversible modification in the structure of cell wall, plasma membrane and alterations in vacuolar system of the cells. However, further studies should be conducted to investigate the changes in cell wall/plasma membrane to support this conclusion. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  8. Parametric Analysis of Design Parameter Effects on the Performance of a Solar Desiccant Evaporative Cooling System in Brisbane, Australia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yunlong Ma

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Solar desiccant cooling is widely considered as an attractive replacement for conventional vapor compression air conditioning systems because of its environmental friendliness and energy efficiency advantages. The system performance of solar desiccant cooling strongly depends on the input parameters associated with the system components, such as the solar collector, storage tank and backup heater, etc. In order to understand the implications of different design parameters on the system performance, this study has conducted a parametric analysis on the solar collector area, storage tank volume, and backup heater capacity of a solid solar desiccant cooling system for an office building in Brisbane, Australia climate. In addition, a parametric analysis on the outdoor air humidity ratio control set-point which triggers the operation of the desiccant wheel has also been investigated. The simulation results have shown that either increasing the storage tank volume or increasing solar collector area would result in both increased solar fraction (SF and system coefficient of performance (COP, while at the same time reduce the backup heater energy consumption. However, the storage tank volume is more sensitive to the system performance than the collector area. From the economic aspect, a storage capacity of 30 m3/576 m2 has the lowest life cycle cost (LCC of $405,954 for the solar subsystem. In addition, 100 kW backup heater capacity is preferable for the satisfaction of the design regeneration heating coil hot water inlet temperature set-point with relatively low backup heater energy consumption. Moreover, an outdoor air humidity ratio control set-point of 0.008 kgWater/kgDryAir is more reasonable, as it could both guarantee the indoor design conditions and achieve low backup heater energy consumption.

  9. Facing the Heat: Does Desiccation and Thermal Stress Explain Patterns of Orientation in an Intertidal Invertebrate?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fraser, Clarissa M. L.; Seebacher, Frank; Lathlean, Justin; Coleman, Ross A.

    2016-01-01

    A key challenge for ecologists is to quantify, explain and predict the ecology and behaviour of animals from knowledge of their basic physiology. Compared to our knowledge of many other types of distribution and behaviour, and how these are linked to individual function, we have a poor level of understanding of the causal basis for orientation behaviours. Most explanations for patterns of animal orientation assume that animals will modify their exposure to environmental factors by altering their orientation. We used a keystone grazer on rocky shores, the limpet Cellana tramoserica, to test this idea. Manipulative experiments were done to evaluate whether orientation during emersion affected limpet desiccation or body temperature. Body temperature was determined from infrared thermography, a technique that minimises disturbance to the test organism. No causal relationships were found between orientation and (i) level of desiccation and (ii) their body temperature. These results add to the growing knowledge that responses to desiccation and thermal stress may be less important in modifying the behaviour of intertidal organisms than previously supposed and that thermoregulation does not always reflect patterns of animal orientation. Much of what we understand about orientation comes from studies of animals able to modify orientation over very short time scales. Our data suggests that for animals whose location is less flexible, orientation decisions may have less to do with responses to environmental factors and more to do with structural habitat properties or intrinsic individual attributes. Therefore we suggest future studies into processes affecting orientation must include organisms with differing levels of behavioural plasticity. PMID:26959815

  10. Facing the Heat: Does Desiccation and Thermal Stress Explain Patterns of Orientation in an Intertidal Invertebrate?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Clarissa M L Fraser

    Full Text Available A key challenge for ecologists is to quantify, explain and predict the ecology and behaviour of animals from knowledge of their basic physiology. Compared to our knowledge of many other types of distribution and behaviour, and how these are linked to individual function, we have a poor level of understanding of the causal basis for orientation behaviours. Most explanations for patterns of animal orientation assume that animals will modify their exposure to environmental factors by altering their orientation. We used a keystone grazer on rocky shores, the limpet Cellana tramoserica, to test this idea. Manipulative experiments were done to evaluate whether orientation during emersion affected limpet desiccation or body temperature. Body temperature was determined from infrared thermography, a technique that minimises disturbance to the test organism. No causal relationships were found between orientation and (i level of desiccation and (ii their body temperature. These results add to the growing knowledge that responses to desiccation and thermal stress may be less important in modifying the behaviour of intertidal organisms than previously supposed and that thermoregulation does not always reflect patterns of animal orientation. Much of what we understand about orientation comes from studies of animals able to modify orientation over very short time scales. Our data suggests that for animals whose location is less flexible, orientation decisions may have less to do with responses to environmental factors and more to do with structural habitat properties or intrinsic individual attributes. Therefore we suggest future studies into processes affecting orientation must include organisms with differing levels of behavioural plasticity.

  11. Facing the Heat: Does Desiccation and Thermal Stress Explain Patterns of Orientation in an Intertidal Invertebrate?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fraser, Clarissa M L; Seebacher, Frank; Lathlean, Justin; Coleman, Ross A

    2016-01-01

    A key challenge for ecologists is to quantify, explain and predict the ecology and behaviour of animals from knowledge of their basic physiology. Compared to our knowledge of many other types of distribution and behaviour, and how these are linked to individual function, we have a poor level of understanding of the causal basis for orientation behaviours. Most explanations for patterns of animal orientation assume that animals will modify their exposure to environmental factors by altering their orientation. We used a keystone grazer on rocky shores, the limpet Cellana tramoserica, to test this idea. Manipulative experiments were done to evaluate whether orientation during emersion affected limpet desiccation or body temperature. Body temperature was determined from infrared thermography, a technique that minimises disturbance to the test organism. No causal relationships were found between orientation and (i) level of desiccation and (ii) their body temperature. These results add to the growing knowledge that responses to desiccation and thermal stress may be less important in modifying the behaviour of intertidal organisms than previously supposed and that thermoregulation does not always reflect patterns of animal orientation. Much of what we understand about orientation comes from studies of animals able to modify orientation over very short time scales. Our data suggests that for animals whose location is less flexible, orientation decisions may have less to do with responses to environmental factors and more to do with structural habitat properties or intrinsic individual attributes. Therefore we suggest future studies into processes affecting orientation must include organisms with differing levels of behavioural plasticity.

  12. Kinetics of biofilm formation and desiccation survival of Listeria monocytogenes in single and dual species biofilms with Pseudomonas fluorescens, Serratia proteamaculans or Shewanella baltica on food-grade stainless steel surfaces.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Daneshvar Alavi, Hessam Edin; Truelstrup Hansen, Lisbeth

    2013-01-01

    This study investigated the dynamics of static biofilm formation (100% RH, 15 °C, 48-72 h) and desiccation survival (43% RH, 15 °C, 21 days) of Listeria monocytogenes, in dual species biofilms with the common spoilage bacteria, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Serratia proteamaculans and Shewanella baltica, on the surface of food grade stainless steel. The Gram-negative bacteria reduced the maximum biofilm population of L. monocytogenes in dual species biofilms and increased its inactivation during desiccation. However, due to the higher desiccation resistance of Listeria relative to P. fluorescens and S. baltica, the pathogen survived in greater final numbers. In contrast, S. proteamaculans outcompeted the pathogen during the biofilm formation and exhibited similar desiccation survival, causing the N21 days of Serratia to be ca 3 Log10(CFU cm(-2)) greater than that of Listeria in the dual species biofilm. Microscopy revealed biofilm morphologies with variable amounts of exopolymeric substance and the presence of separate microcolonies. Under these simulated food plant conditions, the fate of L. monocytogenes during formation of mixed biofilms and desiccation depended on the implicit characteristics of the co-cultured bacterium.

  13. Experimental Validation of the Simulation Model of a DOAS Equipped with a Desiccant Wheel and a Vapor Compression Refrigeration System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pedro J. Martínez

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available A dedicated outdoor air system (DOAS can be designed to supply 100% of the outside air and meet the latent load of the room with dry air. The objectives of this study were to develop a model of a DOAS equipped with a desiccant wheel and a vapor-compression refrigeration system, build a prototype, validate the model with experimental data, and gain knowledge about the system operation. The test facility was designed with the desiccant wheel downstream of the cooling coil to take advantage of the operating principles of cooling coils and desiccants. A model of the DOAS was developed in the TRNSYS environment. The root mean standard error (RMSE was used for model validation by comparing the measured air and refrigerant properties with the corresponding calculated values. The results obtained with the developed model showed that the DOAS was able to maintain an indoor humidity ratio depending on outdoor conditions. Laboratory tests were also used to investigate the effect of changes in the regeneration air temperature and the process airflow rate on the process air humidity ratio at the outlet of the wheel. The results are consistent with the technical literature.

  14. Adsorption Machine & Desiccant Wheel based SOLAR COOLING in a Second Law perspective

    OpenAIRE

    Bivona, Santo

    2011-01-01

    This thesis work is intended to investigate energy and exergy performance of a low power prototype solar air conditioning system based on sorption materials. Its performance is analyzed in the light of both the First and Second Law of Thermodynamics and compared with conventional HVAC systems as well as with a further solar cooling technology based on desiccant wheels (Solar DEC). The adsorption machine based solar cooling plant was thoroughly designed and its thermal performance analysed ...

  15. Desiccation and cold storage of Galleria mellonella cadavers and effects on in vivo production of Steinernema carpocapsae

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wang, X.; Wang, H.; Feng, Q.Z.; Cui, X.Y.; Liu, R.Y.; Sun, Y.B.; Li, G.C.; Tan, H.; Song, D.M.; Liu, W.; Ruan, W.B.; Harvey, J.A.

    2014-01-01

    BACKGROUNDDirect application of insect cadavers infected with entomopathogenic nematodes (EPN) can successfully control target pest insects. Little is known about the effects of environmental factors (desiccation and temperature) on the production process for infective juveniles (IJ) in insects.

  16. Protein and carbohydrate composition of larval food affects tolerance tothermal stress and desiccation in adult Drosophila melanogaster

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Laila H; Kristensen, Torsten N; Loeschcke, Volker

    2010-01-01

    stress compared to males. Egg production was highest in females that had developed on the protein-enriched medium. However, there was a sex-specific effect of nutrition on egg-to-adult viability, with higher viability for males developing on the sucrose-enriched medium, while female survival was highest......Larval nutrition may affect a range of different life history traits as well as responses to environmental stress in adult insects. Here we test whether raising larvae of fruit flies, Drosophila melanogaster, on two different nutritional regimes affects resistance to cold, heat and desiccation....... In contrast, flies developed on the carbohydrate-enriched growth medium recovered faster from chill coma stress compared to flies developed on a protein-enriched medium. We also found gender differences in stress tolerance, with female flies being more tolerant to chill coma, heat knockdown and desiccation...

  17. Building-integrated rooftop greenhouses: An energy and environmental assessment in the mediterranean context

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nadal, Ana; Llorach-Massana, Pere; Cuerva, Eva; López-Capel, Elisa; Montero, Juan Ignacio; Josa, Alejandro

    2017-01-01

    Highlights: • iRTG incorporates urban agriculture into and improves energy efficiency in buildings. • iRTG concept recycles low-grade, waste thermal energy for growing vegetables. • iRTG is an adaptable concept to promotes food security through urban agriculture. • Indoor building climate affects iRTG more than outdoor climatic conditions. • iRTG achieved annual CO_2 and cost savings of 113.8 kg CO_2 (eq)/m"2/yr and 19.63 €/m"2/yr. - Abstract: A sustainable and secure food supply within a low-carbon and resilient infrastructure is encapsulated in several of The United Nations’ 17 sustainable development goals. The integration of urban agriculture in buildings can offer improved efficiencies; in recognition of this, the first south European example of a fully integrated rooftop greenhouse (iRTG) was designed and incorporated into the ICTA-ICP building by the Autonomous University of Barcelona. This design seeks to interchange heat, CO_2 and rainwater between the building and its rooftop greenhouse. Average air temperatures for 2015 in the iRTG were 16.5 °C (winter) and 25.79 °C (summer), making the iRTG an ideal growing environment. Using detailed thermophysical fabric properties, 2015 site-specific weather data, exact control strategies and dynamic soil temperatures, the iRTG was modelled in EnergyPlus to assess the performance of an equivalent ‘freestanding’ greenhouse. The validated result shows that the thermal interchange between the iRTG and the ICTA-ICP building has considerable moderating effects on the iRTG’s indoor climate; since average hourly temperatures in an equivalent freestanding greenhouse would have been 4.1 °C colder in winter and 4.4 °C warmer in summer under the 2015 climatic conditions. The simulation results demonstrate that the iRTG case study recycled 43.78 MWh of thermal energy (or 341.93 kWh/m"2/yr) from the main building in 2015. Assuming 100% energy conversion efficiency, compared to freestanding greenhouses

  18. Solar-Powered, Liquid-Desiccant Air Conditioner for Low-Electricity Humidity Control: Report and Summary Report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dean, J.; Kozubal, E.; Herrmann, L.; Miller, J.; Lowenstein, A.; Barker, G.; Slayzak, S.

    2012-11-01

    The primary objective of this project was to demonstrate the capabilities of a new high-performance, liquid-desiccant dedicated outdoor air system (DOAS) to enhance cooling efficiency and comfort in humid climates while substantially reducing electric peak demand at Tyndall Air Force Base (AFB), which is 12 miles east of Panama City, Florida.

  19. Texas Solar Collaboration DOE Rooftop Solar Challenge City of Houston Project Summary

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ronk, Jennifer [Houston Advanced Research Center, TX (United States)

    2013-02-14

    The City of Houston is committed to achieving a sustainable solar infrastructure. In 2008, Houston was named a United States Department of Energy (DOE) Solar America City. As a Solar America City, Houston teamed with the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC), Sandia National Laboratory (Sandia), industry, and academia, to implement the Solar Houston Initiative and prepare the Solar Houston Plan. The Solar Houston initiative was focused on identifying and overcoming barriers associated with establishing a solar infrastructure that is incorporated into the City of Houston’s overall energy plan. A broad group of Houston area stakeholders, facilitated by HARC, came together to develop a comprehensive solar plan that went beyond technology to address barriers and establish demonstrations, public outreach, education programs and other activities. The plan included proposed scopes of work in four program areas: policies, solar integration, public outreach, and education. Through the support of the DOE SunShot Rooftop Solar Challenge (RSC) grant to the Texas Collaboration (San Antonio, Austin, and Hosuton), Houston has been able to implement several of the recommendations of the Solar Houston Plan. Specific recommendations that this project was able to support include; Working with the other Texas Solar America Cities (San Antonio and Austin), to harmonize permitting and inspection processes to simplify for installers and lower soft costs of installation; Participating in state level solar policy groups such as the Texas Renewable Energy Industries Association (TRIEA); Continued coordination with the local transmission and distribution utility (CenterPoint) and retail electric providers (REP); Identification of opportunities to improve permitting and interconnection; Providing training on PV systems to City inspectors; Educating the public by continuing outreach, training, and workshops, particularly using the the Green Building Resources Center; Evaluating methods of

  20. Desiccation and cold storage of Galleria mellonella cadavers and effects on in vivo production of Steinernema carpocapsae

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wang, Xin; Wang, Huan; Feng, Qing-zhou; Cui, Xi-yang; Liu, Ri-yue; Sun, Yan-bo; Li, Guo-chao; Tan, Hao; Song, Dong-min; Liu, Wen; Ruan, Wei-bin; Harvey, J.A.

    2014-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Direct application of insect cadavers infected with entomopathogenic nematodes (EPN) can successfully control target pest insects. Little is known about the effects of environmental factors (desiccation and temperature) on the production process for infective juveniles (IJ) in insects.

  1. Dehydration-induced redistribution of amphiphilic molecules between cytoplasm and lipids is associated with desiccation tolerance in seeds

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Buitink, J.; Leprince, O.; Hoekstra, F.A.

    2000-01-01

    This study establishes a relationship between desiccation tolerance and the transfer of amphiphilic molecules from the cytoplasm into lipids during drying, using electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy of amphiphilic spin probes introduced into imbibed radicles of pea (Pisum sativum) and

  2. Effects of Desiccation Practices of Cultured Atlantic Oysters (Crassostrea virginica) on Vibrio spp. in Portersville Bay, Alabama, USA.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grodeska, Stephanie M; Jones, Jessica L; Arias, Covadonga R; Walton, William C

    2017-08-01

    The expansion of off-bottom aquaculture to the Gulf of Mexico has raised public health concerns for human health officials. High temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico are associated with high levels of Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio vulnificus. Routine desiccation practices associated with off-bottom aquaculture expose oysters to ambient air, allowing Vibrio spp. to proliferate in the closed oyster. Currently, there is limited research on the length of time needed for Vibrio spp. levels in desiccated oysters to return to background levels, defined as the levels found in oysters that remain continually submersed and not exposed to ambient air. This study determined the time needed to return V. parahaemolyticus, V. vulnificus, and Vibrio cholerae levels to background levels in oysters exposed to the following desiccation practices: 3-h freshwater dip followed by 24-h ambient air exposure, 27-h ambient air exposure, and control. All oysters were submerged at least 2 weeks prior to the beginning of each trial, with the control samples remaining submerged for the duration of each trial. Vibrio spp. levels were enumerated from samples collected on days 0, 1, 2, 3, 7, 10, and 14 after resubmersion using a three-tube most-probable-number enrichment followed by BAX PCR. V. cholerae levels were frequently (92%) below the limit of detection at all times, so they were not statistically analyzed. V. parahaemolyticus and V. vulnificus levels in the 27-h ambient air exposure and the 3-h freshwater dip followed by 24-h ambient air exposure samples were significantly elevated compared with background samples. In most cases, the Vibrio spp. levels in oysters in both desiccation treatments remained elevated compared with background levels until 2 or 3 days post-resubmersion. However, there was one trial in which the Vibrio spp. levels did not return to background levels until day 7. The results of this study provide scientific support that oyster farmers should be required to

  3. Influence of Mean Rooftop-Level Estimation Method on Sensible Heat Flux Retrieved from a Large-Aperture Scintillometer Over a City Centre

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zieliński, Mariusz; Fortuniak, Krzysztof; Pawlak, Włodzimierz; Siedlecki, Mariusz

    2017-08-01

    The sensible heat flux ( H) is determined using large-aperture scintillometer (LAS) measurements over a city centre for eight different computation scenarios. The scenarios are based on different approaches of the mean rooftop-level (zH) estimation for the LAS path. Here, zH is determined separately for wind directions perpendicular (two zones) and parallel (one zone) to the optical beam to reflect the variation in topography and building height on both sides of the LAS path. Two methods of zH estimation are analyzed: (1) average building profiles; (2) weighted-average building height within a 250 m radius from points located every 50 m along the optical beam, or the centre of a certain zone (in the case of a wind direction perpendicular to the path). The sensible heat flux is computed separately using the friction velocity determined with the eddy-covariance method and the iterative procedure. The sensitivity of the sensible heat flux and the extent of the scintillometer source area to different computation scenarios are analyzed. Differences reaching up to 7% between heat fluxes computed with different scenarios were found. The mean rooftop-level estimation method has a smaller influence on the sensible heat flux (-4 to 5%) than the area used for the zH computation (-5 to 7%). For the source-area extent, the discrepancies between respective scenarios reached a similar magnitude. The results demonstrate the value of the approach in which zH is estimated separately for wind directions parallel and perpendicular to the LAS optical beam.

  4. Techno-economical Analysis of Rooftop Grid-connected PV Dairy Farms; Case Study of Urmia University Dairy Farm

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nikbakht, A. M.; Aste, N.; Sarnavi, H. J.; Leonforte, F.

    2017-08-01

    The global trends indicate a growing commitment to renewable energy development because of declining fossil fuels and environmental threats. Moreover, the global demographic growth coupled with rising demands for food has escalated the rate of energy consumption in food section. This study aims to investigate the techno-economic impacts of a grid-connected rooftop PV plan applied for a educational dairy farm in Urmia university, with total estimated annual electrical energy consumption of 18,283 kWh, located at the north west part of Iran. Based on the current feed-in tariff and tremendously low electricity price in agriculture section in Iran, the plants with size ranged from 14.4 to 19.7 kWp (initial investment ranged from 26,000 to 36,000 USD) would be satisfied economically.

  5. Climatic change and wetland desiccation cause amphibian decline in Yellowstone National Park.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McMenamin, Sarah K; Hadly, Elizabeth A; Wright, Christopher K

    2008-11-04

    Amphibians are a bellwether for environmental degradation, even in natural ecosystems such as Yellowstone National Park in the western United States, where species have been actively protected longer than anywhere else on Earth. We document that recent climatic warming and resultant wetland desiccation are causing severe declines in 4 once-common amphibian species native to Yellowstone. Climate monitoring over 6 decades, remote sensing, and repeated surveys of 49 ponds indicate that decreasing annual precipitation and increasing temperatures during the warmest months of the year have significantly altered the landscape and the local biological communities. Drought is now more common and more severe than at any time in the past century. Compared with 16 years ago, the number of permanently dry ponds in northern Yellowstone has increased 4-fold. Of the ponds that remain, the proportion supporting amphibians has declined significantly, as has the number of species found in each location. Our results indicate that climatic warming already has disrupted one of the best-protected ecosystems on our planet and that current assessments of species' vulnerability do not adequately consider such impacts.

  6. Mineralização do nitrogênio da palhada de milheto dessecado com herbicidas Nitrogen mineralization in straw from herbicide-desiccated millet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Virginia Damin

    2009-08-01

    Full Text Available Pesquisas recentes verificaram que a utilização de glyphosate ou amônio glufosinate para dessecação de culturas de cobertura em sistemas conservacionistas podem reduzir o conteúdo de nitrogênio na palha formada. Neste contexto. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a mineralização do N da palhada de milheto em função da utilização dos herbicidas glyphosate e glufosinato de amônio e o aproveitamento do N pela cultura do milho. Utilizou-se o delineamento inteiramente casualizado, com seis tratamentos e cinco repetições, em esquema fatorial 3 x 2, sendo avaliados os fatores: manejo da cultura de cobertura (testemunha sem aplicação de herbicida, dessecação com glyphosate ou glufosinato de amônio e tipo de solo (Neossolo Quartzarênico órtico típico - NQ e Latossolo Vermelho distrófico típico - LV. A massa de palha seca remanescente nos solos foi maior quando o milheto foi dessecado quimicamente em relação à testemunha. O N-mineral do solo proveniente da palha de milheto, o C-biomassa microbiana e a nitrificação nos tratamentos em que o milheto foi dessecado com herbicidas foram inferiores aos da testemunha. A utilização de dessecantes no milheto não afetou a produção de massa de palha seca e o N-total do milho, embora o conteúdo de N proveniente da palha no milho tenha sido reduzido pela dessecação do milheto com o herbicida glufosinato. A mineralização do N proveniente da palha foi reduzida pela dessecação do milheto com os herbicidas glyphosate e glufosinato de amônio.Currently research verified that glyphosate or ammonium glufosinate herbicides use for cover crop desiccation in conservationist systems may reduce N amount in straw. The aim of this study was to evaluate nitrogen mineralization in millet straw after glyphosate or ammonium glufosinate application and the N uptake by corn plants. A complete randomized design was used with six treatments and five replications, in a 3 x 2 factorial scheme

  7. Experimental investigation of a building integrated photovoltaic/thermal roof collector combined with a liquid desiccant enhanced indirect evaporative cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Buker, Mahmut Sami; Mempouo, Blaise; Riffat, Saffa B.

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Novel solar thermal collector for liquid desiccant air conditioning was introduced. • Low cost poly heat exchanger loop underneath the photovoltaic modules was proposed. • The ability of the combined system was experimentally investigated. • Water temperature in the loop could reach up to 35.5 °C during the tests. • This tri-gen system can supply 3 kW heating, 5.2 kW cooling and 10.3 MW h/year power. - Abstract: Large consumption of limited conventional fossil fuel resources, economic and environmental problems associated with the global warming and climate change have emphasized the immediate need to transition to renewable energy resources. Solar thermal applications along with renewable energy based cooling practices have attracted considerable interest towards sustainable solutions promising various technical, economic and environmental benefits. This study introduces a new concept on solar thermal energy driven liquid desiccant based dew point cooling system that integrates several green technologies; including photovoltaic modules, polyethylene heat exchanger loop and a combined liquid desiccant dehumidification-indirect evaporative air conditioning unit. A pilot scale experimental set-up was developed and tested to investigate the performance of the proposed system and influence of the various parameters such as weather condition, air flow and regeneration temperature. A cost effective, easy-to-make polyethylene heat exchanger loop was employed underneath PV panels for heat generation. In addition, a liquid desiccant enhanced dew point cooling unit was utilized to provide air conditioning through dehumidification of humid air and indirect evaporative cooling. The experimental results show that the proposed tri-generation system is capable of providing about 3 kW of heating, 5.2 kW of cooling power and 10.3 MW h/year power generation, respectively. The findings confirm the potential of the examined technology, and elucidate the

  8. Tolerance of Ruppia sinensis Seeds to Desiccation, Low Temperature, and High Salinity With Special Reference to Long-Term Seed Storage

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ruiting Gu

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Seeds are important materials for the restoration of globally-threatened marine angiosperm (seagrass populations. In this study, we investigated the differences between different Ruppia sinensis seed types and developed two feasible long-term R. sinensis seed storage methods. The ability of R. sinensis seeds to tolerate the short-term desiccation and extreme cold had been investigated. The tolerance of R. sinensis seeds to long-term exposure of high salinity, cold temperature, and desiccation had been considered as potential methods for long-term seed storage. Also, three morphological and nine physiological indices were measured and compared between two types of seeds: Shape L and Shape S. We found that: (1 wet storage at a salinity of 30–40 psu and 0°C were the optimal long-term storage conditions, and the proportion of viable seeds reached over 90% after a storage period of 11 months since the seeds were collected from the reproductive shoots; (2 dry condition was not the optimal choice for long-term storage of R. sinensis seeds; however, storing seeds in a dry condition at 5°C and 33 ± 10% relative humidity for 9 months had a relatively high percentage (74.44 ± 2.22% of viable seeds, consequently desiccation exposure could also be an acceptable seed storage method; (3 R. sinensis seeds would lose vigor in the interaction of extreme cold (-27°C and desiccation; (4 there were significant differences in seed weight, seed curvature, and endocarp thickness between the two types of seeds. These findings provided fundamental physiological information for R. sinensis seeds and supported the long-term storage of its seeds. Our results may also serve as useful reference for seed storage of other threatened seagrass species and facilitate their ex situ conservation and habitat restoration.

  9. Tolerance of Ruppia sinensis Seeds to Desiccation, Low Temperature, and High Salinity With Special Reference to Long-Term Seed Storage.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gu, Ruiting; Zhou, Yi; Song, Xiaoyue; Xu, Shaochun; Zhang, Xiaomei; Lin, Haiying; Xu, Shuai; Yue, Shidong; Zhu, Shuyu

    2018-01-01

    Seeds are important materials for the restoration of globally-threatened marine angiosperm (seagrass) populations. In this study, we investigated the differences between different Ruppia sinensis seed types and developed two feasible long-term R. sinensis seed storage methods. The ability of R. sinensis seeds to tolerate the short-term desiccation and extreme cold had been investigated. The tolerance of R. sinensis seeds to long-term exposure of high salinity, cold temperature, and desiccation had been considered as potential methods for long-term seed storage. Also, three morphological and nine physiological indices were measured and compared between two types of seeds: Shape L and Shape S. We found that: (1) wet storage at a salinity of 30-40 psu and 0°C were the optimal long-term storage conditions, and the proportion of viable seeds reached over 90% after a storage period of 11 months since the seeds were collected from the reproductive shoots; (2) dry condition was not the optimal choice for long-term storage of R. sinensis seeds; however, storing seeds in a dry condition at 5°C and 33 ± 10% relative humidity for 9 months had a relatively high percentage (74.44 ± 2.22%) of viable seeds, consequently desiccation exposure could also be an acceptable seed storage method; (3) R. sinensis seeds would lose vigor in the interaction of extreme cold (-27°C) and desiccation; (4) there were significant differences in seed weight, seed curvature, and endocarp thickness between the two types of seeds. These findings provided fundamental physiological information for R. sinensis seeds and supported the long-term storage of its seeds. Our results may also serve as useful reference for seed storage of other threatened seagrass species and facilitate their ex situ conservation and habitat restoration.

  10. Surviving extreme polar winters by desiccation: clues from Arctic springtail (Onychiurus arcticus EST libraries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kube Michael

    2007-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Ice, snow and temperatures of -14°C are conditions which most animals would find difficult, if not impossible, to survive in. However this exactly describes the Arctic winter, and the Arctic springtail Onychiurus arcticus regularly survives these extreme conditions and re-emerges in the spring. It is able to do this by reducing the amount of water in its body to almost zero: a process that is called "protective dehydration". The aim of this project was to generate clones and sequence data in the form of ESTs to provide a platform for the future molecular characterisation of the processes involved in protective dehydration. Results Five normalised libraries were produced from both desiccating and rehydrating populations of O. arcticus from stages that had previously been defined as potentially informative for molecular analyses. A total of 16,379 EST clones were generated and analysed using Blast and GO annotation. 40% of the clones produced significant matches against the Swissprot and trembl databases and these were further analysed using GO annotation. Extraction and analysis of GO annotations proved an extremely effective method for identifying generic processes associated with biochemical pathways, proving more efficient than solely analysing Blast data output. A number of genes were identified, which have previously been shown to be involved in water transport and desiccation such as members of the aquaporin family. Identification of these clones in specific libraries associated with desiccation validates the computational analysis by library rather than producing a global overview of all libraries combined. Conclusion This paper describes for the first time EST data from the arctic springtail (O. arcticus. This significantly enhances the number of Collembolan ESTs in the public databases, providing useful comparative data within this phylum. The use of GO annotation for analysis has facilitated the identification of a

  11. Influences of gas stream conditions on efficiency of tritiated moisture collection with P2O5-desiccant and isotope effect

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kotoh, Kenji; Miura, Katsuya; Kashio, Yousuke; Nishikawa, Masabumi

    1991-01-01

    A method was proposed previously for collection and measurement of tritiated moisture in gas stream using P 2 O 5 -desiccant. Influences of the gas humidity, the gas flow rate and the distance between gas nozzle and P 2 O 5 -desiccant layer surface on the moisture collection efficiency have been examined through experiments, and the isotope effect on the collection has been investigated. The collection efficiency is the ratio of collected to supplied moisture, and the moisture supplying rate is in proportion to the humidity and flow rate of feed gas. The experiments show that; the collection efficiency dose not depend on the gas humidity, but is affected by the gas flow rate and by the nozzle-layer distance. The effects of the flow rate and the nozzle position are related to the mass transfer distance from the bulk of gas stream to the desiccant layer surface in the collection cell. The moisture collecting rate is promoted by the approach of the gas stream to the layer surface. An expression of effective separation factor has been derived to explain the isotope effect on the moisture collection. Experimental data distribution of the separation factor have been reasonably simulated by the analysis. (author)

  12. Can a genetic correlation with seed mass constrain adaptive evolution of seedling desiccation tolerance in wild barley?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Verhoeven, K.J.F.; Biere, A.; Nevo, E.; Van Damme, J.M.M.

    2004-01-01

    Very young seedlings of wild barley Hordeum spontaneum have the ability to survive extended periods of severe drought. This desiccation tolerance is considered an adaptation to the rain-limited and unpredictable habitats that the species occupies. Genetic variation has been observed for this trait,

  13. Subterranean termite open-air foraging and tolerance to desiccation: Comparative water relation of two sympatric Macrotermes spp. (Blattodea: Termitidae).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hu, Jian; Neoh, Kok-Boon; Appel, Arthur G; Lee, Chow-Yang

    2012-02-01

    The foraging patterns of termites are strongly related to physiological limits in overcoming desiccation stress. In this study, we examined moisture preferences and physiological characteristics of Macrotermes carbonarius (Hagen) and M. gilvus (Hagen) as both exhibit conspicuous patterns of foraging activity. Despite both species showing no significant differences in calculated cuticular permeability, and percentage of total body water, they differed greatly in rate of water loss and surface area to volume ratio. For example, M. carbonarius which had a lower surface area to volume ratio (29.26-53.66) showed lower rate of water loss and percentage of total body water loss. This also resulted in higher LT(50) when exposed to extreme conditions (≈2% RH). However, contrasting observations were made in M. gilvus that has smaller size with higher surface area to volume ratio of 40.28-69.75. It is likely that the standard equation for calculating insect surface areas is inadequate for these termite species. The trend was further supported by the result of a moisture preference bioassay that indicated M. carbonarius had a broader range of moisture preference (between 5% and 20%) than M. gilvus which had a relatively narrow moisture preference (only 20%). These results explain why M. carbonarius can tolerate desiccation stress for a longer period foraging above-ground in the open air; while M. gilvus only forages below ground or concealed within foraging mud tubes. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. The regeneration of a liquid desiccant using direct contact membrane distillation to unlock the potential of coastal desert agriculture

    KAUST Repository

    Cribbs, Kimberly

    2018-04-01

    In Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, a lack of freshwater, poor soil quality, and ambient temperatures unsuitable for cultivation for parts of the year hinders domestic agriculture. The result is a reliance on a fluctuating supply of imported fresh produce which may have high costs and compromised quality. There are agricultural technologies available such as hydroponics and controlled environment agriculture (CEA) that can allow GCC countries to overcome poor soil quality and ambient temperatures unsuitable for cultivation, respectively. Evaporative cooling is the most common form of cooling for CEA and requires a significant amount of water. In water-scarce regions, it is desirable for sea or brackish water to be used for evaporative cooling. Unfortunately, in many coastal desert regions, evaporative cooling does not provide enough cooling due to the high wet-bulb temperature of the ambient air during hot and humid months of the year. A liquid desiccant dehumidification system has been proven to lower the wet-bulb temperature of ambient air in the coastal city of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to a level that allows for evaporative cooling to meet the needs of heat-sensitive crops. Much of the past research on the regeneration of the liquid desiccant solution has been on configurations that release water vapor back to the atmosphere. Studies have shown that the amount of water captured by the liquid desiccant when used to dehumidify a greenhouse can supply a significant amount of the water needed for irrigation. This thesis studied the regeneration of a magnesium chloride (MgCl2) liquid desiccant solution from approximately 20 to 31wt% by direct contact membrane distillation and explored the possibility of using the recovered water for irrigation. Two microporous hydrophobic PTFE membranes were experimentally tested and modeled when the bulk feed and coolant temperature difference was between 10 and 60°C. In eight experiments, the salt rejection was higher than 99

  15. Synergistic interaction between the fungus Beauveria bassiana and desiccant dusts applied against poultry red mites (Dermanyssus gallinae)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Steenberg, Tove; Kilpinen, Ole Østerlund

    2014-01-01

    , but these fungi often take several days to kill mites. Laboratory experiments were carried out to study the efficacy of 3 types of desiccant dusts, the fungus Beauveria bassiana and combinations of the two control agents against D. gallinae. There was significant synergistic interaction between each...

  16. Dynamics of Endogenous Phytohormones during Desiccation and Recovery of the Resurrection Plant Species Haberlea rhodopensis

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Djilianov, D.L.; Dobrev, Petre; Moyankova, D.P.; Vaňková, Radomíra; Georgieva, D.T.; Gajdošová, Silvia; Motyka, Václav

    2013-01-01

    Roč. 32, č. 3 (2013), s. 564-574 ISSN 0721-7595 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GAP506/11/0774; GA ČR GA522/09/2058; GA ČR GA206/09/2062 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z50380511 Keywords : Abscisic acid * Auxin * Desiccation tolerance * Cytokinin Subject RIV: ED - Physiology Impact factor: 2.058, year: 2013

  17. A Combination of Histological, Physiological, and Proteomic Approaches Shed Light on Seed Desiccation Tolerance of the Basal Angiosperm Amborella trichopoda.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Villegente, Matthieu; Marmey, Philippe; Job, Claudette; Galland, Marc; Cueff, Gwendal; Godin, Béatrice; Rajjou, Loïc; Balliau, Thierry; Zivy, Michel; Fogliani, Bruno; Sarramegna-Burtet, Valérie; Job, Dominique

    2017-07-28

    Desiccation tolerance allows plant seeds to remain viable in a dry state for years and even centuries. To reveal potential evolutionary processes of this trait, we have conducted a shotgun proteomic analysis of isolated embryo and endosperm from mature seeds of Amborella trichopoda , an understory shrub endemic to New Caledonia that is considered to be the basal extant angiosperm. The present analysis led to the characterization of 415 and 69 proteins from the isolated embryo and endosperm tissues, respectively. The role of these proteins is discussed in terms of protein evolution and physiological properties of the rudimentary, underdeveloped, Amborella embryos, notably considering that the acquisition of desiccation tolerance corresponds to the final developmental stage of mature seeds possessing large embryos.

  18. Changes in DNa and microtubules during loss and re-establishment of desiccation tolerance in germinating Medicago truncatula seeds

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Faria, J.M.R.; Buitink, J.; Lammeren, van A.A.M.; Hilhorst, H.W.M.

    2005-01-01

    Desiccation tolerance (DT) in orthodox seeds is acquired during seed development and lost upon imbibition/germination, purportedly upon the resumption of DNA synthesis in the radicle cells. In the present study, flow cytometric analyses and visualization of microtubules (MTs) in radicle cells of

  19. Performance Analysis of a Solar Dryer Equipped with a Recycling Air System and Desiccant Chamber

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M.H Aghkhani

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available Drying is a high energy consuming process. Solar drying is one of the most popular methods for dehydration of agricultural products. In the present study, the performance of a forced convection solar dryer equipped with recycling air system and desiccant chamber was investigated. The solar dryer is comprised of solar collector, drying chamber, silica jell desiccant chamber, air ducts, fan and measuring and controlling system. Drying rate and energy consumption in three levels of air temperature (40, 45 and 50 oC and two modes of drying (with recycling air and no-recycling with open duct system were measured and compared. The results showed that increasing the drying air temperature decreased the drying time and increased the energy consumption in the mode of non-recycling air system. The dryer efficiency and drying rate were better in the mode of recycling air system than open duct system. The highest dryer efficiency was obtained from drying air temperature of 50 oC and the mode of recycling air system. In general, the efficiency of solar collector and the highest efficiency of the dryer were 0.34 and 0.41, respectively.

  20. Effects of UV-B Radiation and Periodic Desiccation on the Morphogenesis of the Edible Terrestrial Cyanobacterium Nostoc flagelliforme

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feng, Yan-Na; Zhang, Zhong-Chun; Feng, Jun-Li

    2012-01-01

    The terrestrial cyanobacterium Nostoc flagelliforme Berk. et M. A. Curtis has been a popular food and herbal ingredient for hundreds of years. To meet great market demand and protect the local ecosystem, for decades researchers have tried to cultivate N. flagelliforme but have failed to get macroscopic filamentous thalli. In this study, single trichomes with 50 to 200 vegetative cells were induced from free-living cells by low light and used to investigate the morphogenesis of N. flagelliforme under low UV-B radiation and periodic desiccation. Low-fluence-rate UV-B (0.1 W m−2) did not inhibit trichome growth; however, it significantly increased the synthesis of extracellular polysaccharides and mycosporine-like amino acids and promoted sheath formation outside the trichomes. Under low UV-B radiation, single trichomes developed into filamentous thalli more than 1 cm long after 28 days of cultivation, most of which grew separately in liquid BG11 medium. With periodic desiccation treatment, the single trichomes formed flat or banded thalli that grew up to 2 cm long after 3 months on solid BG11 medium. When trichomes were cultivated on solid BG11 medium with alternate treatments of low UV-B and periodic desiccation, dark and scraggly filamentous thalli that grew up to about 3 cm in length after 40 days were obtained. In addition, the cultivation of trichomes on nitrogen-deficient solid BG11 medium (BG110) suggested that nitrogen availability could affect the color and lubricity of newly developed thalli. This study provides promising techniques for artificial cultivation of N. flagelliforme in the future. PMID:22865081

  1. Energy performance of solar-assisted liquid desiccant air-conditioning system for commercial building in main climate zones

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qi, Ronghui; Lu, Lin; Huang, Yu

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • Simulation of solar liquid desiccant AC system in four climate regions was conducted. • System performance was determined by relationship of sensible and latent cooling load. • For humid area, saving amount is large by handling latent load with solar energy. • For dry area, electricity saving rate is considerable due to the high COP of chillers. • For buildings with mild SHR, the system performance was not as good as others. - Abstract: Liquid desiccant air-conditioning (LDAC) system, which consists of a liquid desiccant ventilation system for dehumidification and an air-handling unit for cooling, has become a promising alternative for conventional technology. To evaluate its feasibility and applicability, the simulation of solar-assisted LDAC (SLDAC) in commercial buildings in five cities of four main climate regions were conducted, including Singapore in Tropical, Houston and Beijing in Temperate, Boulder in Arid and Los Angeles in Mediterranean. Results showed that the system’s performance was seriously affected by the ratios of building’s sensible and latent cooling load. For buildings located in humid areas with low sensible-total heat ratio (SHR), the electricity energy reduction of SLDAC was high, about 450 MW h in Houston and Singapore, which accounted for 40% of the total energy consumption in cooling seasons. The cost payback period was as short as approximately 7 years. The main reason is that the energy required for handling the moisture could be saved by liquid desiccant dehumidification, and the regeneration heat could be covered by solar collectors. For buildings in dry climate with high SHR, the total cooling load was low, but up to 45% electricity of AC system could be saved in Boulder because the chiller COP could be significantly improved during more than 70% operation time. The cost payback period was around 22 years, which was acceptable. However, for the buildings with mild SHR, such as those in Beijing and Los

  2. Morphological and transcriptional response of an anhydrobiotic insect to ionizing radiation and desiccation: steps forward in understanding molecular background of extreme radioresistance in higher eukaryotes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gusev, Oleg; Novikova, Nataliya; Sychev, Vladimir; Okuda, Takashi; Kikawada, Takahiro; Sakashita, Tetsuya; Mukae, Kyosuke

    2012-07-01

    Life in extreme or drastically changing environments in many cases leads to evolutionary evolvement of mechanisms of cross-resistance to different abiotic stresses, often never actually faced by the organism in its natural habitat. Larvae of the sleeping chironomidPolypedilum vanderplanki (Diptera) are able to resist complete desiccation and in the dry form survive under excess of various abiotic stresses, including exposure to space environment. One of the most intriguing features of the anhydrobiotic larvae is resistance to extremely high doses of different types of ionizing radiation. To understand the cross-tolerance mechanism, we have analyzed the structural changes in the nuclear DNA using transmission electron microscopy and DNA comet assays in relation to anhydrobiosis and radiation. We find that dehydration causes alterations in chromatin structure and a severe fragmentation of nuclear DNA in the cells of the larvae despite successful anhydrobiosis. The DNA fragmentation level and the recovery of DNA integrity in the rehydrated after anhydrobiosis larvae were similar to those of hydrated larvae irradiated with 70 Gy of high-linear energy transfer (LET) ions (4He+). In comparison, low-LET radiation (gamma rays) of the same dose causes less initial damage to the larvae, and recovery of DNA repair is complete within 24 h. Genome-wide analysis of mRNA expression in the larvae revealed that a large group of genes (including antioxidants, anhydrobiosis-specific biomolecules and protein-reparation enzymes) showed a similar patterns of activity in response to both desiccation and ionizing radiation. We conclude that t one of the factors explaining the relationship between the resistance to ionizing radiation and the ability to undergo anhydrobiosis in the sleeping chironomid would be an adaptation to desiccation-inflicted proteins and nuclear DNA damage.

  3. Xylem diameter changes during osmotic stress, desiccation and freezing in Pinus sylvestris and Populus tremula.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lintunen, Anna; Lindfors, Lauri; Nikinmaa, Eero; Hölttä, Teemu

    2017-04-01

    Trees experience low apoplastic water potential frequently in most environments. Low apoplastic water potential increases the risk of embolism formation in xylem conduits and creates dehydration stress for the living cells. We studied the magnitude and rate of xylem diameter change in response to decreasing apoplastic water potential and the role of living parenchyma cells in it to better understand xylem diameter changes in different environmental conditions. We compared responses of control and heat-injured xylem of Pinus sylvestris (L.) and Populus tremula (L.) branches to decreasing apoplastic water potential created by osmotic stress, desiccation and freezing. It was shown that xylem in control branches shrank more in response to decreasing apoplastic water potential in comparison with the samples that were preheated to damage living xylem parenchyma. By manipulating the osmotic pressure of the xylem sap, we observed xylem shrinkage due to decreasing apoplastic water potential even in the absence of water tension within the conduits. These results indicate that decreasing apoplastic water potential led to withdrawal of intracellular water from the xylem parenchyma, causing tissue shrinkage. The amount of xylem shrinkage per decrease in apoplastic water potential was higher during osmotic stress or desiccation compared with freezing. During desiccation, xylem diameter shrinkage involved both dehydration-related shrinkage of xylem parenchyma and water tension-induced shrinkage of conduits, whereas dehydration-related shrinkage of xylem parenchyma was accompanied by swelling of apoplastic ice during freezing. It was also shown that the exchange of water between symplast and apoplast within xylem is clearly faster than previously reported between the phloem and the xylem. Time constant of xylem shrinkage was 40 and 2 times higher during osmotic stress than during freezing stress in P. sylvestris and P. tremula, respectively. Finally, it was concluded that the

  4. The use of cooling systems with desiccants in the condition of buildings; El uso de sistemas de enfriamiento con desecantes en el acondicionamiento de edificaciones

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Alpuche Cruz, Maria G; Avila Segura, Francisco [Centro de Investigacion en Energia, UNAM, Temixco, Morelos (Mexico)

    2000-07-01

    In this document some papers about the development of solid and liquid desiccant cooling systems and dehumidification are analyzed. In a desiccant cooling cycle, the desiccant reduces the quantity of humidity of the air and temperature is decreases by others components such as heat exchangers, cooling evaporatives or conventional coolers. The main advantage of this systems is the capacity to use a low-grade thermal energy. These systems are being used in residence and commercial constructions to reduce energy and to optimize costs, however the initial cost is significantly higher that the conventional cooling systems. Recent studies have been focused in analyzing desiccant cooling systems, through computer modeling. [Spanish] En este documento se analizan algunas publicaciones sobre el desarrollo de los sistemas de enfriamiento y deshumidificacion con desecantes solidos y liquidos. En el ciclo de enfriamiento en el desecante, el desecante reduce la cantidad de humedad del aire y la temperatura se reduce por medio de otros componentes tales como intercambiadores de calor, enfriadores evaporativos o enfriadores convencionales. La ventaja principal que ofrecen estos sistemas es la capacidad de utilizar una baja cantidad de energia termica. Estos sistemas estan siendo utilizados en edificaciones habitacionales y comerciales para reducir el consumo de energia y optimizar costos, sin embargo el costo inicial es significativamente mas alto que los sistemas de enfriamiento convencionales. Estudios recientes se han enfocado en analizar estos sistemas de enfriamiento con desecantes, a traves de la modelacion por computadora.

  5. Design and analysis of a small-scale vertical-axis wind turbine for rooftop power generation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abraham, J.P.; Mowry, G.S.; Erickson, R.A.

    2009-01-01

    This paper described a fluid flow model of a 2-blade vertical axis wind turbine designed for use in crowded urban and rooftop environments. The turbine featured a contoured blade developed to maximize rotational velocity and minimize drag forces. The model was used to determine the turbine's rotational velocities in a range of wind speeds. The analysis included a numerical simulation of air flow across the cup faces at all circumferential locations in order to determine pressure and drag forces. A rigid body dynamic analysis was then conducted to determine the rotational velocity of the turbine. Mass, momentum and turbulence closure equations were presented. Results of the study demonstrated that a turbine rotation rate of 137 rpm was achieved at wind velocities of 30 miles per hour. Wind speeds of 20 and 10 miles per hour resulted in rotational velocities of 91 and 43 rpm. It was concluded that the model can be used to predict the angular velocity of the vertical turbine system. 13 refs., 11 figs

  6. Feasibility study of using agriculture waste as desiccant for air conditioning system

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Khedari, J.; Rawangkul, R.; Hirunlabh, J. [King Mongkut' s University of Technology Thonburi, Bangkok (Thailand). Buidling Scientific Research Center; Chimchavee, W. [University of Thai Chamber of Commerce, Bangkok (Thailand); Watanasungsuit, A. [South East Asia Univ., Bangkok (Thailand). Engineering Management

    2003-08-01

    This research was aimed at investigating the feasibility of using dried agricultural waste as desiccant for an open cycle air conditioning system. The natural fibers are, therefore, intended to replace chemical desiccant such as silica gel, molecular sieves etc. The investigation was limited to Coconut coir (Cocos nucifera) and Durian peels (Durio zibethinus). Experimental results confirmed that dry coconut coir and durian peel can absorb 30 g and 17 g H{sub 2}O per 100 g dry product, respectively, from air at the average condition of 32{sup o}C and 75% relative humidity. The optimum airflow rate is about 84 and 98 m{sup 3}/hr-100 g dry product, respectively. Therefore, the dry coconut coir is more suitable than the dry durian peel. Comparison between the dry coconut coir and silica gel showed that the average adsorption rate of coconut coir is less than that of silica gel by about 5 g/h-100 g dry product at an airflow rate of 84 m{sup 3}/h and 60 min operating time. However, it is still an interesting option to replace silica gel in open cycle air conditioning system, as the decrease of average adsorption rate is rather small. The other extremely interesting advantage of coconut coir is that during moisture absorption the heat generated during the process is less important. That means the air leaves the coconut coir bed at a lower temperature compared to that with a silica gel. Therefore, the saving of cooling energy is much more important. (Author)

  7. Effect of UVC Radiation on Hydrated and Desiccated Cultures of Slightly Halophilic and Non-Halophilic Methanogenic Archaea: Implications for Life on Mars.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sinha, Navita; Kral, Timothy A

    2018-05-12

    Methanogens have been considered models for life on Mars for many years. In order to survive any exposure at the surface of Mars, methanogens would have to endure Martian UVC radiation. In this research, we irradiated hydrated and desiccated cultures of slightly halophilic Methanococcus maripaludis and non-halophilic Methanobacterium formicicum for various time intervals with UVC (254 nm) radiation. The survivability of the methanogens was determined by measuring methane concentrations in the headspace gas samples of culture tubes after re-inoculation of the methanogens into their growth-supporting media following exposure to UVC radiation. Hydrated M. maripaludis survived 24 h of UVC exposure, while in a desiccated condition they endured for 16 h. M. formicicum also survived UVC radiation for 24 h in a liquid state; however, in a desiccated condition, the survivability of M. formicicum was only 12 h. Some of the components of the growth media could have served as shielding agents that protected cells from damage caused by exposure to ultraviolet radiation. Overall, these results suggest that limited exposure (12⁻24 h) to UVC radiation on the surface of Mars would not necessarily be a limiting factor for the survivability of M. maripaludis and M. formicicum .

  8. Experimental investigation of a novel configuration of desiccant based evaporative air conditioning system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Uçkan, İrfan; Yılmaz, Tuncay; Hürdoğan, Ertaç; Büyükalaca, Orhan

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: ► A novel desiccant based evaporative cooling system is developed and tested. ► Cooling capacity, COP and energy consumption of the system are evaluated. ► Indoor air conditions are in the range of thermal comfort zone and expanded comfort zone. ► Designing of the system have considerable effect on the energy consumption. - Abstract: A novel configuration of desiccant based evaporative cooling system for air conditioning application is developed and tested. At the beginning of the design stage of the system, an analysis is carried out in order to maximize the performance of the system. It is found based on configuration that outdoor air must be used for regeneration to increase performance of the system and so three air channels are used. Experiments are carried out to investigate the total performance of the system and performance of the components used during summer season in a hot and humid climate. Effectiveness values for both heat exchangers and evaporative coolers are calculated through this work. In addition to the cooling capacity, coefficient of performance (COP) and energy consumption of the system are also evaluated. Results show that the effectiveness for the heat exchangers and evaporative coolers are very high under different outdoor conditions. It is also shown from the results that indoor air conditions are in the range of thermal comfort zone defined by ASHRAE and expanded comfort zone for evaporative air conditioning applications.

  9. The corticotropin-releasing factor-like diuretic hormone 44 (DH44) and kinin neuropeptides modulate desiccation and starvation tolerance in Drosophila melanogaster.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cannell, Elizabeth; Dornan, Anthony J; Halberg, Kenneth A; Terhzaz, Selim; Dow, Julian A T; Davies, Shireen-A

    2016-06-01

    Malpighian tubules are critical organs for epithelial fluid transport and stress tolerance in insects, and are under neuroendocrine control by multiple neuropeptides secreted by identified neurons. Here, we demonstrate roles for CRF-like diuretic hormone 44 (DH44) and Drosophila melanogaster kinin (Drome-kinin, DK) in desiccation and starvation tolerance. Gene expression and labelled DH44 ligand binding data, as well as highly selective knockdowns and/or neuronal ablations of DH44 in neurons of the pars intercerebralis and DH44 receptor (DH44-R2) in Malpighian tubule principal cells, indicate that suppression of DH44 signalling improves desiccation tolerance of the intact fly. Drome-kinin receptor, encoded by the leucokinin receptor gene, LKR, is expressed in DH44 neurons as well as in stellate cells of the Malpighian tubules. LKR knockdown in DH44-expressing neurons reduces Malpighian tubule-specific LKR, suggesting interactions between DH44 and LK signalling pathways. Finally, although a role for DK in desiccation tolerance was not defined, we demonstrate a novel role for Malpighian tubule cell-specific LKR in starvation tolerance. Starvation increases gene expression of epithelial LKR. Also, Malpighian tubule stellate cell-specific knockdown of LKR significantly reduced starvation tolerance, demonstrating a role for neuropeptide signalling during starvation stress. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. Performance Assessment of a Solar-Assisted Desiccant-Based Air Handling Unit Considering Different Scenarios

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Giovanni Angrisani

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, three alternative layouts (scenarios of an innovative solar-assisted hybrid desiccant-based air handling unit (AHU are investigated through dynamic simulations. Performance is evaluated with respect to a reference system and compared to those of the innovative plant without modifications. For each scenario, different collector types, surfaces and tilt angles are considered. The effect of the solar thermal energy surplus exploitation for other low-temperature uses is also investigated. The first alternative scenario consists of the recovery of the heat rejected by the condenser of the chiller to pre-heat the regeneration air. The second scenario considers the pre-heating of regeneration air with the warmer regeneration air exiting the desiccant wheel (DW. The last scenario provides pre-cooling of the process air before entering the DW. Results reveal that the plants with evacuated solar collectors (SC can ensure primary energy savings (15%–24% and avoid equivalent CO2 emissions (14%–22%, about 10 percentage points more than those with flat-plate collectors, when the solar thermal energy is used only for air conditioning and the collectors have the best tilt angle. If all of the solar thermal energy is considered, the best results with evacuated tube collectors are approximately 73% in terms of primary energy saving, 71% in terms of avoided equivalent CO2 emissions and a payback period of six years.

  11. Desiccant wheel thermal performance modeling for indoor humidity optimal control

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, Nan; Zhang, Jiangfeng; Xia, Xiaohua

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • An optimal humidity control model is formulated to control the indoor humidity. • MPC strategy is used to implement the optimal operation solution. • Practical applications of the MPC strategy is illustrated by the case study. - Abstract: Thermal comfort is an important concern in the energy efficiency improvement of commercial buildings. Thermal comfort research focuses mostly on temperature control, but humidity control is an important aspect to maintain indoor comfort too. In this paper, an optimal humidity control model (OHCM) is presented. Model predictive control (MPC) strategy is applied to implement the optimal operation of the desiccant wheel during working hours of a commercial building. The OHCM is revised to apply the MPC strategy. A case is studied to illustrate the practical applications of the MPC strategy

  12. Desiccation effects on germination and vigor of King palm seeds

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Martins Cibele C.

    2003-01-01

    Full Text Available The desiccation tolerance of Archontophoenix alexandrae (Wendl. & Drude seeds was determined and the most sensitive vigor test for assessing seed deterioration of this species was identified. Mature fruits were harvested in the palm collection of the Instituto Agronomico in Campinas, Brazil. Depulped fruits were transported in impermeable packages to the Faculdade de Agronomia in Botucatu, where the seeds were dried. As the seed moisture decreased, germination, seedling length, electrical conductivity and moisture were measured. The seeds of A. alexandrae are recalcitrant, with high germination percentage (over 67% when undried (47% seed moisture. Lowering seed moisture below 31.5% reduced the germination rate significantly (<52.5%. Total germination failure was observed when seed moisture reached 15.1%. The electrical conductivity was the most sensitive vigor test to identify seed deterioration.

  13. Effects of dust accumulation and module cleaning on performance ratio of solar rooftop system and solar power plants

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sakarapunthip, Nattakarn; Chenvidhya, Dhirayut; Chuangchote, Surawut; Kirtikara, Krissanapong; Chenvidhya, Tanokkorn; Onreabroy, Wandee

    2017-08-01

    Thailand is an agricultural country, with rice, sugar, and cassava as the major export products. Production of rice, sugar cane, and cassava entails agricultural activities that give rise to significant airborne dusts. In this work, five photovoltaic (PV) units (one solar rooftop and four power plants) are selected for the study. From the study of dust accumulation on glass surface located near rice farms, it was found that opaque areas due to the deposition of dust are 11-14% after 1-2-week exposure. As a consequence, PV system performance is affected. Performance ratio was calculated to determine these effects. Overall results reveal that during the dry and hot seasons, dust deposition significantly affects the performance ratio. The performance ratio reduces by 1.6-3% for 1-month dust accumulation and reduces by 6-8% for 2-month dust accumulation. After cleaning the dust accumulated, the performance ratio greatly increases, resulting in the increase in the energy output by 10%. This increase provides economic and cost benefits of PV cleaning. The performance ratio is not significantly changed during the rainy season, which PV modules are relatively clean as the dust is washed away by rain. It was also found that most of the solar power plants in Thailand still rely on manual cleaning of PV modules with washing water followed by wiping. However, only one power plant, employs a machine for cleaning, resulting in lower cleaning costs.

  14. In situ response of Nostoc commune s.l. colonies to desiccation in Central Svalbard, Norwegian High Arctic

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Kvíderová, Jana; Elster, Josef; Šimek, Miloslav

    2011-01-01

    Roč. 11, č. 1 (2011), s. 87-97 ISSN 1802-5439 R&D Projects: GA MŠk ME 934; GA MŠk LA341; GA MŠk LC06066; GA AV ČR IAA600660605 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z60050516; CEZ:AV0Z60660521 Keywords : desiccation * cyanobacteria * Arctic Subject RIV: EF - Botanics Impact factor: 1.327, year: 2011

  15. Energy savings potential of a hybrid desiccant dehumidification air conditioning system in Beirut

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ghali, Kamel

    2008-01-01

    In this work, the transient performance of a hybrid desiccant vapor compression air conditioning system is numerically simulated for the ambient conditions of Beirut. The main feature of this hybrid system is that the regenerative heat needed by the desiccant wheel is partly supplied by the condenser dissipated heat while the rest is supplied by an auxiliary gas heater. The hybrid air conditioning system of the present study replaces a 23 kW vapor compression unit for a typical office in Beirut characterized by a high latent load. The vapor compression subsystem size in the hybrid air conditioning system is reduced to 15 kW at the peak load when the regeneration temperature was fixed at 75 deg. C. Also the sensible heat ratio of the combined hybrid system increased from 0.47 to 0.73. Based on hour by hour simulation studies for a wide range of recorded ambient conditions of Beirut city, this paper predicts the annual energy consumption of the hybrid system in comparison with the conventional vapor compression system for the entire cooling season. The annual running costs savings for the hybrid system is 418.39 USD for a gas cost price of 0.141 USD/kg. The pay back period of the hybrid system is less than five years when the initial cost of the hybrid air conditioning system priced an additional 1712.00 USD. Hence, for a 20-year life cycle, the life cycle savings of the hybrid air conditioning system are 4295.19 USD

  16. Use of dehumidifiers in desiccant cooling and dehumidification systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Van den Bulck, E.; Mitchell, J.W.; Klein, S.A.

    1986-01-01

    The use of rotary dehumidifiers in gas-fired open-cycle desiccant cooling systems is investigated by analyzing the performance of the rotary heat exchanger-rotary dehumidifier subsystem. For a given cooling load, the required regeneration heat supply can be minimized by choosing appropriate values for the regeneration air mass flow rate and the wheel rotation speed. A map is presented showing optimal values for rotational speed and regeneration flow rate as functions of the regeneration air inlet temperature and the process air inlet humidity ratio. This regeneration temperature is further optimized as a function of the process humidity ratio. In the analysis, the control strategy adjusts the process air mass flow rate to provide the required cooling load. Additional control options are considered and the sensitivity of the regeneration heat required to the wheel speed, regeneration air mass flow rate, and inlet temperature is discussed. Experimental data reported in the literature are compared with the analytical results and indicate good agreement

  17. Desiccated coconut industry of Sri Lanka: opportunities for energy efficiency and environmental protection

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kumar, S.; Senanayake, G.; Visvanathan, C.; Basu, B.

    2003-01-01

    The desiccated coconut (DC) industry is one of the major export oriented food processing industries in Sri Lanka. This paper discusses the production processes, types of fuel used, energy use pattern and the overall specific thermal and electrical energy consumption in the DC sector. An analysis of the energy use highlights the inefficient processes and the key energy loss areas. Options for energy conservation in the DC mills have been discussed, and carbon dioxide emissions from this sector and its mitigation potential are estimated. Other options to improve efficiency and reduce other pollution and policy aspects have been presented

  18. Feasibility and economic analysis of solid desiccant wheel used for dehumidification and preheating in blast furnace: A case study of steel plant, Nanjing, China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Guan, Yipeng; Zhang, Yufeng; Sheng, Ying; Kong, Xiangrui; Du, Song

    2015-01-01

    To overcome the shortcomings of huge energy consumption from conventional dehumidification using lithium bromide adsorption refrigerating (LBARD) system, a novel desiccant wheel dehumidification and preheating (DWDP) system using two-stage desiccant wheel for blast furnace is brought forward. The DWDP system was designed for dehumidification and preheating in blast furnace of steel plant. It takes waste heat in the slag flushing water as desiccant regeneration and preheating energy. To validate the feasibility of the new DWDP system, experimental studies were conducted based on a steel plant in Nanjing, China. The experiment was designed to use DWDP system in humid outdoor climates e.g. summer seasons. The experimental results indicate that the moisture removal capacity of DWDP system can reach 8.7 g/kg which will lead to the improvement of steel production by 0.9% and the coal is saved of about 2100 tons per year. With the DWDP system, the energy consumed by cooling tower of slag flushing water can decrease 7.3%. All of these energy saved equates to 10.3 million CNY annually. A comparison of initial investment and operating cost between DWDP system and LBRAD system was then carried out. The results show that the initial investment and operating cost of DWDP system is 37% and 57% of present LBARD system, and the payback period is shortened 66%. - Highlights: • A novel two-stage desiccant wheel dehumidification system for blast furnace is proposed. • Average moisture removal of 8.7 g/kg is achieved and dehumidification efficiency is 47%. • Outlet humidity ratio is less than 10 g/kg that satisfies the requirement of blast air. • Waste heat in slag flushing water is utilized and 61.4 million kJ is saved annually. • The investment and operating cost is 37% and 57% of former dehumidification system

  19. Rooftop greenhouses in educational centers: A sustainability assessment of urban agriculture in compact cities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nadal, Ana; Pons, Oriol; Cuerva, Eva; Rieradevall, Joan; Josa, Alejandro

    2018-06-01

    Today, urban agriculture is one of the most widely used sustainability strategies to improve the metabolism of a city. Schools can play an important role in the implementation of sustainability master plans, due their socio-educational activities and their cohesive links with families; all key elements in the development of urban agriculture. Thus, the main objective of this research is to develop a procedure, in compact cities, to assess the potential installation of rooftop greenhouses (RTGs) in schools. The generation of a dynamic assessment tool capable of identifying and prioritizing schools with a high potential for RTGs and their eventual implementation would also represent a significant factor in the environmental, social, and nutritional education of younger generations. The methodology has four-stages (Pre-selection criteria; Selection of necessities; Sustainability analysis; and Sensitivity analysis and selection of the best alternative) in which economic, environmental, social and governance aspects all are considered. It makes use of Multi-Attribute Utility Theory and Multi-Criteria Decision Making, through the Integrated Value Model for Sustainability Assessments and the participation of two panels of multidisciplinary specialists, for the preparation of a unified sustainability index that guarantees the objectivity of the selection process. This methodology has been applied and validated in a case study of 11 schools in Barcelona (Spain). The social perspective of the proposed methodology favored the school in the case-study with the most staff and the largest parent-teacher association (social and governance indicators) that obtained the highest sustainability index (S11); at a considerable distance (45%) from the worst case (S3) with fewer school staff and parental support. Finally, objective decisions may be taken with the assistance of this appropriate, adaptable, and reliable Multi-Criteria Decision-Making tool on the vertical integration and

  20. Disinfestation of copra, desiccated coconut and coffee beans by gamma radiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Manato, E.C.

    1987-08-01

    Nine insect pests were found associated with copra of which copra beetle, Necrobia rufipes, saw-toothed grain beetle, Oryzaephilus surinamensis, red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum, cigarette beetle, Lasioderma serricorne and tropical warehouse moth, Ephestia cautella were found feeding on this food. While feeding on different coffee beans, coffee bean weevil, Araecerus fasciculatus De Geer showed preference on Arabica, Liberica and Excelsa but not in Robusta coffee beans. For mass rearing, the most suitable medium for copra beetle was desiccated coconut + yeast (2:1) and for coffee bean beetle, it was dried cassava chips + yeast (3:1). The life cycles completed in these food media were 43 to 60 and 42 to 56 days by copra beetle and coffee bean weevil respectively. Irradiation studies on these 2 species of insects showed that the eggs were most sensitive followed by larvae and pupae. A dose of 0.05 kGy prevented adult emergence from irradiated eggs and younger larvae, while doses of 0.10 to 0.25 kGy effected the survival of emerged adults. However, a dose of 0.50 kGy would be effective for the disinfestation of small packages (i.e. 0.25 to 0.50 kg in each) of copra or coffee beans initially infested with immature stages of beetles and weevils respectively. Packaging of irradiated commodities in polypropylene bags particularly those impregnated with permethrin prevented reinfestation by the insect pests. Toxic residues of permethrin in the prolypropylene film resulted in high mortality thereby preventing insect penetration of the packaging materials. Both copra beetles and coffee bean weevils were rather good invaders than penetrators as these species entered into the packages readily through existing openings in jute sack, woven polypropylene sack or flour bag. Organoleptic tests showed no change in aroma, flavour and general acceptability of irradiated coffee beans. In microbial studies it was observed that a dose of 0.6 kGy would eliminate Salmonella

  1. The D. melanogaster capa-1 neuropeptide activates renal NF-kB signaling.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Terhzaz, Selim; Overend, Gayle; Sebastian, Sujith; Dow, Julian A T; Davies, Shireen-A

    2014-03-01

    The capa peptide family exists in a very wide range of insects including species of medical, veterinary and agricultural importance. Capa peptides act via a cognate G-protein coupled receptor (capaR) and have a diuretic action on the Malpighian tubules of Dipteran and Lepidopteran species. Capa signaling is critical for fluid homeostasis and has been associated with desiccation tolerance in the fly, Drosophila melanogaster. The mode of capa signaling is highly complex, affecting calcium, nitric oxide and cyclic GMP pathways. Such complex physiological regulation by cell signaling pathways may occur ultimately for optimal organismal stress tolerance to multiple stressors. Here we show that D. melanogaster capa-1 (Drome-capa-1) acts via the Nuclear Factor kappa B (NF-kB) stress signaling network. Human PCR gene arrays of capaR-transfected Human Embryonic Kidney (HEK) 293 cells showed that Drome-capa-1 increases expression of NF-kB, NF-kB regulated genes including IL8, TNF and PTGS2, and NF-kB pathway-associated transcription factors i.e. EGR1, FOS, cJUN. Furthermore, desiccated HEK293 cells show increased EGR1, EGR3 and PTGS2 - but not IL8, expression. CapaR-transfected NF-kB reporter cells showed that Drome-capa-1 increased NF-kB promoter activity via increased calcium. In Malpighian tubules, both Drome-capa-1 stimulation and desiccation result in increased gene expression of the D. melanogaster NF-kB orthologue, Relish; as well as EGR-like stripe and klumpfuss. Drome-capa-1 also induces Relish translocation in tubule principal cells. Targeted knockdown of Relish in only tubule principal cells reduces desiccation stress tolerance of adult flies. Together, these data suggest that Drome-capa-1 acts in desiccation stress tolerance, by activating NF-kB signaling. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Galacto-oligosaccharides and lactulose as protectants against desiccation of Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulcaricus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Santos, Mauricio I; Araujo-Andrade, Cuauhtémoc; Esparza-Ibarra, Edgar; Tymczyszyn, Elizabeth; Gómez-Zavaglia, Andrea

    2014-01-01

    Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus CIDCA 333 was dehydrated on desiccators containing silica gel in the presence of 20% w/w of two types of galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS Biotempo and GOS Cup Oligo H-70®) and lactulose, until no changes in water desorption were detected. After rehydration, bacterial growth was monitored at 37°C by determining: (a) the absorbance at 600 nm and (b) the near infrared spectra (NIR). Principal component analysis (PCA) was then performed on the NIR spectra of samples dehydrated in all conditions. A multiparametric flow cytometry assay was carried out using carboxyfluorescein diacetate and propidium iodide probes to determine the relative composition of damaged, viable, and dead bacteria throughout the growth kinetics. The absorbance at 600 nm and the position of the second derivative band at ∼1370 nm were plotted against the time of incubation. The efficiency of the protectants was GOS Biotempo > GOS Cup Oligo H-70®  > lactulose. The better protectant capacity of GOS Biotempo was explained on the basis of the lower contribution of damaged cells immediately after rehydration (t = 0). PCA showed three groups along PC1, corresponding to the lag, exponential and stationary phases of growth, which explained 99% of the total variance. Along PC2, two groups were observed, corresponding to damaged or viable cells. The results obtained support the use of NIR to monitor the recovery of desiccated microorganisms in real time and without the need of chemical reagents. The use of GOS and lactulose as protectants in dehydration/rehydration processes was also supported. © 2014 American Institute of Chemical Engineers.

  3. Analysis of a solid desiccant cooling system with indirect evaporative cooling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bellemo, Lorenzo

    investigates the performance of a solid desiccant cooling system implementing in-direct evaporative cooling processes. The aim is to quantify the system thermal and electrical performance for varying component dimensions and operating conditions, and to identify its range of applicability. This information...... evaporative cooler. Detailed steady state numerical models are developed and implemented in MATLAB. The models need to be accurate and require low computational effort, for analysing the internal heat and mass transfer processes, as well as carrying out repetitive design and optimization simulations......-to-air heat exchanger for enhancing cooling capacity and thermal performance. The system perfor-mance is investigated considering regeneration temperatures between 50 ºC and 90 ºC, which enable low temperature heat sources, such as solar energy or waste heat, to be used. The effects of several geometrical...

  4. Ancient symbiosis confers desiccation resistance to stored grain pest beetles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Engl, Tobias; Eberl, Nadia; Gorse, Carla; Krüger, Theresa; Schmidt, Thorsten H P; Plarre, Rudy; Adler, Cornel; Kaltenpoth, Martin

    2017-11-08

    Microbial symbionts of insects provide a range of ecological traits to their hosts that are beneficial in the context of biotic interactions. However, little is known about insect symbiont-mediated adaptation to the abiotic environment, for example, temperature and humidity. Here, we report on an ancient clade of intracellular, bacteriome-located Bacteroidetes symbionts that are associated with grain and wood pest beetles of the phylogenetically distant families Silvanidae and Bostrichidae. In the saw-toothed grain beetle Oryzaephilus surinamensis, we demonstrate that the symbionts affect cuticle thickness, melanization and hydrocarbon profile, enhancing desiccation resistance and thereby strongly improving fitness under dry conditions. Together with earlier observations on symbiont contributions to cuticle biosynthesis in weevils, our findings indicate that convergent acquisitions of bacterial mutualists represented key adaptations enabling diverse pest beetle groups to survive and proliferate under the low ambient humidity that characterizes dry grain storage facilities. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  5. Solar Energy Potential Assessment on Rooftops and Facades in Large Built Environments Based on LiDAR Data, Image Processing, and Cloud Computing. Methodological Background, Application, and Validation in Geneva (Solar Cadaster

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gilles Desthieux

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available The paper presents the core methodology for assessing solar radiation and energy production on building rooftops and vertical facades (still rarely considered of the inner-city. This integrated tool is based on the use of LiDAR, 2D and 3D cadastral data. Together with solar radiation and astronomical models, it calculates the global irradiance for a set of points located on roofs, ground, and facades. Although the tool takes simultaneously roofs, ground, and facades, different methods of shadow casting are applied. Shadow casting on rooftops is based on image processing techniques. On the other hand, the assessment on facade involves first to create and interpolate points along the facades and then to implement a point-by-point shadow casting routine. The paper is structured in five parts: (i state of the art on the use of 3D GIS and automated processes in assessing solar radiation in the built environment, (ii overview on the methodological framework used in the paper, (iii detailed presentation of the method proposed for solar modeling and shadow casting, in particular by introducing an innovative approach for modeling the sky view factor (SVF, (iv demonstration of the solar model introduced in this paper through applications in Geneva’s building roofs (solar cadaster and facades, (v validation of the solar model in some Geneva’s spots, focusing especially on two distinct comparisons: solar model versus fisheye catchments on partially inclined surfaces (roof component; solar model versus photovoltaic simulation tool PVSyst on vertical surfaces (facades. Concerning the roof component, validation results emphasize global sensitivity related to the density of light sources on the sky vault to model the SVF. The low dense sky model with 145 light sources gives satisfying results, especially when processing solar cadasters in large urban areas, thus allowing to save computation time. In the case of building facades, introducing weighting factor

  6. Recurrence and frequency of disturbance have cumulative effect on methanotrophic activity, abundance, and community structure.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adrian eHo

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Alternate prolonged drought and heavy rainfall is predicted to intensify with global warming. Desiccation-rewetting events alter the soil quality and nutrient concentrations which drive microbial-mediated processes, including methane oxidation, a key biogeochemical process catalyzed by methanotrophic bacteria. Although aerobic methanotrophs showed remarkable resilience to a suite of physical disturbances induced as a single event, their resilience to recurring disturbances is less known. Here, using a rice field soil in a microcosm study, we determined whether recurrence and frequency of desiccation-rewetting impose an accumulating effect on the methanotrophic activity. The response of key aerobic methanotroph subgroups (type Ia, Ib, and II were monitored using qPCR assays, and was supported by a t-RFLP analysis. The methanotrophic activity was resilient to recurring desiccation-rewetting, but increasing the frequency of the disturbance by two-fold significantly decreased methane uptake rate. Both the qPCR and t-RFLP analyses were congruent, showing the dominance of type Ia/Ib methanotrophs prior to disturbance, and after disturbance, the recovering community was predominantly comprised of type Ia (Methylobacter methanotrophs. Both type Ib and type II (Methylosinus/Methylocystis methanotrophs were adversely affected by the disturbance, but type II methanotrophs showed recovery over time, indicating relatively higher resilience to the disturbance. This revealed distinct, yet unrecognized traits among the methanotroph community members. Our results show that recurring desiccation-rewetting before a recovery in community abundance had an accumulated effect, compromising methanotrophic activity. While methanotrophs may recover well following sporadic disturbances, their resilience may reach a ‘tipping point’ where activity no longer recovered if disturbance persists and increase in frequency.

  7. Improving La0.6Sr0.4Co0.8Fe0.2O3-δ infiltrated solid oxide fuel cell cathode performance through precursor solution desiccation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burye, Theodore E.; Nicholas, Jason D.

    2015-02-01

    Here, for the first time, the average size of solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) electrode nano-particles was reduced through the chemical desiccation of infiltrated precursor nitrate solutions. Specifically, after firing at 700 °C, CaCl2-desiccated La0.6Sr0.4Co0.8Fe0.2O3-δ (LSCF) - Ce0.9Gd0.1O1.95 (GDC) cathodes contained LSCF infiltrate particles with an average size of 22 nm. This is in contrast to comparable, undesiccated LSCF-GDC cathodes which contained LSCF infiltrate particles with an average size of 48 nm. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and controlled atmosphere electrochemical impedance spectroscopy revealed that desiccation reduced the average infiltrate particle size without altering the infiltrate phase purity, the cathode concentration polarization resistance, or the cathode electronic resistance. Compared to undesiccated LSCF-GDC cathodes achieving polarization resistances of 0.10 Ωcm2 at 640 °C, comparable CaCl2-dessicated LSCF-GDC cathodes achieved 0.10 Ωcm2 at 575 °C. Mathematical modeling suggested that these performance improvements resulted solely from average infiltrate particle size reductions.

  8. Experimental study on solar desiccant cooling system. 2nd Report; Taiyonetsu kudo desiccant cooling system no jikkenteki kento. 2

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tanaka, H; Funato, H [Fukuoka Institute of Technology, Fukuoka (Japan); Kuma, T [Seibu Giken Co. Ltd., Fukuoka (Japan)

    1996-10-27

    Study has been made about a desiccant cleaning system using solar heated water for regenerating the dehumidifier. A dehumidifier and evaporation coolers are combined to attain a synergistic effect in dehumidifying and cooling the air in the house. The simultaneous control of humidity and temperature, however, is quite difficult. Under the circumstances, an evaporation cooler was removed from the outdoor air intake side, to leave a humidifier alone for the control of humidity only. In addition, the length of the dehumidifier was reduced into half for saving fan driving power and for downscaling the model. With only one evaporation cooler in operation that is installed at the exhaust side, the cooling effect is diminished by half. For dealing with the situation, ultrasonic atomization is performed at the exhaust side evaporation cooler for the improvement of the air cooling effect for the next sensible heat exchanger (intake side). The return air is heated by the solar heater water (approximately 60{degree}C hot), regenerates the dehumidifier, and then exhausted. The atomization process elevates the cooling effect, and the resultant cooling effect was as high as that expected from a 2-cooler setup. The dehumidification effect, however, lowers a little. Exclusion of the atomization process will enhance the dehumidification effect, but will reduce the cooling effect as well. 3 refs., 8 figs., 3 tabs.

  9. Performance of mycological media in enumerating desiccated food spoilage yeasts: an interlaboratory study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beuchat, L R; Frandberg, E; Deak, T; Alzamora, S M; Chen, J; Guerrero, A S; López-Malo, A; Ohlsson, I; Olsen, M; Peinado, J M; Schnurer, J; de Siloniz, M I; Tornai-Lehoczki, J

    2001-10-22

    Dichloran 18% glycerol agar (DG18) was originally formulated to enumerate nonfastidious xerophilic moulds in foods containing rapidly growing Eurotium species. Some laboratories are now using DG18 as a general purpose medium for enumerating yeasts and moulds, although its performance in recovering yeasts from dry foods has not been evaluated. An interlaboratory study compared DG18 with dichloran rose bengal chloramphenicol agar (DRBC), plate count agar supplemented with chloramphenicol (PCAC), tryptone glucose yeast extract chloramphenicol agar (TGYC), acidified potato dextrose agar (APDA), and orange serum agar (OSA) for their suitability to enumerate 14 species of lyophilized yeasts. The coefficient of variation for among-laboratories repeatability within yeast was 1.39% and reproducibility of counts among laboratories was 7.1%. The order of performance of media for recovering yeasts was TGYC > PCAC = OSA > APDA > DRBC > DG 18. A second study was done to determine the combined effects of storage time and temperature on viability of yeasts and suitability of media for recovery. Higher viability was retained at -18 degrees C than at 5 degrees C or 25 degrees C for up to 42 weeks, although the difference in mean counts of yeasts stored at -18 degrees C and 25 degrees C was only 0.78 log10 cfu/ml of rehydrated suspension. TGYC was equal to PCAC and superior to the other four media in recovering yeasts stored at -18 degrees C, 5 degrees C, or 25 degrees C for up to 42 weeks. Results from both the interlaboratory study and the storage study support the use of TGYC for enumerating desiccated yeasts. DG18 is not recommended as a general purpose medium for recovering yeasts from a desiccated condition.

  10. Response of Methanogenic Microbial Communities to Desiccation Stress in Flooded and Rain-Fed Paddy Soil from Thailand

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andreas Reim

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available Rice paddies in central Thailand are flooded either by irrigation (irrigated rice or by rain (rain-fed rice. The paddy soils and their microbial communities thus experience permanent or arbitrary submergence, respectively. Since methane production depends on anaerobic conditions, we hypothesized that structure and function of the methanogenic microbial communities are different in irrigated and rain-fed paddies and react differently upon desiccation stress. We determined rates and relative proportions of hydrogenotrophic and aceticlastic methanogenesis before and after short-term drying of soil samples from replicate fields. The methanogenic pathway was determined by analyzing concentrations and δ13C of organic carbon and of CH4 and CO2 produced in the presence and absence of methyl fluoride, an inhibitor of aceticlastic methanogenesis. We also determined the abundance (qPCR of genes and transcripts of bacterial 16S rRNA, archaeal 16S rRNA and methanogenic mcrA (coding for a subunit of the methyl coenzyme M reductase and the composition of these microbial communities by T-RFLP fingerprinting and/or Illumina deep sequencing. The abundances of genes and transcripts were similar in irrigated and rain-fed paddy soil. They also did not change much upon desiccation and rewetting, except the transcripts of mcrA, which increased by more than two orders of magnitude. In parallel, rates of CH4 production also increased, in rain-fed soil more than in irrigated soil. The contribution of hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis increased in rain-fed soil and became similar to that in irrigated soil. However, the relative microbial community composition on higher taxonomic levels was similar between irrigated and rain-fed soil. On the other hand, desiccation and subsequent anaerobic reincubation resulted in systematic changes in the composition of microbial communities for both Archaea and Bacteria. It is noteworthy that differences in the community composition were

  11. Regeneration characteristics of desiccant rotor with microwave and hot-air heating

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kubota, Mitsuhiro; Hanada, Takuya; Yabe, Satoshi; Matsuda, Hitoki

    2013-01-01

    Microwave heating, because of its advantages of direct and rapid heating of materials, has the potential to be employed as a novel regeneration method of desiccant rotors in humidity conditioners. We proposed a combined regeneration process, which combines microwave heating and conventional hot-air heating. The system is expected to achieve high heating rate during an initial regeneration period by assisting water desorption using the additional energy of the microwave. In this study, the regeneration characteristics of a desiccant rotor were experimentally investigated under conditions of microwave heating, hot-air heating, and combined heating at various microwave powers and hot-air temperatures. The effectiveness of the combined regeneration was evaluated in terms of the regeneration ratio, the initial regeneration rate, the temperature distribution in the rotor, and finally in terms of the energy consumption. It was demonstrated that combined heating was effective at leveling non-uniform temperature distribution in the rotor. Combined heating achieved higher ratios and initial rates in regeneration compared to just microwave and hot-air heating. This result was obviously attributed to the additional input of microwave energy, resulting that average rotor temperature increased by microwave absorption of rotor. Moreover, it was also effective for enhancement of regeneration to level the temperature distribution in the rotor by combination of two heating methods with different heating mechanisms. Both the initial regeneration rate and the equilibrium regeneration ratio for combined heating were found to increase as the microwave power increased. A linear relationship was observed with respect to microwave power. From the viewpoint of energy consumption, it may be possible to apply combined and microwave heating to humidity control systems that switch between adsorption and regeneration in short cycle times, if the conversion and absorption efficiencies of the

  12. Bacterial community composition and extracellular enzyme activity in temperate streambed sediment during drying and rewetting.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elisabeth Pohlon

    Full Text Available Droughts are among the most important disturbance events for stream ecosystems; they not only affect stream hydrology but also the stream biota. Although desiccation of streams is common in Mediterranean regions, phases of dryness in headwaters have been observed more often and for longer periods in extended temperate regions, including Central Europe, reflecting global climate change and enhanced water withdrawal. The effects of desiccation and rewetting on the bacterial community composition and extracellular enzyme activity, a key process in the carbon flow of streams and rivers, were investigated in a typical Central European stream, the Breitenbach (Hesse, Germany. Wet streambed sediment is an important habitat in streams. It was sampled and exposed in the laboratory to different drying scenarios (fast, intermediate, slow for 13 weeks, followed by rewetting of the sediment from the fast drying scenario via a sediment core perfusion technique for 2 weeks. Bacterial community structure was analyzed using CARD-FISH and TGGE, and extracellular enzyme activity was assessed using fluorogenic model substrates. During desiccation the bacterial community composition shifted toward composition in soil, exhibiting increasing proportions of Actinobacteria and Alphaproteobacteria and decreasing proportions of Bacteroidetes and Betaproteobacteria. Simultaneously the activities of extracellular enzymes decreased, most pronounced with aminopeptidases and less pronounced with enzymes involved in the degradation of polymeric carbohydrates. After rewetting, the general ecosystem functioning, with respect to extracellular enzyme activity, recovered after 10 to 14 days. However, the bacterial community composition had not yet achieved its original composition as in unaffected sediments within this time. Thus, whether the bacterial community eventually recovers completely after these events remains unknown. Perhaps this community undergoes permanent changes

  13. Seedling survival of Handroanthus impetiginosus (Mart ex DC Mattos in a semi-arid environment through modified germination speed and post-germination desiccation tolerance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. R. Martins

    Full Text Available Abstract Uniform rapid seed germination generally forms a great risk for the plant population if subsequent intermittent precipitation causes desiccation and seedling death. Handroanthus impetiginosus can be found commonly in a wide range of biomes within Brazil including those that are semi-arid. Germination and early growth was studied to understand how germinated seeds survive under these stringent conditions. Accessions were sampled from four seasonally dry biomes in Brazil. Precipitation at the start of the rainy season in the Caatinga, a semi-arid biome, is less predictable and the number of successive dry days per dry interval in the first four months of the rainy season was higher than in the other studied biomes. Plants from the Caatinga produced thicker seeds and this trait concurred with slow germination and stronger osmotic inhibition of germination across the accessions, forming a stress avoidance mechanism in the Caatinga. Post-germination desiccation tolerance was high in the Caatinga accession, could be re-induced in accessions from biomes with more regular precipitation (Cerrado and transition zone, but remained poor in the Cerradão accession; thus forming a stress tolerance mechanism. Production of adventitious roots ascertained survival of all tested individuals from all four locations, even if protruded radicles did not survive desiccation, forming an additional stress tolerance mechanism. A sequence of stress avoidance and stress tolerance mechanisms in seeds and germinated seeds was associated with precipitation patterns in different biomes. These mechanisms purportedly allow rapid seedling establishment when conditions are suitable and enable survival of the young seedling when conditions are adverse.

  14. Impact of temporary desiccation on the mobility of nutrients and metals from sediments of Loskop Reservoir, Olifants River

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Dabrowski, J

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available (Crocodylus niloticus) and Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus) were diagnosed with pansteatitis (yellow fat disease; Dabrowski et al., 2013). Pansteatitis was responsible for > 180 crocodile deaths at around the same time downstream... that is rarely exposed to desiccation except in extreme drawdown events. Samples were stored in plastic bags and kept on ice while transported to the laboratory. At the laboratory, replicates were pooled, homogenised and then re-divided to ensure...

  15. Benefits of Group Living Include Increased Feeding Efficiency and Lower Mass Loss during Desiccation in the Social and Inbreeding Spider Stegodyphus dumicola

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vanthournout, Bram; Greve, Michelle; Bruun, Anne; Bechsgaard, Jesper; Overgaard, Johannes; Bilde, Trine

    2016-01-01

    Group living carries a price: it inherently entails increased competition for resources and reproduction, and may also be associated with mating among relatives, which carries costs of inbreeding. Nonetheless, group living and sociality is found in many animals, and understanding the direct and indirect benefits of cooperation that override the inherent costs remains a challenge in evolutionary ecology. Individuals in groups may benefit from more efficient management of energy or water reserves, for example in the form of reduced water or heat loss from groups of animals huddling, or through reduced energy demands afforded by shared participation in tasks. We investigated the putative benefits of group living in the permanently social spider Stegodyphus dumicola by comparing the effect of group size on standard metabolic rate, lipid/protein content as a body condition measure, feeding efficiency, per capita web investment, and weight/water loss and survival during desiccation. Because energetic expenditure is temperature sensitive, some assays were performed under varying temperature conditions. We found that feeding efficiency increased with group size, and the rate of weight loss was higher in solitary individuals than in animals in groups of various sizes during desiccation. Interestingly, this was not translated into differences in survival or in standard metabolic rate. We did not detect any group size effects for other parameters, and group size effects did not co-vary with experimental temperature in a predictive manner. Both feeding efficiency and mass loss during desiccation are relevant ecological factors as the former results in lowered predator exposure time, and the latter benefits social spiders which occupy arid, hot environments. PMID:26869936

  16. Benefits of group living include increased feeding efficiency and lower mass loss during desiccation in the social and inbreeding spider Stegodyphus dumicola.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bram eVanthournout

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Group living carries a price: it inherently entails increased competition for resources and reproduction, and may also be associated with mating among relatives, which carries costs of inbreeding. Nonetheless, group living and sociality is found in many animals, and understanding the direct and indirect benefits of cooperation that override the inherent costs remains a challenge in evolutionary ecology. Individuals in groups may benefit from more efficient management of energy or water reserves, for example in the form of reduced water or heat loss from groups of animals huddling, or through reduced energy demands afforded by shared participation in tasks. We investigated the putative benefits of group living in the permanently social spider Stegodyphus dumicola by comparing the effect of group size on standard metabolic rate, lipid/protein content as a body condition measure, feeding efficiency, per capita web investment and weight/water loss and survival during desiccation. Because energetic expenditure is temperature sensitive, some assays were performed under varying temperature conditions. We found that feeding efficiency increased with group size, and the rate of weight loss was higher in solitary individuals than in animals in groups of various sizes during desiccation. Interestingly, this was not translated into differences in survival or in standard metabolic rate. We did not detect any group size effects for other parameters, and group size effects did not co-vary with experimental temperature in a predictive manner. Both feeding efficiency and mass loss during desiccation are relevant ecological factors as the former results in lowered predator exposure time, and the latter benefits social spiders which occupy arid, hot environments.

  17. Ionizing-radiation resistance in the desiccation-tolerant cyanobacterium Chroococcidiopsis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Billi, D.; Friedmann, E. I.; Hofer, K. G.; Caiola, M. G.; Ocampo-Friedmann, R.

    2000-01-01

    The effect of X-ray irradiation on cell survival, induction, and repair of DNA damage was studied by using 10 Chroococcidiopsis strains isolated from desert and hypersaline environments. After exposure to 2.5 kGy, the percentages of survival for the strains ranged from 80 to 35%. In the four most resistant strains, the levels of survival were reduced by 1 or 2 orders of magnitude after irradiation with 5 kGy; viable cells were recovered after exposure to 15 kGy but not after exposure to 20 kGy. The severe DNA damage evident after exposure to 2.5 kGy was repaired within 3 h, and the severe DNA damage evident after exposure to 5 kGy was repaired within 24 h. The increase in trichloroacetic acid-precipitable radioactivity in the culture supernatant after irradiation with 2.5 kGy might have been due to cell lysis and/or an excision process involved in DNA repair. The radiation resistance of Chroococcidiopsis strains may reflect the ability of these cyanobacteria to survive prolonged desiccation through efficient repair of the DNA damage that accumulates during dehydration.

  18. Desiccation of sludges as instruments for solid radioactive wastes reduction; Planta de desecado de concentrados de evaporador y lodos como instrumento basico para la reduccion de residuos radiactivos solidos

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Perez, C.

    2003-07-01

    In order to maintain as well as possible and optimize use of the radioactive waste storage capacity of El Carbil ENRESA and the Electric Sector put a series of actions into motion in 1994 to reduce and optimize radioactive waste processing. As a result of this strategy, a moist waste desiccation system has been developed with Spanish technology by ENSA. This system was installed in Trillo NPP in 2001 and has operated satisfactorily for the past year, having significantly reduced the volume of waste generated by evaporator concentrates. This article describes the objectives, design and implementation of the desiccation system installed in Trillo NPP. (Author)

  19. Ground penetrating radar and direct current resistivity evaluation of the desiccation test cap, Savannah River Site

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wyatt, D.E.; Cumbest, R.J.

    1996-04-01

    The Savannah River Site (SRS) has a variety of waste units that may be temporarily or permanently stabilized by closure using an impermeable cover to prevent groundwater infiltration. The placement of an engineered kaolin clay layer over a waste unit is an accepted and economical technique for providing an impermeable cover but the long term stability and integrity of the clay in non-arid conditions is unknown. A simulated kaolin cap has been constructed at the SRA adjacent to the Burial Ground Complex. The cap is designed to evaluate the effects of desiccation on clay integrity, therefore half of the cap is covered with native soil to prevent drying, while the remainder of the cap is exposed. Measurements of the continuing impermeability of a clay cap are difficult because intrusive techniques may locally compromise the structure. Point measurements made to evaluate clay integrity, such as those from grid sampling or coring and made through a soil cover, may miss cracks, joints or fissures, and may not allow for mapping of the lateral extent of elongate features. Because of these problems, a non-invasive technique is needed to map clay integrity, below a soil or vegetation cover, which is capable of moderate to rapid investigation speeds. Two non-intrusive geophysical techniques, direct current resistivity and ground penetrating radar (GPR), have been successful at the SRS in geologically mapping shallow subsurface clay layers. The applicability of each technique in detecting the clay layer in the desiccation test cap and associated anomalies was investigated

  20. Energy Output Estimation for a Small Wind Turbine Positioned on a Rooftop in the Urban Environment with and without a Duct

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Beller, Christina

    , the free standing turbines had an energy potential of 300kWh/m2/a for the horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) and for the vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT) 180kWh/m2/a. For the ducted turbines an energy output of 180kWh/m2/a was found for the HAWT configuration, while the VAWT configuration reached......Nowadays, wind turbines in general, but also urban wind turbines attained acceptance to a certain extend. Conceptual designs and some examples in reality exist, where small-scale wind turbines have been implemented close to buildings or even integrated in the building structure. This work is aiming...... to estimate how much energy a wind turbine could produce in the built environment, depending on its integration and configuration. On the basis of measurements taken on the rooftop of H.C. Ørsted Institut in Copenhagen, which is located in an urban area, a comparison of fictive free standing turbines...

  1. The extraembryonic serosa protects the insect egg against desiccation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jacobs, Chris G. C.; Rezende, Gustavo L.; Lamers, Gerda E. M.; van der Zee, Maurijn

    2013-01-01

    Insects have been extraordinarily successful in occupying terrestrial habitats, in contrast to their mostly aquatic sister group, the crustaceans. This success is typically attributed to adult traits such as flight, whereas little attention has been paid to adaptation of the egg. An evolutionary novelty of insect eggs is the serosa, an extraembryonic membrane that enfolds the embryo and secretes a cuticle. To experimentally test the protective function of the serosa, we exploit an exceptional possibility to eliminate this membrane by zerknüllt1 RNAi in the beetle Tribolium castaneum. We analyse hatching rates of eggs under a range of humidities and find dramatically decreasing hatching rates with decreasing humidities for serosa-less eggs, but not for control eggs. Furthermore, we show serosal expression of Tc-chitin-synthase1 and demonstrate that its knock-down leads to absence of the serosal cuticle and a reduction in hatching rates at low humidities. These developmental genetic techniques in combination with ecological testing provide experimental evidence for a crucial role of the serosa in desiccation resistance. We propose that the origin of this extraembryonic membrane facilitated the spectacular radiation of insects on land, as did the origin of the amniote egg in the terrestrial invasion of vertebrates. PMID:23782888

  2. Economic and Environmental Assessment of a 1 MW Grid Connected Rooftop Solar PV System for Energy Efficient Building in Bangladesh

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chakraborty, Sanjib; Hosain, Rubayet; Rahman, Toufiqur; Rabbi, Ahmead Fazle

    This paper evaluates the potentiality of a 1 MW grid connected rooftop solar PV system for an Energy Efficient Building in Bangladesh, which was estimated by utilizing NASA SSE solar radiation data, PVsyst simulation software and RETScreen simulation software. Economic and environmental viability for a ten-storied building with roof area of 6,500 m2 in the Capital City of Bangladesh, Dhaka was assessed by using the RETScreen simulation software. The yearly electricity production of the proposed system was 1,581 MWh estimated by PVsyst where the technical prospective of gird-connected solar PV in Bangladesh was calculated as about 50,174 MW. The economic assessments were determined the simple payback in such a way that the generated electricity first fulfills the demand of the building, and then the rest of the energy is supplied to the grid. The result indicates that the roof top solar PV system for an Energy efficient building in Dhaka city has a favorable condition for development both in economic and environmental point of view.

  3. Temporal dynamics of flooding, evaporation, and desiccation cycles and observations of salt crust area change at the Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bowen, Brenda B.; Kipnis, Evan L.; Raming, Logan W.

    2017-12-01

    The Bonneville Salt Flats (BSF) in Utah is a dynamic saline playa environment responding to natural and anthropogenic forces. Over the last century, the saline groundwater from below BSF has been harvested to produce potash via evaporative mining, mostly used as agricultural fertilizers, while the surface halite crust has provided a significant recreational site for land speed racing. Perceptions of changes in the salt crust through time have spurred debates about land use and management; however, little is known about the timescales of natural change as the salt crust responds to climatic parameters that drive flooding, evaporation, and desiccation (FED) cycles that control surface salt growth and dissolution. Climate data over the last 30 years are examined to identify annual patterns in surface water balance at BSF to identify annual and seasonal climate constraints on FED cycles. Landsat satellite data from 1986 to the present are used to map the areal extent of the surface halite salt crust at BSF at the end of the desiccation season (between August 15 and October 30) annually. Overall, the observed area of the desiccation-stage BSF halite crust has varied from a maximum of 156 km2 in 1993 to a minimum of 72 km2 in 2014 with an overall trend of declining area of halite observed over the 30 years of analysis. Climatic variables that influence FED cycles and seasonal salt dissolution and precipitation have also varied through this time period; however, the relationship between surface water fluxes and salt crust area do not clearly correlate, suggesting that other processes are influencing the extent of the salt. Intra-annual analyses of salt area and weather illustrate the importance of ponded surface water, wind events, and microtopography in shaping a laterally extensive but thin and ephemeral halite crust. Examination of annual to decadal changes in salt crust extent and environmental parameters at BSF provides insights into the processes driving change and

  4. Sistema de enfriamiento con desecante para reducir consumo de energía en restaurante caso de estudio; Desiccant cooling system to decrease energy consumption in Restaurant study case

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tania Carbonell Morales

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Este artículo mostró la posibilidad de emplear un sistema de enfriamiento con rueda desecante para el tratamiento del aire de las diferentes áreas del Restaurante caso de estudio, instalación alta consumidora de energía, de ahí la necesidad de estudiar nuevas alternativas para el acondicionamiento de aire que permitan el control de la humedad y el ahorro de energía. El análisis bibliográfico realizado mostró que actualmente los sistemas de enfriamiento con desecante están siendo estudiados y empleados como una alternativa para el ahorro de energía y el cuidado del medioambiente en el campo del tratamiento del aire. Se propuso un sistema compuesto fundamentalmente por una rueda desecante de gel de sílice, una rueda conservadora de energía y un intercambiador de calor. Con el nuevo sistema de enfriamiento la demanda de energía eléctrica disminuye previéndose ahorros del orden de 1 1802 CUC anualmente solo por concepto de consumo de energía eléctrica.In this paper the possibility of using a cooling system with a desiccant wheel for air treatment of different areas of the case study restaurant is shown. This facility is classified as high consumer of energy, making it necessaryto study new alternatives for air conditioning allowing humidity control and energy saving. The literature review conducted on cooling systems with desiccant wheel technology was currently being studied and used as analternative to saving energy and protecting the environment in the field of air treatment. The desiccant cooling system proposed is fundamentally for a desiccant wheel of silica gel, an energy conservative wheel and a heatexchanger. With the new cooling system electricity demand decreases and significant savings of about 1 1802 CUC are forecasted only in annual electricity consumption.

  5. Sistema de enfriamiento con desecante para reducir consumo de energía en restaurante caso de estudio; Desiccant cooling system to decrease energy consumption in Restaurant study case

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tania – Carbonell Morales

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Este artículo mostró la posibilidad de emplear un sistema de enfriamiento con rueda desecante para el tratamiento del aire de las diferentes áreas del Restaurante caso de estudio, instalación alta consumidora de energía, de ahí la necesidad de es tudiar nuevas alternativas para el acondicionamiento de aire que permitan el control de la humedad y el ahorro de energía. El análisis bibliográfico realizado mostró que actualmente los sistemas de enfriamiento con desecante están siendo estudia dos y empleados como una alternativa para el ahorro de energía y el cuidado del medioambiente en el campo del tratamiento del aire. Se propuso un sistema compuesto fundamentalmente por una rueda desecante de gel de sílice, una rueda conservadora de energía y un intercambiador de calor. Con el nuevo sistema de enfriamiento la demanda de energía eléctrica disminuye previéndose ahorros del orden de 11802 CUC anualmente solo por concepto de consumo de energía eléctrica. In this paper the possibility of using a cooling syst em with a desiccant wheel for air treatment of different areas of the case study restaurant is shown. This facility is classified as high consumer of energy, making it necessary to study new alternatives for air conditioning allowing humidity control and energy saving. The literature review conducted on cooling systems with desiccant wheel technology was currently being studied and used as an alternative to saving energy and protecting the environment in the field of air treatment. The desiccant cooling system proposed is fundamentally for a desiccant wheel of silica gel, an energy conservative wheel and a heat exchanger. With the new cooling system electricit y demand decreases and significant savings of about 11802 CUC are forecasted only in annual electricity consumption

  6. Effects of leaf hair points of a desert moss on water retention and dew formation: implications for desiccation tolerance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tao, Ye; Zhang, Yuan Ming

    2012-05-01

    Leaf hair points (LHPs) are important morphological structures in many desiccation-tolerant mosses, but study of their functions has been limited. A desert moss, Syntrichia caninervis, was chosen for examination of the ecological effects of LHPs on water retention and dew formation at individual and population (patch) levels. Although LHPs were only 4.77% of shoot weight, they were able to increase absolute water content (AWC) by 24.87%. The AWC of samples with LHPs was always greater than for those without LHPs during dehydration. The accumulative evaporation ratio (AER) showed an opposite trend. AWC, evaporation ratio and AER of shoots with LHPs took 20 min longer to reach a completely dehydrated state than shoots without LHPs. At the population level, dew formation on moss crusts with LHPs was faster than on crusts without LHPs, and the former had higher daily and total dew amounts. LHPs were able to improve dew amounts on crusts by 10.26%. Following three simulated rainfall events (1, 3 and 6 mm), AERs from crusts with LHPs were always lower than from crusts without LHPs. LHPs can therefore significantly delay and reduce evaporation. We confirm that LHPs are important desiccation-tolerant features of S. caninervis at both individual and population levels. LHPs greatly aid moss crusts in adapting to arid conditions.

  7. A heat pump driven and hollow fiber membrane-based liquid desiccant air dehumidification system: Modeling and experimental validation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang, Li-Zhi; Zhang, Ning

    2014-01-01

    A compression heat pump driven and membrane-based liquid desiccant air dehumidification system is presented. The dehumidifier and the regenerator are made of two hollow fiber membrane bundles packed in two shells. Water vapor can permeate through these membranes effectively, while the liquid desiccant droplets are prevented from cross-over. Simultaneous heating and cooling of the salt solution are realized with a heat pump system to improve energy efficiency. In this research, the system is built up and a complete modeling is performed for the system. Heat and mass transfer processes in the membrane modules, as well as in the evaporator, the condenser, and other key components are modeled in detail. The whole model is validated by experiment. The performances of SDP (specific dehumidification power), dehumidification efficiency, EER (energy efficiency ratio) of heat pump, and the COP (coefficient of performance) of the system are investigated numerically and experimentally. The results show that the model can predict the system accurately. The dehumidification capabilities and the energy efficiencies of the system are high. Further, it performs well even under the harsh hot and humid South China weather conditions. - Highlights: • A membrane-based and heat pump driven air dehumidification system is proposed. • A real experimental set up is built and used to validate the model for the whole system. • Performance under design and varying operation conditions is investigated. • The system performs well even under harsh hot and humid conditions

  8. A contribution to the study of mechanical behaviour of concrete structures taking into account the effects of desiccation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hubert, F.X.

    2004-12-01

    In this work, is given a model of the drying influence on the mechanical behaviour of concrete and a reliable anticipating tool is proposed for engineers. The drying of hardened concrete has several consequences on the mechanical properties of concrete. The desiccation shrinkage is the first sign, generating crack visible at the surface level under the form of crackling and core cracking particularly on the account of the presence of aggregates which prevent the shrinkage of the cement paste to make easily. Then, the elastic parameters are strongly affected (decrease of stiffness, of the Poisson coefficient). A simplified model of the stiffness loss during the drying is proposed under the form of an isotropic hydric damage. The model is validated in the unidimensional case with tests results carried out in the LML. With this model, it is possible to estimate with more accuracy the state of the hydric constraints in concrete. Numerical simulations on 3D structures are then proposed. An application to the case of a wall being manufactured is given. The contributions of the model are tested too in the case where the global mechanical response of cylindrical mortar specimens submitted to drying and to compression tests is simulated. The effect of the capillary suction as well as the increase of the elastic limit during drying are then discussed. At last, the contributions of the model for creep calculations and desiccation are presented. (O.M.)

  9. PHYSIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION OF FOREST SEEDS REGARDING THE DESICCATION TOLERANCE AND STORAGE BEHAVIOUR

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rafaella Carvalho Mayrinck

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available This work aims to classify forest seeds native to the Alto Rio Grande region regarding the desiccation tolerance and storage behaviour. Germination and water content tests were performed in seeds of different species. The tests were conducted immediately after seed processing, at 12% and 5% of water content, and at 5% after 3 months of storage in -18°C. Based on the results obtained, seeds were classified into recalcitrant, intermediate and orthodox class. Seeds of Brosimum gaudichaudii, Erythroxylum deciduum, Eugenia pleurantha, Myrcia venulosa, Nectandra megapotamica were classified as recalcitrant (22.7% of all species. Seeds of Aegiphila sellowiana, Aspidosperma parvifolium, Blepharocalyx salicifolius, Casearia lasiophylla, Cassia occidentalis, Dalbergia miscolobium, Diospyros brasiliensis, Diospyros hispida, Ilex brevicuspis, Ilex cerasifolia, Myrocarpus fastigiatus, Senna aversiflora, Senna splendida e Blepharocalyx salicifolius were classified as intermediate (59.1% of all species. Seeds of Miconia albicans, Platycyamus regnellii, Styrax camporum and Piptadenia gonoacantha were classified as orthodox (18.2% of all species.

  10. Sources of variability in the determination by evaporation method of gross alpha activity in water samples

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Baeza, A.; Corbacho, J.A. [LARUEX, Caceres (Spain). Environmental Radioactivity Lab.

    2013-07-01

    Determining the gross alpha activity concentration of water samples is one way to screen for waters whose radionuclide content is so high that its consumption could imply surpassing the Total Indicative Dose as defined in European Directive 98/83/EC. One of the most commonly used methods to prepare the sources to measure gross alpha activity in water samples is desiccation. Its main advantages are the simplicity of the procedure, the low cost of source preparation, and the possibility of simultaneously determining the gross beta activity. The preparation of the source, the construction of the calibration curves, and the measurement procedure itself involve, however, various factors that may introduce sufficient variability into the results to significantly affect the screening process. We here identify the main sources of this variability, and propose specific procedures to follow in the desiccation process that will reduce the uncertainties, and ensure that the result is indeed representative of the sum of the activities of the alpha emitters present in the sample. (orig.)

  11. Comparative analysis of thermally activated, environmentally friendly cooling systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gupta, Y.; Metchop, L.; Frantzis, A.; Phelan, P.E.

    2008-01-01

    This paper compares the relative performances of three different thermally activated, environmentally friendly cooling systems, e.g. a silica-gel-water adsorption system, a LiBr-H 2 O absorption system and a desiccant air system. The adsorption and absorption systems in the current study employ water as the refrigerant, while the desiccant system cools atmospheric air directly. Each of these systems can be utilized at relatively low heat source temperatures such as achieved by flat plate solar collectors, but it is unclear which of these systems is best suited to what range of heat source temperature. Our study explores answers to this question by generating quantitative results comparing their relative thermal performance, i.e. COP and refrigeration capacity, and a qualitative comparison based on the size, maturity of technology, safe operation etc. In order to provide a fair comparison between the fundamentally different systems, a UA (overall heat transfer coefficient multiplied by the heat transfer area) value of 1.0 kW deg. C -1 is considered for the heat exchanger that transfers heat from the supplied hot water. Furthermore, to compare systems of similar size, the mass of silica-gel in the adsorption and desiccant systems and the mass of LiBr-H 2 O solution in the absorption system were specified such that each system provides the same amount of refrigeration (8.0 kW) at a source temperature of 90 deg. C. It is found that the absorption and adsorption cooling systems have a higher refrigeration capacity at heat source temperatures below 90 deg. C, while the desiccant air system outperforms the others at temperatures above 90 deg. C

  12. Distribution transformer lifetime analysis in the presence of demand response and rooftop PV integration

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Behi Behnaz

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Many distribution transformers have already exceeded half of their expected service life of 35 years in the infrastructure of Western Power, the electric distribution company supplying southwest of Western Australia, Australia. Therefore, it is anticipated that a high investment on transformer replacement happens in the near future. However, high renewable integration and demand response (DR are promising resources to defer the investment on infrastructure upgrade and extend the lifetime of transformers. This paper investigates the impact of rooftop photovoltaic (PV integration and customer engagement through DR on the lifetime of transformers in electric distribution networks. To this aim, first, a time series modelling of load, DR and PV is utilised for each year over a planning period. This load model is applied to a typical distribution transformer for which the hot-spot temperature rise is modelled based on the relevant standard. Using this calculation platform, the loss of life and the actual age of distribution transformer are obtained. Then, various scenarios including different levels of PV penetration and DR contribution are examined, and their impacts on the age of transformer are reported. Finally, the equivalent loss of net present value of distribution transformer is formulated and discussed. This formulation gives major benefits to the distribution network planners for analysing the contribution of PV and DR on lifetime extension of the distribution transformer. In addition, the provided model can be utilised in optimal investment analysis to find the best time for the transformer replacement and the associated cost considering PV penetration and DR. The simulation results show that integration of PV and DR within a feeder can significantly extend the lifetime of transformers.

  13. Effect of inter-cooling on the performance and economics of a solar energy assisted hybrid air conditioning system with six stages one-rotor desiccant wheel

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Elzahzby, Ali M.; Kabeel, A.E.; Bassuoni, M.M.; Abdelgaied, Mohamed

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • Development of a mathematical model for predicting the performance of solar energy assisted hybrid air conditioning system. • The model uses a one-rotor six-stage rotary silica gel desiccant wheel. • Theoretical model results are in good agreement with experimental data. • The influences of main operating parameters on optimal rotational speed are discussed. • A life cycle cost analysis of the proposed system has been investigated. - Abstract: In this study, a mathematical model for predicting the performance of solar energy assisted hybrid air conditioning system (SEAHACS) was considered. The desiccant wheels used honeycombed silica gel–haloids composite material. This one-rotor desiccant wheel is divided into six stages, in which two-stage dehumidification process, two-stage pre-cooling process and two-stage regeneration process are realized. Three air streams are involved in the present system. The mathematical model has been validated with the experimental data. As the key operating and design parameter, the range of process air inlet temperature from 27.5 to 45 °C, range of humidity ratio of the inlet process air from 9 to 21 g/kg, process air inlet velocity from 1.5 to 5.5 m/s have been examined for a range of rotation speed from 6 to 20 rev/h. the optimization of this parameters is conducted based on the moisture removal capacity D, relative moisture removal capacity, dehumidification coefficient of performance, thermal coefficient of performance, and supply air temperature and humidity ratio. At last, the influences of these main parameters on optimal rotational speed are discussed. Eventually, the life cycle cost analysis of the solar energy assisted hybrid air conditioning system has been investigated

  14. Optimization analysis of high temperature heat pump coupling to desiccant wheel air conditioning system

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sheng, Ying; Zhang, Yufeng; Fang, Lei

    2014-01-01

    The high temperature heat pump and desiccant wheel (HTHP&DW) system can make full use of heat released from the condenser of heat pump for DW regeneration without additional heat. In this study, DW operation in the HTHP&DW system was investigated experimentally, and the optimization analysis...... of HTHP&DW system was carried out. The performance of DW had influence on the dehumidification (evaluated by dehumidification and regeneration effectiveness) and cooling load (evaluated by thermal and adiabatic effectiveness). The results show that the enthalpy increase occurred in all the experiments...... of the system. When the regeneration temperature is 63°C, the maximal dehumidification effectiveness is 35.4% and the satisfied adiabatic effectiveness is 88%, which contributes to the optimal balance between dehumidification and cooling. © 2014 Tianjin University and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg....

  15. Lower electricity prices and greenhouse gas emissions due to rooftop solar: empirical results for Massachusetts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kaufmann, Robert K.; Vaid, Devina

    2016-01-01

    Monthly and hourly correlations among photovoltaic (PV) capacity utilization, electricity prices, electricity consumption, and the thermal efficiency of power plants in Massachusetts reduce electricity prices and carbon emissions beyond average calculations. PV utilization rates are highest when the thermal efficiencies of natural gas fired power plants are lowest, which reduces emissions of CO 2 and CH 4 by 0.3% relative to the annual average emission rate. There is a positive correlation between PV utilization rates and electricity prices, which raises the implied price of PV electricity by up to 10% relative to the annual average price, such that the average MWh reduces electricity prices by $0.26–$1.86 per MWh. These price reductions save Massachusetts rate-payers $184 million between 2010 and 2012. The current and net present values of these savings are greater than the cost of solar renewable energy credits which is the policy instrument that is used to accelerate the installation of PV capacity. Together, these results suggest that rooftop PV is an economically viable source of power in Massachusetts even though it has not reached socket parity. - Highlights: •Implied price of PV up to 10% greater than the annual average price. •PV saves Massachusetts rate-payers $184 million in 2010–2012. •Annual savings are greater than the cost of solar renewable energy credits. •Savings rise longer lifetime of PV systems and pay period for SREC's shortened. •PV reduces emissions of CO 2 and CH 4 by 0.3% relative to the annual average.

  16. A Consensus-Based Cooperative Control of PEV Battery and PV Active Power Curtailment for Voltage Regulation in Distribution Networks

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zeraati, Mehdi; Golshan, Mohamad Esmail Hamedani; Guerrero, Josep M.

    2018-01-01

    The rapid growth of rooftop photovoltaic (PV) arrays installed in residential houses leads to serious voltage quality problems in low voltage distribution networks (LVDNs). In this paper, a combined method using the battery energy management of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) and the active power....... The effectiveness of the proposed control scheme is investigated on a typical three-phase four-wire LVDN in presence of PV resources and PEVs....

  17. Eficiência dos dessecantes paraquat e diquat na antecipação da colheita do milho Effectiveness of the desiccants paraquat and diquat in anticipating maize harvesting

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    P.C. Magalhães

    2002-12-01

    evidenciado com a aplicação do paraquat. A produção de grãos verificada nos tratamentos testemunhas se igualou à dos melhores tratamentos com os dessecantes. O uso do paraquat resultou em grãos com maior porcentagem de infecção por Fusarium subglutinans, patógeno causador dos grãos ardidos em milho. Com relação à época de aplicação dos dessecantes, 14 dias antes da MF foi a que tornou o milho mais suscetível ao ataque desse fungo.The use of desiccants on maize crop may benefit farmers, especially by anticipating soil availability for the establishment of a new crop, and for the earlier commercialization of the product. The herbicides Paraquat and Diquat are classified as desiccants and are the most prominent in the market. The objective of this work was to evaluate their effectiveness as desiccants applied before corn harvesting. The experiment was carried out at EMBRAPA-Milho e Sorgo, Sete Lagoas, MG, Brazil, by using the following treatments: application of Paraquat and Diquat at 14 and 7 days before and 7 days after physiological maturity (PM and application at PM. Both products were sprayed at doses of 400 g ha-1. The cultivar used was BRS 3101 and the parameters were evaluated at 0, 3, 6, 9, 12 and 15 days after application. Thirty maize grains were harvested from 6 ears for evaluation of grain moisture and grain dry matter weight. At harvesting, the parameters evaluated were: plant and ear height, ear index, grain and ear production and grain sanity. The desiccants evaluated did not cause any differential effects for most characteristics, although visually Paraquat was observed to act more rapidly than Diquat in destroying the green leaf tissue. Statistical differences detected between the two desiccants, revealed that Diquat was more efficient than Paraquat. Application of the desiccants at 14 days prior to PM reduced grain yield due to grain dry matter weight decrease. However, PM was anticipated by two days and harvesting by four days. This was more

  18. The IYA2009 in Guanajuato, Mexico: Activities for astronomy education and popularisation at La Azotea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bravo-Alfaro, H.; Schroeder, K.-P.; Ramirez, L.; Yebra, R.

    2008-06-01

    Since the year 2000 the facilities of a rustic observatory, named La Azotea (the roof-top terrace), have been part of the Departamento de Astronomia de la Universidad de Guanajuato, 400 km NW of Mexico City, where ten professional astronomers do research and teach at both undergraduate and graduate level. In previous meetings we described the refurbishment of this public observatory which was finally reopened in November 2006. We present here the main achievements of the refurbishment and the first public activities.

  19. Isolation and Purification of Heterotetrameric Catalase from a Desiccation Tolerant Cyanobacterium Lyngbya arboricola

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kapoor, Shivali

    2013-02-01

    Full Text Available The desiccation tolerant cyanobacterium Lyngbya arboricola, isolated from bark surfaces of Mangifera indica, possessed up to four stable isoforms of catalase in addition to other antioxidative enzymes, for several years under a dry state. Purification of the two most persistent isoforms of catalase (Cat has been undertaken by employing acetone precipitation, ethanol: chloroform treatment, gel filtration and ion exchange chromatography. The two isoforms of catalase remained almost unchanged on varying matric and osmotic hydration levels of mats of the cyanobacterium. The purification procedures resulted in a 1.3 % yield of purified single isoform (0.22 mg mL-1 protein with 709 Units mg-1 specific activity and a purity index of 0.83. Five millimolar of dithiothreitol (DTT was observed to be pertinent in maintaining the optimum redox state of the enzyme. The purification procedures additionally facilitated the simultaneous elimination and procurement of phycoerythrins (PE and mycosporine-like amino acids (MAA. Each purified isoform gave a single band (~45kDa upon SDS-PAGE and denaturing urea isoelectric focusing (IEF depicted the presence of 2 subunits each of CatA and CatB. The monoisotopic mass and pI value of CatA and CatB as revealed by LC-MS analysis and internal amino acid sequencing was 78.96, 5.89 and 80.77, 5.92, respectively, showing resemblance with CatA of Erysiphe graminis subs. hordei and CatB of Ajellomyces capsulata. The heterotetrameric monofunctional catalase (~320 kDa, due to its stability in the form of resistance to ethanol: chloroform, its thermoalkaliphilic nature and the presence of innumerable hydrophobic amino acid residues (~40%, thus exhibited its potential for biotechnological applications.

  20. Desiccative and evaporative cooling systems in the field of energy change; Planung und Wirtschaftlichkeit von DEC-Anlagen im Umfeld der Energiewende

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mai, Ronny [ILK Dresden gGmbH, Dresden (Germany). Bereich Luft- und Klimatechnik

    2013-06-15

    Desiccative and evaporative cooling systems are established on the market since a few years. They are energy efficient, they can use renewable energy and replace conventional compression cooling systems. Their primary energy demand is up to one-third below the demand of conventional air conditioning systems. Nevertheless there is a big difference on the market. The sales have been stagnating for years, although the energy change requires efficient and sustainable technologies in this Article, the existing prejudices and their thrift are discussed. (orig.)

  1. Position control of desiccation cracks by memory effect and Faraday waves.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nakayama, Hiroshi; Matsuo, Yousuke; Takeshi, Ooshida; Nakahara, Akio

    2013-01-01

    Pattern formation of desiccation cracks on a layer of a calcium carbonate paste is studied experimentally. This paste is known to exhibit a memory effect, which means that a short-time application of horizontal vibration to the fresh paste predetermines the direction of the cracks that are formed after the paste is dried. While the position of the cracks (as opposed to their direction) is still stochastic in the case of horizontal vibration, the present work reports that their positioning is also controllable, at least to some extent, by applying vertical vibration to the paste and imprinting the pattern of Faraday waves, thus breaking the translational symmetry of the system. The experiments show that the cracks tend to appear in the node zones of the Faraday waves: in the case of stripe-patterned Faraday waves, the cracks are formed twice more frequently in the node zones than in the anti-node zones, presumably due to the localized horizontal motion. As a result of this preference of the cracks to the node zones, the memory of the square lattice pattern of Faraday waves makes the cracks run in the oblique direction differing by 45 degrees from the intuitive lattice direction of the Faraday waves.

  2. Was it worthwhile? Where have the benefits of rooftop solar photovoltaic generation exceeded the cost?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vaishnav, Parth; Horner, Nathaniel; Azevedo, Inês L.

    2017-09-01

    We estimate the lifetime magnitude and distribution of the private and public benefits and costs of currently installed distributed solar PV systems in the United States. Using data for recently-installed systems, we estimate the balance of benefits and costs associated with installing a non-utility solar PV system today. We also study the geographical distribution of the various subsidies that are made available to owners of rooftop solar PV systems, and compare it to distributions of population and income. We find that, after accounting for federal subsidies and local rebates and assuming a discount rate of 7%, the private benefits of new installations will exceed private costs only in seven of the 19 states for which we have data and only if customers can sell excess power to the electric grid at the retail price. These states are characterized by abundant sunshine (California, Texas and Nevada) or by high electricity prices (New York). Public benefits from reduced air pollution and climate change impact exceed the costs of the various subsidies offered system owners for less than 10% of the systems installed, even assuming a 2% discount rate. Subsidies flowed disproportionately to counties with higher median incomes in 2006. In 2014, the distribution of subsidies was closer to that of population income, but subsidies still flowed disproportionately to the better-off. The total, upfront, subsidy per kilowatt of installed capacity has fallen from 5200 in 2006 to 1400 in 2014, but the absolute magnitude of subsidy has soared as installed capacity has grown explosively. We see considerable differences in the balance of costs and benefits even within states, indicating that local factors such as system price and solar resource are important, and that policies (e.g. net metering) could be made more efficient by taking local conditions into account.

  3. Automatic 3D Building Detection and Modeling from Airborne LiDAR Point Clouds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, Shaohui

    Urban reconstruction, with an emphasis on man-made structure modeling, is an active research area with broad impact on several potential applications. Urban reconstruction combines photogrammetry, remote sensing, computer vision, and computer graphics. Even though there is a huge volume of work that has been done, many problems still remain unsolved. Automation is one of the key focus areas in this research. In this work, a fast, completely automated method to create 3D watertight building models from airborne LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) point clouds is presented. The developed method analyzes the scene content and produces multi-layer rooftops, with complex rigorous boundaries and vertical walls, that connect rooftops to the ground. The graph cuts algorithm is used to separate vegetative elements from the rest of the scene content, which is based on the local analysis about the properties of the local implicit surface patch. The ground terrain and building rooftop footprints are then extracted, utilizing the developed strategy, a two-step hierarchical Euclidean clustering. The method presented here adopts a "divide-and-conquer" scheme. Once the building footprints are segmented from the terrain and vegetative areas, the whole scene is divided into individual pendent processing units which represent potential points on the rooftop. For each individual building region, significant features on the rooftop are further detected using a specifically designed region-growing algorithm with surface smoothness constraints. The principal orientation of each building rooftop feature is calculated using a minimum bounding box fitting technique, and is used to guide the refinement of shapes and boundaries of the rooftop parts. Boundaries for all of these features are refined for the purpose of producing strict description. Once the description of the rooftops is achieved, polygonal mesh models are generated by creating surface patches with outlines defined by detected

  4. Calculation method of the desiccant amount for the protection of packed electronic equipments and its comparison with other methods currently used

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Del Valle, J.C.; Guido, O.O.

    1982-01-01

    The silica gel characteristics and properties are reviewed from the viewpoint of its use as a desiccant under static conditions. There were developed two calculation methods of the desiccant amount required for the protection from moisture of electronic equipments packed into rigid synthetic foam containers, for a given period and with an adequate safety margin. Besides, MIL specifications methods applicable to this type of packages have been also included. The proposed method considers the depression due to the contraction of the inside air volume during the temperature decrease periods as the only cause of the water vapor ingress into the container, the moisture permeation by diffusion through the closed cell synthetic foams being negligible. Owing to the marked thermal inertia of the package material, the thermal amplitude inside the container is lower than the outside thermal amplitude; therefore the method includes the calculation of the former. The other method is based on a procedure applicable to large storage rooms, briefly described in the literature, and where the moisture entrance is due to the above mentioned cause. A test to verify the reliability of the estimation is proposed. Finally, the amount of silica gel required for the protection of an electronic equipment packed in a given container has been calculated by the aforementioned methods, and the results compared. The value found by the proposed method was over 30% lower than that obtained by the most adequate procedure described in the MIL specification. (author) [es

  5. Qualidade e produtividade de sementes de canola (Brassica napus após aplicação de dessecantes em pré-colheita Quality and yield of canola (Brassica napus seeds after pre-harvest desiccant application

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    O. Marchiori Jr.

    2002-08-01

    Full Text Available A cultura de canola é indicada nos esquemas de rotação de culturas, bem como para diversificação agrícola e cobertura vegetal do solo no período de inverno na Região Sul do Brasil. Contudo, a colheita mecanizada é uma das operações mais críticas do sistema de produção, uma vez que os frutos do tipo síliqua apresentam maturação desuniforme, gerando grandes perdas de produtividade devido à deiscência natural. O uso de dessecantes químicos permite uma colheita com as síliquas em maturação mais uniforme, porém é importante a manutenção da qualidade do produto obtido. O presente trabalho teve por objetivo avaliar o efeito da aplicação de herbicidas dessecantes na produtividade e na qualidade fisiológica e sanitária das sementes de canola cultivar Hyola 401. Os herbicidas utilizados foram o glufosinato de amônio (0,5 kg ha-1, carfentrazone-ethyl (0,03 kg ha-1, paraquat (0,4 kg ha-1 e diquat (0,3 kg ha-1, mais a testemunha sem aplicação. A qualidade das sementes foi avaliada por meio dos testes de germinação, de envelhecimento acelerado, de condutividade elétrica, de emergência em areia, de velocidade de emergência e de sanidade. A aplicação dos produtos dessecantes permitiu uma antecipação de sete dias na colheita das sementes de canola. A produtividade de sementes não foi afetada pela dessecação. A aplicação do glufosinato de amônio e carfentrazone-ethyl reduziu (PCanola crop is indicated to integrate crop rotation systems, as well as for agricultural diversification and vegetal ground cover during winter in southern Brazil. However, mechanical harvest is critical to crop production, since pods present a non-uniform ripening, leading to great yield losses, due to natural dehiscence. Desiccants are usually applied to provide a more uniform harvest, maintaining the quality of the product. This work aimed to evaluate the effect of desiccant application on productivity and physiological/sanitary quality of

  6. Radiocarbon dates on desiccated moa (Dinornithiformes) flesh from inland Otago, New Zealand

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anderson, A.; Rowe, L.; Petchey, F.; White, M.

    2010-01-01

    Remains of soft tissues from extinct moa (Dinornithiformes), mainly desiccated sinew, muscle, skin, and feathers have been recovered rather seldom but their distribution is distinctive. Of 22 records of such finds accumulated between 1864 and 1987, 15 came from inland Otago, west of Dunedin in the southern South Island. Most were found in the late nineteenth century in rockshelters, clefts or alluvial sediments and were regarded at the time as ev dence of the survival of moa up to about AD 1800. Improbable as this latter point is, it has not been tested by radiocarbon dating until now. Our particular impetus to do so, however, arises in another way. It is from research, again largely within inland Otago, on Maori artefacts which have also been made from various other kinds of soft tissues (flax, grasses, dog skin, bird skin, feathers etc.). A series of accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon dates on these shows that they are exclusively late, post-AD 1650, which begs the question of why the age range does not extend across the full prehistoric period, beginning about AD 1300. (author). 6 refs., 2 figs., 1 tab.

  7. Cyclic crack resistance of magnesium alloys in vacuum, humid an highly desiccated air

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yarema, S.Ya.; Zinyuk, O.D.

    1986-01-01

    Investigation results on cyclic crack resistance of four structural magnesium alloys in vacuum, humid and highly desiccated air are presented. The regularities obtained are discussed at the background of the known data, using the data on crack closing and hydrogen concenration near its vertex. Diagrams of fatigue fracture of magnesium alloys MA2-1, MA15, MA8 and MA18, produced in vacuum, dry and humid air, on the whole obey the previously established regularities for aluminium alloys and steels. The diagrams of fatigue fracture plotted taking into account crack closing (v-ΔK eff ) for dry and humid air are quite similar. An increase in cyclic crack resistance of the materials in vacuum can not be explained by the change in the crack closing and is evidently conditioned by the absence of hydrogen absorption as the main factor accelerating the crack growth. Effect of vacuum on the threshold K th increases with the increase in σ 0.2 , which testifies to a strong effect of medium on the rate of fatigue crack growth in near the threshold region

  8. Improvement of Outcome Measures of Dry Eye by a Novel Integrin Antagonist in the Murine Desiccating Stress Model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krauss, Achim H; Corrales, Rosa M; Pelegrino, Flavia S A; Tukler-Henriksson, Johanna; Pflugfelder, Stephen C; de Paiva, Cintia S

    2015-09-01

    We investigated the effects of GW559090, a novel, competitive, and high-affinity α4 integrin antagonist, in a murine model of dry eye. Through interaction with vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM-1) and fibronectin α4β1 integrin is involved in leukocyte trafficking and activation. Female C57BL/6 mice, aged 6 to 8 weeks, were subjected to desiccating stress (DS). Bilateral topical twice daily treatment with GW559090 was compared to vehicle-treated controls. Treatment was initiated at the time of DS induction. Treatment effects were assessed on corneal staining with Oregon Green Dextran (OGD) and expression of inflammatory markers in ocular surface tissues by real time PCR. Dendritic cell activation was measured in draining cervical lymph nodes (CLN) by flow cytometry. Separate groups of mice received GW559090 subcutaneously to evaluate the effects of systemic administration on corneal staining and cells in CLN. Topical GW559090 significantly reduced corneal uptake of OGD compared to vehicle-treated disease controls in a dose-dependent manner (1, 3, 10, and 30 mg/mL) with 30 mg/mL showing the greatest reduction in OGD staining. When administered topically, corneal expression of IL-1α, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9, chemokine ligand 9 (CXCL9), and TGF-β1 was reduced in GW559090-treated eyes. Topical treatment with GW559090 decreased dendritic cell activation in lymph nodes. The effects on corneal staining and cellular composition in CLN were not reproduced by systemic administration of GW559090, suggestive of a local role for integrin antagonism in the treatment of dry eye. The novel α4 integrin antagonist, GW559090, improved outcome measures of corneal staining and ocular surface inflammation in this murine model of dry eye. These results indicate the potential of this novel agent for the treatment of dry eye disease.

  9. The experimental investigation on the performance of a low temperature waste heat-driven multi-bed desiccant dehumidifier (MBDD) and minimization of entropy generation

    KAUST Repository

    Myat, Aung; Thu, Kyaw; Ng, K. C.

    2012-01-01

    We present the experimental investigation on the performance of multi-bed desiccant dehumidification system (MBDD) using a thermodynamic framework with an entropy generation analysis. The cyclic steady state performance of adsorption-desorption processes at the assorted heat source temperatures, and typical ambient humidity conditions was carried out. MBDD unit uses type-RD silica gel pore surface area with of 720 m 2/g. It has a nominal diameter range of 0.4 to 0. 7 mm. The key advantages of MBDD are: (i) it has no moving parts rendering less maintenance, (ii) energy-efficient means of dehumidification by adsorption process with low temperature heat source as compared to the conventional methods, (iii) although it is a pecked bed desiccant, a laminar chamber is employed by arranging the V-shaped configuration of heat exchangers and (iv) it is environmental friendly with the low-carbon footprint. Entropy generation analysis was performed at the assorted heat source temperatures to investigate the performance of MBDD. By conducting the entropy minimization, it is now able to locate the optimal operating conditions of the system while the specific entropy generation is found to be minimal. This analysis shows that the minimization of entropy generation in the dehumidification cycle leads to the maximization of COP in the MBDD and thus, higher delivery of useful effects at the same input resources. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. The experimental investigation on the performance of a low temperature waste heat-driven multi-bed desiccant dehumidifier (MBDD) and minimization of entropy generation

    KAUST Repository

    Myat, Aung

    2012-06-01

    We present the experimental investigation on the performance of multi-bed desiccant dehumidification system (MBDD) using a thermodynamic framework with an entropy generation analysis. The cyclic steady state performance of adsorption-desorption processes at the assorted heat source temperatures, and typical ambient humidity conditions was carried out. MBDD unit uses type-RD silica gel pore surface area with of 720 m 2/g. It has a nominal diameter range of 0.4 to 0. 7 mm. The key advantages of MBDD are: (i) it has no moving parts rendering less maintenance, (ii) energy-efficient means of dehumidification by adsorption process with low temperature heat source as compared to the conventional methods, (iii) although it is a pecked bed desiccant, a laminar chamber is employed by arranging the V-shaped configuration of heat exchangers and (iv) it is environmental friendly with the low-carbon footprint. Entropy generation analysis was performed at the assorted heat source temperatures to investigate the performance of MBDD. By conducting the entropy minimization, it is now able to locate the optimal operating conditions of the system while the specific entropy generation is found to be minimal. This analysis shows that the minimization of entropy generation in the dehumidification cycle leads to the maximization of COP in the MBDD and thus, higher delivery of useful effects at the same input resources. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  11. Study of an optimization of regeneration for an absorbent used in the solar desiccant cooling system; Taiyonetsu riyo desiccant reibo ni mochiirareru kyushuzai saisei tokusei no saitekika ni kansuru kenkyu

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Saito, Y [Osaka Institute of Technology, Osaka (Japan)

    1997-11-25

    A desiccant cooling system uses concentrated aqueous solution of an absorbent to reduce humidity, hence the resultant absorbent solution becomes dilute. Regeneration of the dilute solution uses solar heat, where the regeneration characteristics are affected by solution temperature, vapor pressure, water content, air-liquid flow rate, and other factors. Therefore, mutual relationship among these different factors were investigated, and an optimum operating condition was discussed. The regeneration characteristics of the absorbent is strongly affected by temperature of triethylene glycol (TEG). This is because vapor pressure, Ps, in the TEG aqueous solution increases as the TEG temperature rises. This means that preheating the solution is effective in regenerating the absorbent. As the regeneration progresses, the water content, Ww, decreases, and the regeneration rate decreases. This is because of reduction in the Ps in association with decrease in the Ww of the TEG. This suggests that it is important in the absorbent regeneration to reduce flow rate of the TEG aqueous solution as low as possible. Raised air temperature reduces difference in vapor partial pressure between the TEG and the air, resulting in reduced regeneration rate. 5 refs., 9 figs.

  12. The biggest rooftop PV plant in Latin America. An example of a pioneering project for the whole region; La mayor planta fotovoltaica sobre cubierta de Latinoamérica. Un proyecto pionero ejemplo para toda la región

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2016-07-01

    About a year ago, the largest rooftop PV installation in Latin America came online in Honduras. Inaugurated by the country’s president, Juan Orlando Hernández, in March 2015, the plant is situated on the roof of the region’s PepsiCo bottling plant, EMSULA (Embotelladora de Sula S.A.) in the town of San Pedro Sula. The project, which has become a reference in the region, has been developed over two phases, the first of which corresponds to a 259 kWp pilot project, commissioned in November 2013, to which the second phase was added last year. (Author)

  13. Silica desiccant packets for storage and transport of Streptococcus pneumoniae and other clinically relevant species.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Casey L Pell

    Full Text Available Bacterial isolates are often transported between laboratories for research and diagnostic purposes. Silica desiccant packets (SDPs, which are inexpensive and do not require freezing, were evaluated for storage and recovery of bacterial isolates. Conditions such as inoculum size, swab type and temperature of storage were investigated using ten Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates. The optimized protocol was then tested using 49 additional S. pneumoniae isolates representing 40 serogroups. Overall, S. pneumoniae growth was considered satisfactory (>100 colony forming units for 98/109 (89.9% and 20/20 (100% swabs after 14 days at room temperature or 28 days at 4° C, respectively. Storage in SDPs did not impact on the ability of S. pneumoniae isolates to be subsequently serotyped. When the survival of nine other clinically relevant bacterial species was tested, seven were viable after 28 days at room temperature, the exceptions being Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Haemophilus influenzae. SDPs are suitable for transport and short-term storage of bacterial species including S. pneumoniae.

  14. Performance evaluation of a solar energy assisted hybrid desiccant air conditioner integrated with HDH desalination system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kabeel, A.E.; Abdelgaied, Mohamed; Zakaria, Yehya

    2017-01-01

    Highlights: • The performance of a solar hybrid air conditioner integrated with HDH desalination system is numerically investigated. • For increase the regeneration air from 70 to 130 m 3 /h, the distillate water productivity increases from 2.988 to 4.78 L/h. • For increase the regeneration air from 70 to 130 m 3 /h, COP overall daily decreases from 4.66 to 3.386. • For increases the regeneration air temperature from 75 to 95 °C, the distillate water increases from 3.1752 to 5.011 L/h. • For increases the regeneration air temperature from 75 to 95 °C, COP overall daily decreases from 4.392 to 3.636. - Abstract: In this study, the performances of a solar energy assisted hybrid desiccant air conditioning system integrated with humidification–dehumidification (HDH) desalination system are numerically investigated. The aim of this study is to benefit from the temperature rise of the regeneration air outside of the desiccant conditioning system as well as the water vapor content in this regeneration air by feeding it to the humidification-dehumidification water desalination unit to produce distillate water. The distillate water productivity, human thermal comfort issues, and energy saving represent the main objective of the present numerical study. The simulated results developed for subsystems are validated with the published experimental results. The effects of regeneration air temperature and flow rate on supply cooled air temperature, distillate water productivity, the cooling coefficient of performance and overall daily coefficient of performance of the proposed system are investigated. The results show that (i) the distillate water productivity increases from 3.175 to 5.011 L/h and overall daily coefficient of performance decreases from 4.392 to 3.636 with increasing the regeneration air temperature from 75 to 95 as (ii) the increase in the regeneration air flow rate from 70 to 130 m 3 /h, increases the distillate water productivity from 2.988 to 4

  15. A study of feral pigeon Columba livia var. in urban and suburban areas in the city of Jena, Germany

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ferman, L. M.

    2010-06-01

    Full Text Available A population of feral pigeons, Columba livia var. was conducted in the city of Jena, Germany, from July to December 2007. Daily censuses were conducted by walking ten transects in a selected area of the city, five transects in built up areas and five in the suburbs. Pigeon population density was higher in urban areas than in suburbs but differences were not significant. Main behavioural activities recorded were resting, preening, flying, eating, sunning and roosting. Regular locations of activities were rooftops and roof edges in urban areas, and rooftops, eaves on balconies in suburban areas. The plumage phenotype most frequently recorded in both areas was Blue bar.

  16. Genotypes Associated with Listeria monocytogenes Isolates Displaying Impaired or Enhanced Tolerances to Cold, Salt, Acid, or Desiccation Stress

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hingston, Patricia; Chen, Jessica; Dhillon, Bhavjinder K.; Laing, Chad; Bertelli, Claire; Gannon, Victor; Tasara, Taurai; Allen, Kevin; Brinkman, Fiona S. L.; Truelstrup Hansen, Lisbeth; Wang, Siyun

    2017-01-01

    The human pathogen Listeria monocytogenes is a large concern in the food industry where its continuous detection in food products has caused a string of recalls in North America and Europe. Most recognized for its ability to grow in foods during refrigerated storage, L. monocytogenes can also tolerate several other food-related stresses with some strains possessing higher levels of tolerances than others. The objective of this study was to use a combination of phenotypic analyses and whole genome sequencing to elucidate potential relationships between L. monocytogenes genotypes and food-related stress tolerance phenotypes. To accomplish this, 166 L. monocytogenes isolates were sequenced and evaluated for their ability to grow in cold (4°C), salt (6% NaCl, 25°C), and acid (pH 5, 25°C) stress conditions as well as survive desiccation (33% RH, 20°C). The results revealed that the stress tolerance of L. monocytogenes is associated with serotype, clonal complex (CC), full length inlA profiles, and the presence of a plasmid which was identified in 55% of isolates. Isolates with full length inlA exhibited significantly (p monocytogenes sequence types, a new inlA PMSC, and several connections between CCs and the presence/absence or variations of specific genetic elements. A whole genome single-nucleotide-variants phylogeny revealed sporadic distribution of tolerant isolates and closely related sensitive and tolerant isolates, highlighting that minor genetic differences can influence the stress tolerance of L. monocytogenes. Specifically, a number of cold and desiccation sensitive isolates contained PMSCs in σB regulator genes (rsbS, rsbU, rsbV). Collectively, the results suggest that knowing the sequence type of an isolate in addition to screening for the presence of full-length inlA and a plasmid, could help food processors and food agency investigators determine why certain isolates might be persisting in a food processing environment. Additionally, increased

  17. Review on the development of photovoltaic activities in Greece

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Protogeropoulos, C.; Chadjivassiliadis, J.

    2004-01-01

    The paper gives a thorough review of the past and recent activities in the field of photovoltaics in Greece. Reference is given to all affiliated governmental bodies, the interactive mechanisms, the main RTD organisations and the industry involved in the development of solar business in the country. Policy planning and some actions taking into consideration the local situation in harmonization with the policy of EU member states are also discussed. Potential areas for PV applications are highlighted and recommendations for the development of systems technology and market are made. A National Programme must be initiated by the government to encourage PV applications on the islands and to create a favourable framework for small grid-connected roof-top PV systems, covering the household sector in the country. (authors)

  18. Posibilidad de aplicación del deshumidificador de rueda desecante en procesos de producción y conservación de alimentos en Cuba. // Possibility of application of desiccant wheel dehumidifier in production and conservation of foods in Cuba.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    T. Carbonell Morales

    2003-01-01

    Full Text Available El control de la humedad relativa es de vital importancia en el desarrollo con calidad de muchos procesos industriales, talescomo: procesos de climatización y refrigeración para evitar la indeseable formación de escarchas en la manipulación yalmacenaje de productos a granel en la industria azucarera y del cemento, y en la producción y conservación con calidad demuchos alimentos.En este trabajo se muestra el sistema deshumidificador de rueda desecante como una variante novedosa de producción deaire seco y para el control de humedad, detallándose su principio de funcionamiento y los materiales desecantes másfrecuentemente empleados.Palabras claves: Deshumidificación, desecantes, humedad._______________________________________________________________________________Abstract.The control of relative humidity is of vital importance in many industrial processes to assure their performance with highquality, among these processes we have: air conditioning and refrigeration processes to avoid the undesirable formation offrosts, in the manipulation and storage of products, in the sugar and cement industries, in the production and conservationof foods.In this paper the dehumidification of wheel desiccant system is shown, as a successful variant for the production of dry airand for the control of humidity, their operation principle is being explained in detail and the desiccant materials morefrequently used are mentioned.Key words. Dehumidifier, desiccants, humidity

  19. Efeitos da dessecação de plantas de soja no potencial fisiológico e sanitário das sementes Effects of desiccation on the physiological potential and sanitary condition of seeds from soybean plants

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    André Luiz de Souza Lacerda

    2005-01-01

    Full Text Available O objetivo da pesquisa foi verificar a melhor época de aplicação de dessecantes, a fim de permitir a colheita de sementes de soja com a máxima qualidade fisiológica e sanitária. Assim, foi semeada a cultivar IAC-15 na área experimental da FE/UNESP - Campus de Ilha Solteira, localizada no município de Selvíria, MS. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi o em blocos casualizados, estando os tratamentos dispostos em esquema fatorial 3 x 3 e 4 x 4 de produtos e épocas de aplicação, nos anos agrícolas de 1996/97 e 1997/98 respectivamente. Os dessecantes utilizados no ano agrícola de 1996/97 foram o paraquat, diquat e mistura paraquat + diquat nas doses de 400, 300 e 200+150 g ha-1 respectivamente. Em 1997/98, foram utilizados os mesmos dessecantes, nas mesmas doses, acrescentando-se, nesse caso, mais um tratamento, ou seja, o produto glufosinato de amônio, na dose de 400 g ha-1. Como épocas, foram realizadas três aplicações em 1997 e quatro em 1998, todas em intervalos de cinco dias a partir do estádio R6. Nas condições ambientais em que se realizou a pesquisa, a melhor época de dessecação foi quando as plantas estavam com 80% a 90% de vagens com coloração amarela e marrom e teores de água nas sementes entre 45% e 60%. Com relação aos dessecantes, não se obteve, com qualquer dos produtos testados, potencial fisiológico e sanitário suficientes para a comercialização das sementes.The objective of this paper was to verify the ideal moment of application of desiccants on the soybeans crop, to obtain seeds with maximum physiological and sanitary quality. The cultivar IAC-15 was sowed at the experimental area of FE/UNESP - Campus of Ilha Solteira, located in the district of Selvíria, State of Mato Grosso do Sul (20º 22'S, 51º 22'W at approximately 335 m of altitude. The experimental design was a randomized block, with treatments in a factorial scheme of 3x3 and 4x4 (dessicant x application time, in 1996/97 and 1997

  20. STABILITY OF CO2 ATMOSPHERES ON DESICCATED M DWARF EXOPLANETS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gao, Peter; Hu, Renyu; Li, Cheng; Yung, Yuk L.; Robinson, Tyler D.

    2015-01-01

    We investigate the chemical stability of CO 2 -dominated atmospheres of desiccated M dwarf terrestrial exoplanets using a one-dimensional photochemical model. Around Sun-like stars, CO 2 photolysis by Far-UV (FUV) radiation is balanced by recombination reactions that depend on water abundance. Planets orbiting M dwarf stars experience more FUV radiation, and could be depleted in water due to M dwarfs’ prolonged, high-luminosity pre-main sequences. We show that, for water-depleted M dwarf terrestrial planets, a catalytic cycle relying on H 2 O 2 photolysis can maintain a CO 2 atmosphere. However, this cycle breaks down for atmospheric hydrogen mixing ratios <1 ppm, resulting in ∼40% of the atmospheric CO 2 being converted to CO and O 2 on a timescale of 1 Myr. The increased O 2 abundance leads to high O 3 concentrations, the photolysis of which forms another CO 2 -regenerating catalytic cycle. For atmospheres with <0.1 ppm hydrogen, CO 2 is produced directly from the recombination of CO and O. These catalytic cycles place an upper limit of ∼50% on the amount of CO 2 that can be destroyed via photolysis, which is enough to generate Earth-like abundances of (abiotic) O 2 and O 3 . The conditions that lead to such high oxygen levels could be widespread on planets in the habitable zones of M dwarfs. Discrimination between biological and abiotic O 2 and O 3 in this case can perhaps be accomplished by noting the lack of water features in the reflectance and emission spectra of these planets, which necessitates observations at wavelengths longer than 0.95 μm

  1. A novel approach radiolabeling detonation nanodiamonds through the tritium thermal activation method

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Badun, Gennadii A.; Chernysheva, Maria G.; Semenenko, Mikhail N.; Lisichkin, Georgii V. [Lomonosov Moscow State Univ. (Russian Federation). Chemistry Dept.; Yakovlev, Ruslan Yu.; Leonidov, Nikolai B. [Pavlov Ryazan State Medical Univ. (Russian Federation)

    2014-07-01

    Tritium labeling was introduced into detonation nanodiamonds (ND) through the tritium thermal activation method. Two target preparation techniques were developed to increase the radioactivity and the specific radioactivity of the labeled product: the desiccation of the waterless solvent suspension and the lyophilization of the hydrosol. The specific radioactivity of the labeled product was shown to correlate with the hydrogen content in the starting material and to achieve 2.6 TBq/g.

  2. A novel approach radiolabeling detonation nanodiamonds through the tritium thermal activation method

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Badun, Gennadii A.; Chernysheva, Maria G.; Semenenko, Mikhail N.; Lisichkin, Georgii V.

    2014-01-01

    Tritium labeling was introduced into detonation nanodiamonds (ND) through the tritium thermal activation method. Two target preparation techniques were developed to increase the radioactivity and the specific radioactivity of the labeled product: the desiccation of the waterless solvent suspension and the lyophilization of the hydrosol. The specific radioactivity of the labeled product was shown to correlate with the hydrogen content in the starting material and to achieve 2.6 TBq/g.

  3. A new photobioreactor concept enabling the production of desiccation induced biotechnological products using terrestrial cyanobacteria.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kuhne, S; Strieth, D; Lakatos, M; Muffler, K; Ulber, R

    2014-12-20

    Cyanobacteria offer great potential for the production of biotechnological products for pharmaceutical applications. However, these organisms can only be cultivated efficiently using photobioreactors (PBR). Under submerged conditions though, terrestrial cyanobacteria mostly grow in a suboptimal way, which makes this cultivation-technique uneconomic and thus terrestrial cyanobacteria unattractive. Therefore, a novel emersed photobioreactor (ePBR) has been developed, which can provide the natural conditions for these organisms. Proof of concept as well as first efficiency tests are conducted using the terrestrial cyanobacteria Trichocoleus sociatus as a model organism. The initial maximum growth rate of T. sociatus (0.014±0.001h(-1)) in submerged systems could be increased by 35%. Furthermore, it is now possible to control desiccation-correlated product formation and related metabolic processes. This is shown for the production of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). In this case the yield of 0.068±0.006g of EPS/g DW could be increased by more than seven times. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. Zero Energy Communities with Central Solar Plants using Liquid Desiccants and Local Storage: Preprint

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Burch, J.; Woods, J.; Kozubal, E.; Boranian, A.

    2012-08-01

    The zero energy community considered here consists of tens to tens-of-thousands of residences coupled to a central solar plant that produces all the community's electrical and thermal needs. A distribution network carries fluids to meet the heating and cooling loads. Large central solar systems can significantly reduce cost of energy vs. single family systems, and they enable economical seasonal heat storage. However, the thermal distribution system is costly. Conventional district heating/cooling systems use a water/glycol solution to deliver sensible energy. Piping is sized to meet the peak instantaneous load. A new district system introduced here differs in two key ways: (i) it continuously distributes a hot liquid desiccant (LD) solution to LD-based heating and cooling equipment in each home; and (ii) it uses central and local storage of both LD and heat to reduce flow rates to meet average loads. Results for piping sizes in conventional and LD thermal communities show that the LD zero energy community reduces distribution piping diameters meeting heating loads by {approx}5X and meeting cooling loads by {approx}8X for cooling, depending on climate.

  5. Determination of methanol in pulp washing filtrates by desiccated full evaporation headspace gas chromatography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hu, Hui-Chao; Chai, Xin-Sheng

    2012-01-27

    This paper reports on a desiccated full evaporation headspace gas chromatographic (FE HS-GC) technique for determination of the methanol content in dilute mill effluents. Anhydrous K(2)CO(3) was selected as the preferred salt for eliminating the water in the sample in the headspace sample vial. The results showed that the addition of 12 g K(2)CO(3) made it possible to introduce a larger sample size (up to 1 mL) into the FE HS-GC measurement, thereby increasing the sensitivity of the technique. At the given equilibration temperature (105°C), a near-complete mass transfer of methanol from the liquid phase to vapor phase (headspace) was achieved within 10 min. Replicate samples showed that the relative standard deviation of the method was less than 1.5%. Further, the limit of quantification (LOQ) was 0.12 μg and the recovery ranged from 95 to 104%. The present method greatly improves the methanol detection sensitivity in the FE HS-GC method and has the added advantage of being simple, rapid and accurate. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Aplicação de dessecantes na cultura de soja: antecipação da colheita e produção de sementes Application of desiccants on soybean crop glycine max: harvest anticipation and seed yield

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A.L.S. Lacerda

    2001-12-01

    Full Text Available Este trabalho foi conduzido no município de Selvíria-MS, semeando soja do cultivar IAC-15. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi o de blocos casualizados, estando os tratamentos dispostos em um esquema fatorial 3x3 e 4x4, sendo os fatores os produtos (dessecantes e as épocas de aplicação, nos anos agrícolas 1996/97 e 1997/98, respectivamente. Os dessecantes utilizados foram: paraquat, diquat e mistura paraquat + diquat, nas dosagens de 0,4; 0,3 e 0,2+0,15 em 1996/97, respectivamente, e os mesmos tratamentos em 1997/98, além do glufosinato de amônio na dosagem de 0,4 kg i.a. ha-1 em 1997/98. Como épocas, foram realizadas três aplicações em 1996/97 e quatro em 1997/98, todas espaçadas de cinco dias a partir do estádio fenológico médio da cultura R6. Concluiu-se que os dessecantes utilizados mostraram-se eficientes na dessecação da soja; foi possível obter antecipação da colheita de sementes de soja, sem alterar a produção, por um período máximo de sete dias.This research was carried out in Selvíria-MS, Brazil, during the growing seasons of 1996/97 and 1997/98, using the soybean cultivar IAC-15. The experimental design was arranged in randomized complete blocks in a 3x3 and 4x4 factorial scheme during 1996/97 and 1997/98, respectively, with the factors being the products (desiccants and timing of application. The desiccants sprayed were: paraquat, diquat and a mixture of paraquat + diquat at rates of 0.4; 0.3 and 0.2+0.15 in 1996/97 and the same treatments in 1997/98 added to ammonium glufosinate at 0.4 kg a.i. ha-1 in 1997/98. The timing of application was spaced every five days, starting from the soybean vegetative stage R6. The tested desiccants were efficient on the soybean desiccation ; it was possible to obtain grain harvest anticipation, without yield reduction, in a maximum period of seven days.

  7. Density and vapour pressure of mixed-solvent desiccant systems (propylene glycol or dipropylene glycol or tripropylene glycol + magnesium chloride + water)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, Shang-Yi; Soriano, Allan N.; Leron, Rhoda B.; Li, Meng-Hui

    2014-01-01

    In this present work, new experimental data for density and vapour pressure of the mixed-solvent desiccant systems containing {40 wt% glycol (propylene or dipropylene or tripropylene) + (4 or 9 or 16 wt%) magnesium chloride salt + water} were reported for temperatures up to 343.15 K at normal atmospheric condition. The density and vapour pressure data obtained are presented as a function of temperature and composition. An empirical equation was used to correlate the temperature and compositional dependence of the density values. A model based on the mean spherical approximation for aqueous electrolyte solutions incorporating the pseudo-solvent approach was used to represent the vapour pressure as a function of temperature and composition. Satisfactory results were obtained for both density and vapour pressure calculations

  8. A trigeneration system based on polymer electrolyte fuel cell and desiccant wheel – Part B: Overall system design and energy performance analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Intini, M.; De Antonellis, S.; Joppolo, C.M.; Casalegno, A.

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Seasonal simulation of a trigeneration system for building air-conditioning. • Effects of technical constraints on trigeneration system power consumption. • Optimal PEMFC unit size for maximizing trigeneration primary energy savings. - Abstract: This paper represents the second part of a major work focusing on a trigeneration system integrating a low temperature polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEMFC) and a desiccant wheel-based air handling unit. Low temperature PEMFC systems have a significant potential in combined heating, cooling and power applications. However cogenerated heat temperature is relatively low (up to 65–70 °C), resulting in low efficiency of the cooling process, and the fuel processor is far from being flexible, hindering the operation of the system at low load conditions. Therefore a trigeneration system based on PEMFC should be carefully designed through accurate simulation tools. In the current paper a detailed analysis of the energy performance of the trigenerative system is provided, taking into account constraints of real applications, such as PEMFC part load behavior, desiccant wheel effectiveness, heat storage losses and air handling unit electrical consumptions. The methodology adopted to model system components is deeply described. Energy simulations are performed on yearly basis with variable building air conditioning loads and climate conditions, in order to investigate the optimal trigenerative unit size. A sensitivity analysis on crucial design parameters is provided. It is shown that constrains of actual applications have relevant effects on system energy consumption, which is significantly far from expected values based on a simplified analysis. Primary energy savings can be positive in winter time if the ratio of PEMFC heating capacity to air conditioning peak heating load is close to 0.15. Instead on yearly basis primary energy savings cannot be achieved with present components performance. Positive savings

  9. Liquid desiccant dehumidification and regeneration process to meet cooling and freshwater needs of desert greenhouses

    KAUST Repository

    Lefers, Ryan

    2016-04-19

    Agriculture accounts for ~70% of freshwater usage worldwide. Seawater desalination alone cannot meet the growing needs for irrigation and food production, particularly in hot, desert environments. Greenhouse cultivation of high-value crops uses just a fraction of freshwater per unit of food produced when compared with open field cultivation. However, desert greenhouse producers face three main challenges: freshwater supply, plant nutrient supply, and cooling of the greenhouse. The common practice of evaporative cooling for greenhouses consumes large amounts of fresh water. In Saudi Arabia, the most common greenhouse cooling schemes are fresh water-based evaporative cooling, often using fossil groundwater or energy-intensive desalinated water, and traditional refrigeration-based direct expansion cooling, largely powered by the burning of fossil fuels. The coastal deserts have ambient conditions that are seasonally too humid to support adequate evaporative cooling, necessitating additional energy consumption in the dehumidification process of refrigeration-based cooling. This project evaluates the use of a combined-system liquid desiccant dehumidifier and membrane distillation unit that can meet the dual needs of cooling and freshwater supply for a greenhouse in a hot and humid environment. © 2016 Balaban Desalination Publications. All rights reserved.

  10. Proyecto Haz[Otea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ricardo Alvira Baeza

    2016-07-01

      For some time now, it has become increasingly common hearing about the great potential trans-forming urban rooftop spaces poses for increasing cities’ sustainability, in a speech usually encour-aging their adaptation into green roofs or use for locating renewable energy generators. However, it is currently extremely difficult assessing to what extent these statements are correct: • Available information and assessments of these rooftops’ types describe technical issues and/or focus on specific aspects of their impact on reality [thermal insulation, rain water re-tention ...] being hardly relatable to the impact a general transformation of an urban area’s rooftops would imply for the area’s overall state. • The impact of some technological solution/design may be different in different urban are-as. • Rooftops may host several uses, yet we have found no document providing an extensive comparison of the impact of each of them. To assist in this debate, in this text we estimate the expected impact of the hypothetical transfor-mation of all available rooftops in an existing urban area: Palos de Moguer neighborhood in Madrid. In order to do so, we use Meta[S] model proposed by the author as PhD Thesis project, which as-sesses 64 dimensions of urban reality. The assessment allows us to highlight three key issues: • Not all possible rooftops transformations produce the same benefit for cities/urban areas, and in urban consolidated environments rooftop transformations that allow people’s use may pose higher collective benefit. • Rooftops transformations benefit maximization requires individual analysis of each urban area, relating its particular needs with available rooftop surface characteristics. • The number of different rooftops possible uses and their ease of implementation can be greatly increased if some previsions are incorporated in Urban Planning/Building Codes These last two issues allow us to state the interest of both updating national

  11. Deterioration and spoilage of peanuts and desiccated coconuts from two sub-Saharan tropical East African countries due to the associated mycobiota and their degradative enzymes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ismail, M A

    2001-01-01

    A broad variety of fungi (84 species belonging to 36 genera) were identified with more taxa infesting peanut seed samples from two tropical countries (29 genera and 61 species) compared to those found in desiccated coconuts (20 genera and 55 species) on both DRBC and DG18 media. This may be due to the higher moisture levels in peanuts (5.07-7.97%) compared with coconuts (1.5-4.17%). More taxa and propagules were recovered on DG18 in both cases. The dominant fungi from both substrates on both isolation media were Aspergillus and Penicillium, with other fungi from only one substrate/medium. The aflatoxigenic species (A. flavus) dominated Kenyan samples more so than Ugandan samples on both substrates. However only 71.5% and 87.5% of the peanut kernels, on DRBC and DG18, respectively, were found to be infested with fungi. The aflatoxigenic species (A. flavus/parasiticus) were found in 75% of the samples, however only 15.75% and 13% of the kernels analyzed were infested. The most frequently isolated species from peanuts were A. niger followed by A. flavus and M. phaseolina. E. repens, E. amstelodami, E. rubrum and E. chevalieri dominated peanut seeds on DG18, and R. stolonifer, A. parasiticus, F. solani, L. theobromae and P. chrysogenum on DRBC. The mean count of fungal propagules in coconut samples were approximately 0.7 x 10(3) and 0.8 x 10(3) on DRBC and DG18, respectively, with a high proportion of those propagules recorded for the aflatoxigenic species (about 0. 17 x 10(3) and 0.25 x 10(3) colonies/g). The mycobiota of desiccated coconut was dominated by A. niger, A. flavus and P. chrysogenum. Also A. ochraceus, P. waksmanii, Paecilomyces variotii, P. islandicum and R. mucilaginosa were more frequent on DRBC, while, species of Cladosporium. Chrysosporium and Eurotium were more frequent on DG18. Enzyme indices (or the activities) for each specific strain, when determined after 5 and 8 days of incubation, proved to be similar. A recommendation is given. The

  12. Annual DOE active solar heating and cooling contractors' review meeting. Premeeting proceedings and project summaries

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None,

    1981-09-01

    Ninety-three project summaries are presented which discuss the following aspects of active solar heating and cooling: Rankine solar cooling systems; absorption solar cooling systems; desiccant solar cooling systems; solar heat pump systems; solar hot water systems; special projects (such as the National Solar Data Network, hybrid solar thermal/photovoltaic applications, and heat transfer and water migration in soils); administrative/management support; and solar collector, storage, controls, analysis, and materials technology. (LEW)

  13. A case study of air quality above an urban roof top vegetable farm

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tong, Zheming; Whitlow, Thomas H.; Landers, Andrew; Flanner, Benjamin

    2016-01-01

    The effect of elevation and rooftop configuration on local air quality was investigated at the Brooklyn Grange rooftop farm during a short-term observational campaign. Using multiple particle counters and sonic anemometers deployed along vertical gradients, we found that PM_2_._5 concentration decayed with height above the street. Samples adjacent to the street had the highest average PM_2_._5 concentration and frequent stochastic spikes above background. Rooftop observations 26 m above ground showed 7–33% reductions in average PM_2_._5 concentration compared with the curbside and had far fewer spikes. A relationship between the vertical extinction rate of PM_2_._5 and atmospheric stability was found whereby less unstable atmosphere and greater wind shear led to greater PM_2_._5 extinction due to damped vertical motion of air. - Highlights: • PM_2_._5 concentrations on a rooftop farm were 7–33% lower than at ground level. • Rooftop plantings will remove less pollution due to the less steep concentration gradient. • Vegetables are exposed to less vehicular pollution on roofs than that at ground level. - PM_2_._5 concentrations on a rooftop farm were 7–33% below those at ground level, and the vertical extinction rate of PM_2_._5 varied with the atmospheric stability, and a perimeter wall was the dominant factor governing rooftop boundary layer thickness.

  14. Activity and stability of a complex bacterial soil community under simulated Martian conditions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hansen, Aviaja Anna; Merrison, Jonathan; Nørnberg, Per; Aagaard Lomstein, Bente; Finster, Kai

    2005-04-01

    A simulation experiment with a complex bacterial soil community in a Mars simulation chamber was performed to determine the effect of Martian conditions on community activity, stability and survival. At three different depths in the soil core short-term effects of Martian conditions with and without ultraviolet (UV) exposure corresponding to 8 Martian Sol were compared. Community metabolic activities and functional diversity, measured as glucose respiration and versatility in substrate utilization, respectively, decreased after UV exposure, whereas they remained unaffected by Martian conditions without UV exposure. In contrast, the numbers of culturable bacteria and the genetic diversity were unaffected by the simulated Martian conditions both with and without UV exposure. The genetic diversity of the soil community and of the colonies grown on agar plates were evaluated by denaturant gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) on DNA extracts. Desiccation of the soil prior to experimentation affected the functional diversity by decreasing the versatility in substrate utilization. The natural dominance of endospores and Gram-positive bacteria in the investigated Mars-analogue soil may explain the limited effect of the Mars incubations on the survival and community structure. Our results suggest that UV radiation and desiccation are major selecting factors on bacterial functional diversity in terrestrial bacterial communities incubated under simulated Martian conditions. Furthermore, these results suggest that forward contamination of Mars is a matter of great concern in future space missions.

  15. Loss and re-establishment of desiccation tolerance in the germinated seeds of Sesbania virgata (Cav. (Pers.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tathiana Elisa Masetto

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available This research aimed to investigate the cellular alterations during the loss and re-establishment of desiccation tolerance (DT in germinated Sesbania virgata seeds. The loss of DT was characterized in germinated seeds with increasing radicle lengths (1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 mm when subjected to dehydration in silica gel, followed by rehydration. To re-establish DT, the germinated seeds were incubated for 72h in polyethylene glycol (PEG, -2.04 MPa with or without ABA (100 μM before dehydration in silica gel. Cell viability was assessed by seedling survival, and DNA integrity was evaluated by gel electrophoresis. Seeds with 1 mm radicle length survived dehydration to the original moisture content (MC of the dry seed (approximately 10%. PEG treatment was able to re-establish DT, at least partially, with 2, 3 and 4 mm but not in 5 mm radicle lengths. Germinated seeds treated with PEG+ABA performed better than those treated only with PEG, and DT was re-established even in germinated seeds with a 5 mm radicle length. Among the PEG-treated germinated seeds dehydrated to 10% MC, DNA integrity was maintained only in those with a 1 mm radicle length.

  16. Darker eggs of mosquitoes resist more to dry conditions: Melanin enhances serosal cuticle contribution in egg resistance to desiccation in Aedes, Anopheles and Culex vectors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Farnesi, Luana C; Vargas, Helena C M; Valle, Denise; Rezende, Gustavo L

    2017-10-01

    Mosquito vectors lay their white eggs in the aquatic milieu. During early embryogenesis water passes freely through the transparent eggshell, which at this moment is composed of exochorion and endochorion. Within two hours the endochorion darkens via melanization but even so eggs shrink and perish if removed from moisture. However, during mid-embryogenesis, cells of the extraembryonic serosa secrete the serosal cuticle, localized right below the endochorion, becoming the third and innermost eggshell layer. Serosal cuticle formation greatly reduces water flow and allows egg survival outside the water. The degree of egg resistance to desiccation (ERD) at late embryogenesis varies among different species: Aedes aegypti, Anopheles aquasalis and Culex quinquefasciatus eggs can survive in a dry environment for ≥ 72, 24 and 5 hours, respectively. In some adult insects, darker-body individuals show greater resistance to desiccation than lighter ones. We asked if egg melanization enhances mosquito serosal cuticle-dependent ERD. Species with higher ERD at late embryogenesis exhibit more melanized eggshells. The melanization-ERD hypothesis was confirmed employing two Anopheles quadrimaculatus strains, the wild type and the mutant GORO, with a dark-brown and a golden eggshell, respectively. In all cases, serosal cuticle formation is fundamental for the establishment of an efficient ERD but egg viability outside the water is much higher in mosquitoes with darker eggshells than in those with lighter ones. The finding that pigmentation influences egg water balance is relevant to understand the evolutionary history of insect egg coloration. Since eggshell and adult cuticle pigmentation ensure insect survivorship in some cases, they should be considered regarding species fitness and novel approaches for vector or pest insects control.

  17. The physicochemical characteristics and anaerobic degradability of desiccated coconut industry waste water.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chanakya, H N; Khuntia, Himanshu Kumar; Mukherjee, Niranjan; Aniruddha, R; Mudakavi, J R; Thimmaraju, Preeti

    2015-12-01

    Desiccated coconut industries (DCI) create various intermediates from fresh coconut kernel for cosmetic, pharmaceutical and food industries. The mechanized and non-mechanized DCI process between 10,000 and 100,000 nuts/day to discharge 6-150 m(3) of malodorous waste water leading to a discharge of 264-6642 kg chemical oxygen demand (COD) daily. In these units, three main types of waste water streams are coconut kernel water, kernel wash water and virgin oil waste water. The effluent streams contain lipids (1-55 g/l), suspended solids (6-80 g/l) and volatile fatty acids (VFA) at concentrations that are inhibitory to anaerobic bacteria. Coconut water contributes to 20-50% of the total volume and 50-60% of the total organic loads and causes higher inhibition of anaerobic bacteria with an initial lag phase of 30 days. The lagooning method of treatment widely adopted failed to appreciably treat the waste water and often led to the accumulation of volatile fatty acids (propionic acid) along with long-chain unsaturated free fatty acids. Biogas generation during biological methane potential (BMP) assay required a 15-day adaptation time, and gas production occurred at low concentrations of coconut water while the other two streams did not appear to be inhibitory. The anaerobic bacteria can mineralize coconut lipids at concentrations of 175 mg/l; however; they are severely inhibited at a lipid level of ≥350 mg/g bacterial inoculum. The modified Gompertz model showed a good fit with the BMP data with a simple sigmoid pattern. However, it failed to fit experimental BMP data either possessing a longer lag phase and/or diauxic biogas production suggesting inhibition of anaerobic bacteria.

  18. Long-term degradation of resin-based cements in substances present in the oral environment: influence of activation mode

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eduardo Moreira da SILVA

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Indirect restorations in contact with free gingival margins or principally within the gingival sulcus, where the presence of organic acids produced by oral biofilm is higher, may present faster degradation of the resin-based cement pellicle. Objectives To investigate the degradation of four resin-based cements: Rely X ARC (R, Variolink II (V, Enforce (E and All Cem (A, after immersion in distilled water (DW, lactic acid (LA and artificial saliva (AS and to analyze the influence of the activation mode on this response. Material and Methods Two activation modes were evaluated: chemical (Ch and dual (D. In the dual activation, a two-millimeter thick ceramic disk (IPS Empress System was interposed between the specimen and light-curing unit tip. Specimens were desiccated, immersed in distilled water, artificial saliva and lactic acid 0.1 M at 37°C for 180 days, weighed daily for the first 7 days, and after 14, 21, 28, 90 and 180 days and were desiccated again. Sorption and solubility (µg/mm 3 were calculated based on ISO 4049. The data were submitted to multifactor analysis of variance (MANOVA and Tukey's HSD test for media comparisons (α=0.05. Results Sorption was higher after immersion in LA (pD (p<0.05. The lowest solubility was presented by R (p<0.05. Conclusions Lactic acid increased the degradation of resin-based cements. Moreover, the physical component of activation, i.e., light-activation, contributed to a low degradation of resin-based cements.

  19. Quality of seeds of soybean obtained from different cultivars subjected to desiccation with different herbicides and application times = Qualidade de sementes de soja obtidas de diferentes cultivares submetidas à dessecação com diferentes herbicidas e épocas de aplicação

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Frederico José Evangelista Botelho

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Desiccation is a technique used by soybean growers, aiming to anticipate the harvest. However, for seed production this technique requires attention, because some desiccant herbicides can generate residues in the seeds damaging its quality. The objective of this study was to evaluate the desiccant effect of different spraying times on the physiological quality of soybean seeds, stored by six months, from different cultivars and lignin contents in the coat. Soybean plants from BRS Silvânia RR, BRS Valiosa RR, BRS 245 RR and BRS 247 RR cultivars were desiccated with Diquat, Paraquat and Glufosinate ammonium herbicides, and water as a control treatment, applied when the seeds presented 30, 40 and 50% of water content. After harvesting and processing, seeds were stored for six months in conventional warehouse. The physiological quality of soybean seeds was tested via germination, emergence, emergence speed index, electrical conductivity and tetrazolium. The physiological quality of seeds from cultivars BRS Valiosa RR and BRS Silvânia RR were lower than the seeds from cultivars BRS 245 and BRS 247. The desiccation, especially when the Glufosinate ammonium herbicide was applied, showed more damaged to the physiological quality of soybean seeds than the other treatments. = A dessecação é uma técnica utilizada pelos produtores de soja com o objetivo de antecipar a colheita. No entanto, para a produção de sementes essa técnica necessita de cuidados, uma vez que alguns dessecantes podem deixar resíduos na semente prejudicando sua qualidade. Objetivou-se com esse estudo avaliar o efeito da aplicação de dessecantes em diferentes épocas sobre a qualidade fisiológica de sementes, após seis meses de armazenamento, de cultivares de soja com diferentes teores de lignina no tegumento. As plantas das cultivares BRS Silvânia RR, BRS Valiosa RR, BRS 245 RR e BRS 247 RR foram dessecadas com os herbicidas Diquat, Paraquat e Glufosinato de amônio, e

  20. Impact of desiccation and heat exposure stress on Salmonella tolerance to acidic conditions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Richardson, Kurt E; Cox, Nelson A; Cosby, Douglas E; Berrang, Mark E

    2018-02-01

    In a recent study, the pH of commonly used Salmonella pre-enrichment media became acidic (pH 4.0 to 5.0) when feed or feed ingredients were incubated for 24 h. Acidic conditions have been reported to injure or kill Salmonella. In this study, cultures of four known feed isolates (S. montevideo, S. senftenberg, S. tennessee, and S. schwarzengrund) and four important processing plant isolates (S. typhimurium, S. enteritidis, S. infantis, and S. heidelberg) were grown on meat and bone meal and later subjected to desiccation and heat exposure to stress the microorganism. The impact of stress on the isolates ability to survive in acidic conditions ranging from pH 4.0 to 7.0 was compared to the non-stressed isolate. Cell injury was determined on xylose lysine tergitol 4 (XLT4) and cell death determined on nutrient agar (NA). When measured by cell death in non-stressed Salmonella, S. typhimurium was the most acid tolerant and S. heidelberg was the most acid sensitive whereas in stressed Salmonella, S. senftenberg was the most acid tolerant and S. tennessee was the most acid sensitive. The pH required to cause cell injury varied among isolates. With some isolates, the pH required for 50% cell death and 50% cell injury was similar. In other isolates, cell injury occurred at a more neutral pH. These findings suggest that the pH of pre-enrichment media may influence the recovery and bias the serotype of Salmonella recovered from feed during pre-enrichment.

  1. Control of the Water Transport Activity of Barley HvTIP3;1 Specifically Expressed in Seeds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Utsugi, Shigeko; Shibasaka, Mineo; Maekawa, Masahiko; Katsuhara, Maki

    2015-09-01

    Tonoplast intrinsic proteins (TIPs) are involved in the transport and storage of water, and control intracellular osmotic pressure by transporting material related to the water potential of cells. In the present study, we focused on HvTIP3;1 during the periods of seed development and desiccation in barley. HvTIP3;1 was specifically expressed in seeds. An immunochemical analysis showed that HvTIP3;1 strongly accumulated in the aleurone layers and outer layers of barley seeds. The water transport activities of HvTIP3;1 and HvTIP1;2, which also accumulated in seeds, were measured in the heterologous expression system of Xenopus oocytes. When they were expressed individually, HvTIP1;2 transported water, whereas HvTIP3;1 did not. However, HvTIP3;1 exhibited water transport activity when co-expressed with HvTIP1;2 in oocytes, and this activity was higher than when HvTIP1;2 was expressed alone. This is the first report to demonstrate that the water permeability of a TIP aquaporin was activated when co-expressed with another TIP. The split-yellow fluorescent protein (YFP) system in onion cells revealed that HvTIP3;1 interacted with HvTIP1;2 to form a heterotetramer in plants. These results suggest that HvTIP3;1 functions as an active water channel to regulate water movement through tissues during the periods of seed development and desiccation. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Japanese Society of Plant Physiologists. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  2. Hydro-mechanical coupling in non-saturated medium with phase change. Application to desiccation shrinkage

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lassabatere, Thierry

    1994-01-01

    The target of this research is to set up a unified and coherent working frame based upon the rigorous principles of thermodynamics and making it possible to model a large class of physical phenomena acting in unsaturated porous media, as well as the related interactions with the mechanical state of the structures. This class corresponds to reactive phenomena among which one finds the phase change (desiccation) for which the whole of its subsequent actions (creep but essentially shrinkage) is modelled and which will be treated as a specific application example. The first chapter recalls the bases of the adopted description of the porous medium as well as the global thermodynamical frame which underlays the whole modelling. Chapter II deals with the mainly new formulation and the identification of a non linear elastic constitutive law of the medium involved. Various reflexion elements related to the microscopic behaviours of the components and to experiments have orientated the model towards some more limitative hypotheses making it possible to have a complete and explicit determination of a law for the macroscopic behaviour. Chapter IV and V are examples of application: chapter IV studies the problem of shrinkage and creep in a coupled linear elastic behaviour. Chapter V is limited to the case of shrinkage treated by a numerical application of the whole non-linear elastic model. The results obtained are in good agreement with the corresponding experiments. (author) [fr

  3. Modelling desiccation cracking in a homogenous soil clay layer: comparison between different hypotheses on constitutive behaviour

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jommi Cristina

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Desiccation cracks are usually thought to start from the surface of an evaporating soil layer, and the available simplified models for crack initiation and propagation are based on this hypothesis. On the contrary, experimental results on a Dutch river clay showed that cracks in an evaporating soil layer may start and propagate below the surface, confirming earlier findings by other researchers. A simple one-dimensional model was set up to analyse the consequences of different hypotheses about the material behaviour on the crack onset in a homogenous soil layer undergoing surface drying. The results of the model show that dependence of the material behaviour on the rate of water content change is a necessary requirement for cracks to initiate below the surface. The conclusion suggests that, to properly understand cracking in an evaporating soil layer, an intrinsic time scale for the mechanical response must be accounted for, among all the other factors which were previously highlighted by other researchers. The key factor to predict crack onset below the surface is the dependence of the drying branch of the water retention curve of the compressible soil on the rate of drying, which would be justified by a rate dependent fabric evolution.

  4. Dust Generation Resulting from Desiccation of Playa Systems: Studies on Mono and Owens Lakes, California

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gill, Thomas Edward

    1995-01-01

    Playas, evaporites, and aeolian sediments frequently are linked components within the Earth system. Anthropogenic water diversions from terminal lakes form playas that release fugitive dust. These actions, documented worldwide, simulate aeolian processes activated during palaeoclimatic pluvial/interpluvial transitions, and have significant environmental impacts. Pluvial lakes Russell and Owens in North America's Great Basin preceded historic Mono and Owens Lakes, now desiccated by water diversions into dust-generating, evaporite -encrusted playas. Geochemical and hydrologic cycles acting on the Owens (Dry) Lake playa form three distinct crust types each year. Although initial dust production results from deflation of surface efflorescences after the playa dries, most aerosols are created by saltation abrasion of salt/silt/clay crusts at crust/ sand sheet contacts. The warm-season, clastic "cemented" crust is slowest to degrade into dust. If the playa surface is stabilized by an unbroken, non-efflorescent crust, dust formation is discouraged. When Mono Lake's surFace elevation does not exceed 1951 meters (6400 feet), similar processes will also generate dust from its saline lower playa. Six factors--related to wind, topography, groundwater, and sediments--control dust formation at both playas. These factors were combined into a statistical model relating suspended dust concentrations to playa/lake morphometry. The model shows the extent and severity of Mono Lake dust storms expands significantly below the surface level 6376 feet (1943.5 meters). X-ray diffraction analysis of Mono Basin soils, playa sediments, and aerosols demonstrates geochemical cycling of materials through land, air and water during Mono Lake's 1982 low stand. Soils and clastic playa sediments contain silicate minerals and tephra. Saline groundwater deposited calcite, halite, thenardite, gaylussite, burkeite and glauberite onto the lower playa. Aerosols contained silicate minerals (especially

  5. RAINWATER MANAGEMENT AIMING TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF URBAN SURFACE RUNOFF

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    I. HAIDU

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available Rainwater Management Aiming to Improve the Quality of Urban Surface Runoff. Currently many urban areas experience the quality degradation of rooftop runoff and accumulated rainwater. The present study aims to estimate the volume of water draining from rooftops within an area of 0.68 km² in the municipality of Cluj-Napoca. The volume of water flowing from rooftops presents a beneficial alternative not only for collecting rainwater for later use, but also for reducing the volume of water and for improving surface runoff quality in urban areas. The procedure was based on the Michel Simplified SCS-CN model, a derived variant of the most popular hydrological model, the Soil Conservation Service Curve Number (SCS-CN. The results of the applied method reveal that the highest rooftop runoff water values correspond to the summer months, these being based on daily rainfall data. Estimating the volume of water draining from rooftops for future harvesting is an important step in the sustainable management of rainwater in urban areas and in improving water quality.

  6. Theoretical and experimental studies on the daily accumulative heat gain from cool roofs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qin, Yinghong; Zhang, Mingyi; Hiller, Jacob E.

    2017-01-01

    Cool roofs are gaining popularity as passive building cooling techniques, but the correlation between energy savings and rooftop albedo has not been understood completely. Here we theoretically model the daily accumulative inward heat (DAIH) from building roofs with different albedo values, correlating the heat gain of the building roof to both the rooftop albedo and the incident solar radiation. According to this model, the DAIH increases linearly with the daily zenith solar radiation, but decreases linearly with the rooftop albedo. A small building cell was constructed to monitor the heat gain of the building under the conditions of non-insulated and insulated roofs. The observational DAIH is highly coincident with the theoretical one, validating the theoretical model. It was found that insulating the roof, increasing the rooftop albedo, or both options can effectively curtail the heat gain in buildings during the summer season. The proposed theoretical model would be a powerful tool for evaluating the heat gain of the buildings and estimating the energy savings potential of high-reflective cool roofs. - Highlights: • Daily accumulative heat gain from a building roof is theoretically modeled. • Daily accumulative heat gain from a building roof increases linearly with rooftop absorptivity. • Increasing the roof insulation tapers the effect of the rooftop absorptivity. • The theoretical model is powerful for estimating energy savings of reflective roofs.

  7. Comportamento fisiológico de sementes de açaí (Euterpe oleracea Mart. submetidas à desidratação Physiology behavior of Euterpe oleracea seeds submitted to desiccation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Walnice Maria Oliveira do Nascimento

    2005-12-01

    Full Text Available O presente trabalho, objetivando verificar os efeitos imediatos da desidratação sobre o comportamento fisiológico das sementes de açaí (Euterpe oleracea Mart., utilizou lote oriundo de população de 25 progênies de meio-irmãos, pertencente à Coleção de Germoplasma da Embrapa Amazônia Oriental (Belém/PA. Anteriormente à secagem, foi determinado o grau de umidade das sementes e coletado o tratamento que continha o maior grau de umidade (45%. As demais sementes foram submetidas à secagem, em câmara com circulação de ar (30ºC±2ºC, visando à obtenção dos demais tratamentos com 39%, 33%, 27%, 22% e 15% de água. O efeito da desidratação sobre a qualidade das sementes foi avaliado através das seguintes determinações: grau de umidade, teste de germinação, índice de velocidade de emergência e emergência de plântulas. Foi verificado que a desidratação até 39% de água não produz efeitos fisiológicos imediatos sobre as sementes de açaí; a partir de 33% de água, a dessecação favorece progressivamente a redução da germinação e, ao atingir 15% de água, a capacidade germinativa foi anulada.The objective of this article was to verify the physiological effects of desiccation of Euterpe oleracea Mart. seeds. Açai palm seeds from twenty five progenies from the germoplasm collection of Embrapa Amazônia Oriental (Belém, State of Pará, Brazil were used. Before the desiccation, it was determined the moisture content of the lot and it was removed the treatment with the highest moisture content (45%. The other seeds of the lot were submitted to drying in a chamber with air circulation at 30±2ºC aiming to reach the treatments at 39%, 33%, 27%, 22% and 15% of water. The effects of dehydration were evaluated by means of the following determinations: moisture content, germination test, speed and emergency of seedlings. It was concluded that the desiccation to 39% moisture content does not affect the physiology of

  8. Fabrication and Properties of Micro-Nanoencapsulated Phase Change Materials for Internally-Cooled Liquid Desiccant Dehumidification

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiaofeng Niu

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Micro-nanoencapsulated phase change materials (M-NEPCMs are proposed to be useful in liquid desiccant dehumidification by restraining the temperature rise in the moisture-removal process and improving the dehumidification efficiency. In this paper, the n-octadecane M-NEPCMs with desirable thermal properties for internally-cooled dehumidification were fabricated by using compound emulsifiers through the in-situ polymerization method. Melamine-formaldehyde resin was used as the shell material. The effects of the mixing ratio, emulsification methods and amount of the compound emulsifiers on the morphology, size and thermal properties of the M-NEPCMs were investigated experimentally. The optimum weight mixing ratio of the compound emulsifiers is SDS (sodium dodecyl sulfate:Tween80 (polyoxyethylene sorbitan monooleate:Span80 (sorbitan monooleate = 0.1:0.6:0.3, which achieves the best stability of the n-octadecane emulsion. When the compound emulsifiers are 10 wt. % of the core material, the melting enthalpy of M-NEPCMs reaches its maximum of 145.26 J/g of capsules, with an encapsulation efficiency of 62.88% and a mean diameter of 636 nm. The sub-cooling of the prepared M-NEPCMs is lower than 3 °C, with an acceptable thermal reliability after the thermal cycling test. A pre-emulsification prior to the addition of deionized water in the emulsification is beneficial to the morphology of the capsules, as the phase change enthalpy can be increased by 123.7%.

  9. Fabrication and Properties of Micro-Nanoencapsulated Phase Change Materials for Internally-Cooled Liquid Desiccant Dehumidification.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Niu, Xiaofeng; Xu, Qing; Zhang, Yi; Zhang, Yue; Yan, Yufeng; Liu, Tao

    2017-04-29

    Micro-nanoencapsulated phase change materials (M-NEPCMs) are proposed to be useful in liquid desiccant dehumidification by restraining the temperature rise in the moisture-removal process and improving the dehumidification efficiency. In this paper, the n -octadecane M-NEPCMs with desirable thermal properties for internally-cooled dehumidification were fabricated by using compound emulsifiers through the in-situ polymerization method. Melamine-formaldehyde resin was used as the shell material. The effects of the mixing ratio, emulsification methods and amount of the compound emulsifiers on the morphology, size and thermal properties of the M-NEPCMs were investigated experimentally. The optimum weight mixing ratio of the compound emulsifiers is SDS (sodium dodecyl sulfate):Tween80 (polyoxyethylene sorbitan monooleate):Span80 (sorbitan monooleate) = 0.1:0.6:0.3, which achieves the best stability of the n -octadecane emulsion. When the compound emulsifiers are 10 wt. % of the core material, the melting enthalpy of M-NEPCMs reaches its maximum of 145.26 J/g of capsules, with an encapsulation efficiency of 62.88% and a mean diameter of 636 nm. The sub-cooling of the prepared M-NEPCMs is lower than 3 °C, with an acceptable thermal reliability after the thermal cycling test. A pre-emulsification prior to the addition of deionized water in the emulsification is beneficial to the morphology of the capsules, as the phase change enthalpy can be increased by 123.7%.

  10. Field Study on Humidification Performance of a Desiccant Air-Conditioning System Combined with a Heat Pump

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Koichi Kawamoto

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available A desiccant air-conditioning system was developed as a latent-load-processing air conditioner in a dedicated outdoor air system during the summer. This study investigated the application of this air-conditioning system to humidification during the winter without using make-up water, thereby eliminating the cause of microbial contamination in air-conditioning systems. The experiments were conducted with a system used for summer applications to determine the feasibility of adsorbing vapor from outdoor air and supplying it to an indoor space. The humidification performance, energy efficiency, and operating conditions were examined. Although the conditions were subpar because the experiments were performed with an actual dedicated outdoor air system, the results showed that it is possible to supply air with a minimum humidity ratio of 5.8 g/kg dry air (DA when the humidity ratio of outdoor air ranges from 1.8 to 2.3 g/kg DA. The minimum humidification performance required for a dedicated outdoor air system was achieved by increasing the airflow rate of the moisture-adsorption side to 2–3 times that of the humidification side. In addition, air leaking from the moisture-adsorption side to the humidification side, improving the mechanical structure, such as by the insulation of the moisture-adsorption side, and an efficient operating method were examined for humidification during the winter.

  11. Life without water: cross-resistance of anhydrobiotic cell line to abiotic stresses

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gusev, Oleg

    2016-07-01

    Anhydrobiosis is an intriguing phenomenon of natural ability of some organisms to resist water loss. The larvae of Polypedilum vanderplanki, the sleeping chironomid is the largest and most complex anhydrobionts known to date. The larvae showed ability to survive variety of abiotic stresses, including outer space environment. Recently cell line (Pv11) derived from the embryonic mass of the chironomid was established. Initially sensitive to desiccation cells, are capable to "induced" anhydrobiosis, when the resistance to desiccation can be developed by pre-treatment of the cells with trehalose followed by quick desiccation. We have further conducted complex analysis of the whole genome transcription response of Pv11 cells to different abiotic stresses, including oxidative stress and irradiation. Comparative analysis showed that the gene set, responsible for formation of desiccation resistance (ARID regions in the genome) is also activated in response to other types of stresses and likely to contribute to general enhancing of the resistance of the cells to harsh environment. We have further demonstrated that the cells are able to protect recombinant proteins from harmful effect of desiccation

  12. Liquid infiltration through the boiling-point isotherm in a desiccating fractured rock matrix

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Phillips, O.M.

    1994-01-01

    Over a long time interval, the integrity of the radioactive waste repository proposed at Yucca Mountain may be compromised by corrosion accelerated by intermittent wetting which could occur by episodic infiltration of meteoric water from above through the fracture network. A simple two-dimensional model is constructed for the infiltration of liquid water down a fracture in a permeable rock matrix, beyond the boiling-point isotherm. The water may derive from episodic infiltration or from the condensation of steam above a desiccating region. Boiling of the water in the fracture is maintained by heat transfer from a surrounding superheated matrix blocks. There are two intrinsic length scales in this situation, (1): l s = ρ l q o L/(k m β) which is such that the total heat flow over this lateral distance balances that needed for evaporation of the liquid water infiltration, and (2): The thermal diffusion distance l θ = (k m t) 1/2 which increases with time after the onset of infiltration. The primary results are: (a) for two-dimensional infiltration down an isolated fracture or fault, the depth of penetration below the (undisturbed) boiling point isotherm is given by 1/2 π 1/2 (l s l θ ) 1/2 , and so increases as t 1/4 . Immediately following the onset of infiltration, penetration is rapid, but quickly slows. This behavior continues until l θ (and D) become comparable with l s . (b) With continuing infiltration down an isolated fracture or cluster of fractures, when l θ >> l s the temperature distribution becomes steady and the penetration distance stabilizes at a value proportional to l s . (c) Effects such as three-dimensionality of the liquid flow paths and flow rates, matrix infiltration, etc., appear to reduce the penetration distance

  13. Performance investigation of solid desiccant evaporative cooling system configurations in different climatic zones

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ali, Muzaffar; Vukovic, Vladimir; Sheikh, Nadeem Ahmed; Ali, Hafiz M.

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Five configurations of a DEC system are analyzed in five climate zones. • DEC system model configurations are developed in Dymola/Modelica. • Performance analysis predicted a suitable DEC system configuration for each climate zone. • Results show that climate of Vienna, Sao Paulo, and Adelaide favors the ventilated-dunkle cycle. • While ventilation cycle configuration suits the climate of Karachi and Shanghai. - Abstract: Performance of desiccant evaporative cooling (DEC) system configurations is strongly influenced by the climate conditions and varies widely in different climate zones. Finding the optimal configuration of DEC systems for a specific climatic zone is tedious and time consuming. This investigation conducts performance analysis of five DEC system configurations under climatic conditions of five cities from different zones: Vienna, Karachi, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, and Adelaide. On the basis of operating cycle, three standard and two modified system configurations (ventilation, recirculation, dunkle cycles; ventilated-recirculation and ventilated-dunkle cycles) are analyzed in these five climate zones. Using an advance equation-based object-oriented (EOO) modeling and simulation approach, optimal configurations of a DEC system are determined for each climate zone. Based on the hourly climate data of each zone for its respective design cooling day, performance of each system configuration is estimated using three performance parameters: cooling capacity, COP, and cooling energy delivered. The results revealed that the continental/micro-thermal climate of Vienna, temperate/mesothermal climate of Sao Paulo, and dry-summer subtropical climate of Adelaide favor the use of ventilated-dunkle cycle configuration with average COP of 0.405, 0.89 and 1.01 respectively. While ventilation cycle based DEC configuration suits arid and semiarid climate of Karachi and another category of temperate/mesothermal climate of Shanghai with average COP of

  14. Energy farming in Dutch desiccation abatement areas. Effects on break-even biomass price

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Londo, M.; Dekker, J.; Vleeshouwers, L.; De Graaf, H.

    1999-09-01

    Measures in Dutch nature areas to combat desiccation of nature areas often have effects on surrounding agricultural lands, or buffer areas. Generally, these soils become moister, which can lead to lower yields for most common crops. Cultivation of the flooding-tolerant energy crop willow may be an alternative. In this study, the performance of willow production is compared to that of grass for roughage, in buffer areas as well as in a hydrologically optimal situation. Financial consequences are evaluated by calculating the biomass price that makes willow equally competitive to grass (break-even). The effect of high groundwater tables on yields of both crops is estimated using the agro-hydrological model SWAP. The calculated price that gives break-even between willow and grass is lower on wet soils than in a hydrologically optimal situation. At a groundwater table class of II, a groundwater situation quite common in buffer areas, this break-even price is 20% lower. The physical yield of willow is lower than its optimum, but grass yields decrease stronger, making willow more competitive. The biomass price in a hydrologically optimal situation, as calculated in this study, is comparable to values found in other studies. However, this comparison is complicated by differences in assumptions in the cost calculations, and by the fact that grass as roughage has less value added than food crops such as potatoes and wheat. This study contains considerable uncertainties with respect to the data used and the methodology. A sensitivity analysis shows that several parameters with a strong influence on the biomass price have low uncertainties. An uncertain value with strong influence is the optimal willow yield, which could not be estimated on practical data. Methodological limitations of the study, both in the economic comparison between willow and grass and in the yield estimations, are also discussed. 50 refs

  15. Diurnal changes of photosynthetic quantum yield in the intertidal macroalga Sargassum thunbergii under simulated tidal emersion conditions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Yong Qiang; Zhang, Quan Sheng; Tang, Yong Zheng; Li, Xue Meng; Liu, Hong Liang; Li, Li Xia

    2013-07-01

    In this study, a three-way factorial experimental design was used to investigate the diurnal changes of photosynthetic activity of the intertidal macroalga Sargassum thunbergii in response to temperature, tidal pattern and desiccation during a simulated diurnal light cycle. The maximum (Fv/Fm) and effective (ΦPSII) quantum yields of photosystem II (PSII) were estimated by chlorophyll fluorescence using a pulse amplitude modulated fluorometer. Results showed that this species exhibited sun-adapted characteristics, as evidenced by the daily variation of Fv/Fm and ΦPSII. Both yield values decreased with increasing irradiance towards noon and recovered rapidly in the afternoon suggesting a dynamic photoinhibition. The photosynthetic quantum yield of S. thunbergii thalli varied significantly with temperature, tidal pattern and desiccation. Thalli were more susceptible to light-induced damage at high temperature of 25 °C and showed complete recovery of photosynthetic activity only when exposed to 8 °C. In contrast with the mid-morning low tide period, although there was an initial increase in photosynthetic yield during emersion, thalli showed a greater degree of decline at the end of emersion and remained less able to recover when low tide occurred at mid-afternoon. Short-term air exposure of 2 h did not significantly influence the photosynthesis. However, when exposed to moderate conditions (4 h desiccation at 15 °C or 6 h desiccation at 8 °C), a significant inhibition of photosynthesis was followed by partial or complete recovery upon re-immersion in late afternoon. Only extreme conditions (4 h desiccation at 25 °C or 6 h desiccation at 15 °C or 25 °C) resulted in the complete inhibition, with little indication of recovery until the following morning, implying the occurrence of chronic PSII damage. Based on the magnitude of effect, desiccation was the predominant negative factor affecting the photosynthesis under the simulated daytime irradiance period. These

  16. A regulatory network-based approach dissects late maturation processes related to the acquisition of desiccation tolerance and longevity of Medicago truncatula seeds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Verdier, Jerome; Lalanne, David; Pelletier, Sandra; Torres-Jerez, Ivone; Righetti, Karima; Bandyopadhyay, Kaustav; Leprince, Olivier; Chatelain, Emilie; Vu, Benoit Ly; Gouzy, Jerome; Gamas, Pascal; Udvardi, Michael K; Buitink, Julia

    2013-10-01

    In seeds, desiccation tolerance (DT) and the ability to survive the dry state for prolonged periods of time (longevity) are two essential traits for seed quality that are consecutively acquired during maturation. Using transcriptomic and metabolomic profiling together with a conditional-dependent network of global transcription interactions, we dissected the maturation events from the end of seed filling to final maturation drying during the last 3 weeks of seed development in Medicago truncatula. The network revealed distinct coexpression modules related to the acquisition of DT, longevity, and pod abscission. The acquisition of DT and dormancy module was associated with abiotic stress response genes, including late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) genes. The longevity module was enriched in genes involved in RNA processing and translation. Concomitantly, LEA polypeptides accumulated, displaying an 18-d delayed accumulation compared with transcripts. During maturation, gulose and stachyose levels increased and correlated with longevity. A seed-specific network identified known and putative transcriptional regulators of DT, including ABSCISIC ACID-INSENSITIVE3 (MtABI3), MtABI4, MtABI5, and APETALA2/ ETHYLENE RESPONSE ELEMENT BINDING PROTEIN (AtAP2/EREBP) transcription factor as major hubs. These transcriptional activators were highly connected to LEA genes. Longevity genes were highly connected to two MtAP2/EREBP and two basic leucine zipper transcription factors. A heat shock factor was found at the transition of DT and longevity modules, connecting to both gene sets. Gain- and loss-of-function approaches of MtABI3 confirmed 80% of its predicted targets, thereby experimentally validating the network. This study captures the coordinated regulation of seed maturation and identifies distinct regulatory networks underlying the preparation for the dry and quiescent states.

  17. Radon determination by activated charcoal adsorption and liquid scintillation measurement

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lopez, F.O.; Canoba, A.C.

    1998-01-01

    A passive diffusion method for the determination of radon concentration has been optimised and calibrated. The device consists of a scintillation vial containing activated charcoal, a diffusion barrier and a desiccant agent. The response to diverse atmospheric humidity and variable exposure intervals was studied. The result is a detector, which is independent of atmospheric humidity for at least (up to) 7 days of exposure. The method was compared with electret detectors (US EPA) with very satisfactory results. The advantages of this method are its simplicity, low cost, low detection limit, the total automatization of the measurement and its total independence of humidity to measure in a wide range of radon concentrations. (author) [es

  18. Energy output estimation for a small wind turbine positioned on a rooftop in the urban environment with and without a duct

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Beller, C.

    2011-05-15

    Nowadays, wind turbines in general, but also urban wind turbines attained acceptance to a certain extend. Conceptual designs and some examples in reality exist, where small-scale wind turbines have been implemented close to buildings or even integrated in the building structure. This work is aiming to estimate how much energy a wind turbine could produce in the built environment, depending on its integration and configuration. On the basis of measurements taken on the rooftop of H.C. Orsted Institut in Copenhagen, which is located in an urban area, a comparison of fictive free standing turbines with ducted turbines of the same type was carried out. First, a prevailing wind energy direction was detected with rough mean velocity and frequency calculations. Next, a duct was aligned with the direction, where the highest energy potential was found. Further calculations were conducted with more detailed wind velocity distributions, depending on the wind direction sectors. The duct's wind velocity amplification capability was set to 14%, while a total opening angle of 30. was assumed to be accessible from both sides. With the simplifying assumptions and the uncertainties at the location of measurement, the free standing turbines had an energy potential of 300kWh/m2/a for the horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) and for the vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT) 180kWh/m2/a. For the ducted turbines an energy output of 180kWh/m2/a was found for the HAWT configuration, while the VAWT configuration reached an output of 110kWh/m2/a. The available wind had an energy potential of 730kWh/m2/a. Evaluating these results it seems a free standing turbine is preferable, when only considering the power output, whereas the ducted version comprises properties, which are important considering the requirements needed in the inhabited area such as safety and noise issues. (Author)

  19. The effect of pre-harvest desiccation on the yield and physiological quality of landrace bean seedsAção de dessecante na pré-colheita sobre a produtividade e a qualidade fisiológica de sementes crioulas de feijoeiro

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cileide Maria Medeiros Coelho

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available An early harvest reduces the time that the seeds stay in the field under the effect of biotic and abiotic factors, which are responsible for their deterioration. So, the objective of this work was to determine the effect of pre-harvest desiccant application on the yield and physiological quality of common bean seeds. The experimental layout was completely random, the desiccant used was paraquat (400 g ha-1 a.i., on a combination of three genotypes: ‘BAF55’, ‘BAF84’ and ‘BAF112’ (commercial black cv. IPR88- Uirapurú with three plant desiccation periods (26, 30, 34 days after flowering (DAF, and a control (plants not des iccated. Post-harvest, productivity was estimated and, soon after, germination tests were carried out with and without accelerated ageing; main root radical length and hypocotyls length were measured as well as electrical conductivity. The desiccation maintenance the cell membrane integrity in the ‘BAF112’ and ‘BAF55’ genotypes when the paraquat was sprayed at 26 DAF. The results showed that the two landrace beans genotypes outperformed the commercial one in terms of seed yield and that the seeds produced were of higher physiological quality in terms of membrane integrity. The landraces ‘BAF55’ and ‘BAF84’ showed yield higher than commercial (‘BAF112’. The early of the harvest through desiccant sprayed on plants 26 DAF did not adversely affect the yield or physiological quality of harvest bean seeds. A antecipação da colheita pode diminuir o tempo em que as sementes permanecem no campo sob o risco de fatores bióticos e abióticos que podem promover sua deterioração. Assim, o presente trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar a antecipação da colheita e a qualidade fisiológica de sementes de feijão crioulo após a aplicação do herbicida paraquat em diferentes épocas de pré-colheita. O experimento foi realizado sob delineamento experimental inteiramente casualizado em esquema fatorial 3x4, com

  20. Efeitos da dessecação de plantas de feijão sobre a qualidade de sementes armazenadas Effects of bean plant desiccation on quality of stored seeds

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J.B. Santos

    2005-12-01

    Full Text Available Objetivou-se neste trabalho avaliar o efeito da dessecação química de plantas de feijão, em pré-colheita, sobre a qualidade de sementes armazenadas. A dessecação na cultura foi realizada utilizando-se quatro doses de carfentrazone-ethyl (0, 10, 30 e 60 g ha¹, aplicadas aos 30 dias após o florescimento, no final do estádio R8, quando as sementes já haviam atingido a maturidade fisiológica. As sementes, depois de colhidas e beneficiadas, foram acondicionadas em câmara fria (12 ºC e 70% de umidade relativa por 80 dias. Após esse período, as sementes foram separadas em dois tamanhos: maiores (retidas em peneira de crivo oblongo 16/64" x 19,05 mm e menores (as que passaram pela mesma peneira. Além do teste de germinação (TG e do índice de velocidade de emergência (IVE, avaliou-se também a sanidade das sementes por meio do blotter test. Sementes oriundas de plantas dessecadas com carfentrazone-ethyl, na dose de 60 g ha¹, apresentaram índice de plântulas normais abaixo de 10%. As sementes maiores foram mais sensíveis ao produto, observando-se, mesmo na dose de 10 g ha-1, 44% de plântulas anormais. Não se observou efeito dos tratamentos sobre a sanidade das sementes. Considerando que, anteriormente ao armazenamento, a germinação das sementes avaliadas e a emergência de suas plântulas não eram afetadas pelo carfentrazone-ethyl, conclui-se que esse produto prejudica a qualidade das sementes após o armazenamento por 80 dias.This study aimed to evaluate the effect of chemical desiccation on quality of stored bean seeds at pre-harvest. Desiccation was achieved by applying four rates (0,10, 30 and 60 g ha¹ of carfentrazone-ethyl, 30 days after flowering at the end of R8 stage, when the seeds had reached physiological maturity. After harvest, the seeds were stored (12 ºC and 70% of relative humidity during 80 days. The seeds were then classified "larger" (retained in 16/64" x 19.05mm sieves and "small" (passed through 16