Achievement report on the development of solar thermal electric power plant technologies. Annex; Taiyonetsu hatsuden plant gijutsu kaihatsu seika hokokusho. Fuzoku shiryo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1985-07-01

The two solar thermal electric power pilot plants are of the tower concentration type and the flat/curved surface concentration type. For the first time in the world, they succeeded in operating at a rated output of 1,000kW in August and September, 1981, respectively. Sunshine was inputted at an unstable rate, and the plants were operated under various load patterns. Studies were conducted and an optimum operating technique is established. Since designing, construction, and operation were carried for two types of pilot plants, quantities of useful data were collected through a variety of experiences. Valuable hints and design data were provided for use in the construction of full-scale power plants in the future. Element units developed for the plants were high-reflectance mirrors, high-precision tracking mechanisms, solar heat collectors of the cavity type and paraboloidal type, and molten salt heat accumulators. The tower concentration type plant exhibits a power generation efficiency of 16-17% and an overall plant efficiency of 3.1-4.4%. The maximum overall efficiency a month is 3.9% with the flat/curved surface concentration type plant. (NEDO)

Learning from the implementation of residential optional time of use pricing in the United States electricity industry

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Xibao

Residential time-of-use (TOU) rates have been in practice in the U.S. since the 1970s. However, for institutional, political, and regulatory reasons, only a very small proportion of residential customers are actually on these schedules. In this thesis, I explore why this is the case by empirically investigating two groups of questions: (1) On the "supply" side: Do utilities choose to offer TOU rates in residential sectors on their own initiative if state commissions do not order them to do so? Since utilities have other options, what is the relationship between the TOU rate and other alternatives? To answer these questions, I survey residential tariffs offered by more than 100 major investor-owned utilities, study the impact of various factors on utilities' rate-making behavior, and examine utility revealed preferences among four rate options: seasonal rates, inverted block rates, demand charges, and TOU rates. Estimated results suggest that the scale of residential sectors and the revenue contribution from residential sectors are the only two significant factors that influence utility decisions on offering TOU rates. Technical and economic considerations are not significant statistically. This implies that the little acceptance of TOU rates is partly attributed to utilities' inadequate attention to TOU rate design. (2) On the "demand" side: For utilities offering TOU tariffs, why do only a very small proportion of residential customers choose these tariffs? What factors influence customer choices? Unlike previous studies that used individual-level experimental data, this research employs actual aggregated information from 29 utilities offering optional TOU rates. By incorporating neo-classical demand analysis into an aggregated random coefficient logit model, I investigate the impact of both price and non-price tariff characteristics and non-tariff factors on customer choice behavior. The analysis indicates that customer pure tariff preference (which captures the

Evaluating impact level of different factors in environmental impact assessment for incinerator plants using GM (1, N) model.

Science.gov (United States)

Pai, T Y; Chiou, R J; Wen, H H

2008-01-01

In this study, the impact levels in environmental impact assessment (EIA) reports of 10 incinerator plants were quantified and discussed. The relationship between the quantified impact levels and the plant scale factors of BeiTou, LiZe, BaLi, LuTsao, RenWu, PingTung, SiJhou and HsinChu were constructed, and the impact levels of the GangShan (GS) and YongKong (YK) plants were predicted using grey model GM (1, N). Finally, the effects of plant scale factors on impact levels were evaluated using grey model GM (1, N) too. According to the predicted results of GM, the relative errors of topography/geology/soil, air quality, hydrology/water quality, solid waste, noise, terrestrial fauna/flora, aquatic fauna/flora and traffic in the GS plant were 17%, 14%, 15%, 17%, 75%, 16%, 13%, and 37%, respectively. The relative errors of the same environmental items in the YK plant were 1%, 18%, 10%, 40%, 37%, 3%, 25% and 33%, respectively. According to GM (1, N), design capacity (DC) and heat value (HV) were the plant scale factors that affected the impact levels significantly in each environmental item, and thus were the most significant plant scale factors. GM (1, N) was effective in predicting the environmental impact and analyzing the reasonableness of the impact. If there is an EIA for a new incinerator plant to be reviewed in the future, the official committee of the Taiwan EPA could review the reasonableness of impact levels in EIA reports quickly.

Application of the Advanced Distillation Curve Method to the Comparison of Diesel Fuel Oxygenates: 2,5,7,10-Tetraoxaundecane (TOU), 2,4,7,9-Tetraoxadecane (TOD), and Ethanol/Fatty Acid Methyl Ester (FAME) Mixtures.

Science.gov (United States)

Burger, Jessica L; Lovestead, Tara M; LaFollette, Mark; Bruno, Thomas J

2017-08-17

Although they are amongst the most efficient engine types, compression-ignition engines have difficulties achieving acceptable particulate emission and NO x formation. Indeed, catalytic after-treatment of diesel exhaust has become common and current efforts to reformulate diesel fuels have concentrated on the incorporation of oxygenates into the fuel. One of the best ways to characterize changes to a fuel upon the addition of oxygenates is to examine the volatility of the fuel mixture. In this paper, we present the volatility, as measured by the advanced distillation curve method, of a prototype diesel fuel with novel diesel fuel oxygenates: 2,5,7,10-tetraoxaundecane (TOU), 2,4,7,9-tetraoxadecane (TOD), and ethanol/fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) mixtures. We present the results for the initial boiling behavior, the distillation curve temperatures, and track the oxygenates throughout the distillations. These diesel fuel blends have several interesting thermodynamic properties that have not been seen in our previous oxygenate studies. Ethanol reduces the temperatures observed early in the distillation (near ethanol's boiling temperature). After these early distillation points (once the ethanol has distilled out), B100 has the greatest impact on the remaining distillation curve and shifts the curve to higher temperatures than what is seen for diesel fuel/ethanol blends. In fact, for the 15% B100 mixture most of the distillation curve reaches temperatures higher than those seen diesel fuel alone. In addition, blends with TOU and TOD also exhibited uncommon characteristics. These additives are unusual because they distill over most the distillation curve (up to 70%). The effects of this can be seen both in histograms of oxygenate concentration in the distillate cuts and in the distillation curves. Our purpose for studying these oxygenate blends is consistent with our vision for replacing fit-for-purpose properties with fundamental properties to enable the development of

Load averaging system for co-generation plant; Jikayo hatsuden setsubi ni okeru fuka heijunka system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ueno, Y. [Fuji Electric Co. Ltd., Tokyo (Japan)

1995-07-30

MAZDA Motor Corp. planed the construction of a 20.5MW co-generation plant in 1991 for responding to an increase in power demand due to expansion of the Hofu factory. On introduction of this co-generation plant, it was decided that the basic system would adopt the following. (1) A circulating fluidized bed boiler which can be operated by burning multiple kinds of fuels with minimum environmental pollution. (2) A heat accumulation system which can be operated through reception of a constant power from electric power company despite a sudden and wide range change in power demand. (3) A circulating-water exchange heat recovery system which recovers exhaust heat of the turbine plant as the hot water to be utilized for heating and air-conditioning of the factory mainly in winter. Power demand in MAZDA`s Hofu factory changes 15% per minute within a maximum range from 20MW to 8MW. This change is difficult to be followed even by an oil burning boiler excellent in load follow-up. The circulating Fluidized bed boiler employed this time is lower in the follow-up performance than the oil boiler. For the newly schemed plant, however, load averaging system named a heat accumulation system capable of responding fully to the above change has been developed. This co-generation plant satisfied the official inspection before commercial operation according the Ministerial Ordinance in 1993. Since then, with regard to the rapid load following, which was one of the initial targets, operation is now performed steadily. This paper introduces an outline of the system and operation conditions. 10 refs.

Experience with a biomass-fuelled power plant in Peru. Peru kokunai no biomass nenryoka no hatsuden plant no keiken

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1992-11-01

This paper describes the result of operating a 25-kW biomass-fuelled power plant for 500 hours installed for people in a small village in jungle along the Amazon basin in Peru. The gasifier plant consists of two invert type gas combustors combined with series cyclone dryer filters. Filtration used activated carbons and cotton cloths. The fuel for the plant is wood chips containing water at 5.5% to 11% with calorific power of 20 mJ/kg, consumed at 2.0 kg of lumber per kWh (25 kWh). A gas analysis showed values of CO2 at 13%, CO at 14%, H2 at 18%, CH4 at 3%, and N2 at 52%. Because the fuel of wood chips may cause problems if the size is too large, a size of about 10[times]20[times]30 mm was selected finally. Pressure drop in the gas purifying system was measured using a manometer, which verified that a textile filtering material can be used. The gasoline engine rotation was fixed at 2700 rpm upon discussions. The gasoline engine had no need of modification except at a pipe to the carburetor. This system can be installed at any small village. 1 ref., 1 fig.

Impact of Battery Energy Storage System Operation Strategy on Power System: An Urban Railway Load Case under a Time-of-Use Tariff

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hyeongig Kim

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Customer-owned battery energy storage systems (BESS have been used to reduce electricity costs of energy storage owners (ESOs under a time-of-use (TOU tariff in Korea. However, the current TOU tariff can unintentionally induce customer’s electricity usage to have a negative impact on power systems. This paper verifies the impact of different BESS operation strategies on power systems under a TOU tariff by analyzing the TOU tariff structure and the customer’s load pattern. First, several BESS operation strategies of ESO are proposed to reduce the electricity cost. In addition, a degradation cost calculation method for lithium ion batteries is considered for the ESO to determine the optimal BESS operation strategy that maximizes both electricity cost and annual investment cost. The optimal BESS operation strategy that maximizes ESO’s net benefit is illustrated by simulation using an urban railway load data from Namgwangju Station, Korea. The results show that BESS connected to urban railway loads can negative impact power system operation. This is due to the high BESS degradation costs and lack of incentive of differential rates in TOU tariff that can effectively induce proper demand response.

Pharmacokinetic determination of ephedrine in Herba Ephedrae and Wu Tou Tang decoctions in rats using ultra performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry.

Science.gov (United States)

Zheng, Zhijie; Yan, Tongmeng; Chen, Weiying; Ye, Ling; Tang, Lan; Liu, Zhongqiu

2012-08-01

A rapid and sensitive ultra performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method was developed and validated for the determination and quantification of ephedrine in rat plasma samples. An Acquity UPLC BEH C18 column (1.7 μm, 2.1 mm × 50 mm) was used for chromatographic separation. Electrospray ionization in the positive mode was used, and the precursor-fragment ion pairs of m/z 166/148 and m/z 289/97 were adopted to characterize ephedrine and testosterone (internal standard), respectively. The method was validated using 10, 100 and 500 ng/mL of ephedrine. It demonstrated adequate levels of precision and accuracy, matrix effect, extraction recovery and stability. Linearity over the concentration range of 0.5-2000 ng/mL was acceptable with a correlation coefficient (r²) better than 0.990. To determine the pharmacokinetic behaviour of this sympathomimetic compound in the Sprague-Dawley rats, ephedrine hydrochloride, Herba Ephedrae single-herb and Wu Tou Tang decoctions were administered orally, and ephedrine hydrochloride was also administered by intravenous injection, and blood samples were collected over 24 h. Ephedrine was measured in plasma and pharmacokinetic parameters were determined by using the standard non-compartmental method and calculated by using Practical Pharmacokinetic Program-Version 87/97. The AUC(0-t) and T(max) values were significantly different (p Tang decoction compared to the other oral treatments, suggesting that some components in the decoction may reduce the bioavailability of ephedrine.

Residential response to voluntary time-of-use electricity rates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mostafa Baladi, S. [Laurits R. Christensen Associates, Inc. Ames, IA 50011-1070 (United States); Herriges, Joseph A. [Iowa State University, 280D Heady Hall, Department of Economics, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011-1070 (United States); Sweeney, Thomas J. [MidAmerican Energy, Des Moines, Iowa (United States)

1998-09-01

The response of residential households to voluntary Time-of-Use (TOU) electricity rates is estimated using data from a recent experiment at Midwest Power Systems of Iowa. The study`s design allows us to examine both the participation decision and the customer`s load pattern changes once the TOU rate structure was in effect. Substitution elasticities between on-peak and off-peak electricity usage are estimated and compared to those obtained in earlier mandatory programs, indicating whether program volunteers are more responsive to TOU pricing than the typical household. Attitudinal questionnaires allow us to examine the role of usage perceptions in program participation

Improving energy efficiency of cyclone circuits in coal beneficiation plants by pump-storage systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Lijun; Xia, Xiaohua; Zhang, Jiangfeng

2014-01-01

Highlights: • A pump-storage system (PSS) is introduced in a coal washing plant to reduce energy consumption and cost. • Optimal operation of the PSS under TOU tariff is formulated and solved. Life cycle cost analysis of the design is done. • Simulation results show the effectiveness of energy efficiency improvement and load shifting effect of the proposed approach. • An annual 38% reduction of overall cost of the coal washing plant with 2.86 years payback period is achieved. • Capacity improvement of power plants contracted to the coal mine is expected as less electricity is required to get fuel. - Abstract: A pump storage system (PSS) is introduced to the coal preparation dense medium cyclone (DMC) plants to improve their energy efficiency while maintaining the required medium supply. The DMC processes are very energy intensive and inefficient because the medium supply pumps are constantly over-pumping. The PSS presented is to reduce energy consumption and cost by introducing an addition medium circulation loop. The corresponding pump operation optimization problem in the PSS scheme under time-based electricity tariff is formulated and solved, based on which the financial benefits of the design is investigated using life cycle cost analysis. A case study based on the operation status of a South African coal mine is carried out to verify the effectiveness of the proposed approach. It is demonstrated that the energy cost can be reduced by more than 50% in the studied case by introducing a 160 m 3 storage tank. According to life cycle analysis, the PSS Option 1 yields an annual 38% reduction of the overall cost for the beneficiation plant with a payback period of 2.68 years

Fiscal 1997 development of the geothermal water use power plant, etc. Development of the binary cycle power plant (10MW class plant); 1997 nendo nessui riyo hatsuden plant nado kaihatsu. Binary cycle hatsuden plant no kaihatsu (10MW kyu plant no kaihatsu)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-03-01

A R and D was conducted with the aim of using medium-/high-temperature hot water type geothermal resources. In fiscal 1997, fabrication of geothermal water system testing equipment and geothermal water production/reduction piping installation work were conducted, and an environmental effect survey and ground water variation observation were carried out. Moreover, pumps to pump up geothermal water were fabricated. In the fabrication of a pump for No. 3 demonstration plant, the following improvements were made. Concerning the inlet undersea bearing, the shapes related to it were so reformed that external water feeding in the initial run can be done. Relating to the protection of the thrust bearing half load side friction face, a spring was added to the face so that it was structured to give preload. As a method to install a casing covering board, adopted was a band installation method which is easy in handling. The number of instrumentation cables was reduced. As to cables for downhole pumps, studied were methods of connection, etc. of connection portions of the motor connector and instrumentation cable. Moreover, purifying/regeneration facilities of the downhole pump bearing oil were fabricated and tested. 85 figs., 57 tabs.

Do distribution companies loose money with an electricity flexible tariff?: A review of the Chilean case

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vera, Sonia; Bernal, Felipe; Sauma, Enzo

2013-01-01

We can get an (energy efficiency) EE improvement if we produce a flatter daily load curve, leading to a higher efficiency of the power system, making better use of the generation and transport electricity chain, thus avoiding over-investment in equipment used just few hours a year. Tariff flexibility of the (Time of Use) TOU type is one of these measures. Generally, TOU systems are designed to minimize total system cost, which may cause losses in distribution companies (DISCOs), generating opposition. On the contrary, the present paper proposes a TOU system for electricity consumption in Chile where optimal prices are obtained in order to maximize total income of DISCOs. In this manner, the proposed TOU system is, by definition, beneficial for DISCOs and it may lead to a win–win situation among DISCOs and consumers. In particular, we show that such a system, implemented in a country like Chile, would allow for DISCOs a total potential benefit of 811.7 millions of dollars for the 3-year study period (2005–2007), considering initiatives that promote a 5% savings in real consumption during on-peak hours, obtained by the spread or difference between the proposed and the current systems. - Highlights: • We propose a TOU (Time of Use) system for electricity consumption in Chile. • In this system the optimal prices are obtained in order to maximize total income of (distribution companies) DISCOs. • The proposed TOU system may lead to a win–win situation among DISCOs and consumers. • This system, implemented in a country like Chile, would allow for DISCOs a total potential benefit of M$811.7. • Benefit obtained for 3-year study period with initiatives that promote 5% savings in real consumption during on-peak hours

Estimation of the demand for electricity

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Helden, GJ; Leeflang, PSH; Sterken, E

The residential consumer of electricity is often faced with a price schedule, where the price per kWh differs according to the amountof electricity consumed. 1 1In this study, the relations between the price per kWh are not considered as a function of the time-of-use(TOU). The determination of TOU

FY 1992 report on the results of the demonstration test on the methanol conversion at oil-fired power plant. Demonstration test on a methanol reformation type power generation total system; 1992 nendo sekiyu karyoku hatsudensho metanoru tenkan tou jissho shiken. Metanoru kaishitsu gata hatsuden total system jissho shiken

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1993-03-01

For the promotion of introduction of methanol to oil-fired power plant, based on the results of the element study, operational study was conducted of a 1,000kW class total system plant for which each of the elements was combined, and the FY 1992 results were summarized. In the operational study, data on various kinds of operational study were sampled of each of the simple cycle/regeneration cycle of liquid methanol and simple cycle/regeneration cycle of gas methanol. As to the reformed gas/water injection/regeneration cycle, all functions as a total system plant worked normally, and it was confirmed that the reformed gas/water injection/regeneration cycle operation could be made possible. Besides, the following were conducted: confirmation test on the performance of the developmental catalyst used in the operational study by bench-scale test device, trial operation for adjustment of gas turbine and combustion study such as the performance test in each cycle, manufacture/study of catalyst for the total system, study for longevity of catalyst for the total system, etc. (NEDO)

Soft energy/seawater pumped-storage power plant in Okinawa; Sofuto energy/Okinawa kaisui yosui hatsuden

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tsutsui, S. [Univ. of Ryukyus, Okinawa (Japan). Faculty of Engineering

1995-11-15

A demonstration seawater pumped-storage power plant which is the first one in the world is under construction in the northern area of Okinawa. The pumped-storage power generation is an electricity recycling system in which the surplus electricity during the night is utilized to pump up water to an upper reservoir to discharge water for power generation during the daytime when demand for electricity increases. It is scheduled that main civil engineering structures are constructed during the year of 1995 to be subjected to trial operation in the following year. Countermeasures to be taken for natural environmental protection during the plant construction are introduced. Countermeasures are devised for environment assessment, muddy water treatment, and prevention of seawater at the upper reservoir. Salinity in the atmosphere is to be measured during the construction work and the demonstration test to evaluate the effects of scattering of salt from the upper reservoir into the atmosphere on the vegetation in the peripheral area and the salt-resistance of vegetation. Sufficient consideration is given to the protection of the existing vegetation and coral, and to the protection of small living creatures. Participants in the construction work are requested to report, for the purpose of taking proper steps, sites, peripheral conditions, and others when precious animals are found. 9 figs., 1 tab.

Feasibility analysis of domestic hot water systems using TRNSYS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gill, G.S.; Fung, A.S.

2008-01-01

A study was conducted in which 17 conventional and solar-based domestic hot water (DHW) systems were simulated using the TRYNSYS simulation model, and their results were compared. According to Natural Resources Canada, DHW heating currently accounts for 25 per cent of Canadian residential energy consumption and 25 per cent of Canadian residential greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The objective of this simulation study was to investigate the fuel consumption of DHW systems, their GHG emissions and 30-year life cycle costs. Another aspect of the study was to model and analyze the effect of time of use (TOU) electricity pricing which was developed by the Ontario Energy Board (OEB) to provide stable and predictable electricity pricing. TOU electricity pricing also promotes energy conservation. In addition, the TOU electricity price charged per kilowatt-hour changes throughout the day to reflect the changes in cost to produce electricity at different times of the day. The Ontario government plans to equip all homes and businesses with smart meters using TOU pricing by 2010. Therefore, this study also investigated the effects of the TOU feature by optimizing its use in the effort to reduce overall energy costs and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The results revealed that a DHW system with solar pre-heat and electrical back-up is the best system for energy conservation and GHG reduction. The best system in terms of 30-year life cycle cost is a high efficiency DHW system with an on demand modulating gas combo boiler with gray water heat recovery. 23 refs., 7 tabs., 8 figs

Factor Analysis of the Aggregated Electric Vehicle Load Based on Data Mining

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yao Wang

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Electric vehicles (EVs and the related infrastructure are being developed rapidly. In order to evaluate the impact of factors on the aggregated EV load and to coordinate charging, a model is established to capture the relationship between the charging load and important factors based on data mining. The factors can be categorized as internal and external. The internal factors include the EV battery size, charging rate at different places, penetration of the charging infrastructure, and charging habits. The external factor is the time-of-use pricing (TOU policy. As a massive input data is necessary for data mining, an algorithm is implemented to generate a massive sample as input data which considers real-world travel patterns based on a historical travel dataset. With the input data, linear regression was used to build a linear model whose inputs were the internal factors. The impact of the internal factors on the EV load can be quantified by analyzing the sign, value, and temporal distribution of the model coefficients. The results showed that when no TOU policy is implemented, the rate of charging at home and range anxiety exerts the greatest influence on EV load. For the external factor, a support vector regression technique was used to build a relationship between the TOU policy and EV load. Then, an optimization model based on the relationship was proposed to devise a TOU policy that levels the load. The results suggest that implementing a TOU policy reduces the difference between the peak and valley loads remarkably.

Survey on the technological development issues for large-scale methanol engine power generation plant; Ogata methanol engine hatsuden plant ni kansuru gijutsu kaihatsu kadai chosa

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1994-03-01

Based on the result of `Survey on the feasibility of large-scale methanol engine power generation plant` in fiscal 1992, concrete technological development issues were studied for its practical use, and the technological R & D scheme was prepared for large-scale methanol engine power plant featured by low NOx and high efficiency. Technological development issues of this plant were as follows: improvement of thermal efficiency, reduction of NOx emission, improvement of the reliability and durability of ignition and fuel injection systems, and reduction of vibration. As the economical effect of the technological development, the profitability of NOx control measures was compared between this methanol engine and conventional heavy oil diesel engines or gas engines. As a result, this engine was more economical than conventional engines. It was suggested that development of the equipment will be completed in nearly 4 years through every component study, single-cylinder model experiment and real engine test. 21 refs., 43 figs., 19 tabs.

FY 1989 report on the results of the development of the entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Support study for the development of the entrained bed coal gasification power plant; 1989 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu (Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu no shien kenkyu)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1990-05-01

For the purpose of supplying the data necessary for construction/operation/maintenance of system, gas turbine, etc. of the desulfurization/dust removal process to be adopted to a pilot plant of 200t/d entrained bed coal gasification power generation, support study was made using the Yubari 40t/d test equipment, and the FY 1989 results were summarized. As to the operation of the 40t/d gasification system, operation was stably continued, and also the system was able to feed gas to the wake device. In the high temperature dry desulfurization test, test was made on the following: structure of the sampling system of the continuous analyzer installed in the coal gas system and circulation gas system, load response corresponding control system, sequence control of the system for supplying reducing agent to SO{sub 2} reduction tower and the system for ash discharge, back washing of D-42 lift gas filter, etc. In the high temperature dry dust removal test, improvement in filtration material/dust separation performance, sequence control of the filtration material supply/discharge system, continuous dust densitometer, operational automation, etc. Through the tests, obtained were the results that are useful for the 200t/d plant. (NEDO)

The importance of marginal cost electricity pricing to the success of greenhouse gas reduction programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Friedman, Lee S.

2011-01-01

The efficient reduction of GHG emissions requires appropriate retail pricing of off-peak electricity. However, off-peak electricity for residential consumers is priced at 331% above its marginal cost in the United States as a whole (June 2009). Even for the 1% of residences that are on some form of time-of-use (TOU) rate schedule, the off-peak rate is almost three times higher than the marginal cost. A barrier to marginal-cost based TOU rates is that less than 9% of U.S. households have the 'smart' meters in place that can measure and record the time of consumption. Policies should be put in place to achieve full deployment. Another important barrier is consumer concern about TOU rate design. Two TOU rate designs (baseline and two-part tariff) are described that utilize marginal-cost based rates, ensure appropriate cost recovery, and minimize bill changes from current rate structures. A final barrier is to get residences on to these rates. Should a marginal-cost based TOU rate design remain an alternative for which residences could 'opt-in,' or become the default choice, or become mandatory? Time-invariant rates are a historical anachronism that subsidize very costly peak-period consumption and penalize off-peak usage to our environmental detriment. They should be phased out. - Highlights: → Off-peak electricity for residences is priced at 331% above marginal cost in the US. → This inefficiently deters vehicle electrification that could reduce GHG emissions. → 9% of U.S. households have the 'smart' meters necessary for time-of-use rates. → Time-invariant rates cause substantial environmental harm and should be phased out.

Time-of-use based electricity demand response for sustainable manufacturing systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Yong; Li, Lin

2013-01-01

As required by the Energy Policy Act of 2005, utility companies across the U.S. are offering TOU (time-of-use) based electricity demand response programs. The TOU rate gives consumers opportunities to manage their electricity bill by shifting use from on-peak periods to mid-peak and off-peak periods. Reducing the amount of electricity needed during the peak load times makes it possible for the power grid to meet consumers' needs without building more costly backup infrastructures and help reduce GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions. Previous research on the applications of TOU and other electricity demand response programs has been mainly focused on residential and commercial buildings while largely neglected industrial manufacturing systems. This paper proposes a systems approach for TOU based electricity demand response for sustainable manufacturing systems under the production target constraint. Key features of this approach include: (i) the electricity related costs including both consumption and demand are integrated into production system modeling; (ii) energy-efficient and demand-responsive production scheduling problems are formulated and the solution technique is provided; and (iii) the effects of various factors on the near-optimal scheduling solutions are examined. The research outcome is expected to enhance the energy efficiency, electricity demand responsiveness, and cost effectiveness of modern manufacturing systems. - Highlights: • We propose a TOU based demand response approach for manufacturing systems. • Both electricity consumption and demand are integrated into the system modeling. • Energy-efficient and demand-responsive production scheduling problems are formulated. • The meta-heuristic solution technique is provided. • The effects of various factors on the scheduling solutions are examined

Time of use metering : the experience of Princeton Light and Power

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hall, J.

2004-01-01

Princeton Light and Power (PLP) provides power distribution services to 7,000 customers in the Similkameen Valley in British Columbia. This PowerPoint presentation described how the utility has implemented time-of-use (TOU) rates and metering. The drivers for TOU that are most often overlooked include: the cost of additional power generation, deferral of system upgrades, improving system load factor, system reliability, controlling rate increase, growing sales, and offering choices to the customer. It was noted that unbundled rates are required for a successful TOU program. PLP's rate design and billing formula were presented along with its plan to make it worthwhile for the customers to install load shifting equipment such as delay timers, thermal storage heating units, and powerline carrier signal equipment. A review of peak hour operation and off-peak hour operation was also presented. tabs., figs

If they succeed, they will be on the lead

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pinter, G.

1999-01-01

In this paper the supply of the Slovak Power Machine Works, plc. (SES), based in Tlmace, which are among the top designers and producers of steam boilers for power and heating plants using fossil, liquid and gas fuels, are described. A team engineers of SES took part at the technical contract discussions in China at the end of 1998. If they win the tender they will be awarded a contract to supply two Shen Tou (China) power plant units. The Shen Tou project will represent together with the fluid boiler for the Ukrainian power plant Starobesevo the two most important activities of the company over the next years. The joint supply of this type boiler with Germany's Lurgi and Lentjes will mean a significant point of reference for the SES as in terms of performance the fluid boiler layer boiler produced in Tlmace ever. The fluid boilers guarantee a reduced level of sulfur and nitrogen emissions in the boiler flue gas, complying thus with one of the crucial requirements for the ecological approach in production of the power and heating plants. They mastered the fluid lair combustion of fossil fuels in Tlmace with flying flags. This technology means a step up in quantity, as a guarantee for high efficiency and ecologically acceptable combustion with substantially reduced emissions and with no need for auxiliary equipment. The fluid layer combustion and desulfuring process takes place in a combustion chamber as a circulating fluid stream of flue gas, ashes, fuel and additives. Other strong points of the Tlmace approach to design, limiting not only SO 2 , NO x and chlorine effluents, but also reducing the space requirements, operation costs, simplified fuel transport, and in general shorter pipe routes, forming thus an advanced and progressive compact fluid boiler structure. (author)

Project subsidized by the Sunshine Project in fiscal 1982. Report on achievements in the project commissioned from NEDO - development of a hot water utilizing power generation plant and development of a binary cycle power generation plant (Researches on corrosion preventive measures and the cycle optimum for the plant); 1982 nendo nessui riyo hatsuden plant no kaihatsu seika hokokusho. Binary cycle hatsuden plant no kaihatsu (fushoku taisaku no kenkyu oyobi plant saiteki cycle no kenkyu)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1983-03-01

As the element research on a 10-MW class geothermal binary cycle power plant to be built in the coming term, researches were made on corrosion preventive measures and the cycle optimum for the plant. This paper reports the achievements in fiscal 1982. In the research on corrosion preventive measures, different kinds of materials were buried in three locations having different soil natures to study corrosion due to soil. The corrosion rate of heat conducting pipes using the heat media R114 was estimated as very small as 1/40 of the corrosion rate in geothermal waters. In the research on the cycle optimum for the plant, experimental research was performed on thermo-dynamic properties and thermal stability of the mixed media using R114 as the main component. As a result, the R114/R112 system was found to have higher pressure than R114, but the media circulation amount is less, and the output at the power transmission terminal increased by 5 to 10%. The system showed the most excellent heat cycle characteristics. In the research of building a power plant installed with two different power generation systems, a computer program was prepared that calculates heat balances all at once for the case of installing a geothermal binary cycle power plant in a geothermal steam power plant. (NEDO)

Fiscal 1995 achievement report. Development of entrained bed coal gasification power plant (Part 5 - Surveys and studies of demonstration plant); 1995 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 5. Jissho plant ni kansuru chosa kenkyu hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1996-03-01

Surveys and studies were conducted concerning a demonstration plant for establishing the technology of integrated coal gasification combined cycle, and the fiscal 1995 results are compiled. In this fiscal year, a demonstration plant conceptual design was prepared for assuring smooth transition from a pilot plant to a commercial plant. The design followed the system employed at the Nakoso pilot plant for its gasification power generation. It was decided that the gasification furnace be of the air-blown (oxygen enriched) 2-stage entrained bed type, that the desulfurization system be of the dry type 2-stage fluidized bed type, the dedusting system be of the dry type granular bed type (moving bed type), that the combined cycle power facility be derived from the commercialized gas turbine, and that the cycle of the steam system agree with the integrated coal gasification combined cycle system now under discussion. Studies were made, which covered heat efficiency (generating end/sending end), heat/matter balance, process flow, gas turbine/steam system optimization, comparison in performance with a pilot plant with its dimensions increased, estimation of the performance of each of the facilities, estimation of the construction cost, calculation of the generation cost, environmental friendliness, operating characteristics, acceptable coal types, and the like. (NEDO)

Fiscal 1994 achievement report. Development of entrained bed coal gasification power plant (Part 5 - Survey of demonstration plant); 1994 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 5. Jissho plant ni kansuru chosa kenkyu hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-07-01

A survey was conducted of a demonstration plant for developing the technology of integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation. In fiscal 1994, based on the studies of pilot plant operation conducted up to the preceding fiscal year and on the studies of a demonstration plant (conceptual design of a demonstration plant), systems were examined for still higher performance and economical efficiency. For optimizing the heat source for pulverized coal drying air, an extracted air heat utilizing system was adopted, excellent in performance (approximately 0.5% improvement in absolute value) and in economical efficiency. For reducing the consumption of inert gas for the fluidized bed desulfurization facility, an approximately 30% reduction was found to be possible dependent on gas regeneration conditions in the regeneration tower. For performance improvement with the combined cycle equipment placed under a partial load, the generating-end efficiency was improved approximately 0.2% when only SGC (syngas cooler) was loaded 80% or less and kept at a constant pressure. Studies were also made about how to maintain a constant output with the equipment exposed to air temperature changes. (NEDO)

Space power station. Uchu hatsuden

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kudo, I. (Electrotechnical Laboratory, Tsukuba (Japan))

1993-02-20

A calculation tells that the amount of electric power the world will use in the future will require 100 to 500 power plants each with an output of 5-GW class. If this conception is true, it is beyond dispute that utilizing nuclear power will constitute a core of the power generation even though the geographical conditions are severe for nuclear power plants. It is also certain that power generation using clean solar energy will play important roles if power supply stability can be achieved. This paper describes plans to develop space solar power generation and space nuclear power generation that can supply power solving problems concerning geographical conditions and power supply stability. The space solar power generation is a system to arrest solar energy on a static orbit. According to a result of discussions in the U.S.A., the plan calls for solar cell sheets spread over the surface of a structure with a size of 5 km [times] 10 km [times] 0.5 km thick, and electric power obtained therefrom is transmitted to a rectenna with a size of 10 km [times] 13 km, a receiving antenna on the ground. The space nuclear power generation will be constructed similarly on a static orbit. Researches on space nuclear reactors have already begun. 10 refs., 8 figs., 1 tab.

Achievement report for fiscal 1993 on developing entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 5. Survey and research edition for demonstration plant; 1993 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 5. Jissho plant ni kansuru chosa kenkyu hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-02-01

With an objective of developing the coal gasification composite power generation technology, surveys and researches have been carried out on a demonstration plant. This paper summarizes the achievements in fiscal 1993. Based on the achievements having been obtained by the previous fiscal year, the current fiscal year has discussed the method for evaluating the up-scaling, and performed a conceptual design of the demonstration plant. In discussing the demonstration plant in the current fiscal year, identification was made on the basic performance characteristics as the IGCC (atmospheric temperature characteristics, coal type change characteristics, partial load characteristics, methods for plant actuation and shutdown, and utility use amount), and selections were conducted on different systems to be adopted in the demonstration plant, both based on the approximate thermal material balance having been derived in the previous fiscal year. The results of the discussions were summarized as the steam cycle discussion, performance discussion by coal types, partial load characteristics, atmospheric temperature characteristics, secondary air temperature characteristics, discussions to enhance efficiency and reliability in association with the up-scaling, discussions on the utility facilities, discussions on the protection interlock, and forecast on the entire performance according to the approximate thermal material balance. (NEDO)

FY 1991 report on the results of the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 2. Support study for the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant (Summarization of the operation study); 1991 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu (Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu no shien kenkyu) - Sono 2. Unten kenkyu sokatsu hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1992-04-01

The paper summarized the results of the following tests on a 40 t/d pilot plant which were conducted as the support study for the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant: dry desulfurization test, dry dedusting test, high-temperature NOx gas combustion test (gas turbine element test). In the dry desulfurization test, tested were the operational automation and monitoring technology, performance of desulfurization, characteristics of load response, sulfur recovery, etc. In the dry dedusting test, tested were the filter medium/dust separation, powder level meter, continuous dust densitometer, operational automation, characteristics of partial load/load response, improvement of filtration materials, test on characteristics of air conveyance, etc. In the high-temperature low-NOx gas combustion test (gas turbine element test), the following were conducted: examination of the test method of gas turbine materials, inspection/examination of the corrosion of gas turbine combustion test device, inspection/examination of the internal corrosion of the stationary blade for gas turbine deposit test, inspection/examination of gasification system. The results of these support studies were reflected one after another in the project on the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant. (NEDO)

Fiscal 1980 Sunshine Project research report. Development of hydrothermal power plant. Development of binary cycle power plant (Research on heat cycle, heat medium, material and heat medium turbine); 1980 nendo nessui riyo hatsuden plant no kaihatsu seika hokokusho. Binary cycle hatsuden plant no kaihatsu (netsu cycle oyobi netsubaitai no kenkyu, zairyo no kenkyu narabini netsubaitai turbine no kenkyu)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1981-03-01

This report summarizes the fiscal 1980 research result on each element of the next 10MW class geothermal binary cycle power plant, following last year. In the research on heat cycle and heat medium, measurement was made on the liquid density, vapor density, liquid specific heat, vapor specific heat and thermal conductivity of 8 heat media to prepare the precise pressure enthalpy chart. The thermal stability of each medium was also measured under a flow condition. The heat cycle of each medium was calculated in a hydrothermal temperature range of 120-160 degrees C for evaluation of its output. In the research on material, field corrosion test and laboratory simulation were made on 3 kinds of heat exchanger martials for acidic hot water to study the corrosion behavior of welding members. In the research on heat medium turbine, study was made on sealing characteristics such as differential pressure, flow rate and friction of sealing oil for oil film seal and mechanical seal as shaft seal devices of heat medium turbines for the 10MW class geothermal plant. (NEDO)

Achievement report for fiscal 1993 on developing entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 4. Pilot plant operation edition; 1993 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 4. Pilot plant unten sosa hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-02-01

Tests and researches have been carried out on operation of a 200-t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant built with an objective of establishing the coal gasification composite power generation technology. This paper summarizes the operation achievements in fiscal 1993. The plant operation record in fiscal 1993 was as follows: 430 hours 27 minutes in the gasification furnace (ten gasification operations), 233 hours 51 minutes in the gas refining facility, 140 hours 31 minutes in the gas turbine facility (power generation amount of 746.8 MWh with nine actuations), 1,263 hours 09 minutes in the processing furnace in the safety environment facility, and 427 hours 22 minutes in the NOx removal equipment. Descriptions were given with detailed graphs on the actuation and shutdown record with respect to the run D2, the run D3 (1 and 2), the run D4, the run D5, the run D6, and the run D7 (1 through 4). The operation procedures were prepared for the plant startup and shutdown schedule, the generalization report, the gasification furnace facility, the gas refining facility (dry type desulfurizing facility), the gas refining facility (dry type dust removing facility), the gas turbine facility, the combustor testing facility with actual pressure and size, and the safety environment facilities. (NEDO)

Fiscal 1995 achievement report. Development of entrained bed coal gasification power plant (Part 4 - Pilot plant operation); 1995 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 4. Pilot plant unten sosa hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1996-03-01

The 200 tons/day entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant constructed for establishing the technology of integrated coal gasification combined cycle was subjected to operational tests, and the fiscal 1995 results are compiled. In fiscal 1995, 1328 hours and 3 minutes (8 gasification operations) was recorded with gasification furnace facility, 899 hours and 53 minutes with the gas clean-up facility, 831 hours and 27 minutes with the gas turbine facility (11 startups for the generation of 6657 MWh), and 1958 hours and 2 minutes with the treatment furnace and 1331 hours and 10 minutes with the denitration unit of the safety/environment-related facility. The details of starts and stops were described in graphs which covered Runs D13, D14-1, D14-2, E1, D15, and A14. Operating procedures were studied and compiled for the plant start/stop schedule, general guidelines, gasification furnace facility, gas clean-up facility (dry type desulfurization facility), gas clean-up facility (dry type dedusting facility), gas turbine facility, real-pressure natural-size combustor test facility, and the safety/environment-related facility. (NEDO)

Tidal energy conversion. Renewable energy; 3-3 choseki / choryu hatsuden. II. saisei kano energy ni yoru hatsuden

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Makino, T. [Tobishima Corp., Tokyo (Japan)

1998-10-15

There are not much examples applying tidal energy conversion, but tide and tidal current phenomena can be forecasted so correctly regardless of weather that the applying tidal energy is to be expected in the future. The largest tidal power plant is at Reims in France and install 24 Kaplan turbines each of which outlet power is 10,000kW (rotational direction is reversible) on the breakwater (750m is length). Tidal range at this place being 8.5m on an average, during the period of flowing seawater into the reservoir and on the contrary during the period of discharging seawater to the sea generation is both performed. Though there is no actual result of tidal power plant in Japan, in tidal current power system experimental generators have been installed at Kurushima channel and Naruto channel. Nihon University carried out various kinds of experiment using a Darius turbine (1.6m in dia.) at Kurushima channel and got outlet power of 3kW at the maximum (1983-`88). There are few coasts which have sufficient tide range in Japan, but there are so good many applicable coasts in China and Southeast Asia that the tidal power generation is to be expectatively. 12 refs., 5 figs., 1 tab.

Designing time-of-use program based on stochastic security constrained unit commitment considering reliability index

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nikzad, Mehdi; Mozafari, Babak; Bashirvand, Mahdi; Solaymani, Soodabeh; Ranjbar, Ali Mohamad

2012-01-01

Recently in electricity markets, a massive focus has been made on setting up opportunities for participating demand side. Such opportunities, also known as demand response (DR) options, are triggered by either a grid reliability problem or high electricity prices. Two important challenges that market operators are facing are appropriate designing and reasonable pricing of DR options. In this paper, time-of-use program (TOU) as a prevalent time-varying program is modeled linearly based on own and cross elasticity definition. In order to decide on TOU rates, a stochastic model is proposed in which the optimum TOU rates are determined based on grid reliability index set by the operator. Expected Load Not Supplied (ELNS) is used to evaluate reliability of the power system in each hour. The proposed stochastic model is formulated as a two-stage stochastic mixed-integer linear programming (SMILP) problem and solved using CPLEX solver. The validity of the method is tested over the IEEE 24-bus test system. In this regard, the impact of the proposed pricing method on system load profile; operational costs and required capacity of up- and down-spinning reserve as well as improvement of load factor is demonstrated. Also the sensitivity of the results to elasticity coefficients is investigated. -- Highlights: ► Time-of-use demand response program is linearly modeled. ► A stochastic model is proposed to determine the optimum TOU rates based on ELNS index set by the operator. ► The model is formulated as a short-term two-stage stochastic mixed-integer linear programming problem.

Beyond the Price Effect in Time-of-Use Programs: Results from a Municipal Utility Pilot, 2007-2008

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lutzenhiser, Susan; Peters, Jane; Moezzi, Mithra; Woods, James

2009-08-12

This paper discusses results of a two-year collaborative research project between the authors and the Demand Response Research Center focused on behavioral response to a voluntary time-of-use pilot rate offered by the Sacramento Municipal Utilities District (SMUD) under the PowerChoice label. The project had two purposes: one was to assess the potential for increasing demand response through the introduction of enhanced information and real-time consumption feedback; the second was to better understand behavioral response to a TOU rate. Three successive waves of telephone surveys collected details about reasons for participation, actions taken, capacities and constraints to altering behavior, and a range of salient conditions, such as demographics and dwelling characteristics. Pre- and post-program interval meter data for participants and a comparison sample of households were also collected and analyzed to consider initial and season-change price effects of the rate and the effect of supplemental information treatments on response. Over half of surveyed participating households reported that they had made a great deal of effort to adjust their electricity consumption to the rate. Despite this, load data analysis revealed only minimal price effects; and, though households subjected to information treatments seemed to have learned from these treatments, load data analysis again detected only minimal effects on load. Given the currently high hopes for behavioral intervention and residential TOU rates, these unexpected results require explanation. We suggest a number of possibilities and discuss some implications for TOU programs, and for understanding demand response behavior and approaches to experiments with TOU rates.

FY 1991 report on the results of the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 1. Support study for the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant (Dismantling study); 1991 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu (Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu no shien kenkyu) - Sono 1. Kaitai kenkyu hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1992-04-01

As a support study for the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant by a 200 t/d pilot plant, the dismantling study was made for gasifier facilities, desulfurization facilities, dedusting facilities at the existing 40 t/d testing facilities. In the results of the analysis of the specimens sampled from gasifier and peripheral facilities, the corrosion loss of thickness was great in carbon steel/low-alloy steel equipment, and the generation of intergranular corrosion/intergranular crack was recognized in stainless steel equipment. The loss of thickness caused by erosion was also recognized in carrier tubes, etc. As to the high-temperature dry desulfurization system, the damage was totally great, but the effect of taking measures for it was unclear because the loss of thickness by corrosion/abrasion had not been measured regularly. Relating to the high-temperature dry dedusting system, there used to be a lot of troubles from stress corrosion cracking and pitting corrosion, and the best measures for corrosion prevention were taken for each trouble. As to the Al thermal spraying, stabilized thermal treatment, shot-peening, etc., the excellent corrosion prevention effect was recognized on the austenite stainless steel. (NEDO)

Fiscal 1994 achievement report. Development of entrained bed coal gasification power plant (Part 4 - Pilot plant operation); 1994 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 4. Pilot plant unten sosa hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-07-01

The 200 tons/day entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant constructed for the establishment of the technology of integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation was operated for testing, and the results are put together. Operating hours recorded were 1347 hours and 7 minutes for the gasification furnace facility (7 gasification operations), 752 hours and 22 minutes for the gas clean-up facilities, 425 hours and 20 minutes for the gas turbine facility (6 startups for generating 2616.1 MWh), and 1852 hours for the treatment furnace and 1304 hours and 32 minutes for the denitration system in the safety/environment-related facility. Detailed graphs were drawn for the description of starts and stops in Run D8, Run D9 (1-3), Run D10, Run D11, and in Run D12. Operating procedures were studied and then compiled for the plant start-stop schedule, general guidelines, gasification furnace facility, gas clean-up facility (dry type desulfurization facility), gas clean-up facility (dry type dedusting facility), gas turbine facility, real-pressure natural-size combustor test facility, and for the safety/environment related facility. (NEDO)

FY 1990 report on the results of the development of the entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 2. Fabrication/installation of pilot plant; 1990 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 2. Pilot plant seisaku suetsuke hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1991-03-01

For the purpose of establishing the technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, fabrication/installation work, etc. were made for a pilot plant of 200t/d entrained bed coal gasification power generation, and the FY 1990 results were summarized. Construction work of a pilot plant of coal gasification power generation was at its peak in April 1990, and installation/piping work for each facility/equipment was carried out. In May, transportation/installation of gas turbine and generator were started. In June, installation of equipment of the 66kV special high voltage switching station was conducted, and the initial power receiving of 6.9kV was conducted. In August, inspection before use was made of the main piping of the gasifier equipment, gas refining equipment and gas turbine equipment. In December, trial unit operation of each equipment and interlock test were carried out. 'The integrated plant protection interlock test' was made from January 21 to February 21, 1991, and the favorable results were obtained. On February 28, a ceremony to celebrate the completion of all facilities of pilot plant was made. In March, drying of gasifier and initial firing by light oil were conducted, and all the work was completed on March 25. (NEDO)

FY 1990 report on the results of the development of the entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 2. Fabrication/installation of pilot plant; 1990 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 2. Pilot plant seisaku suetsuke hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1991-03-01

For the purpose of establishing the technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, fabrication/installation work, etc. were made for a pilot plant of 200t/d entrained bed coal gasification power generation, and the FY 1990 results were summarized. Construction work of a pilot plant of coal gasification power generation was at its peak in April 1990, and installation/piping work for each facility/equipment was carried out. In May, transportation/installation of gas turbine and generator were started. In June, installation of equipment of the 66kV special high voltage switching station was conducted, and the initial power receiving of 6.9kV was conducted. In August, inspection before use was made of the main piping of the gasifier equipment, gas refining equipment and gas turbine equipment. In December, trial unit operation of each equipment and interlock test were carried out. 'The integrated plant protection interlock test' was made from January 21 to February 21, 1991, and the favorable results were obtained. On February 28, a ceremony to celebrate the completion of all facilities of pilot plant was made. In March, drying of gasifier and initial firing by light oil were conducted, and all the work was completed on March 25. (NEDO)

Collaborative Scheduling between OSPPs and Gasholders in Steel Mill under Time-of-Use Power Price

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juxian Hao

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Byproduct gases generated during steel production process are the main fuels for on-site power plants (OSPPs in steel enterprises. Recently, with the implementation of time-of-use (TOU power price in China, increasing attention has been paid to the collaborative scheduling between OSPPs and gasholders. However, the load shifting potential of OSPPs has seldom been discussed in previous studies. In this paper, a mixed integer linear programming (MILP-based scheduling model is built to evaluate the load shifting potential and the corresponding economic benefits. A case study is conducted on two steel enterprises with different configurations of OSPPs, and the optimal operation strategy is also discussed.

Fiscal 1997 report of the development of high efficiency waste power generation technology. No.2 volume. Pilot plant verification test; Kokoritsu haikibutsu hatsuden gijutsu kaihatsu (pilot plant jissho shiken). 1997 nendo hokokusho (daini bunsatsu)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-03-01

As to a high efficiency waste power generation system using general waste as fuel, the details of the following were described: design/construction management and operational study of pilot plant, design/manufacture/construction of pilot plant, and study of an optimal total system. Concerning the construction management and operational study, the paper described the application for governmental/official inspection procedures and taking inspection, process management of pilot plant, site patrol, safety management, management of trial run of pilot plant, drawing-up of a verification test plan and test run, etc. Relating to the design/manufacture/construction of pilot plant, an outline of the pilot plant was described. The paper also stated points to be considered in design of furnace structure and boiler structure, points to be considered of the verification test, etc. As to the study of an optimal total system, the following were described: survey of waste gasification/slagging power generation technology, basic study on RDF production process, survey of trends of waste power generation technology in the U.S., etc. 52 refs., 149 figs., 121 tabs.

Time-of-use rates vs. Hopkinson tariffs redux: an analysis of the choice of rate structures in a regulated electricity distribution company

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seeto, Dewey; Woo, C.K.; Horowitz, Ira

1997-01-01

Recent proposals to restructure the electricity industry in North America may effect the disintegration of a vertically integrated company into several smaller entities, including distribution companies (DISCOs) We explore whether time-of-use (TOU) pricing or a Hopkinson tariff would be more suitable for a regulated DISCO. Focusing on the economic efficiency of these alternative rate structures, we argue that a Hopkinson tariff with demand subscription is superior to TOU rates, as it can better handle the limited load diversity of local transmission and distribution (TD) demands made on the contemporary DISCO, while finessing the problem of endogenous marginal costs of local TD capacity. (Author)

Report on construction of thermal power plants for industrial use in China in FY 1997; 1997 nendo chosa hokokusho (Chugoku ni okeru kogyoyo karyoku hatsuden setsubi secchi)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-03-01

Steam supply and power generating plants in China can be classified into systems for district heating and power generation and systems for steam supply and power generation for industrial use. Steam supply and power generating plants for district heating in winter season are diffused due to the introduction of Russian technology. There are steam supply and power generating plants for supplying steam to manufacturing equipment in works and generating power for industrial use. Both of these are called heat and power stations. This survey was conducted for the latter thermal power generation plants for industrial use. China has heat and power stations with a total capacity of 22,000 MW, and a half of them are used for district heating. Although the thermal efficiency of usual thermal power generation plants is between 30 and 40%, that of heat and power stations is between 60 and 70%. Latent demand of such power generation plants for industrial use is large. Problems for the diffusion were extracted. It was considered that steam supply and combined power generating plants using natural gas are effective when constructed in large cities, in the vicinity of large cities, or in technological universities. 22 figs., 15 tabs.

Coupling mechanism of electric vehicle and grid under the background of smart grid

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, Mingyu; Li, Dezhi; Chen, Rongjun; Shu, Han; He, Yongxiu

2018-02-01

With the development of smart distribution technology in the future, electric vehicle users can not only charge reasonably based on peak-valley price, they can also discharge electricity into the power grid to realize their economic benefit when it’s necessary and thus promote peak load shifting. According to the characteristic that future electric vehicles can discharge, this paper studies the interaction effect between electric vehicles and the grid based on TOU (time of use) Price Strategy. In this paper, four scenarios are used to compare the change of grid load after implementing TOU Price Strategy. The results show that the wide access of electric vehicles can effectively reduce peak and valley difference.

Demand-side management pricing options in electric utilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sardana, P.; Herman, P.

1990-01-01

In 1989 Ontario Hydro implemented optional time-of-use (TOU) rates at the wholesale level for all municipal utilities in the province. At the same time, mandatory TOU rates were implemented for large users (customers with loads in excess of 5 MW) served by municipal utilities and Ontario Hydro's direct customers. To fully explore the potential of rate structures as demand-side management (DSM) tools, Ontario Hydro retained a consulting firm to carry out a survey of innovative rate structures in other jurisdications. The survey was intended to identify: the status quo of rate structures in other jurisdictions that were designed specifically to encourage DSM; a profile of the cost basis of the rate structures, for example whether traditional embedded cost of service analyses or contentious methods such as marginal cost pricing were used; whether innovative rates have been successful, and customer reactions and attitudes; and how innovative rates fit into the overall strategy of the utilities. It was found that TOU, interruptible and end-use targeted rates are the rate structures of choice for many utilities. Most are concerned with deferring capacity, reducing peak demand, and shifting load out of peak periods. Most utilities report success with their programs and satisfaction with the present form of the programs. 5 tabs

FY 1991 report on the results of the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 4. Operation of pilot plant; 1991 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 4. Pilot plant unten sosa hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1993-01-01

A record was summarized of the operation of the 200 t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant that was constructed with the aim of establishing technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation. As to the actual results of operation hours, the paper summarized the records of gasifier facilities, gas refining facilities, gas turbine facilities and safety environment facilities which were collected from April 1991 to January 1993. Relating to the actual results of start-up/stop, the paper summarized the records of gasifier facilities, gas refining facilities (desulfurization), gas refining facilities (dedusting), gas turbine facilities and safety environment facilities. Further, operation manuals were made for the schedule of plant start-up/stop, generalization, gasifier facilities, gas refining facilities (desulfurization), gas refining facilities (dedusting), gas turbine facilities, actual pressure/actual size combustor testing facilities and safety environment facilities. (NEDO)

FY 1996 report on the results of the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 2. Investigational study of verification plant; 1995 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 2. Jissho plant ni kansuru chosa kenkyu hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1997-01-01

For the purpose of developing the technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, an investigational study of verification plant was made, and the FY 1996 results were summarized. In this fiscal year, the conceptual design was made of the Nakoso method based on the method of Nakoso pilot plant, the fixed bed method in which fixed bed gas refining facilities tested in Nakoso pilot plant were adopted, and the packed bed method. In the Nakoso method, 5 cases were studied using the air blown two-stage entrained bed for gasifier, dry two-stage fluidized bed for desulfurization and dry granular bed packed bed for dust removal. In the fixed bed method, 2 cases were studied using the air blown two-stage entrained bed for gasifier and dry fixed bed for gas refining. In the packed bed method, 2 cases were studied using the air blown two-stage entrained bed for gasifier and dry packed bed for gas refining. As to gas turbine facilities, 5 cases were studied in which GT output is 115MW - 215MW (output of combined cycle power generation: 220MW - 420MW). (NEDO)

Dynamic Pricing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sharifi, Reza; Anvari-Moghaddam, Amjad; Fathi, S. Hamid

2017-01-01

Dynamic pricing scheme, also known as real-time pricing (RTP), can be more efficient and technically beneficial than the other price-based schemes (such as flat-rate or time-of-use (TOU) pricing) for enabling demand response (DR) actions. Over the past few years, advantages of RTP-based schemes h...... of dynamic pricing can lead to increased willingness of consumers to participate in DR programs which in turn improve the operation of liberalized electricity markets.......Dynamic pricing scheme, also known as real-time pricing (RTP), can be more efficient and technically beneficial than the other price-based schemes (such as flat-rate or time-of-use (TOU) pricing) for enabling demand response (DR) actions. Over the past few years, advantages of RTP-based schemes...

FY 1992 report on the results of the demonstration test on the methanol conversion at oil-fired power plant. Developmental study of a methanol engine system for power generation; 1992 nendo sekiyu karyoku hatsudensho metanoru tenkan tou jissho shiken. Hatsuden you metanoru enjin system no kaihatsu kenkyu hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1993-03-01

For the purpose of establishing the methanol engine technology for promotion of methanol introduction to oil-fired power plant, an experimental study was made, and the FY 1992 results were summarized. In the study of technology development, the following were carried out: evaluation of durability of multi glow plug and development of high-durability glow plug, confirmation of potentiality of the laser ignition system by element evaluation test, evaluation/improvement of durability of the injection system and development of injection pump for the actual machine, trial manufacture of the 2-stage injection system and confirmation of characteristics, study of improvement in ignitability/combustion state by optimization of the temperature of glow plug, compression rate, etc., evaluation of durability of combustion chamber, etc. by the heat load measuring test and heat balance, etc. As a result of the engine test, the pump housing stayed favorable without damage in the use of about 20,000h, plunger assembly did in the use of about 4,500h, and valve assembly did in the use of about 20,000h. As to the manufacture of the actual machine, a prototype was designed/manufactured of a 500kW class direct injection 4 cycle supercharging 6 cylinder methanol engine. (NEDO)

Mitigation of Debris Flow Damage--­ A Case Study of Debris Flow Damage

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, J. C.; Jen, C. H.

Typhoon Toraji caused more than 30 casualties in Central Taiwan on the 31st July 2001. It was the biggest Typhoon since the Chi-Chi earthquake of 1999 with huge amounts of rainfall. Because of the influence of the earthquake, loose debris falls and flows became major hazards in Central Taiwan. Analysis of rainfall data and sites of slope failure show that damage from these natural hazards were enhanced as a result of the Chi-Chi earthquake. Three main types of hazard occurred in Central Taiwan: land- slides, debris flows and gully erosion. Landslides occurred mainly along hill slopes and banks of channels. Many dams and houses were destroyed by flooding. Debris flows occurred during typhoon periods and re-activated ancient debris depositions. Many new gullies were therefore developed from deposits loosened and shaken by the earthquake. This paper demonstrates the geological/geomorphological background of the hazard area, and reviews methods of damage mitigation in central Taiwan. A good example is Hsi-Tou, which had experienced no gully erosion for more than 40 years. The area experienced much gully erosion as a result of the combined effects of earth- quake and typhoon. Although Typhoon Toraji produced only 30% of the rainfall of Typhoon Herb of 1996, it caused more damage in the Hsi-Tou area. The mitigation of debris flow hazards in Hsi-tou area is discussed in this paper.

Pelatihan Keterampilan Mendongeng untuk Keluarga Nelayan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tina Afiatin

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Storytelling is an efective way in instilling moral in children and forming character. Storytelling skill is needed by parents, especially in the fsherman families, to improve parenting quality. However, the parents in Tou village have not known and have never gotten the training on good storytelling. Terefore, in the community service activity of the Faculty of Psychology, UGM, it was given storytelling skill training for the fsherman families. Te storytelling skill training was held in Tou village, Moilong, Banggai, Central Sulawesi, belonging to the outermost, the most front and remote region. Te training was attended by 25 people of Tou village. Te training was held for two days with training materials: the lecture of good storytelling technique, the exercise of verbal and non-verbal communication, the practice of storytelling for the participant’s children, and the feedback of practicing storytelling skill. Te training results were analyzed with the qualitative and quantitative approach. Te qualitative analysis results (from observation, interview, and focus group discussion showed that all participants felt getting new knowledge and skill, that is the useful storytelling skill in parenting. Te quantitative analysis results (parenting scale score with statistic using t-test, the result was that there was signifcant reduction of dysfunctional parenting (t = -5,87;  p <0,001 between before and afer getting storytelling skill training.

FY 1992 report on the results of the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 4. Operation of pilot plant; 1992 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 4. Pilot plant unten sosa hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1994-02-01

A record was summarized of the operation test study in FY 1992 of the 200 t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant that was constructed with the aim of establishing technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation. The operating hour of gasifier facilities in FY 1992 was 635 hours 19 minutes, and the number of times of gasification operation was 9. The operating hour of letting gas through to gas refining facilities was 549 hours 14 minutes. The operating hour of gas turbine facilities was 310 hours 18 minutes, and the generated output was 1,366.2 MWh. The operating hour of treatment furnace of safety environment facilities was 1,401 hours 4 minutes, and that of the denitrification system was 621 hours 24 minutes. As to the actual results of the start-up/stop, the paper detailedly recorded those of RUNs 10, 11, 12, 13 and D1. Further, operation manuals were made for the schedule of plant start-up/stop, gasifier facilities, gas refining facilities (dry desulfurization facilities), gas refining facilities (dry dedusting facilities), actual pressure/actual size combustor testing facilities and safety environment facilities. (NEDO)

Achievement report for fiscal 1981 on Sunshine Program research and development. Development of photovoltaic power plants (Meteorological observation); 1981 nendo taiyonetsu hatsuden plant no kaihatsu seika hokokusho. Kisho kansoku

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1982-03-31

The effort aims to measure environmental factors for the evaluation of plant performance and equipment durability in a test operation of a Nio Solar Heat Test Plant (built on a site formed by reclaiming a salt field at Nio Town, Kagawa Prefecture). Meteorologically observed are the amount of direct solar radiation, amount of solar radiation from unobstructed sky, time of solar radiation, wind direction, wind speed, air temperature, wet-bulb temperature, amount of precipitation, and time of precipitation. Dust fall, sea salt grain, and sulfur oxides are also measured monthly. As for the direct solar radiation (DH) on the horizontal plane, it is determined by conversion of its hourly accumulation on a normal plane. The conversion method is so adjusted as to reduce errors for time belts in the morning and evening when change is great in sun elevation. The amount of sky solar radiation is calculated by subtracting DH from the amount of solar radiation from unobstructed sky. As for the time of solar radiation, it is determined by accumulating by the use of a computer the time at which pyrheliometer output is beyond a threshold of 21mW/cm{sup 2} on the pyrheliometer. A minicomputer is used to analyze and process the observed data. The annual and monthly reports and daily records are also mentioned in this achievement report. (NEDO)

FY 1979 Annual report on Sunshine Project results. Fabrication designs for a solar thermal power pilot plant with curved-surface type light-collecting system (Part 1); 1979 nendo taiyonetsu hatsuden (kyokumen shuko hoshiki) seika hokokusho. 1. Pilot plant no seisaku ksekkei

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1980-03-01

This report describes basic and fabrication design specifications for operation and control of a solar thermal power pilot plant with curved-surface type light-collecting system, centered by computer for the plant control. Chapter I, basic fabrication design specifications, describes the general, design specifications and design scope. Chapter II, system design specifications, describes plant operating manuals, computer-aided plant control, computer-aided data processing for plant control, and analysis of system characteristics. Chapter III, hardware specifications, describes the specifications of central processing unit (CPU), fixed head disc device (M DISC), console inputting/outputting device, process inputting/outputting device, logging typewriter, process display (CRT), cassette magnetic tape device, operator console, relay cubicle, power source panel for computer, and hardware lists. Chapter IV, attachments, contains the following documents: plant operating manuals, operation procedure flow charts, control processing specifications, control function specifications, APS console function specifications, computer inputting/outputting point list, and data processing function instructions. The attachment documents are also contained in Part 2 of JN0040512. (NEDO)

FY 1989 report on the results of the development of the entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 2. Fabrication/installation of pilot plant; 1989 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 2. Pilot plant seisaku suetsuke hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1990-03-01

For the purpose of establishing the technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, the fabrication, installation work, etc. were conducted of a 200t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant, and the FY 1989 results were summarized. As to the gasifier equipment, fabrication of a considerable number of the main equipment was finished. And, the equipment was sent into the coal gasification power plant and the installation work was done. Concerning gas refining facilities, fabrication of most of the components of the dry desulfurization system was finished, and further, fabrication of part of the piping prefabrication, disk and part of the disk fitting instrument was finished. The partial equipment of the dry dust removal system was also fabricated. About gas turbine facilities, the drawings necessary for each of the equipment fabricated/installed in this fiscal year were made, and at the same time a part of the technical data prepared so far was reviewed according to the progress of design. As to safety environmental facilities, installation work was done of gas treatment furnace, gas cooling system, buffer tank, desulfurizing tower, etc. Besides, design/technical study were made of the total control system, equipment of the indoor switching station, etc. (NEDO)

Fiscal 1981 Sunshine Project research report. Development of hydrothermal power plant. Development of binary cycle power plant (Research on heat cycle and heat medium, materials, and heat medium turbine); 1981 nendo nessui riyo hatsuden plant no kaihatsu seika hokokusho. Binary cycle hatsuden plant no kaihatsu (netsu cycle oyobi netsubaitai no kenkyu, zairyo no kenkyu narasbini netsubaitai turbine no kenkyu)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1982-03-01

This report summarizes the final fiscal 1981 research result on components of the next 10MW class geothermal binary cycle power plant. In the research on heat cycle and heat medium, R-C318 and R-124 were excellent in output characteristics in a low-temperature zone and high-temperature zone in a hot water temperature range of 120-160 degreesC, respectively, however, at present R-114 was most reasonable from the viewpoint of heat medium price and supply system. In the research on martials, study was made on inlet-attack and stress corrosion of heat exchanger pipes of 18Cr-13Ni-2Mo steel, and combination use of inexpensive materials (carbon steel). As used giving attention to stress corrosion, at present 18Cr-13Ni-2Mo steel was most suitable material, while clad carbon steel was also usable. In the research on heat medium turbine, the 1000-hour durability test result of mechanical seal showed that mechanical seal is best for heat medium turbines. (NEDO)

FY 1974 Report on results of Sunshine Project. Research and development of binary cycle geothermal power generation plant (Part I); 1974 nendo binary cycle chinetsu hatsuden plant no kenkyu kaihatsu seika hokokusho. 1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1975-05-30

The power generation system survey/research project surveys properties and the like of secondary fluids (e.g., n-butane and chlorofluorohydrocarbons); prepares the heat balances after taking into consideration the system concepts and thermodynamic characteristics of these fluids; and completes, based on the heat balances, basic designs of the major components (e.g., 10 MW plant turbine, evaporator and condenser), equipment layouts for the power plant, piping plans, and plant control system plans. For development of the turbine, the preliminary designs are drawn, based on the existing steam and gas turbine techniques, to complete the preparations for the detailed designs. For shaft sealing devices, the plan for the test apparatus is completed, the test procedures are drawn, and the preparations for the tests are partly completed. For the heat exchangers, the preliminary designs are completed for the optimum types. It is planned that the heating and cooling tubes for the heat exchangers are surface-treated to improve heat transfer coefficients. The surface treatment and surface patterns are studied, and the treated tubes are developed on a trial basis. The test unit for evaluating their performance is designed and constructed, thus completing the preparations for the tests. The corrosion test unit is installed, and the small-size corrosion simulation unit is completed. This report covers the results up to Chapter 2, Section 3, the remainder being described in JN0040364. (NEDO)

FY 1974 Report on results of Sunshine Project. Research and development of binary cycle geothermal power generation plant (Part II); 1974 nendo binary cycle chinetsu hatsuden plant no kenkyu kaihatsu seika hokokusho. 2

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1975-05-30

The power generation system survey/research project surveys properties and the like of secondary fluids (e.g., n-butane and chlorofluorohydrocarbons); prepares the heat balances after taking into consideration the system concepts and thermodynamic characteristics of these fluids; and completes, based on the heat balances, basic designs of the major components (e.g., 10 MW plant turbine, evaporator and condenser), equipment layouts for the power plant, piping plans, and plant control system plans. For development of the turbine, the preliminary designs are drawn, based on the existing steam and gas turbine techniques, to complete the preparations for the detailed designs. For shaft sealing devices, the plan for the test apparatus is completed, the test procedures are drawn, and the preparations for the tests are partly completed. For the heat exchangers, the preliminary designs are completed for the optimum types. It is planned that the heating and cooling tubes for the heat exchangers are surface-treated to improve heat transfer coefficients. The surface treatment and surface patterns are studied, and the treated tubes are developed on a trial basis. The test unit for evaluating their performance is designed and constructed, thus completing the preparations for the tests. The corrosion test unit is installed, and the small-size corrosion simulation unit is completed. This report covers the results in and after Chapter 2, Section 4, those before being described in JN0040363. (NEDO)

FY 1991 report on the results of the development of the entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 1. Element study/investigational study of technology/study of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power system; 1991 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 1. Youso kenkyu hen, gijutsu chosa hen, sekitan gaska fukugo hatsuden system kento hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1993-01-01

For the purpose of establishing the technology of integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, the following were conducted: element study of a 200t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant, survey of technology of the coal gasification power generation, study of the practical scale IGCC, etc. The FY 1991 results were summarized. In the gasification test using 2t/d furnace equipment, evaluation test on the test coal for pilot plant was made. In the study of gas turbine combustor for demonstration machine use, measuring duct was fabricated for measurement of combustion gas temperature/pressure, etc. In the simulational study of the total system of combined cycle power generation, review/modification of part of the simulation model and detailing of the model were conducted by comparison with the data on pilot plant operation. In the technology study, joint technology conferences were held for discussions between Japan and Australia, Japan and the U.S., and Japan and Canada. As to the practical scale IGCC, the initially planned output capacity and thermal efficiency were studied based on the knowledge/information obtained through the R and D on the 200t/d pilot plant. (NEDO)

Survey report for fiscal 1998 on the conversion of the existing coal burning power plant to natural gas burning plant in Sakhalin State; 1998 nendo Saharinshu muke, kisetsu sekitandaki hatsuden no tennen gas daki tenkan chosa hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1999-03-01

The present survey is intended to discuss a modernization plan effective in reducing greenhouse effect gases for the two existing coal burning power plants in Sakhalin Island, Sakhalin State, the Federal Republic of Russia. The power plants are Sakhalinskaya Power Plant (GRES) and Yuzhno Sakalinskaya Power Plant (TETs-1). Simultaneously with converting the fuel from coal to natural gas, discussions are given on an optimal plan including introduction of the combined cycle and repowering technologies aiming at improving the thermal efficiency. Reduction in greenhouse effect gases, finance, and economy are evaluated. At the same time, verification will be given on environment improvement in Sakhalin Island, and influence on sustainable economic and social activation. The GRES modernization plan intends to build four combined cycle units each of 80 MW class to have nearly the same total capacity as the current total power generation facility capacity (315 MW). The TETs-1 modernization plan will convert the fuel for the existing boilers from coal to natural gas, modify one of the boilers whose construction is being suspended into gas burning boiler, and add gas turbines. (NEDO)

Resident Load Influence Analysis Method for Price Based on Non-intrusive Load Monitoring and Decomposition Data

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Wenqian; Zeng, Bo; Yang, Zhou; Li, Gang

2018-01-01

In the non-invasive load monitoring mode, the load decomposition can reflect the running state of each load, which will help the user reduce unnecessary energy costs. With the demand side management measures of time of using price, a resident load influence analysis method for time of using price (TOU) based on non-intrusive load monitoring data are proposed in the paper. Relying on the current signal of the resident load classification, the user equipment type, and different time series of self-elasticity and cross-elasticity of the situation could be obtained. Through the actual household load data test with the impact of TOU, part of the equipment will be transferred to the working hours, and users in the peak price of electricity has been reduced, and in the electricity at the time of the increase Electrical equipment, with a certain regularity.

The rhetorical function of references to angels in the Main Letters of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Test

2011-06-07

Jun 7, 2011 ... (1984:245–247), Morland (1995:148–149), Kremendahl (2000:83) and ..... gender-related roles that he links to creation (cf. dia; tou`to ..... Carr, W., 1981, Angels and principalities: The background, meaning and development.

Adansonia digitata L.

African Journals Online (AJOL)

SARAH

Écologie Appliquée (LEA), Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques (FSA), Université d'Abomey-Calavi. (UAC), Bénin. 01 BP 526 Cotonou, Bénin. 2Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Sciences et Techniques Agronomiques de Kétou, ...

Iteration particle swarm optimization for contract capacities selection of time-of-use rates industrial customers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Tsung-Ying; Chen, Chun-Lung

2007-01-01

This paper presents a new algorithm for solving the optimal contract capacities of a time-of-use (TOU) rates industrial customer. This algorithm is named iteration particle swarm optimization (IPSO). A new index, called iteration best is incorporated into particle swarm optimization (PSO) to improve solution quality and computation efficiency. Expanding line construction cost and contract recovery cost are considered, as well as demand contract capacity cost and penalty bill, in the selection of the optimal contract capacities. The resulting optimal contract capacity effectively reaches the minimum electricity charge of TOU rates users. A significant reduction in electricity costs is observed. The effects of expanding line construction cost and contract recovery cost on the selection of optimal contract capacities can also be estimated. The feasibility of the new algorithm is demonstrated by a numerical example, and the IPSO solution quality and computation efficiency are compared to those of other algorithms

Sunshine Program for fiscal 1979. Designs and drawings for tower concentration type solar thermal electric power generation pilot plant construction (Volume 1 of 2); 1979 nendo taiyonetsu hatsuden (tower shuko hoshiki) pilot plant no seisaku sekkei. Sekkei tosho (1/2)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1980-03-01

The pilot plant outputs 1000kWe. Under an automated operation program, 2 operators per shift take care of the whole plant (with one operator on patrol). Daily startup and stop is automatic in principle. The system stops its operation in principle when the computer is down, with accessories to be manually stopped. Warnings are dealt with all by the computer. A safety sequence is organized independent from the computer. The operators interfere with the system for the manipulation of subsystems and adjustment functions. With the plant in normal operation, the computer system logs data, monitors warnings, and the plant is under control of an analog control unit. For the activation of the automatic startup/stop function, the operators have to choose a mode of operation. The above-named document covers, furthermore, the data processing function of the automatic operating system, automatic startup/stop program, hardware, automatic startup/stop table, and a general flow chart describing the automatic startup/stop train. (NEDO)

FY 1977 Annual report on Sunshine Project results. Experimental research for detailed designs of tower light-collection type solar thermal power plant; 1977 nendo taiyonetsu hatsuden plant (tower shuko hoshiki) no shosai sekkei no tame no shiken kenkyu seika hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1978-03-31

This project is aimed at pursuing technical and economic possibilities of solar thermal power plant by development of devices for a tower light-collecting type solar thermal power plant (in particular, heliostat, heat absorber and heat storage device) and materials therefor through the basic tests, and tests using a 10 kW heat collector and construction, on a trial basis, of a large-scale model plant with a commercial heliostat, and by planning to construct a 1,000 kW-class pilot plant for generating peak-shaving power using these devices. The major achievements in the FY1977 are summarized. The system analysis estimates annual power production possibly reaching 547,600 kWH. The heat-collecting test plant records a heat-collecting efficiency of 50 to 70% for collected heat quantity of 50 kW or more. The heliostat test confirms that the GL type is more favorable than the XY type. The heat absorber, which is a 1/3 model of the commercial device, is tested for its heat releasing performance, producing the quantitative released heat data. The heat transfer characteristics are investigated for the regenerative heat exchanger when the phase changes occur simultaneously on both molten salt and water sides. The mirror is exposure-tested in the field test for 1 year, to collect the data. (NEDO)

Survey of consolidation for gas turbine re-powering combined WPP (waste power plant) project; Gas turbine repowering haikibutsu fukugo hatsuden system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1997-03-01

This report describes the survey of gas turbine re-powering combined WPP (or super WPP), which was commercialized by Gunma Prefecture for the first time as an electric power wholesaler in Japan. An outline of the survey is introduced. The system optimization for the commercialization of WPP was studied by considering waste as un-utilized energy. A successful condition and preparation method of the commercialization of a public power plant was also studied, which is a combination of the garbage collection business of a local government and an electric power generation business of a municipal company. For the introduction of the aforementioned system, the problems and supporting methods were studied by making allowance for the profitability of the WPP introduction, because they also need to deliberate it from the economical point of view as electric power companies. Based on the results of foregoing items, commercialization plans, problems encountered from the construction phase through the maintenance and service phase, and the supporting method were arranged. 30 figs., 18 tabs.

Achievement report for fiscal 1993 on developing entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 1. Element research and technology survey edition; 1993 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 1. Youso kenkyu hen, gijutsu chosa hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-02-01

With an objective of establishing a coal gasification composite power generation technology, R and D works have been carried out on elementary technologies. This paper summarizes the achievements in fiscal 1993. In the research on the slag utilization technology, discussions were given on the applicability of slag discharged from a 200 t/d pilot plant to fine aggregate for concrete. In the research on a large gas turbine combustor for a demonstration plant, the test conditions were discussed and the reliability of the combustor was analyzed to conduct an actual gas combustion test using the coal D in continuation from the test in the previous fiscal year. In the research on the simulation of a composite power generation system, the simulation models were reviewed and corrected. Load variation simulations were carried out on every operation mode to have conducted comparison with and discussion on the actual plant data. In order to clarify the slagging phenomenon in the 200 t/d pilot plant, a characteristics test was performed by using a 2 t/d furnace. As a result, the combustor ash load and the dynamic pressure in the axial direction in the throat section were presumed to be the large factors for the occurrence of slagging. (NEDO)

Achievement report for fiscal 1993 on developing entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 2. Summary of tests and researches on pilot plant operation; 1993 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 2. Pilot plant unten shiken kenkyu no gaiyo hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-02-01

Tests and researches have been carried out on operation of a 200-t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant built with an objective of establishing the coal gasification composite power generation technology. This paper summarizes the achievements in fiscal 1993. The current fiscal year has performed the test operation on the pilot plant as a whole by using the coal D in continuation from the previous fiscal year. For the gasification furnace facilities, an air variation test was conducted for charging coal into the gasification furnace by using recovered oxygen, wherein satisfactory control was verified on oxygen concentration in the air supplied into the gasification furnace. In the gas refining facilities (dry desulfurizing facilities), the total sulfur concentration at 300 to 650 ppm in the gas produced from the coal gasification furnace was refined to 30 to 100 ppm, having achieved the initial target value. The gas refining facilities (dry dust collecting facilities) have achieved satisfactory result that the entrance dust concentration at 66 to 270 mg/Nm{sup 3} was reduced to the exit dust concentration at 1 to 3 mg/Nm{sup 3}. With respect to the gas turbine facilities, the planned values of output and thermal efficiency were satisfied, having derived good performance characteristics. (NEDO)

Reports on 1979 result of Sunshine Project. Testing research for detailed design of solar thermal power generation plant (tower converging method); 1979 nendo taiyonetsu hatsuden plant (tower shuko hoshiki) no shosai sekkei no tame no shiken kenkyu seika hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1980-03-31

This report briefly describes first, in the summary of the results, the contents of the research results of the year with the outcome as the central point. Then, it explains in detail, in the contents of the research, the substance of each research item, results, their examination contents, and future research subjects. The objective of the research is, for the purpose of technically seeking the cost performance of a solar thermal power generation plant, (1) to develop equipment constituting the plant and (2) to develop a pilot plant having an electrical output of about 1,000kW at the peak by the tower converging method. The research results were as follows. (1) In the confirming test of a heliostat test unit, the final conclusion was obtained of the wind resistance calculated value by the wind tunnel test of the heliostat; the design materials of the assembly jigs were obtained; the data of the operation forecast was obtained in a tracking test; and a sensor was developed for the tracking instrumentation. (2) In the confirming test of the improved absorbing surface/mirror, the improvement/trial production including the manufacturing method was carried out as the absorbing surface for the actual unit. (3) In the heat collecting test, steam generation and a loop control test were performed. (4) The plant system was analyzed, with data obtained for the operating method. (NEDO)

FY 1992 report on the results of the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 1. Element study/Technical survey; 1992 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 1. Youso kenkyu hen, gijutsu chosa hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1994-02-01

For the purpose of establishing the technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, element study of a 200 t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant was made, and the FY 1992 results were summarized. In the gasification test using a 2 t/d furnace equipment, study was made of the extraction of subjects on the operation, performance of gasification, slagging characteristics and characteristics of flux addition. In the study of slag utilization technology, chemical analysis, test on fine aggregate and test on fine particle were carried out to study applicability of the slag discharged from the entrained bed coal gasification power plant to various materials. In the study of a large gas turbine combustor for the demonstrative machine, the demonstrative machine use large gas turbine combustor testing equipment was installed at actual pressure/actual size combustion testing facilities in the pilot plant and further the test use combustor was integrated into them. By using them, the real gas combustion test was made using the adjusted coal for evaluation of combustion performance of the test use combustor. In the simulation study of the total pilot plant system, the comparative study was made between the data on the test using the actual machine and the results of the simulation. (NEDO)

Modeling and Simulation of a DG-Integrated Intelligent Microgrid

Science.gov (United States)

2010-02-01

17. The I-V curve from the manufacturer for BP-4175 175W PV module...........................32   Fig. 18. Wind turbine model...33   Fig. 19. Electrical outputs of wind turbine... PMSG : Permanent Magnet Synchronous Generator PLL : Phase Lock Loop PV : Photovoltaic PWM : Pulse Width Modulation TOU : Time of Use VTES

Effects of mussel farms on the benthic nitrogen cycle on the Swedish west coast

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Carlsson, MS; Engström, P; Lindahl, O

2012-01-01

The biogeochemical impact of 3 long-line mussel farms (M1, M2 and M3) in Lysekil, Sweden, was investigated from before farm establishment until 1.5 yr after operation had begun. Sedimentation, benthic N flux, total oxygen uptake (TOU) and sulfate reduction rate (SRR) were all significantly increa...

Browse Title Index

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Mariama Bammo, Pauline Dioussé, Mariétou Thiam, Madoky Maguatte Diop, Adama Berthé, Flugence Abdou Faye, Thierno Abdoul Aziz Diallo, Fatou Seck Sarr, Haby Dione, Papa Souleymane Touré, Bernard Marcel Diop, Mamadou Mourtalla Ka. Vol 10 (2011), Les aspergillomes pulmonaires: à propos de 37 cas à ...

Experimental Design and Analysis for the FIST (Fire Support Team) Force Development Testing and Experimentation II.

Science.gov (United States)

1985-10-01

median service time for a FIST IHQ to service Copperhead missions while in review mode and for mission workload (FO + ARMOR + CPH) was only 6.0...07703 Uazhin.tou, DC 20036 2 Coui-,ander 1 Comwanaer US Aruy larry Diaiaond Labs. US Army Belvoir ATTN: AIILHD- TD , Dr. Scully Research & Development

Basic investigation on promotion of joint implementation in fiscal 2000. Efficiency improvement project for gas turbine power plant in Iran; 2000 nendo kyodo jisshi nado suishin kiso chosa hokokusho. Iran gas turbine hatsuden plant no koritsu kaizen project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2001-03-01

Investigations and discussions have been given on measures to improve energy conservation and efficiency at a power plant of Kish Water and Power Company (KWPC) in Iran. The site has high ambient temperature throughout a year, making the gas turbine power plant capable of generating power only at about 70% of the rated output, with the power generation efficiency decreasing. The project has analyzed the current situation at the plant, and evaluated different means that appear effective in improving the efficiency, including the gas turbine absorbed air cooling system, the steam injection system, and the combined cycle. As a result of the discussions, it was revealed that energy saving effect can be obtained at 145 TJ with the gas turbine absorbed air cooling system, 224 TJ with the steam injection system, and 1017 TJ with the combined cycle. The annual reduction of greenhouse gas emission due to the above energy conservation would be about 11 thousand tons, 16.5 thousand tons, and 75 thousand tons, respectively. However, the investment payback period would be about 2.45 years, 8.31 years, and 14.21 years, respectively. Therefore, the profitability does not appear very attractive because of low fuel unit cost. (NEDO)

Market based solutions for increased flexibility in electricity consumption

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grande, Ove S.; Saele, Hanne

2005-06-01

The main focus of this paper is on manual and automatic demand response to prices in the day ahead market. The content is mainly based on the results and experiences from the large scale Norwegian test and research project End User flexibility by efficient use of ICT (2001-2004) involving 10,894 customers with automatic meter reading (AMR) and remote load control (RLC) options. The response to hourly spot price products and intraday time of use (ToU) tariffs were tested. The registered response differs from 0.18-1 kWh/h in average per household customer for the different combination of these price signals. The largest response was achieved for the customers with both the ToU network tariff and hourly spot price. Some of the customers were offered remote controlled automatic disconnection of water heaters in the high price periods during week days. The test shows that the potential of load reduction from water heaters can be estimated to 0.6 kWh/h in the peak hours on average. For Norway this indicates that a total of 600 MWh/h automatic price elasticity could be achieved, provided that half of the 2 million Norwegian households accept RLC of their water heater referred to spot price. The benefit for load shifting is limited for each customer, but of great value for the power system as a whole. Combination of an hourly spot price contract with an intraday ToU network tariff should therefore be considered, in order to provide stable economic incentives for load reduction. One potential drawback for customers with spot price energy contracts is the risk of high electricity prices in periods of lasting scarcity. Combination with financial power contracts as an insurance for the customer is an option that will be examined in a follow up project

Comparação de correctivos aplicados a um solo de uma área mineira contaminado com arsénio e seu efeito no crescimento de plantas Comparison of amendments applied to an arsenic contaminated soil from a mining area and their effect on plant growth

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A.C. Madeira

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Estudou-se o efeito de correctivos (óxido de ferro, Fe; matéria orgânica, MO; fosfato de cálcio, PCa, aplicados a um solo da área mineira de Penedono contaminado com As, no crescimento de tomateiro e salsa. Usa­ram-se, como controlos, este solo sem cor­rectivos e um solo não contaminado. Duran­te o crescimento mediu-se a altura das plan­tas, comprimento foliar e teor relativo de clorofila. Na colheita final determinaram-se os pesos frescos e secos. Os correctivos influenciaram a disponibi­lidade de As no solo, relativamente ao ori­ginal: Fe manteve-a enquanto MO e PCa a aumentaram. Ambas as espécies foram afec­tadas pelo arsénio, porém a resposta aos tra­tamentos foi diferente. A altura, compri­mento dos folíolos, teor de clorofila, peso seco e número de frutos dos tomateiros foi significativamente superior em MO do que em Fe e controlo. O correctivo MO apresen­tou resultados promissores relativamente ao crescimento e produtividade do tomateiro. Contudo, o PCa (12 g kg-1 foi o melhor cor­rectivo para o crescimento da salsa.Three amendments (iron oxides, Fe; or­ganic matter, MO; calcium phosphate, PCa were applied to a naturally contaminated soil with arsenic and their effect on the growth of tomato plants and Italian parsley was studied. The results indicate differences associated with the availability of arsenic in the soil in the presence of amendments: Fe had no influence on arsenic availability compared with the unamended soil, while MO and PCa increased the availability of arsenic. Though both plant species have been affected by arsenic toxicity, the re­sponse to treatments relatively to plant growth was different. Tomato plants pre­sented greater growth in terms of height, leaf length, relative chlorophyll content, dry weight and fruit production when MO was used as amendment. By the contrary, the Italian parsley presented the best growth when PCa (12 g kg-1 was added to the con­taminated soil.

Present status of geothermal power development in Kyushu; Kyushu ni okeru chinetsu hatsuden no genjo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Akiyoshi, M. [Kyushu Electric Power Co. Inc., Fukuoka (Japan)

1997-10-20

The present situation was introduced of the geothermal power generation in Kyushu. In Kyushu, where there are lots of volcanos and abundant geothermal resources, the geothermal exploration has been made since long ago. Three non-utility use units at three geothermal power generation points and six commercial use units at five points are now in operation in Kyushu. The total output is approximately 210 MW, about 40% of the domestic geothermal power generation. At Otake and Hacchobaru geothermal power plants, the Kyushu Electric Power Company made the geothermal resource exploration through the installation/operation of power generation facilities. At the Otake power plant, a geothermal water type single flashing system was adopted first in the country because of its steam mixed with geothermal water. At the Hacchobaru power plant, adopted were a two-phase flow transportation system and a double flashing system in which the geothermal water separated from primary steam by separator is more reduced in pressure to take out secondary steam. Yamakawa, Ogiri and Takigami power plants are all for the joint exploration. Geothermal developers drill steam wells and generate steam, and the Kyushu Electric Power Company buys the steam and uses it for power generation. 5 figs., 1 tab.

FY 1989 report on the results of the development of the entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 1. Element study; 1989 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 1. Yoso kenkyu hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1990-03-01

For the purpose of establishing the technology of integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, element study was conducted of a 200t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant, and the FY 1989 results were summarized. In the gasification test using 2t/d gasifier equipment, the following were carried out: test on gasification of the coal proposed for pilot plant, test on changes in coal feed ratio, analysis of trace gas elements in coal, study of the fixed bed gas refining system, etc. In the study of large gas turbine combustor for demonstration machine, development of combustor which makes stable combustion in the low load region possible, development of low NOx combustor which controls the conversion of nitrogen compounds such as ammonia in coal gasification gas to NOx, development of combustor which makes the optimum and effective cooling possible by combining film cooling, impingement cooling, etc. In the study of simulation of the combined power generation total system, verification tests on the control mode switching function of the general load pressure control system, movement to meet anomaly of the control system, integrated cooperation control system, etc. (NEDO)

Optimal control of operation efficiency of belt conveyor systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Shirong; Xia, Xiaohua

2010-01-01

The improvement of the energy efficiency of belt conveyor systems can be achieved at equipment or operation levels. Switching control and variable speed control are proposed in literature to improve energy efficiency of belt conveyors. The current implementations mostly focus on lower level control loops or an individual belt conveyor without operational considerations at the system level. In this paper, an optimal switching control and a variable speed drive (VSD) based optimal control are proposed to improve the energy efficiency of belt conveyor systems at the operational level, where time-of-use (TOU) tariff, ramp rate of belt speed and other system constraints are considered. A coal conveying system in a coal-fired power plant is taken as a case study, where great saving of energy cost is achieved by the two optimal control strategies. Moreover, considerable energy saving resulting from VSD based optimal control is also proved by the case study.

Optimal control of operation efficiency of belt conveyor systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Shirong [Department of Automation, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072 (China); Xia, Xiaohua [Department of Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002 (South Africa)

2010-06-15

The improvement of the energy efficiency of belt conveyor systems can be achieved at equipment or operation levels. Switching control and variable speed control are proposed in literature to improve energy efficiency of belt conveyors. The current implementations mostly focus on lower level control loops or an individual belt conveyor without operational considerations at the system level. In this paper, an optimal switching control and a variable speed drive (VSD) based optimal control are proposed to improve the energy efficiency of belt conveyor systems at the operational level, where time-of-use (TOU) tariff, ramp rate of belt speed and other system constraints are considered. A coal conveying system in a coal-fired power plant is taken as a case study, where great saving of energy cost is achieved by the two optimal control strategies. Moreover, considerable energy saving resulting from VSD based optimal control is also proved by the case study. (author)

FY 2000 report on the results of the project for measures for rationalization of the international energy utilization - the model project for the heightening of efficiency of the international energy consumption. 1/2. Model project for facilities for effective utilization of by-producing exhaust gases from chemical plant, etc.; 2000 nendo kokusai energy shohi koritsuka tou moderu jigyo seika hokokusho. Kagaku kojo fukusei haigasu tou yuko riyo setsubi moderu jigyo (1/2)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2001-03-01

For the purpose of contributing to the reduction in the energy consumption in China and the stable energy supply in Japan by heightening efficiency of the energy utilization in the petrochemical industry which is an industry of much energy consumption in China, a model project for facilities for effective utilization of by-producing gases from chemical plant, etc. was carried out, and the FY 2000 results were reported. Concretely, the combustion incinerator and combustion exhaust gas recovery facilities for waste water and gas were to be installed at acrylonitrile plant of petrochemical plant in China to recover the combustion exhaust gas as process gas used in plant for effective utilization. The plant at installation site has been run since 1995, having a production capacity of 50,000-60,000 tons. In this fiscal year, the detailed design and supply of electric instrumentation equipment and manufacture of boiler facilities were carried out according to the basic design made in the previous fiscal year. Further, the equipment manufactured in the previous year and this fiscal year were transported and inspected. The paper also reviewed drawings of the design of the facilities for part of which China takes responsibility. (NEDO)

Fiscal 1995 achievement report. Development of entrained bed coal gasification power plant (Part 3 - Pilot plant operational test - 2/2); 1995 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 3. Pilot plant unten shiken hen (2/2)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1996-03-01

The 200 tons/day entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant constructed for establishing the technology of integrated coal gasification combined cycle was subjected to operational tests, and the fiscal 1995 results are detailed. During Runs D13, D14, E1, D15, and A14 in the operational test of the gas clean-up facility (dry type dedusting facility), 10 troubles occurred, including damage of the separator screen, leak in the seal valve, and leak of the expansion gas, and measures were taken to deal with each of the troubles. The results of the gas turbine facility operational test were satisfactory, without any trouble worth discussion. In the operational test of the safety/environment-related facility, it was found that the produced gas was stably incinerated and that denitration performance during gas turbine operation roughly achieved the intended level. In the operational test of electric and control facilities, an overall test was conducted, inspection was made of the indoor switching facility, etc., and 13 improvements were made, which included the alteration of the high ANN setting in the water tank for slag, the alteration of the mill exit temperature setting for enabling the use of Taiheiyo coal, and proper methods for carrying out high-load operation. (NEDO)

Report on results of contract research. 'Research on MHD generation system'; MHD hatsuden system no kenkyu seika hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1981-03-01

'Research on MHD generation system' was implemented by its expert committee in the electric joint study group, with the results of fiscal 1980 reported. This year, a detailed conceptual design was carried out on a coal fired MHD generation system, with points for the technological development concretely examined. In addition, investigation was conducted on the progress of MHD generation technology, development situation of other generation systems, state of energy resources, etc., in various foreign countries. In the conceptual design of the coal fired MHD generation plant, the system structure of a 2,000 MWt class commercial MHD generation plant was explained, as were the conceptual design of the structural elements and proposals for a 500 MWt class demonstration plant and an 100 MWt class experimental plant, for example. In the overseas trend of R and D on MHD generation, investigations were made concerning the U.S., Soviet Union, and China, with details compiled for such items as generation plants, combustors, generation channels, heat resisting materials, superconducting magnets, heat exchangers, seed slags, inverters, boilers and environments, and commercial plants. (NEDO)

Achievement report for fiscal 1994 on developing entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 1. Element research edition and technology survey edition; 1994 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 1. Youso kenkyu hen, gijutsu chosa hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-07-01

With an objective of establishing the coal gasification composite power generation technology, R and D has been carried out on the elementary technologies. This paper summarizes the achievements in fiscal 1994. In the research on the large gas turbine combustor for the demonstration plant, combustion tests were carried out by using the actual gas from the designed coal (coal D). In addition, the minimum gas flow rate test, fuel calory change test, and fuel switching test were performed from the viewpoint of evaluating the low load stability. Furthermore, in order to evaluate the combustion performance of the tested combustor, such tests were conducted as the combustor pressure loss characteristics test, bypass valve flow rate characteristics test, light oil ignition and light oil combustion test, and tests on the characteristics to switch from light oil to coal gas and the coal gas combustion characteristics. Evaluations were given on the NOx conversion rate, CO, THC, combustion efficiency, metal temperatures, pattern factors, pressure loss, internal pressure variation, and vibration stress. In the simulation research of the composite power generation system, the simulation models were varied according to the actual plant requirements in association with the progress of the tests on the pilot plant. The results of the simulations were reflected to the general load pressure control equipment. (NEDO)

Smart meter users give a thumbs up

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horne, D.

2007-01-01

The Ontario Energy Board conducted a pilot study with the support of Hydro Ottawa to better understand how consumers change their electricity consumption behaviour with smart meters and time-of-use (TOU) prices. The project enabled consumers to learn the most cost-effective times to use energy. Results from the Ontario Smart Price Pilot reveal that consumers like to have control over how much and when they use their electricity. Although the savings were only small for some clients involved in the study, they appreciated having their metering bills in greater detail. At the end of the pilot project, participants reduced electricity consumption by 6 per cent. Nearly 90 per cent of the participants paid lower energy bills and nearly 80 per cent indicated they would recommend TOU pricing to their friends because it motivated them to shift some of their electricity use away from peak hours. The average reduction in electricity demand among the two-thirds of participants on critical pricing plans was more than 20 per cent during high demand or critical peak hours in summer. Demand reduction on winter critical peak days was much lower for all participants. 1 fig

Report on results of contract research. 'Research on MHD generation system'; MHD hatsuden system no kenkyu seika hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1982-03-01

'Research on MHD generation system' was implemented by its expert committee in the electric joint study group, with the results of fiscal 1981 reported. This year, technological reexamination was conducted for a 2,000 MWt commercial MHD generation plant, with evaluation carried out on the cost performance including the construction and operation cost. In addition, for the purpose of intermediate R and D towards the practicability, examination was also conducted on a system structure, concrete specifications of component element, cost of R and D including operation expenses for example, concerning an 100 MWt class experimental plant and a 500 MWt class plant. In the investigation of the overseas trend, information was summarized in detail on the experimental devices, combustors, generation channels, electrode materials, electrode phenomena, theoretical analyses, seeds, slag, component equipment, instrumental technologies, conceptual designs of generation plant, commercial plant, etc., in Soviet Union, China, Holland, India and EPRI, on the basis of the materials from the 19th MHD symposium held in UTSI and from the coal MHD specialist conference held in Sydney. (NEDO)

FY 2000 report on the results of the project for measures for rationalization of the international energy utilization - the model project for the heightening of efficiency of the international energy consumption. 2/2. Model project for facilities for effective utilization of by-producing exhaust gases from chemical plant, etc.; 2000 nendo kokusai energy shohi koritsuka tou moderu jigyo seika hokokusho. Kagaku kojo fukusei haigasu tou yuko riyo setsubi moderu jigyo (2/2)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2001-03-01

For the purpose of contributing to the reduction in the energy consumption in China and the stable energy supply in Japan by heightening efficiency of the energy utilization in the petrochemical industry which is an industry of much energy consumption in China, a model project for facilities for effective utilization of by-producing gases from chemical plant, etc. was carried out, and the FY 2000 results were reported. Concretely, the combustion incinerator and combustion exhaust gas recovery facilities for waste water and gas were to be installed at acrylonitrile plant of petrochemical plant in China to recover the combustion exhaust gas as process gas used in plant for effective utilization. In this fiscal year, the detailed design and supply of electric instrumentation equipment and manufacture of boiler facilities were carried out according to the basic design made in the previous fiscal year. Further, the equipment manufactured in the previous year and this fiscal year were transported and inspected. The paper also reviewed drawings of the design of the facilities for part of which China takes responsibility. The separate volume (2/2) included drawings of valve, fire detector, orifice, thermocouple, motor control equipment, etc. (NEDO)

Development of large scale and wind energy conservation system. Operational studies on a large-scale wind energy conservation system; Ogata furyoku hatsuden system no kaihatsu. Ogata furyoku hatsuden system no unten kenkyu

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Takita, M [New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization, Tokyo (Japan)

1994-12-01

Described herein are the results of the FY1994 research program for operational studies on a large-scale wind energy conversion system. A total of 8 domestic and foreign cases are studied for wind energy conversion cost, to clarify the causes for higher cost of the Japanese system. The wind power systems studied include Japanese (5 units at Tappi Wind Park, the same type supplied by company M), US (California Wind Farm, 300 units) and UK (Wales Wind Farm, 103 units) systems. The investment costs are 639, 285 and 189 thousand yen/kW for the Japanese, US and UK systems, respectively. It is also revealed that the power plant itself and assembling costs account for a majority (70 to 88%) of the total investment cost. The higher cost of the Japanese system results from a smaller number of units installed, and the power plant cost can be drastically reduced by mass production. Increasing size also reduces cost greatly.

Sequential test procedures for inventory differences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goldman, A.S.; Kern, E.A.; Emeigh, C.W.

1985-01-01

By means of a simulation study, we investigated the appropriateness of Page's and power-one sequential tests on sequences of inventory differences obtained from an example materials control unit, a sub-area of a hypothetical UF 6 -to-U 3 O 8 conversion process. The study examined detection probability and run length curves obtained from different loss scenarios. 12 refs., 10 figs., 2 tabs

Report on research and development achievements in fiscal 1979 in Sunshine Project for geothermal water utilizing power plants. Separate volume of surveys and studies on plant development plans (Surveys on trends in overseas technologies); 1979 nendo chinetsu nessui riyo hatsuden plant no kenkyu kaihatsu seika hokokusho (plant kaihatsu keikaku chosa kenkyu). Bessatsu (Kaigai gijutsu doko chosa)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1980-03-01

This paper describes surveys on trends in overseas technologies in development plans for geothermal water utilizing power plants. In heat cycles, the binary and two-stage flash cycles were analyzed by using a generalized equation of state, and theses on optimizing working fluid properties and cycle conditions with maximum thermal efficiency were described. Theses that were described include those for criteria to select working fluids and thermal power cycles against the binary cycle using a heat source at 104 to 204 degree C. The binary cycle working fluid was found better in mixed systems than in pure systems as seen from process and economic performance. The paper introduces a heat conductivity experimenting device and data required for designing a heat exchanger. It also describes the Heber geothermal experimental plant to demonstrate reasonability of assumed working media. A fluidized bed type and a shell tube type were applied to heat exchangers at the Raft River 50 MW geothermal power plant for comparison and discussion. Fouling factor was also estimated. A discussion was given on fluidity distribution of a fluidized bed heat exchanger. Design of a heat discharge system is important for geothermal power generation because heat source temperatures are so low that more than 85% of heat that has been taken in is discharged. The paper also describes turbines and other facilities. (NEDO)

Plant host finding by parasitic plants: a new perspective on plant to plant communication.

Science.gov (United States)

Mescher, Mark C; Runyon, Justin B; De Moraes, Consuelo M

2006-11-01

Plants release airborne chemicals that can convey ecologically relevant information to other organisms. These plant volatiles are known to mediate a large array of, often complex, interactions between plants and insects. It has been suggested that plant volatiles may have similar importance in mediating interactions among plant species, but there are few well-documented examples of plant-to-plant communication via volatiles, and the ecological significance of such interactions has been much debated. To date, nearly all studies of volatile-mediated interactions among plant species have focused on the reception of herbivore-induced volatiles by neighboring plants. We recently documented volatile effects in another system, demonstrating that the parasitic plant Cuscuta pentagona uses volatile cues to locate its hosts. This finding may broaden the discussion regarding plant-to-plant communication, and suggests that new classes of volatile-meditated interactions among plant species await discovery.

FY 1979 Annual report on Sunshine Project results. Fabrication designs for a solar thermal power pilot plant with curved-surface type light-collecting system (Part 2); 1979 nendo taiyonetsu hatsuden (kyokumen shuko hoshiki) seika hokokusho. 2. Pilot plant no seisaku sekkei

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1980-03-01

Part 1 of this report (JN0040511) describes basic and fabrication design specifications for operation and control of a solar thermal power pilot plant with curved-surface type light-collecting system, centered by computer for the plant control. Part 2 follows Part 1, which describes basic fabrication design specifications (Chapter I), system design specifications (Chapter II), hardware specifications (Chapter III) and attachments (Chapter IV), to contain the other attachments: daily processing specifications, computer-aided processing function specifications, operator request function specifications, summary data collection function specifications, basic structures of the software systems, basic specifications for computer inputting/outputting, failure display panel drawings, COD/channel base dimension drawings, console inputting/outputting dimension drawings, T/W disc dimension drawings, viewer external dimension drawings, cassette MT structure dimension drawings, operator console panel drawings, power source panel dimension drawings, program specifications GFC, 4 subroutine specifications GFC (R sub), table list, table structure drawings, and analysis of system characteristics (light- and heat-collection system simulation). (NEDO)

Plant Host Finding by Parasitic Plants: A New Perspective on Plant to Plant Communication

OpenAIRE

Mescher, Mark C; Runyon, Justin B; De Moraes, Consuelo M

2006-01-01

Plants release airborne chemicals that can convey ecologically relevant information to other organisms. These plant volatiles are known to mediate a large array of, often complex, interactions between plants and insects. It has been suggested that plant volatiles may have similar importance in mediating interactions among plant species, but there are few well-documented examples of plant-to-plant communication via volatiles, and the ecological significance of such interactions has been much d...

Report on results of contract research. 'Research on MHD generation system'; MHD hatsuden system no kenkyu seika hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1981-03-01

'Research on MHD generation system' was implemented by its expert committee in the electric joint study group, with the results of fiscal 1980 reported. This year, a detailed conceptual design was carried out on a coal fired MHD generation system, with points for the technological development concretely examined. In addition, investigation was conducted on the progress of MHD generation technology, development situation of other generation systems, state of energy resources, etc., in various foreign countries. In the conceptual design of the coal fired MHD generation plant, the system structure of a 2,000 MWt class commercial MHD generation plant was explained, as were the conceptual design of the structural elements and proposals for a 500 MWt class demonstration plant and an 100 MWt class experimental plant, for example. In the overseas trend of R and D on MHD generation, investigations were made concerning the U.S., Soviet Union, and China, with details compiled for such items as generation plants, combustors, generation channels, heat resisting materials, superconducting magnets, heat exchangers, seed slags, inverters, boilers and environments, and commercial plants. (NEDO)

Analysis of Turkish Government Cultural Portal for Supporting Gastronomy Tourism

OpenAIRE

Hilmi Rafet Yüncü

2016-01-01

Today Internet has very important role to promote products and services all over the world. Companies and destinations in tourism industry use Internet to sell and to promote their core products to directly potential tourists. Internet technologies have redefined the relationships between tourists, tourism companies, and travel agents. The new relationship allows for accessing and tapping tourism information and services. Internet technologies ensure new opportunities to available for the tou...

The Effectiveness of Mobile-Health Technology-Based Health Behaviour Change or Disease Management Interventions for Health Care Consumers: A Systematic Review

OpenAIRE

Free, Caroline; Phillips, Gemma; Watson, Louise; Galli, Leandro; Felix, Lambert; Edwards, Phil; Patel, Vikram; Haines, Andy

2013-01-01

Editors? Summary Background Over the past few decades, computing and communication technologies have changed dramatically. Bulky, slow computers have been replaced by portable devices that can complete increasingly complex tasks in less and less time. Similarly, landlines have been replaced by mobile phones and other mobile communication technologies that can connect people anytime and anywhere, and that can transmit text messages (short message service; SMS), photographs, and data at the tou...

A Study on the Communication Mechanism for Publishing and Producing News on Mobile Devices

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ruhan Zhao

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This study explores the communication mechanism for publishing and producing news through analyzing mediums such as Microblog, WeChat and, in particular, the mobile app, TouTiao. The results of this study show that the status and practice of professional journalism and gatekeepers are being phased out of news production. Adversely, algorithms and technology are taking their place at the center of the circle of news production.

Neural mechanisms of reactivation-induced updating that enhance and distort memory

OpenAIRE

St. Jacques, Peggy L.; Olm, Christopher; Schacter, Daniel L.

2013-01-01

We remember a considerable number of personal experiences because we are frequently reminded of them, a process known as memory reactivation. Although memory reactivation helps to stabilize and update memories, reactivation may also introduce distortions if novel information becomes incorporated with memory. Here we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate the neural mechanisms mediating reactivation-induced updating in memory for events experienced during a museum tou...

Plant host finding by parasitic plants: A new perspective on plant to plant communication

Science.gov (United States)

Mark C. Mescher; Justin B. Runyon; Consuelo M. De Moraes

2006-01-01

Plants release airborne chemicals that can convey ecologically relevant information to other organisms. These plant volatiles are known to mediate a large array of, often complex, interactions between plants and insects. It has been suggested that plant volatiles may have similar importance in mediating interactions among plant species, but there are few well-...

Residential Mechanical Precooling

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

German, Alea [Davis Energy Group, Davis, CA (United States). Alliance for Residential Building Innovation (ARBI); Hoeschele, Marc [Davis Energy Group, Davis, CA (United States). Alliance for Residential Building Innovation (ARBI)

2014-12-01

Residential air conditioning (AC) represents a challenging load for many electric utilities with poor load factors. Mechanical precooling improves the load factor by shifting cooling operation from on-peak to off-peak hours. This provides benefits to utilities and the electricity grid, as well as to occupants who can take advantage of time-of-use (TOU) electricity rates. Performance benefits stem from reduced compressor cycling, and shifting condensing unit operation to earlier periods of the day when outdoor temperatures are more favorable to operational efficiency. Finding solutions that save energy and reduce demand on the electricity grid is an important national objective and supports key Building America goals. The Alliance for Residential Building Innovation team evaluated mechanical AC precooling strategies in homes throughout the United States. EnergyPlus modeling was used to evaluate two homes with different performance characteristics in seven climates. Results are applicable to new construction homes and most existing homes built in the last 10 years, as well as fairly efficient retrofitted homes. A successful off-peak AC strategy offers the potential for increased efficiency and improved occupant comfort, and promotes a more reliable and robust electricity grid. Demand response capabilities and further integration with photovoltaic TOU generation patterns provide additional opportunities to flatten loads and optimize grid impacts.

Indirect Load Control for Energy Storage Systems Using Incentive Pricing under Time-of-Use Tariff

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mu-Gu Jeong

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Indirect load control (ILC is a method by which the customer determines load reduction of electricity by using a price signal. One of the ILCs is a time-of-use (TOU tariff, which is the most commonly used time-varying retail pricing. Under the TOU tariff, the customer can reduce the energy cost through an energy storage system (ESS. However, because this tariff is fixed for several months, the ESS operation does not truly reflect the wholesale market price, which could widely fluctuate. To overcome this limitation, this paper proposes an incentive pricing method in which the load-serving entity (LSE gives the incentive pricing signal to the customers with ESSs. Because the ESS charging schedule is determined by the customer through ILC, a bilevel optimization problem that includes the customer optimization problem is utilized to determine the incentive pricing signal. Further, the bilevel optimization problem is reformulated into a one-level problem to be solved by an interior point method. In the proposed incentive scheme: (1 the social welfare increases and (2 the increased social welfare can be equitably divided between the LSE and the customer; and (3 the proposed incentive scheme leads the customer to voluntarily follow the pricing signal.

Distributed energy resources at naval base ventura county building 1512

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bailey, Owen C.; Marnay, Chris

2004-01-01

This paper reports the findings of a preliminary assessment of the cost effectiveness of distributed energy resources at Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC) Building 1512. This study was conducted in response to the base's request for design assistance to the Federal Energy Management Program. Given the current tariff structure there are two main decisions facing NBVC: whether to install distributed energy resources (DER), or whether to continue the direct access energy supply contract. At the current effective rate, given assumptions about the performance and structure of building energy loads and available generating technology characteristics, the results of this study indicate that if the building installed a 600 kW DER system with absorption cooling and heat capabilities chosen by cost minimization, the energy cost savings would be about 14 percent, or $55,000 per year. However, under current conditions, this study also suggests that significant savings could be obtained if Building 1 512 changed from the direct access contract to a SCE TOU-8 (Southern California Edison time of use tariff number 8) rate without installing a DER system. At current SCE TOU-8 tariffs, the potential savings from installation of a DER system would be about 4 percent, or $15,000 per year

Plant stress signalling: understanding and exploiting plant-plant interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Pickett, J A; Rasmussen, H B; Woodcock, C M; Matthes, M; Napier, J A

2003-02-01

When plants are attacked by insects, volatile chemical signals can be released, not only from the damaged parts, but also systemically from other parts of the plant and this continues after cessation of feeding by the insect. These signals are perceived by olfactory sensory mechanisms in both the herbivorous insects and their parasites. Molecular structures involved can be characterized by means of electrophysiological assays, using the insect sensory system linked to chemical analysis. Evidence is mounting that such signals can also affect neighbouring intact plants, which initiate defence by the induction of further signalling systems, such as those that increase parasitoid foraging. Furthermore, insect electrophysiology can be used in the identification of plant compounds having effects on the plants themselves. It has been found recently that certain plants can release stress signals even when undamaged, and that these can cause defence responses in intact plants. These discoveries provide the basis for new crop protection strategies, that are either delivered by genetic modification of plants or by conventionally produced plants to which the signal is externally applied. Delivery can also be made by means of mixed seed strategies in which the provoking and recipient plants are grown together. Related signalling discoveries within the rhizosphere seem set to extend these approaches into new ways of controlling weeds, by exploiting the elusive potential of allelopathy, but through signalling rather than by direct physiological effects.

Knowledge and synergy as inductors of regional innovation in tourism: the case of the Observatory for Tourism at Federal District (Brazil)

OpenAIRE

Luis Henrique Souza; Luiz Carlos Spiller Pena; Marutschka Martini Moesch

2017-01-01

Tourism is the place for innovation. The reason for this pragmatic sentence comes from the multiplicity of competitive scenarios that contextualize companies and tourist destinations. From the current paradigms of competitiveness, satisfaction and loyalty of tourists, and the offer of value experiences, it is noticed a panoply of innovations that perform a strategic role on managing tourist destinations. In this sense, this article aims to conduct a discussion about regional innovation in tou...

Exploring Factors that Influence Domestic Tourists' Satisfaction with Budget Hotel Services in Egypt

OpenAIRE

Hossam Samy

2016-01-01

This paper aims to explore the primary factors that affect the perception of domestic tourists towards the service quality of budget hotels in Egypt. The factors were divided into three main constructs: physical quality, service quality and value for money. The primary findings reveal that the budget hotel location, cleanliness, maintenance, comfort level, hotel staff service, value for money room rates and food and beverage values are among the significant factors that influence domestic tou...

Customer journey measures - State of the art research and best practices

OpenAIRE

Følstad, Asbjørn; Kvale, Knut; Halvorsrud, Ragnhild

2013-01-01

- We have conducted a systematic review of the scientific literature on customer journeys to support our work on customer journey measures in the research project Customer Care 2015. A total of 54 journal and conference papers have been analysed along with the background literature referred in these papers. Key insights from the review include: • Customer journey measures should support customer journey mapping, that is, analyses to identify customer journeys in terms of phases, tou...

Report on results of contract research. 'Research on MHD generation system'; MHD hatsuden system no kenkyu seika hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1982-03-01

'Research on MHD generation system' was implemented by its expert committee in the electric joint study group, with the results of fiscal 1981 reported. This year, technological reexamination was conducted for a 2,000 MWt commercial MHD generation plant, with evaluation carried out on the cost performance including the construction and operation cost. In addition, for the purpose of intermediate R and D towards the practicability, examination was also conducted on a system structure, concrete specifications of component element, cost of R and D including operation expenses for example, concerning an 100 MWt class experimental plant and a 500 MWt class plant. In the investigation of the overseas trend, information was summarized in detail on the experimental devices, combustors, generation channels, electrode materials, electrode phenomena, theoretical analyses, seeds, slag, component equipment, instrumental technologies, conceptual designs of generation plant, commercial plant, etc., in Soviet Union, China, Holland, India and EPRI, on the basis of the materials from the 19th MHD symposium held in UTSI and from the coal MHD specialist conference held in Sydney. (NEDO)

Plant-soil feedbacks: role of plant functional group and plant traits

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cortois, R.; Schröder-Georgi, T.; Weigelt, A.; van der Putten, W.H.; De Deyn, G.B.

2016-01-01

Plant-soil feedback (PSF), plant trait and functional group concepts advanced our understanding of plant community dynamics, but how they are interlinked is poorly known. To test how plant functional groups (FGs: graminoids, small herbs, tall herbs, legumes) and plant traits relate to PSF, we grew

Assessing the impact of changes in the electricity price structure on dairy farm energy costs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Upton, J.; Murphy, M.; Shalloo, L.; Groot Koerkamp, P.W.G.; De Boer, I.J.M.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Choosing electricity tariffs with a low off-peak rate results in financial savings. • Cost saving potential within an electricity tariff is the greatest on large farms. • Earlier AM milking with later PM milking helps reduce electricity consumption. - Abstract: This study aims to provide information on the changes in electricity consumption and costs on dairy farms, through the simulation of various electricity tariffs that may exist in the future and how these tariffs interact with changes in farm management (i.e. shifting the milking operation to an earlier or later time of the day). A previously developed model capable of simulating electricity consumption and costs on dairy farms (MECD) was used to simulate five different electricity tariffs (Flat, Day and Night, Time of Use Tariff 1 (TOU1), TOU2 and Real Time Pricing (RTP)) on three representative Irish dairy farms: a small farm (SF), a medium farm (MF) and a large farm (LF). The Flat tariff consisted of one electricity price for all time periods, the Day and Night tariff consisted of two electricity prices, a high rate from 09:00 to 00:00 h and a low rate thereafter. The TOU tariff structure was similar to that of the Day and Night tariff except that a peak price band was introduced between 17:00 and 19:00 h. The RTP tariff varied dynamically according to the electricity demand on the national grid. The model used in these simulations was a mechanistic mathematical representation of the electricity consumption that simulated farm equipment under the following headings; milk cooling system, water heating system, milking machine system, lighting systems, water pump systems and the winter housing facilities. The effect of milking start time was simulated to determine the effect on electricity consumption and costs at farm level. The earliest AM milking start time and the latest PM milking start time resulted in the lowest energy consumption. The difference between the lowest and highest

FY 1992 report on the results of the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 3. Operation test of pilot plant (1/2); 1992 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 3. Pilot plant unten shiken hen (1/2)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1994-02-01

The study of operation test was made of the 200 t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant that was constructed with the aim of establishing technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, and the details of the FY 1992 results were summarized. At RUN 10, conducted were the confirmation of the quantity of state of gasifier in the coal-fired high load operation and coal-fired constant load operation, and slagging survey. At RUN 11, the evaluation made after the work for prevention of slagging, and confirmation of the quantity of state of gasifier at a load of 80% heat input. At RUN 12, the evaluation of the measures taken against slagging, and test on the high load stable operation. At RUN 13, the evaluation of the measures taken against slagging, and large combustor response/total pressure control response tests. At RUN D1, test on the change of coal kind from A coal to D coal, and test on the initial adjusting operation of D coal. In the trial operation of these, the following were generated and the preventive measures were studied: impossibility of circulation of desulfurizing agent in gas refining facilities (dry desulfurizing system), bolt fracture of gas refining facilities (separator of dedusting facilities). (NEDO)

LNG plant combined with power plant

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aoki, I; Kikkawa, Y [Chiyoda Chemical Engineering and Construction Co. Ltd., Tokyo (Japan)

1997-06-01

The LNG plant consumers a lot of power of natural gas cooling and liquefaction. In some LNG plant location, a rapid growth of electric power demand is expected due to the modernization of area and/or the country. The electric power demand will have a peak in day time and low consumption in night time, while the power demand of the LNG plant is almost constant due to its nature. Combining the LNG plant with power plant will contribute an improvement the thermal efficiency of the power plant by keeping higher average load of the power plant, which will lead to a reduction of electrical power generation cost. The sweet fuel gas to the power plant can be extracted from the LNG plant, which will be favorable from view point of clean air of the area. (Author). 5 figs.

LNG plant combined with power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aoki, I.; Kikkawa, Y.

1997-01-01

The LNG plant consumers a lot of power of natural gas cooling and liquefaction. In some LNG plant location, a rapid growth of electric power demand is expected due to the modernization of area and/or the country. The electric power demand will have a peak in day time and low consumption in night time, while the power demand of the LNG plant is almost constant due to its nature. Combining the LNG plant with power plant will contribute an improvement the thermal efficiency of the power plant by keeping higher average load of the power plant, which will lead to a reduction of electrical power generation cost. The sweet fuel gas to the power plant can be extracted from the LNG plant, which will be favorable from view point of clean air of the area. (Author). 5 figs

Parliamentary control of the security sector of the Republic of Macedonia as a precondition for the development of democratic society

OpenAIRE

Muaremoska Abduli, Sevilj; Racaj, Muhamet

2017-01-01

The efforts to establish a democratic legal order in the period immediately after the Republic of Macedonia gained its independence in the area of the security sector institutions were carried out with more or less pronounced difficulties. That, more than ever, imposed the need for establishment of parliamentary and other forms of democratic control and monitoring of the work of the security sector institutions, as these institutions are essentially considered as the most conservative and tou...

Proceedings of the Tri-Service Conference on Corrosion (1987) Held at the Air Force Academy, Colorado on 5-7 May 1987.

Science.gov (United States)

1987-05-01

sian Oreverntion ana contro.’ surveys are aisa a Key eiernent :)I tfe i.r rrcOram. tacnc "mn ssree ever tou yeas. hese zurvevs Cover ai- ascects at the...rrc, rarn Manager aisa nas manv atner res~ansi- :)ailties wnlcn are essenta for an ertectave orogram. ihese inc.oe tne Quarter~v -orr-sior ’-u-mmarv...Marine Corrosion and Fouling, pp. 511-520. Little, B., 1984. Succession in microfouling. Marine Biodeterioration: An • Interdisciplinary Study ( Edited

THE ACCOUNTING TREATMENT OF THE TOURISM UNIT’S FINANCIAL STATEMENTS IN AGREEMENT WITH THE INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL REPORTING STANDARDS

OpenAIRE

BOGDAN RĂVAŞ

2011-01-01

Financial statements should be presented on a going-concern basis unless management intends to liquidate the tourism unit or cease trading. If not presented on a going concern basis, the fact and rationale for not using it should be disclosed. Uncertainties related to events and conditions that cast significant doubt on the tourism unit's ability to continue as a going concern should be disclosed. The Statement of Financial Position provides information about the financial position of the tou...

History of the Organization and Operations of the Committee of Operations Analysts

Science.gov (United States)

1944-01-01

indu.atrlal tar&eta for 8- _’".’"’"_’’’,’’’ Of·. lgbt .onths, the effect would be to impair very c .... ,,’Q .. "’· the olipAoitq of the Weatern .Axis to...figure for 1944 III1.ght be achieved. The Ori6ntal EoertOll1at, ·,.tatedthllt;, ot! the haitI ! of 9S way. and of existing techniquee, • of 300,000 tou

Does Trade Help to Explain Tourism Demand? The Case of Portugal

OpenAIRE

Nuno Carlos LEITÃO

2010-01-01

The tourism industry has expanded in recent years due to internal and external environmental forces. These forces, income, trade, consumer price, and geographical distance are interconnected. Accounting for imperfect competition and increasing returns to scale, the new trade theory offers the explanation of dynamic gains from international trade. A large number of studies attempt to test the hypothesis that there is a link between trade and tourism. Most of the studies show that trade and tou...

PowerChoice Residential Customer Response to TOU Rates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peters, Jane S.; Moezzi, Mithra; Lutzenhiser, Susan; Woods, James; Dethman, Linda; Kunkle, Rick

2009-10-01

Research Into Action, Inc. and the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) worked together to conduct research on the behaviors and energy use patterns of SMUD residential customers who voluntarily signed on to a Time-of-Use rate pilot launched under the PowerChoice label. The project was designed to consider the how and why of residential customers ability and willingness to engage in demand reduction behaviors, and to link social and behavioral factors to observed changes in demand. The research drew on a combination of load interval data and three successive surveys of participating households. Two experimental treatments were applied to test the effects of increased information on households ability to respond to the Time-of-Use rates. Survey results indicated that participants understood the purpose of the Time-of-Use rate and undertook substantial appropriate actions to shift load and conserve. Statistical tests revealed minor initial price effects and more marked, but still modest, adjustments to seasonal rate changes. Tests of the two information interventions indicated that neither made much difference to consumption patterns. Despite the lackluster statistical evidence for load shifting, the analysis points to key issues for critical analysis and development of residential Time-of-Use rates, especially pertinent as California sets the stage for demand response in more California residences.

FY 1992 report on the results of the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 3. Operation test of pilot plant (2/2); 1992 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 3. Pilot plant unten shiken hen (2/2)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1994-02-01

The study of operation test was made of the 200 t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant that was constructed with the aim of establishing technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, and the details of the FY 1992 results were summarized. As to the test of gas turbine facilities, at RUN 10, the scheduled test on coal gas mixed combustion continuous operation/coal gas fired operation was not carried out because of the worsening of the state of gasifier operation. The operation was just made for a short time. At RUN 11, it was confirmed that the motion of equipment in the bleeding system was good at the time of the bleeding cooperation test and there was no anomaly also in the state of gas turbine operation. At RUN 12, it was confirmed that the motion of load/pressure control functions was normal in the state of GT load of about 5MW. At RUN 13, it was confirmed that the control function of GT governor was confirmed in the total pressure control test. As a result of the operation test of these, items of improvement were extracted for actual pressure/actual size combustor facilities, safety environment facilities and electric/control facilities. The measures taken for each item were studied. (NEDO)

Effects of Home Energy Management Systems on Distribution Utilities and Feeders Under Various Market Structure; NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ruth, M.; Pratt, A.; Lunacek, M.; Mittal, S.; Wu, H.; Jones, W.

2015-06-15

The combination of distributed energy resources (DER) and retail tariff structures to provide benefits to both utility consumers and the utilities is not well understood. To improve understanding, an Integrated Energy System Model (IESM) is being developed to simulate the physical and economic aspects of DER technologies, the buildings where they reside, and feeders servicing them. The IESM was used to simulate 20 houses with home energy management systems on a single feeder under a time-of-use (TOU) tariff to estimate economic and physical impacts on both the households and the distribution utilities. Home energy management systems (HEMS) reduce consumers’ electric bills by precooling houses in the hours before peak electricity pricing. Utilization of HEMS reduce peak loads during high price hours but shifts it to hours with off-peak and shoulder prices, resulting in a higher peak load. used to simulate 20 houses with home energy management systems on a single feeder under a time-of-use (TOU) tariff to estimate economic and physical impacts on both the households and the distribution utilities. Home energy management systems (HEMS) reduce consumers’ electric bills by precooling houses in the hours before peak electricity pricing. Utilization of HEMS reduce peak loads during high price hours but shifts it to hours with off-peak and shoulder prices, resulting in a higher peak load.

[Research of the Stormwater Runoff and Pollution Characteristics in Rural Area of Yuhang District, Hangzhou].

Science.gov (United States)

Duan, Sheng-hui; Zhao, Yu; Shan, Bao-qing; Tang, Wen-zhong; Zhang, Wen-qiang; Zhang, Shu-zhen; Lang, Chao

2015-10-01

In order to investigate the pollution characteristics of stormwater runoff in the southern developed rural region, the runoff samples were collected from four different underlying surfaces during three storm events in Caoqiao and Pujia Tou, which are two typical villages and are located in Yuhang District of Hangzhou. The content of nutrition (nitrogen and phosphorus) and heavy metals (Mn, Cu, Zn, Ni, Cr, Cd, As, Pb) in the simples were analyzed, and the difference of EMC ( event mean concentration) and pollution load of the contaminants in the runoff on different underlying surfaces were compared. The results showed that the EMC of TSS, COD, NH4(+)-N, TP and TN were 16.19, 21.01, 0.74, 1.39 and 2.39 mg x L(-1) in the Caoqiao, respectively; as to Pujia Tou, they were 3.10, 15.69, 0.90, 0.78 and 3.58 mg x L(-1), respectively. The content of heavy metals was all lower than the national surface water quality of two type water in the runoff. Compared with the quality standards for surface water, the EMC of TP was 9 times and 3. 5 times higher and TN was 1. 8 times and 1. 2 times higher in two areas. Besides, the pollution loads of TSS and COD were the highest in farmland.

Optimal Coordinated Management of a Plug-In Electric Vehicle Charging Station under a Flexible Penalty Contract for Voltage Security

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jip Kim

2016-07-01

Full Text Available The increasing penetration of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs may cause a low-voltage problem in the distribution network. In particular, the introduction of charging stations where multiple PEVs are simultaneously charged at the same bus can aggravate the low-voltage problem. Unlike a distribution network operator (DNO who has the overall responsibility for stable and reliable network operation, a charging station operator (CSO may schedule PEV charging without consideration for the resulting severe voltage drop. Therefore, there is a need for the DNO to impose a coordination measure to induce the CSO to adjust its charging schedule to help mitigate the voltage problem. Although the current time-of-use (TOU tariff is an indirect coordination measure that can motivate the CSO to shift its charging demand to off-peak time by imposing a high rate at the peak time, it is limited by its rigidity in that the network voltage condition cannot be flexibly reflected in the tariff. Therefore, a flexible penalty contract (FPC for voltage security to be used as a direct coordination measure is proposed. In addition, the optimal coordinated management is formulated. Using the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E 69-bus test distribution network, the effectiveness of the coordination was verified by comparison with the current TOU tariff.

Achievement report on contract research. Large-scale project - Results of 1st-phase research and development of MHD power generation system; Plant system no hyoka. Ogata project dai 1 ki MHD hatsuden system kenkyu kaihatsu seika hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1976-03-01

Described in detail involving the results of component development, assessment, and the indication of problems are the power generation channel, superconductive magnets and a helium refrigeration and liquefaction unit, seeds collector, heat exchanger, combustor, etc. Described involving the result and effect of power generation system research and development and the indication of problems is the research on Mark V and Mark VI operation tests. Described in relation to thermal performance calculation, economic effectiveness calculation, and environmental conservation involving an MHD (magnetohydrodynamic) power plant are the combustion of heavy oil, combustion of natural gas, plant having a 1,000MW power generator as its base load, control of NOx and sulfur in MHD power generation, etc. As for planning for the next stage, the configuration of a 10MW MHD power generation plant, its equipment, construction cost, and preliminary element research, etc., are described. Furthermore, propositions are presented concerning future plans and the prospect of commercial MHD power generators, technological ripple effects due to MHD power generation research and development, and research and development in the future. (NEDO)

FY 2000 report on the basic survey to promote Joint Implementation, etc. Project for improvement of efficiency of the power generation/desalination plant in Aktau City; 2000 nendo kyodo jisshi nado suishin kiso chosa hokokusho. Aktau shi hatsuden zosui plant koritsu kaizen jigyo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2001-03-01

For the purpose of conserving energy and reducing greenhouse effect gas emission, feasibility study was conducted for improvement of efficiency of power generation/desalination facilities at MAEK Energy Center, Aktau City, Manghistau, Kazakhstan. Presently, the main facilities are the conventional natural gas fired power plant, evaporation type seawater desalination facility, hot water production facility, etc. In the project, introduction of the following was planned to be made: cogeneration facility composed of two units of 1,100-degree C class gas turbine and reverse osmosis (RO) type desalination facility for drinking water production with a capacity of 50,000 t/d. As a result of the study, the energy conservation amount in this project was 151,900-165,400 toe/y in power generation facility, and the greenhouse effect gas reduction amount was 355,000-387,000 t-CO2/y in power generation facility and 268,000 t-CO2/y in desalination facility. The construction cost and operational cost of the plant were 45.7 billion yen and 2.8 billion yen/y. In the economical estimation, ROI and ROE before tax were 7.4 and 34.8, respectively, which were considered to be appropriate values as social infrastructure related conditions. (NEDO)

Upaya United Nations World Tourism Organization (Unwto) Menangani Sex Tourism Di Thailand (2009-2013)

OpenAIRE

Rani, Faisyal; Oktavia, Raesa

2015-01-01

This research explain about the efforts of United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) in dealing with sex tourism in Thailand. This research focused explaining about the role of UNWTO to fix sex tourism problem in Thailand, because sex tourism is one of the most favorite tourism in the world. UNWTO focused to protect the children because they are the biggest victim on sex tourism. This research intended to show the role of United Nations World Tourism Organization to handle the sex tou...

Ecodomy: Life in its fullness - if love rules the oikoumenē

OpenAIRE

van Aarde, Andries

2015-01-01

In the article related terms are deconstructively compared with each other, such as oikodomē (encouragement), dioikēsis theia (divine administration) and oikoumenē (inhabited world). The article aims to identify the positive roots of the term oikoumenē beyond the pejorative referencing in the New Testament as 'imperial power'. It demonstrates that the notion basileia tou theou (kingdom of God) provides a key to discover the gift of love as the heart of ecodomy. The article concludes with a cr...

A grid-tied PV system for commercial load and peak load reduction: South African case study

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Senatla, Mamahloko

2017-08-01

Full Text Available -peak periods could be useful in reducing peak demand [1], battery life (if cycled every day), efficiency and cost may limit its usage. Also the TOU charges may not be high enough to justify the added expense of adding battery storage. Most of the research... work in various research communities analyse financial benefits for residential customers as opposed to commercial and industrial customers [2] [3]. For instance, the usage pattern of residential customers collected from a pilot project in India...

Plant-plant competition outcomes are modulated by plant effects on the soil bacterial community.

Science.gov (United States)

Hortal, S; Lozano, Y M; Bastida, F; Armas, C; Moreno, J L; Garcia, C; Pugnaire, F I

2017-12-19

Competition is a key process that determines plant community structure and dynamics, often mediated by nutrients and water availability. However, the role of soil microorganisms on plant competition, and the links between above- and belowground processes, are not well understood. Here we show that the effects of interspecific plant competition on plant performance are mediated by feedbacks between plants and soil bacterial communities. Each plant species selects a singular community of soil microorganisms in its rhizosphere with a specific species composition, abundance and activity. When two plant species interact, the resulting soil bacterial community matches that of the most competitive plant species, suggesting strong competitive interactions between soil bacterial communities as well. We propose a novel mechanism by which changes in belowground bacterial communities promoted by the most competitive plant species influence plant performance and competition outcome. These findings emphasise the strong links between plant and soil communities, paving the way to a better understanding of plant community dynamics and the effects of soil bacterial communities on ecosystem functioning and services.

Apoplastic interactions between plants and plant root intruders

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kanako eMitsumasu

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Numerous pathogenic or parasitic organisms attack plant roots to obtain nutrients, and the apoplast including the plant cell wall is where the plant cell meets such organisms. Root-parasitic angiosperms and nematodes are two distinct types of plant root parasites but share some common features in their strategies for breaking into plant roots. Striga and Orobanche are obligate root parasitic angiosperms that cause devastating agricultural problems worldwide. Parasitic plants form an invasion organ called a haustorium, where plant cell wall degrading enzymes (PCWDEs are highly expressed. Plant-parasitic nematodes are another type of agriculturally important plant root parasite. These nematodes breach the plant cell walls by protruding a sclerotized stylet from which PCWDEs are secreted. Responding to such parasitic invasion, host plants activate their own defense responses against parasites. Endoparasitic nematodes secrete apoplastic effectors to modulate host immune responses and to facilitate the formation of a feeding site. Apoplastic communication between hosts and parasitic plants also contributes to their interaction. Parasitic plant germination stimulants, strigolactones (SLs, are recently identified apoplastic signals that are transmitted over long distances from biosynthetic sites to functioning sites. Here, we discuss recent advances in understanding the importance of apoplastic signals and cell walls for plant-parasite interactions.

Apoplastic interactions between plants and plant root intruders.

Science.gov (United States)

Mitsumasu, Kanako; Seto, Yoshiya; Yoshida, Satoko

2015-01-01

Numerous pathogenic or parasitic organisms attack plant roots to obtain nutrients, and the apoplast including the plant cell wall is where the plant cell meets such organisms. Root parasitic angiosperms and nematodes are two distinct types of plant root parasites but share some common features in their strategies for breaking into plant roots. Striga and Orobanche are obligate root parasitic angiosperms that cause devastating agricultural problems worldwide. Parasitic plants form an invasion organ called a haustorium, where plant cell wall degrading enzymes (PCWDEs) are highly expressed. Plant-parasitic nematodes are another type of agriculturally important plant root parasite. These nematodes breach the plant cell walls by protruding a sclerotized stylet from which PCWDEs are secreted. Responding to such parasitic invasion, host plants activate their own defense responses against parasites. Endoparasitic nematodes secrete apoplastic effectors to modulate host immune responses and to facilitate the formation of a feeding site. Apoplastic communication between hosts and parasitic plants also contributes to their interaction. Parasitic plant germination stimulants, strigolactones, are recently identified apoplastic signals that are transmitted over long distances from biosynthetic sites to functioning sites. Here, we discuss recent advances in understanding the importance of apoplastic signals and cell walls for plant-parasite interactions.

Chemical signaling between plants and plant-pathogenic bacteria.

Science.gov (United States)

Venturi, Vittorio; Fuqua, Clay

2013-01-01

Studies of chemical signaling between plants and bacteria in the past have been largely confined to two models: the rhizobial-legume symbiotic association and pathogenesis between agrobacteria and their host plants. Recent studies are beginning to provide evidence that many plant-associated bacteria undergo chemical signaling with the plant host via low-molecular-weight compounds. Plant-produced compounds interact with bacterial regulatory proteins that then affect gene expression. Similarly, bacterial quorum-sensing signals result in a range of functional responses in plants. This review attempts to highlight current knowledge in chemical signaling that takes place between pathogenic bacteria and plants. This chemical communication between plant and bacteria, also referred to as interkingdom signaling, will likely become a major research field in the future, as it allows the design of specific strategies to create plants that are resistant to plant pathogens.

Four planting devices for planting no-till maize

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Osei Bonsu Patterson

2015-05-01

Full Text Available An experiment was conducted at the CSIR-Crops Research Institute (CSIR-CRI Experimental station at Ejura in Ghana to compare the efficiency of four devices for planting no-till maize: Tractor drawn seeder, Chinese made jab planter, Locally made jab planter and a Cutlass. It took two (2 hours 48 minutes to plant one hectare of maize with the tractor drawn seeder, which was significantly (p less than 1% faster than all the planting methods. Cutlass was the slowest planting device lasting more than 14 hours per hectare. There was no significant difference in planting time between the Chinese planter and local planter. Economic analysis showed that cutlass planting produced the highest net benefit, whilst tractor drawn seeder produced the least benefit. In this study cutlass planting was done with precision by collaborating farmers. In actual farm situation however, hired laborers (planting gangs often plant in haste which often results in poor plant population leading to low yields. Tractor drawn seeders or jab planters could reduce drudgery in planting and encourage farm expansion.

Wastes power generation introduction manual. Material edition; Haikibutsu hatsuden donyu manual. Shiryohen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1999-07-01

This paper collects and puts into order the materials used in preparing the manual. The materials were classified into the power generation system database related to discussion of the economic performance, case studies, technical materials, other referential materials and glossary. The database shows power generation efficiency, auxiliary power ratio, construction cost, utility cost and number of operators. The case studies present examples of economy calculations on the five recommended power generation systems at a wastes treatment capacity of 180 tons a day. Technical materials put into order the technological discussions on efficiency improvement, environmental measures (suppression of discharge of dioxins, measures for their removal, and the effects thereof), refuse derived fuel (RDF) and power plant operating techniques. The other referential materials collect laws, notifications, and guidelines related to the Welfare Ministry, laws, notifications, criteria and related to the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, and materials related to LCA, forms of power generation business entities, general wastes disposal business, and electric business bonds. The glossary explains terms required for operation and understanding of the manual. (NEDO)

Report on the fiscal 1996 development of high efficient waste power generation technology; 1996 nendo kokoritsu haikibutsu hatsuden gijutsu kaihatsu hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1997-03-01

The technical development was made by which high-temperature/high-pressure steam is generated in the incineration furnace using general waste, combustible industrial waste, etc. as fuel to generate power high efficiently, and reliability of the superheater, etc. was verified by the pilot plant. For it, the following were conducted: development of element technology (high-temperature/high-efficiency combustion furnace, corrosion resistant super heater materials, environmental load reduction technology) and the demonstration (demonstrative test in pilot plant, study of an optimum total system). In relation to the external circulation type fluidized bed furnace, reformation was made which enables simultaneous sampling of dioxins, etc. The combustion test was done using the reformed combustion testing furnace to obtain the data necessary for the study of formation/decomposition mechanism of dioxin. The amount of corrosion reduction of superheater sample material for pilot plant use was determined. A study was made of improvement of removal of dioxins and NOx in the pulse plasma exhaust gas treatment method. The pilot plant was installed. 10 refs., 205 figs., 79 tabs.

Plant aquaporins: roles in plant physiology.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Guowei; Santoni, Véronique; Maurel, Christophe

2014-05-01

Aquaporins are membrane channels that facilitate the transport of water and small neutral molecules across biological membranes of most living organisms. Here, we present comprehensive insights made on plant aquaporins in recent years, pointing to their molecular and physiological specificities with respect to animal or microbial counterparts. In plants, aquaporins occur as multiple isoforms reflecting a high diversity of cellular localizations and various physiological substrates in addition to water. Of particular relevance for plants is the transport by aquaporins of dissolved gases such as carbon dioxide or metalloids such as boric or silicic acid. The mechanisms that determine the gating and subcellular localization of plant aquaporins are extensively studied. They allow aquaporin regulation in response to multiple environmental and hormonal stimuli. Thus, aquaporins play key roles in hydraulic regulation and nutrient transport in roots and leaves. They contribute to several plant growth and developmental processes such as seed germination or emergence of lateral roots. Plants with genetically altered aquaporin functions are now tested for their ability to improve plant resistance to stresses. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled Aquaporins. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Molten carbonate fuel cell power generation system. Yoyu tansan prime en gata nenryo denchi hatsuden sochi

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Uematsu, K; Hatori, S [Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co. Ltd., Tokyo (Japan)

1991-11-01

In an indirect internal reforming type molten carbonate fuel cell, the reforming temperature is limited less than the operating temperature of the fuel cell, as the heat source for reforming is depended on the reaction heat at about 650 {degree} C of the fuel cell. To improve the reforming rate at the low temperature range, it is considered to increase S/C (ratio of steam to carbon), but this scheme will cause such problems as to increase the voltage drop of the anode, to drop the heat recovery ratio on the cogenerator, to increase the capacity of the heat exchanger, etc. In this invention, in the power generating plant of a molten carbonate fuel cell the inert gas is added to the reforming raw gas, and in addition to the above the gas is mixed with steam and led into the reforming chamber of the plant. When the inert gas which is not directly concerned in the reforming reaction is added to, total mol number increases and the reforming reaction is acceralated. Consequently, the reforming rate can be raised, though the reforming temperature is low. 2 figs.

Integrated Gasification SOFC Plant with a Steam Plant

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rokni, Masoud; Pierobon, Leonardo

2011-01-01

A hybrid Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) and Steam Turbine (ST) plant is integrated with a gasification plant. Wood chips are fed to the gasification plant to produce biogas and then this gas is fed into the anode side of a SOFC cycle to produce electricity and heat. The gases from the SOFC stacks...... enter into a burner to burn the rest of the fuel. The offgases after the burner are now used to generate steam in a Heat Recovery Steam Generator (HRSG). The generated steam is expanded in a ST to produce additional power. Thus a triple hybrid plant based on a gasification plant, a SOFC plant...... and a steam plant is presented and studied. The plant is called as IGSS (Integrated Gasification SOFC Steam plant). Different systems layouts are presented and investigated. Electrical efficiencies up to 56% are achieved which is considerably higher than the conventional integrated gasification combined...

Plant ecdysteroids: plant sterols with intriguing distributions, biological effects and relations to plant hormones.

Science.gov (United States)

Tarkowská, Danuše; Strnad, Miroslav

2016-09-01

The present review summarises current knowledge of phytoecdysteroids' biosynthesis, distribution within plants, biological importance and relations to plant hormones. Plant ecdysteroids (phytoecdysteroids) are natural polyhydroxylated compounds that have a four-ringed skeleton, usually composed of either 27 carbon atoms or 28-29 carbon atoms (biosynthetically derived from cholesterol or other plant sterols, respectively). Their physiological roles in plants have not yet been confirmed and their occurrence is not universal. Nevertheless, they are present at high concentrations in various plant species, including commonly consumed vegetables, and have a broad spectrum of pharmacological and medicinal properties in mammals, including hepatoprotective and hypoglycaemic effects, and anabolic effects on skeletal muscle, without androgenic side-effects. Furthermore, phytoecdysteroids can enhance stress resistance by promoting vitality and enhancing physical performance; thus, they are considered adaptogens. This review summarises current knowledge of phytoecdysteroids' biosynthesis, distribution within plants, biological importance and relations to plant hormones.

Plant toxicity, adaptive herbivory, and plant community dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Feng, Z.; Liu, R.; DeAngelis, D.L.; Bryant, J.P.; Kielland, K.; Stuart, Chapin F.; Swihart, R.K.

2009-01-01

We model effects of interspecific plant competition, herbivory, and a plant's toxic defenses against herbivores on vegetation dynamics. The model predicts that, when a generalist herbivore feeds in the absence of plant toxins, adaptive foraging generally increases the probability of coexistence of plant species populations, because the herbivore switches more of its effort to whichever plant species is more common and accessible. In contrast, toxin-determined selective herbivory can drive plant succession toward dominance by the more toxic species, as previously documented in boreal forests and prairies. When the toxin concentrations in different plant species are similar, but species have different toxins with nonadditive effects, herbivores tend to diversify foraging efforts to avoid high intakes of any one toxin. This diversification leads the herbivore to focus more feeding on the less common plant species. Thus, uncommon plants may experience depensatory mortality from herbivory, reducing local species diversity. The depensatory effect of herbivory may inhibit the invasion of other plant species that are more palatable or have different toxins. These predictions were tested and confirmed in the Alaskan boreal forest. ?? 2009 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.

[Development of Plant Metabolomics and Medicinal Plant Genomics].

Science.gov (United States)

Saito, Kazuki

2018-01-01

 A variety of chemicals produced by plants, often referred to as 'phytochemicals', have been used as medicines, food, fuels and industrial raw materials. Recent advances in the study of genomics and metabolomics in plant science have accelerated our understanding of the mechanisms, regulation and evolution of the biosynthesis of specialized plant products. We can now address such questions as how the metabolomic diversity of plants is originated at the levels of genome, and how we should apply this knowledge to drug discovery, industry and agriculture. Our research group has focused on metabolomics-based functional genomics over the last 15 years and we have developed a new research area called 'Phytochemical Genomics'. In this review, the development of a research platform for plant metabolomics is discussed first, to provide a better understanding of the chemical diversity of plants. Then, representative applications of metabolomics to functional genomics in a model plant, Arabidopsis thaliana, are described. The extension of integrated multi-omics analyses to non-model specialized plants, e.g., medicinal plants, is presented, including the identification of novel genes, metabolites and networks for the biosynthesis of flavonoids, alkaloids, sulfur-containing metabolites and terpenoids. Further, functional genomics studies on a variety of medicinal plants is presented. I also discuss future trends in pharmacognosy and related sciences.

7 CFR 302.2 - Movement of plants and plant products.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 5 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Movement of plants and plant products. 302.2 Section... INSPECTION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA; MOVEMENT OF PLANTS AND PLANT PRODUCTS § 302.2 Movement of plants and plant products. Inspection or documentation of the plant health status of...

Language Image in National Minority Language Television Idents. TG4 (Teilifís na Gaeilge, Ireland and Whakaata Māori (Māori Television, New Zealand

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ruth Lysaght

2009-03-01

Full Text Available Born of community and political action, Teilifis na Gaeilge (TG4 began in 1996, and Whakaata Māori/ Māori Television Service (MTS in 2004. Despite obvious differences between the two broadcasting environments, both stations attempt to reclaim a national (but minority language (Ó Ruairc 1996; Moring 2007 and compete with other broadcasters (Horrocks and Perry 2004 to attract an audience (Smith and Abel 2008 by an appeal to identity (Cormack 2000; 2007; Delap 2007. This paper investigates idents from TG4 and MTS. What image or brand have the language and culture in these mini-advertisements? Thornley’s (2004 discussion of “transculturation” is useful in examining the often inventive approach taken to elements of the dominant culture. Indeed, the motto ‘Súil eile’ [another perspective] is the criterion for many TG4 projects, and there is a clear awareness of multiple audiences in the MTS logline, ‘mā mātou, mā rātou, mā koutou, mā tātou’ [just for us, for them, for all of you, for all of us]. In the symbiotic relationship between a minority station and other larger stations in terms of the depiction/creation of local and national identity, language is used as another marketing tool. TG4 and MTS idents respond to and celebrate current sociolinguistic changes (Romaine 2006; Ó Tuathaigh 2008, making them visible.

Discussion series on PURPA related topics: information to customers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sturgeon, J I

1980-08-01

This volume relates primarily to Time-of-Day rates standard, PURPA IB(d)3, and deals with the content and methods of providing rate and conservation information to customers when Time-of-Day rates are used. Information to customers in the Demonstration and Pilot Projects fell mainly into four categories: administrative communications; explanations of new rate structures; information and advice on load management; and facts, recommendations and encouragements about energy conservation and end-use improvement. Administrative communications were about such matters as the existence of Projects, their funding, their periods of performance, the selection of their test customers, conditions of participation, procedural changes during the tests, and the time and conditions of ending the tests. These communications were important to good customer cooperation. All Demonstration Projects devoted considerable effort to the crucial task of clearly explaining the rationale of Time-of-Use (TOU) pricing and the test rate structures. The Projects then presented the concept of TOU pricing as a means of (a) fairly charging customers the true cost of their electricity and (b) rewarding them for shifting consumption to times when costs are less. For the most part, Demonstration Projects gave specific information on the individual customer's own rate structure and none on any others that were under test. The information was presented in face-to-face interviews, group presentations, television, radio, and print media, and traveling exhibits. The results are evaluated. (LCL)

PLANT BIOPRINTING: NOVEL PERSPECTIVE FOR PLANT BIOTECHNOLOGY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adhityo WICAKSONO

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Bioprinting is a technical innovation that has revolutionized tissue engineering. Using conventional printer cartridges filled with cells as well as a suitable scaffold, major advances have been made in the biomedical field, and it is now possible to print skin, bones, blood vessels, and even organs. Unlike animal systems, the application of bioprinting in simple plant tissue cells is still in a nascent phase and has yet to be studied. One major advantage of plants is that all living parts are reprogrammable in the form of totipotent cells. Plant bioprinting may improve scientists’understanding of plant shape and morphogenesis, and could serve for the mass production of desired tissues or plants, or even the production of plant-based biomaterial for industrial uses. This perspectives paper explores these possibilities using knowledge on what is known about bioprinting in other biosystems.

Plant responses to plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Loon, L.C. van

2007-01-01

Non-pathogenic soilborne microorganisms can promote plant growth, as well as suppress diseases. Plant growth promotion is taken to result from improved nutrient acquisition or hormonal stimulation. Disease suppression can occur through microbial antagonism or induction of resistance in the plant.

The iPlant Collaborative: Cyberinfrastructure for Plant Biology

Science.gov (United States)

Goff, Stephen A.; Vaughn, Matthew; McKay, Sheldon; Lyons, Eric; Stapleton, Ann E.; Gessler, Damian; Matasci, Naim; Wang, Liya; Hanlon, Matthew; Lenards, Andrew; Muir, Andy; Merchant, Nirav; Lowry, Sonya; Mock, Stephen; Helmke, Matthew; Kubach, Adam; Narro, Martha; Hopkins, Nicole; Micklos, David; Hilgert, Uwe; Gonzales, Michael; Jordan, Chris; Skidmore, Edwin; Dooley, Rion; Cazes, John; McLay, Robert; Lu, Zhenyuan; Pasternak, Shiran; Koesterke, Lars; Piel, William H.; Grene, Ruth; Noutsos, Christos; Gendler, Karla; Feng, Xin; Tang, Chunlao; Lent, Monica; Kim, Seung-Jin; Kvilekval, Kristian; Manjunath, B. S.; Tannen, Val; Stamatakis, Alexandros; Sanderson, Michael; Welch, Stephen M.; Cranston, Karen A.; Soltis, Pamela; Soltis, Doug; O'Meara, Brian; Ane, Cecile; Brutnell, Tom; Kleibenstein, Daniel J.; White, Jeffery W.; Leebens-Mack, James; Donoghue, Michael J.; Spalding, Edgar P.; Vision, Todd J.; Myers, Christopher R.; Lowenthal, David; Enquist, Brian J.; Boyle, Brad; Akoglu, Ali; Andrews, Greg; Ram, Sudha; Ware, Doreen; Stein, Lincoln; Stanzione, Dan

2011-01-01

The iPlant Collaborative (iPlant) is a United States National Science Foundation (NSF) funded project that aims to create an innovative, comprehensive, and foundational cyberinfrastructure in support of plant biology research (PSCIC, 2006). iPlant is developing cyberinfrastructure that uniquely enables scientists throughout the diverse fields that comprise plant biology to address Grand Challenges in new ways, to stimulate and facilitate cross-disciplinary research, to promote biology and computer science research interactions, and to train the next generation of scientists on the use of cyberinfrastructure in research and education. Meeting humanity's projected demands for agricultural and forest products and the expectation that natural ecosystems be managed sustainably will require synergies from the application of information technologies. The iPlant cyberinfrastructure design is based on an unprecedented period of research community input, and leverages developments in high-performance computing, data storage, and cyberinfrastructure for the physical sciences. iPlant is an open-source project with application programming interfaces that allow the community to extend the infrastructure to meet its needs. iPlant is sponsoring community-driven workshops addressing specific scientific questions via analysis tool integration and hypothesis testing. These workshops teach researchers how to add bioinformatics tools and/or datasets into the iPlant cyberinfrastructure enabling plant scientists to perform complex analyses on large datasets without the need to master the command-line or high-performance computational services. PMID:22645531

The iPlant Collaborative: Cyberinfrastructure for Plant Biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Goff, Stephen A; Vaughn, Matthew; McKay, Sheldon; Lyons, Eric; Stapleton, Ann E; Gessler, Damian; Matasci, Naim; Wang, Liya; Hanlon, Matthew; Lenards, Andrew; Muir, Andy; Merchant, Nirav; Lowry, Sonya; Mock, Stephen; Helmke, Matthew; Kubach, Adam; Narro, Martha; Hopkins, Nicole; Micklos, David; Hilgert, Uwe; Gonzales, Michael; Jordan, Chris; Skidmore, Edwin; Dooley, Rion; Cazes, John; McLay, Robert; Lu, Zhenyuan; Pasternak, Shiran; Koesterke, Lars; Piel, William H; Grene, Ruth; Noutsos, Christos; Gendler, Karla; Feng, Xin; Tang, Chunlao; Lent, Monica; Kim, Seung-Jin; Kvilekval, Kristian; Manjunath, B S; Tannen, Val; Stamatakis, Alexandros; Sanderson, Michael; Welch, Stephen M; Cranston, Karen A; Soltis, Pamela; Soltis, Doug; O'Meara, Brian; Ane, Cecile; Brutnell, Tom; Kleibenstein, Daniel J; White, Jeffery W; Leebens-Mack, James; Donoghue, Michael J; Spalding, Edgar P; Vision, Todd J; Myers, Christopher R; Lowenthal, David; Enquist, Brian J; Boyle, Brad; Akoglu, Ali; Andrews, Greg; Ram, Sudha; Ware, Doreen; Stein, Lincoln; Stanzione, Dan

2011-01-01

The iPlant Collaborative (iPlant) is a United States National Science Foundation (NSF) funded project that aims to create an innovative, comprehensive, and foundational cyberinfrastructure in support of plant biology research (PSCIC, 2006). iPlant is developing cyberinfrastructure that uniquely enables scientists throughout the diverse fields that comprise plant biology to address Grand Challenges in new ways, to stimulate and facilitate cross-disciplinary research, to promote biology and computer science research interactions, and to train the next generation of scientists on the use of cyberinfrastructure in research and education. Meeting humanity's projected demands for agricultural and forest products and the expectation that natural ecosystems be managed sustainably will require synergies from the application of information technologies. The iPlant cyberinfrastructure design is based on an unprecedented period of research community input, and leverages developments in high-performance computing, data storage, and cyberinfrastructure for the physical sciences. iPlant is an open-source project with application programming interfaces that allow the community to extend the infrastructure to meet its needs. iPlant is sponsoring community-driven workshops addressing specific scientific questions via analysis tool integration and hypothesis testing. These workshops teach researchers how to add bioinformatics tools and/or datasets into the iPlant cyberinfrastructure enabling plant scientists to perform complex analyses on large datasets without the need to master the command-line or high-performance computational services.

The iPlant Collaborative: Cyberinfrastructure for Plant Biology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stephen A Goff

2011-07-01

Full Text Available The iPlant Collaborative (iPlant is a United States National Science Foundation (NSF funded project that aims to create an innovative, comprehensive, and foundational cyberinfrastructure in support of plant biology research (PSCIC, 2006. iPlant is developing cyberinfrastructure that uniquely enables scientists throughout the diverse fields that comprise plant biology to address Grand Challenges in new ways, to stimulate and facilitate cross-disciplinary research, to promote biology and computer science research interactions, and to train the next generation of scientists on the use of cyberinfrastructure in research and education. Meeting humanity's projected demands for agricultural and forest products and the expectation that natural ecosystems be managed sustainably will require synergies from the application of information technologies. The iPlant cyberinfrastructure design is based on an unprecedented period of research community input, and leverages developments in high-performance computing, data storage, and cyberinfrastructure for the physical sciences. iPlant is an open-source project with application programming interfaces that allow the community to extend the infrastructure to meet its needs. iPlant is sponsoring community-driven workshops addressing specific scientific questions via analysis tool integration and hypothesis testing. These workshops teach researchers how to add bioinformatics tools and/or datasets into the iPlant cyberinfrastructure enabling plant scientists to perform complex analyses on large datasets without the need to master the command-line or high-performance computational services.

FY 1990 report on the results of the development of the entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 1. Element study; 1990 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 1. Yoso kenkyu hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1991-03-01

For the purpose of establishing the technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, element study was made for a pilot plant of 200t/d entrained bed coal gasification power generation, and the FY 1990 results were summarized. In the study by the gasification test on 2t/d furnace, gasification test was conducted for the OM coal newly selected as a coal proposed for the expansion of coal kind. As a result, the pulverized coal/char of OM coal have almost good handling property and showed favorable gasification performance. In the study of large gas turbine combustor for demonstrative machine, with the aim of developing a combustor that makes stable combustion also in the low load region possible, fabrication of the accessory equipment of combustor (choke mechanism, measuring use duct and heat insulating plate) was made for the actual-pressure/actual-size combustion test. In the study by simulation of the total system of combined cycle power generation, etc., the following were conducted: verification of characteristics of the integrated control (state of the ordinary operation, state of the mock load control, etc.), load dump simulation (state of the bleed cooperation, state of the bleed separation (state of the air booster operation, etc.)), etc. (NEDO)

Aboveground mechanical stimuli affect belowground plant-plant communication.

Science.gov (United States)

Elhakeem, Ali; Markovic, Dimitrije; Broberg, Anders; Anten, Niels P R; Ninkovic, Velemir

2018-01-01

Plants can detect the presence of their neighbours and modify their growth behaviour accordingly. But the extent to which this neighbour detection is mediated by abiotic stressors is not well known. In this study we tested the acclimation response of Zea mays L. seedlings through belowground interactions to the presence of their siblings exposed to brief mechano stimuli. Maize seedling simultaneously shared the growth solution of touched plants or they were transferred to the growth solution of previously touched plants. We tested the growth preferences of newly germinated seedlings toward the growth solution of touched (T_solution) or untouched plants (C_solution). The primary root of the newly germinated seedlings grew significantly less towards T_solution than to C_solution. Plants transferred to T_solution allocated more biomass to shoots and less to roots. While plants that simultaneously shared their growth solution with the touched plants produced more biomass. Results show that plant responses to neighbours can be modified by aboveground abiotic stress to those neighbours and suggest that these modifications are mediated by belowground interactions.

Aboveground mechanical stimuli affect belowground plant-plant communication.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ali Elhakeem

Full Text Available Plants can detect the presence of their neighbours and modify their growth behaviour accordingly. But the extent to which this neighbour detection is mediated by abiotic stressors is not well known. In this study we tested the acclimation response of Zea mays L. seedlings through belowground interactions to the presence of their siblings exposed to brief mechano stimuli. Maize seedling simultaneously shared the growth solution of touched plants or they were transferred to the growth solution of previously touched plants. We tested the growth preferences of newly germinated seedlings toward the growth solution of touched (T_solution or untouched plants (C_solution. The primary root of the newly germinated seedlings grew significantly less towards T_solution than to C_solution. Plants transferred to T_solution allocated more biomass to shoots and less to roots. While plants that simultaneously shared their growth solution with the touched plants produced more biomass. Results show that plant responses to neighbours can be modified by aboveground abiotic stress to those neighbours and suggest that these modifications are mediated by belowground interactions.

Rule-based Energy Management System in an Experimental Microgrid with the Presence of Time of Use Tariffs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Moghimi Mojtaba

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This paper aims to investigate a method of peak load shaving through the utilization of solar PV and battery energy storage whilst creating a cost effective Energy Management System (EMS. This is achieved by utilizing a rule-sets to manage and optimize a scheduling system with a forecasting algorithm. As Time of Use (ToU tariffs change throughout the day, a cost benefit can be achieved when a smart energy storage system is appropriately employed. The EMS operation is tested on an experimental microgrid with commercial load considering payback period calculation.

Avis 4 sur les nanosciences et les nanotechnologies

OpenAIRE

Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement

2012-01-01

À l'échelle nanométrique, l’imbrication entre savoirs et savoir-faire est telle que la distinction entre nanosciences et nanotechnologies devient artificielle, le Comité entendant à travers les “nanotechnologies” la profonde continuité qui prévaut au sein des sciences fondamentales et des technologies.[br/] Le Comité a dressé un panorama des applications avérées et potentielles des nanotechnologies dans le domaine de l’agriculture et de l’alimentation, y compris dans les pays du Sud, tou...

Combined Solar Charging Stations and Energy Storage Units Allocation for Electric Vehicles by Considering Uncertainties

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yousefi Khanghah, Babak; Anvari-Moghaddam, Amjad; Guerrero, Josep M.

2017-01-01

Electric vehicles (EVs) are becoming a key feature of smart grids. EVs will be embedded in the smart grids as a mobile load-storage with probabilistic behavior. In order to manage EVs as flexible loads, charging stations (CSs) have essential roles. In this paper, a new method for optimal sitting...... are considered based on time-of-use (TOU) demand response programs (DRPs). In order to solve the optimization problem considering uncertainty of load growth, electricity price, initial state of charge of batteries and solar power generation, genetic algorithm method using Monte-Carlo simulation is used...

El Estudio sobre el Mecanismo de Comunicación de la Publicación y la Producción de Noticias en Medios Móviles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ruhan Zhao

2016-07-01

Full Text Available El estudio explora el mecanismo de comunicaciónn de la pulibcación y producción de noticias, analizando el Microblog, Wechat y especialmente, el APP Móvil TouTiao. El resultado ha mostrado que las posiciones y las prácticas del profesionalismo de periodismo y los ¨gatekeeper¨ han desaparecido en los procesos de la producción de noticias. En cambio, el algoritmo y tecnología se han movido al centro del círculo de la producción de noticias.

Design of plant safety model in plant enterprise engineering environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gabbar, Hossam A.; Suzuki, Kazuhiko; Shimada, Yukiyasu

2001-01-01

Plant enterprise engineering environment (PEEE) is an approach aiming to manage the plant through its lifecycle. In such environment, safety is considered as the common objective for all activities throughout the plant lifecycle. One approach to achieve plant safety is to embed safety aspects within each function and activity within such environment. One ideal way to enable safety aspects within each automated function is through modeling. This paper proposes a theoretical approach to design plant safety model as integrated with the plant lifecycle model within such environment. Object-oriented modeling approach is used to construct the plant safety model using OO CASE tool on the basis of unified modeling language (UML). Multiple views are defined for plant objects to express static, dynamic, and functional semantics of these objects. Process safety aspects are mapped to each model element and inherited from design to operation stage, as it is naturally embedded within plant's objects. By developing and realizing the plant safety model, safer plant operation can be achieved and plant safety can be assured

FY 1991 report on the results of the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 3. Adjustment of the operation test of pilot plant (2/2); 1991 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 3. Pilot plant unten shiken chosei hen (2/2)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1993-01-01

The adjustment was made of the operation test of the 200 t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant that was constructed with the aim of establishing technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, and the results were reported. As to the adjustment of the operation test of gas turbine facilities, the following were conducted: tests 1 and 2 on light-oil firing characteristics, test on coal gas ignition, tests on fuel change/gas firing, test on fuel change. And, 12 cases of troubles, the causes and measures against them were reported. Relating to the adjustment of the operation test of actual pressure/actual size combustor testing facilities, tests on hot air device/air heating device and tests 1-3 on light-oil firing were carried out, and 7 cases of troubles, the causes and measures against them were reported. Concerning the adjustment of the operation test of safety environment facilities, tests were made of RUN 3-6, RUN 7 (1 and 2), RUN 8 (1-4) and RUN 9 (1-3), and 20 cases of troubles, the causes and measures against them were reported. As to the adjustment of the operation test of electric/control facilities, items of improvement were reported of gasifier facilities, gas refining facilities, gas turbine facilities, actual pressure/actual size combustor testing facilities, safety environment facilities and total control facilities. (NEDO)

FY 1991 report on the results of the development of an entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 3. Adjustment of the operation test of pilot plant (1/2); 1991 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 3. Pilot plant unten shiken chosei hen (1/2)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1993-01-01

The adjustment was made of the operation test of the 200 t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant that was constructed with the aim of establishing technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, and the results were reported. As to the adjustment of the operation test of gasifier facilities, the light-oil firing test and tests of RUN 1-9 were conducted, and the paper reported cases of 49-item troubles, the causes, measures against them, improvement of facilities, etc. For slagging, operation conditions, improvement of various facilities, etc. were studied. Relating to the adjustment of the operation test of gas refining facilities (dry desulfurization facilities), the following were carried out: test on empty column gas circulation, test on desulfurizer circulation characteristics, test on SO2 reduction tower, test on warming-up characteristics, tests 1-3 on initial performance, tests on change in gas turbine fuel and loads. And, 21 cases of troubles, the causes and measures against them were reported. Concerning the adjustment of the operation test of gas refining facilities (dry dedusting facilities), the following were conducted: test on non-load sequence, test on confirmation prior to letting gas through, tests 1-3 on initial performance, test on dedusting characteristics. And, 22 cases of troubles, the causes and measures against them were reported. (NEDO)

Aquatic plants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Madsen, T. V.; Sand-Jensen, K.

2006-01-01

Aquatic fl owering plants form a relatively young plant group on an evolutionary timescale. The group has developed over the past 80 million years from terrestrial fl owering plants that re-colonised the aquatic environment after 60-100 million years on land. The exchange of species between terre...... terrestrial and aquatic environments continues today and is very intensive along stream banks. In this chapter we describe the physical and chemical barriers to the exchange of plants between land and water.......Aquatic fl owering plants form a relatively young plant group on an evolutionary timescale. The group has developed over the past 80 million years from terrestrial fl owering plants that re-colonised the aquatic environment after 60-100 million years on land. The exchange of species between...

Plants, plant pathogens, and microgravity--a deadly trio

Science.gov (United States)

Leach, J. E.; Ryba-White, M.; Sun, Q.; Wu, C. J.; Hilaire, E.; Gartner, C.; Nedukha, O.; Kordyum, E.; Keck, M.; Leung, H.;

Plant life management optimized utilization of existing nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Watzinger, H.; Erve, M.

1999-01-01

For safe, reliable and economical nuclear power generation it is of central importance to understand, analyze and manage aging-related phenomena and to apply this information in the systematic utilization and as-necessary extension of the service life of components and systems. An operator's overall approach to aging and plant life management which also improves performance characteristics can help to optimize plant operating economy. In view of the deregulation of the power generation industry with its increased competition, nuclear power plants must today also increasingly provide for or maintain a high level of plant availability and low power generating costs. This is a difficult challenge even for the newest, most modern plants, and as plants age they can only remain competitive if a plant operator adopts a strategic approach which takes into account the various aging-related effects on a plant-wide basis. The significance of aging and plant life management for nuclear power plants becomes apparent when looking at their age: By the year 2000 roughly fifty of the world's 434 commercial nuclear power plants will have been in operation for thirty years or more. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, as many as 110 plants will have reached the thirty-year service mark by the year 2005. In many countries human society does not push the construction of new nuclear power plants and presumably will not change mind within the next ten years. New construction licenses cannot be expected so that for economical and ecological reasons existing plants have to be operated unchallengeably. On the other hand the deregulation of the power production market is asking just now for analysis of plant life time to operate the plants at a high technical and economical level until new nuclear power plants can be licensed and constructed. (author)

Dipping Strawberry Plants in Fungicides before Planting to Control Anthracnose

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Myeong Hyeon Nam

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Anthracnose crown rot (ACR, caused by Colletotrichum fructicola, is a serious disease of strawberry in Korea. The primary inoculums of ACR were symptomless strawberry plants, plant debris, and other host plants. To effectively control anthracnose in symptomless transplanted strawberries, it is necessary to use diseasefree plants, detect the disease early, and apply a fungicide. Therefore, in 2010 and 2011, we evaluated the efficacy of pre-plant fungicide dips by using strawberry transplants infected by C. fructicola for the control of anthracnose. Dipping plants in prochloraz-Mn for 10 min before planting was most effective for controlling anthracnose in symptomless strawberry plants and resulted in more than 76% control efficacy. Azoxystrobin showed a control efficacy of over 40%, but plants treated with pyraclostrobin, mancozeb and iminoctadine tris showed high disease severity. The control efficacy of the dip treatment with prochloraz-Mn did not differ with temperature and time. Treatment with prochloraz-Mn for more than an hour caused growth suppression in strawberry plants. Therefore, the development of anthracnose can be effectively reduced by dipping strawberry plants for 10 min in prochloraz-Mn before planting.

Plant traits related to nitrogen uptake influence plant-microbe competition.

Science.gov (United States)

Moreau, Delphine; Pivato, Barbara; Bru, David; Busset, Hugues; Deau, Florence; Faivre, Céline; Matejicek, Annick; Strbik, Florence; Philippot, Laurent; Mougel, Christophe

2015-08-01

Plant species are important drivers of soil microbial communities. However, how plant functional traits are shaping these communities has received less attention though linking plant and microbial traits is crucial for better understanding plant-microbe interactions. Our objective was to determine how plant-microbe interactions were affected by plant traits. Specifically we analyzed how interactions between plant species and microbes involved in nitrogen cycling were affected by plant traits related to 'nitrogen nutrition in interaction with soil nitrogen availability. Eleven plant species, selected along an oligotrophic-nitrophilic gradient, were grown individually in a nitrogen-poor soil with two levels of nitrate availability. Plant traits for both carbon and nitrogen nutrition were measured and the genetic structure and abundance of rhizosphere. microbial communities, in particular the ammonia oxidizer and nitrate reducer guilds, were analyzed. The structure of the bacterial community in the rhizosphere differed significantly between plant species and these differences depended on nitrogen availability. The results suggest that the rate of nitrogen uptake per unit of root biomass and per day is a key plant trait, explaining why the effect of nitrogen availability on the structure of the bacterial community depends on the plant species. We also showed that the abundance of nitrate reducing bacteria always decreased with increasing nitrogen uptake per unit of root biomass per day, indicating that there was competition for nitrate between plants and nitrate reducing bacteria. This study demonstrates that nitrate-reducing microorganisms may be adversely affected by plants with a high nitrogen uptake rate. Our work puts forward the role of traits related to nitrogen in plant-microbe interactions, whereas carbon is commonly considered as the main driver. It also suggests that plant traits related to ecophysiological processes, such as nitrogen uptake rates, are more

Status report - expert knowledge of operators in fuel reprocessing plants, enrichment plants and fuel fabrication plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Preuss, W.; Kramer, J.; Wildberg, D.

1987-01-01

The necessary qualifications of the responsible personnel and the knowledge required by personnel otherwise employed in nuclear plants are among the requirements for licensing laid down in paragraph 7 of the German Atomic Energy Act. The formal regulations for nuclear power plants are not directly applicable to plants in the fuel cycle because of the differences in the technical processes and the plant and work organisation. The aim of the project was therefore to establish a possible need for regulations for the nuclear plants with respect to the qualification of the personnel, and to determine a starting point for the definition of the required qualifications. An extensive investigation was carried out in the Federal Republic of Germany into: the formal requirements for training; the plant and personnel organisation structures; the tasks carried out by the responsible and otherwise employed personnel; and the state of training. For this purpose plant owners and managers were interviewed and the literature and plant specific documentation (e.g. plant rules) were reviewed. On the basis of literature research, foreign practices were determined and used to make comparative evaluations. The status report is divided into three separate parts for the reprocessing, the uranium enrichment, and the manufacture of the fuel elements. On the basis of the situation for reprocessing plants (particularly that of the WAK) and fuel element manufacturing plants, the development of a common (not uniform) regulation for all the examined plants in the fuel cycle was recommended. The report gives concrete suggestions for the content of the regulations. (orig.) [de

Conservation law of plants' energy value dependence of plants ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The plants differences in biochemical composition are analyzed, and the conservation law of energy value in plants is obtained. The link between the need for the nutrients and the plants biochemical composition is examined, Liebig's law is specified. Keywords: plant's biochemical composition, biochemistry, energy value in ...

An Automated and Continuous Plant Weight Measurement System for Plant Factory.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Wei-Tai; Yeh, Yu-Hui F; Liu, Ting-Yu; Lin, Ta-Te

2016-01-01

In plant factories, plants are usually cultivated in nutrient solution under a controllable environment. Plant quality and growth are closely monitored and precisely controlled. For plant growth evaluation, plant weight is an important and commonly used indicator. Traditional plant weight measurements are destructive and laborious. In order to measure and record the plant weight during plant growth, an automated measurement system was designed and developed herein. The weight measurement system comprises a weight measurement device and an imaging system. The weight measurement device consists of a top disk, a bottom disk, a plant holder and a load cell. The load cell with a resolution of 0.1 g converts the plant weight on the plant holder disk to an analog electrical signal for a precise measurement. The top disk and bottom disk are designed to be durable for different plant sizes, so plant weight can be measured continuously throughout the whole growth period, without hindering plant growth. The results show that plant weights measured by the weight measurement device are highly correlated with the weights estimated by the stereo-vision imaging system; hence, plant weight can be measured by either method. The weight growth of selected vegetables growing in the National Taiwan University plant factory were monitored and measured using our automated plant growth weight measurement system. The experimental results demonstrate the functionality, stability and durability of this system. The information gathered by this weight system can be valuable and beneficial for hydroponic plants monitoring research and agricultural research applications.

An Automated and Continuous Plant Weight Measurement System for Plant Factory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wei-Tai eChen

2016-03-01

Full Text Available In plant factories, plants are usually cultivated in nutrient solution under a controllable environment. Plant quality and growth are closely monitored and precisely controlled. For plant growth evaluation, plant weight is an important and commonly used indicator. Traditional plant weight measurements are destructive and laborious. In order to measure and record the plant weight during plant growth, an automated measurement system was designed and developed herein. The weight measurement system comprises a weight measurement device and an imaging system. The weight measurement device consists of a top disk, a bottom disk, a plant holder and a load cell. The load cell with a resolution of 0.1 g converts the plant weight on the plant holder disk to an analogue electrical signal for a precise measurement. The top disk and bottom disk are designed to be durable for different plant sizes, so plant weight can be measured continuously throughout the whole growth period, without hindering plant growth. The results show that plant weights measured by the weight measurement device are highly correlated with the weights estimated by the stereo-vision imaging system; hence, plant weight can be measured by either method. The weight growth of selected vegetables growing in the National Taiwan University plant factory were monitored and measured using our automated plant growth weight measurement system. The experimental results demonstrate the functionality, stability and durability of this system. The information gathered by this weight system can be valuable and beneficial for hydroponic plants monitoring research and agricultural research applications.

Plant walkdown

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kostov, M.

2000-01-01

This report covers the following: preparatory steps for performing plant walk-down; the objective of the first plant walk-down; plant walk-down procedures; earthquake screening evaluation; walk-down documentation; second plant walk-down. The following objectives concerning the plant walk-down(s) were achieved. The plant system configuration is verified in order to proceed with event tree and fault tree analyses. Systems interactions, other types of dependencies or plant unique features are identified. he safety related components that are judged to generically possess high capacities (i.e., larger than the earthquake review level) have been verified to contain no weaknesses. Further analyses needed to establish the capacities of remaining safety-related components are identified and necessary field data are obtained. Information on components is obtained to assist in HCLPF (fragility) evaluation and peer review of the seismic margin study

Advanced plant design recommendations from Cook Nuclear Plant experience

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zimmerman, W.L.

1993-01-01

A project in the American Electric Power Service Corporation to review operating and maintenance experience at Cook Nuclear Plant to identify recommendations for advanced nuclear plant design is described. Recommendations so gathered in the areas of plant fluid systems, instrument and control, testing and surveillance provisions, plant layout of equipment, provisions to enhance effective maintenance, ventilation systems, radiological protection, and construction, are presented accordingly. An example for a design review checklist for effective plant operations and maintenance is suggested

PlantDB – a versatile database for managing plant research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gruissem Wilhelm

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Research in plant science laboratories often involves usage of many different species, cultivars, ecotypes, mutants, alleles or transgenic lines. This creates a great challenge to keep track of the identity of experimental plants and stored samples or seeds. Results Here, we describe PlantDB – a Microsoft® Office Access database – with a user-friendly front-end for managing information relevant for experimental plants. PlantDB can hold information about plants of different species, cultivars or genetic composition. Introduction of a concise identifier system allows easy generation of pedigree trees. In addition, all information about any experimental plant – from growth conditions and dates over extracted samples such as RNA to files containing images of the plants – can be linked unequivocally. Conclusion We have been using PlantDB for several years in our laboratory and found that it greatly facilitates access to relevant information.

Top 10 plant viruses in molecular plant pathology.

Science.gov (United States)

Scholthof, Karen-Beth G; Adkins, Scott; Czosnek, Henryk; Palukaitis, Peter; Jacquot, Emmanuel; Hohn, Thomas; Hohn, Barbara; Saunders, Keith; Candresse, Thierry; Ahlquist, Paul; Hemenway, Cynthia; Foster, Gary D

2011-12-01

Many scientists, if not all, feel that their particular plant virus should appear in any list of the most important plant viruses. However, to our knowledge, no such list exists. The aim of this review was to survey all plant virologists with an association with Molecular Plant Pathology and ask them to nominate which plant viruses they would place in a 'Top 10' based on scientific/economic importance. The survey generated more than 250 votes from the international community, and allowed the generation of a Top 10 plant virus list for Molecular Plant Pathology. The Top 10 list includes, in rank order, (1) Tobacco mosaic virus, (2) Tomato spotted wilt virus, (3) Tomato yellow leaf curl virus, (4) Cucumber mosaic virus, (5) Potato virus Y, (6) Cauliflower mosaic virus, (7) African cassava mosaic virus, (8) Plum pox virus, (9) Brome mosaic virus and (10) Potato virus X, with honourable mentions for viruses just missing out on the Top 10, including Citrus tristeza virus, Barley yellow dwarf virus, Potato leafroll virus and Tomato bushy stunt virus. This review article presents a short review on each virus of the Top 10 list and its importance, with the intent of initiating discussion and debate amongst the plant virology community, as well as laying down a benchmark, as it will be interesting to see in future years how perceptions change and which viruses enter and leave the Top 10. © 2011 The Authors. Molecular Plant Pathology © 2011 BSPP and Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Report on research and development achievements in fiscal 1980 in Sunshine Project. Development of a total flow electric power plant(Two-phase rotation inflator); 1980 nendo total flow hatsuden plant no kaihatsu seika hokokusho. Niso kaiten bochoki

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1981-03-01

Out of the development of a total flow power plant in the Sunshine Project, this paper describes a two-phase rotatry inflator. It reports the achievements in fiscal 1980. It is intended to utilize effectively the energy of gas-liquid two-phase fluid (containing a great amount of hot water) often seen in geothermal resources in Japan. Therefore, development is considered on a two-phase rotary inflator as a total flow power generation technology to inflate the gas-liquid fluid as it is without performing separation thereof, and convert it to an external work to draw out output. The inflator is a volume type rotary engine, which has the highest efficiency theoretically, but has not been put into practical use worldwide. Based on the result obtained in the previous fiscal year, development is made on a most suitable seal to be applied to circumferential seal of an external rotor, apex seal, and intake port seal. A rotary inflation performance testing machine is fabricated to study inflation of the gas-liquid two-phase fluid. Setting the engine efficiency of 60% or higher as the target, detailed design, fabrication and assembly shall be completed on two-phase rotation inflators of volume type and self-rotation type of 300 kW class. (NEDO)

Nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1985-01-01

Data concerning the existing nuclear power plants in the world are presented. The data was retrieved from the SIEN (Nuclear and Energetic Information System) data bank. The information are organized in table forms as follows: nuclear plants, its status and type; installed nuclear power plants by country; nuclear power plants under construction by country; planned nuclear power plants by country; cancelled nuclear power plants by country; shut-down nuclear power plants by country. (E.G.) [pt

Evolutionary responses of native plant species to invasive plants : a review

OpenAIRE

Oduor, Ayub M. O.

2013-01-01

Strong competition from invasive plant species often leads to declines in abundances and may,in certain cases, cause localized extinctions of native plant species. Nevertheless, studies have shown that certain populations of native plant species can co-exist with invasive plant species, suggesting the possibility of adaptive evolutionary responses of those populations to the invasive plants. Empirical inference of evolutionary responses of the native plant species to invasive plants has invol...

[Review on application of plant growth retardants in medicinal plants cultivation].

Science.gov (United States)

Zhai, Yu-Yao; Guo, Bao-Lin; Cheng, Ming

2013-09-01

Plant growth retardants are widely used in cultivation of medicinal plant, but there is still lack of scientific guidance. In order to guide the use of plant growth retardants in medicinal plant cultivation efficiently and reasonably, this paper reviewed the mechanism, function characteristic, plant and soil residue of plant growth retardants, such as chlorocholine chloride, mepiquat chloride, paclobutrazol, unicnazle and succinic acid, and summarized the application of plant growth retardants in medicinal plants cultivation in recent years, with focus on the effect of growth and yield of the officinal organs and secondary metabolites.

Evolutionary responses of native plant species to invasive plants: a review.

Science.gov (United States)

Oduor, Ayub M O

2013-12-01

Strong competition from invasive plant species often leads to declines in abundances and may, in certain cases, cause localized extinctions of native plant species. Nevertheless, studies have shown that certain populations of native plant species can co-exist with invasive plant species,suggesting the possibility of adaptive evolutionary responses of those populations to the invasive plants. Empirical inference of evolutionary responses of the native plant species to invasive plants has involved experiments comparing two conspecific groups of native plants for differences in expression of growth/reproductive traits: populations that have experienced competition from the invasive plant species (i.e. experienced natives) versus populations with no known history of interactions with the invasive plant species (i.e. naıve natives). Here, I employ a meta-analysis to obtain a general pattern of inferred evolutionary responses of native plant species from 53 such studies. In general, the experienced natives had significantly higher growth/reproductive performances than naıve natives, when grown with or without competition from invasive plants.While the current results indicate that certain populations of native plant species could potentially adapt evolutionarily to invasive plant species, the ecological and evolutionary mechanisms that probably underlie such evolutionary responses remain unexplored and should be the focus of future studies.

Analysis of plant height between male sterile plants obtained by space flight and male fertile plants in Maize

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cao Moju; Huang Wenchao; Pan Guangtang; Rong Tingzhao; Zhu Yingguo

2004-01-01

F 2 fertility segregation population and the sister-cross fertility segregation population, which descended from the male sterile material, were analysed by their plant height of different growing stage between 2 populations of male sterile plants and male fertile plants. The plant height of different fertility plants come to the significance at 0.01 level in different stage through the whole growing period. The differences become more and more large with the development of plants, the maximum difference happens in adult stage. The increasing amount of different stage also shows significance at 0.01 level between two kinds of different fertility plants

Unique bioactive polyphenolic profile of guava (Psidium guajava) budding leaf tea is related to plant biochemistry of budding leaves in early dawn.

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Chi-Huang; Hsieh, Chiu-Lan; Wang, Hui-Er; Peng, Chiung-Chi; Chyau, Charng-Cherng; Peng, Robert Y

2013-03-15

Guava leaf tea (GLT), exhibiting a diversity of medicinal bioactivities, has become a popularly consumed daily beverage. To improve the product quality, a new process was recommended to the Ser-Tou Farmers' Association (SFA), who began field production in 2005. The new process comprised simplified steps: one bud-two leaves were plucked at 3:00-6:00 am, in the early dawn period, followed by withering at ambient temperature (25-28 °C), rolling at 50 °C for 50-70 min, with or without fermentation, then drying at 45-50 °C for 70-90 min, and finally sorted. The product manufactured by this new process (named herein GLTSF) exhibited higher contents (in mg g(-1), based on dry ethyl acetate fraction/methanolic extract) of polyphenolics (417.9 ± 12.3) and flavonoids (452.5 ± 32.3) containing a compositional profile much simpler than previously found: total quercetins (190.3 ± 9.1), total myricetin (3.3 ± 0.9), total catechins (36.4 ± 5.3), gallic acid (8.8 ± 0.6), ellagic acid (39.1 ± 6.4) and tannins (2.5 ± 9.1). We have successfully developed a new process for manufacturing GLTSF with a unique polyphenolic profile. Such characteristic compositional distribution can be ascribed to the right harvesting hour in the early dawn and appropriate treatment process at low temperature, avoiding direct sunlight. © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry.

Configuration management of plant modifications for nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ritsch, W.J.

1987-01-01

Due to the increasing complexity of nuclear power plant operation, regulatory pressure, and the large numbers of people required to operate and support the stations, the control of plant modifications at these plants needs to be expanded and improved. The aerospace and defense industries, as well as the owners or operators of large energy projects have established configuration management programs (CMPs) to control plant design changes. These programs are composed of well-defined functions for identifying, evaluating, recording, tracking, issuing, and documenting the established baseline conditions, as well as required changes to these baseline conditions. The purpose of this paper is to describe a recommended CMP for plant modifications consisting of a computerized data base installed on the utility's computer to provide a central storage of plant design and operations data necessary to control the following activities as they are affected by plant design changes: training; record management; operations; maintenance; health physics; planning/scheduling; procurement/inventory control; outage management (including modifications); and emergency response

Plant diversity surpasses plant functional groups and plant productivity as driver of soil biota in the long term.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nico Eisenhauer

2011-01-01

Full Text Available One of the most significant consequences of contemporary global change is the rapid decline of biodiversity in many ecosystems. Knowledge of the consequences of biodiversity loss in terrestrial ecosystems is largely restricted to single ecosystem functions. Impacts of key plant functional groups on soil biota are considered to be more important than those of plant diversity; however, current knowledge mainly relies on short-term experiments.We studied changes in the impacts of plant diversity and presence of key functional groups on soil biota by investigating the performance of soil microorganisms and soil fauna two, four and six years after the establishment of model grasslands. The results indicate that temporal changes of plant community effects depend on the trophic affiliation of soil animals: plant diversity effects on decomposers only occurred after six years, changed little in herbivores, but occurred in predators after two years. The results suggest that plant diversity, in terms of species and functional group richness, is the most important plant community property affecting soil biota, exceeding the relevance of plant above- and belowground productivity and the presence of key plant functional groups, i.e. grasses and legumes, with the relevance of the latter decreasing in time.Plant diversity effects on biota are not only due to the presence of key plant functional groups or plant productivity highlighting the importance of diverse and high-quality plant derived resources, and supporting the validity of the singular hypothesis for soil biota. Our results demonstrate that in the long term plant diversity essentially drives the performance of soil biota questioning the paradigm that belowground communities are not affected by plant diversity and reinforcing the importance of biodiversity for ecosystem functioning.

Report on the project for working out the new energy vision of the Kamoto Town area. Feasibility study; 2001 nendo Kamoto machi chiiki shin energy vision sakutei tou jigyo fijibiriti hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2002-02-01

For the realization of 'the introduction of biomass of animal manure/garbage,' an important item in 'the new energy vision of the Kamoto Town area (Kumamoto Prefecture),' a feasibility study was conducted. For the resource retrieval of animal manure, etc., only composting is generally conducted. In this project, however, two projects are combinedly conducted: project for producing biogas (main component: methane gas) and liquid fertilizer and project for producing compost. The project pursues the reduction in running cost by self-sufficiency of energy and the environmental preservation by recovery of methane gas. The plant for producing biogas and liquid fertilizer consists of garbage crusher, storage tank, anaerobic fermentation tank and generator. The plant for producing compost consists of solid liquid separator, fermentation tank, agitator and smell remover. In the feasibility study, the following were carried out: study of the establishment of specifications/selection of the necessary conditions for a plant tentatively named the Kamoto Town Biomass Center, study of the proposed site for plant, survey of the financial plan, survey of the operational system, study of the project promotion system, etc. (NEDO)

Perspectives on plant vulnerabilities ampersand other plant and containment improvements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

LaChance, J.; Kolaczkowski, A.; Kahn, J.

1996-01-01

The primary goal of the Individual Plant Examination (IPE) Program was for licensees to identify plant-unique vulnerabilities and actions to address these vulnerabilities. A review of these vulnerabilities and plant improvements that were identified in the IPEs was performed as part of the IPE Insights Program sponsored by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). The purpose of this effort was to characterize the identified vulnerabilities and the impact of suggested plant improvements. No specific definition for open-quotes vulnerabilityclose quotes was provided in NRC Generic Letter 88-20 or in the subsequent NRC IPE submittal guidance documented in NUREG-1335. Thus licensees were left to use their own definitions. Only 20% of the plants explicitly stated that they had vulnerabilities. However, most licensees identified other plant improvements to address issues not explicitly classified as vulnerabilities, but pertaining to areas in which overall plant safety could potentially be increased. The various definitions of open-quotes vulnerabilityclose quotes used by the licensees, explicitly identified vulnerabilities, proposed plant improvements to address these vulnerabilities, and other plant improvements are summarized and discussed

Life management plants at nuclear power plants PWR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Esteban, G.

2014-01-01

Since in 2009 the CSN published the Safety Instruction IS-22 (1) which established the regulatory framework the Spanish nuclear power plants must meet in regard to Life Management, most of Spanish nuclear plants began a process of convergence of their Life Management Plants to practice 10 CFR 54 (2), which is the current standard of Spanish nuclear industry for Ageing Management, either during the design lifetime of the plant, as well as for Long-Term Operation. This article describe how Life Management Plans are being implemented in Spanish PWR NPP. (Author)

Wastes power generation introduction manual. Main edition; Haikibutsu hatsuden donyu manual. Honpen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1999-03-01

A practical and specific working manual was prepared that satisfies the standards and criteria defined in the relevant law such as the Sanitation and Environment Ordinance No. 249, the guideline for generation of dioxins caused by refuse disposal, and that enables the reports evaluating the wastes quantitatively to be submitted to heads of the local governments when persons in charge of planning the introduction of wastes power generation at local governments discuss the wastes power generation systems. Taking general combustible wastes and sewage sludge treatments as the object, this paper details from the economic performance to size of wastes treatment at the priority limit for the power generation facility introduction. The subject power generation systems include the following: the stoker furnace/separation type ash melting furnace power generation system, the fluidized bed/separation type ash melting furnace power generation system, and the direct type gasification melting furnace power generation system, whose establishment of safety, reliability and stability have been verified by full-size system operation record available at the local governments, the gas turbine re-powering composite type power generation system (gas turbine power plants are installed beside the incineration furnaces) that makes high-efficiency power generation possible, and the RDF power generation system (power generation by mixed combustion with general refuses, and power generation using RDF (refuse derived fuel) exclusive combustion). Other important discussion and assessment items include environment and resource utilization performances. (NEDO)

Fiscal 1996 achievement report. Development of entrained bed coal gasification power plant (Part 1 - Studies of dismantling and surveys of techniques); 1995 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 1. Kaitai kenkyu hen, gijutsu chosa hen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1997-01-01

For the establishment of technology of integrated coal gasification combined cycle, studies were made for the dismantling of the 200 tons/day entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant and surveys were conducted of overseas technologies. In the gasification furnace facility, 40 devices were selected, and dismantled, from the locations corresponding to the factors of damage expected to occur involving important equipment. Although no significant damage was detected in the gasification pressure vessel, peripheral walls, or the like, malfunctions due to corrosion or abrasion were discovered in some pipes and members. In the dry type gas clean-up facility (desulfurization facility), damage due to heat stress or corrosion was detected in the regeneration tower inner cyclone, regeneration tower filter flexible tubes, and in circulation gas cooler cooling tubes. In the dry type gas clean-up facility (dedusting facility), damage was found in the dust collector gas seal valve, dust collector filter materials cut valve, and in the separator A/B. In the gas turbine facility, no abnormality was discovered but for some damage in some initial stage static vanes. (NEDO)

Historical plant cost and annual production expenses for selected electric plants, 1982

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-01-01

This publication is a composite of the two prior publications, Hydroelectric Plant Construction Cost and Annual Production Expenses and Thermal-Electric Plant Construction Cost and Annual Production Expenses. Beginning in 1979, Thermal-Electric Plant Construction Cost and Annual Production Expenses contained information on both steam-electric and gas-turbine electric plant construction cost and annual production expenses. The summarized historical plant cost described under Historical Plant Cost in this report is the net cumulative-to-date actual outlays or expenditures for land, structures, and equipment to the utility. Historical plant cost is the initial investment in plant (cumulative to the date of initial commercial operation) plus the costs of all additions to the plant, less the value of retirements. Thus, historical plant cost includes expenditures made over several years, as modifications are made to the plant. Power Production Expenses is the reporting year's plant operation and maintenance expenses, including fuel expenses. These expenses do not include annual fixed charges on plant cost (capital costs) such as interest on debt, depreciation or amortization expenses, and taxes. Consequently, total production expenses and the derived unit costs are not the total cost of producing electric power at the various plants. This publication contains data on installed generating capacity, net generation, net capability, historical plant cost, production expenses, fuel consumption, physical and operating plant characteristics, and other relevant statistical information for selected plants

Aquatic Plant Control Research Program. Allelopathic Aquatic Plants for Aquatic Plant Management: A Feasibility Study

Science.gov (United States)

1989-10-01

1978. " Ecotoxicology of aquatic plant communi- ties," Principles of Ecotoxicology , SCOPE Report 12, Chapter 11, pp 239-255. [Heavy metals, Pollutants...Phragmites communis and Equisetum limosum were cultivated . They found plant-plant influences depend on soil type. Typha latifolia, S. A2 lacustris, and

Making Plant-Support Structures From Waste Plant Fiber

Science.gov (United States)

Morrow, Robert C.; < oscjmocl. < attjew K/; {ertzbprm. A,amda; Ej (e. Cjad); Hunt, John

2006-01-01

Environmentally benign, biodegradable structures for supporting growing plants can be made in a process based on recycling of such waste plant fiber materials as wheat straw or of such derivative materials as paper and cardboard. Examples of structures that can be made in this way include plant plugs, pots, planter-lining mats, plant fences, and root and shoot barriers. No chemical binders are used in the process. First, the plant material is chopped into smaller particles. The particles are leached with water or steam to remove material that can inhibit plant growth, yielding a fibrous slurry. If the desired structures are plugs or sheets, then the slurry is formed into the desired shapes in a pulp molding subprocess. If the desired structures are root and shoot barriers, pots, or fences, then the slurry is compression-molded to the desired shapes in a heated press. The processed materials in these structures have properties similar to those of commercial pressboard, but unlike pressboard, these materials contain no additives. These structures have been found to withstand one growth cycle, even when wet

Chapter 15. Plant pathology and managing wildland plant disease systems

Science.gov (United States)

David L. Nelson

2004-01-01

Obtaining specific, reliable knowledge on plant diseases is essential in wildland shrub resource management. However, plant disease is one of the most neglected areas of wildland resources experimental research. This section is a discussion of plant pathology and how to use it in managing plant disease systems.

Biogeographical diversity of plant associated microbes in arcto-alpine plants

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kumar, Manoj Gopala Krishnan

2016-01-01

Terrestrial plants and microbes have co-evolved since the emergence of the former on Earth. Associations with microorganisms can be either beneficial or detrimental for plants. Microbes can be found in the soil surrounding the plant roots, but also in all plant tissues, including seeds. In

Exotic plant species attack revegetation plants in post-coal mining areas

Science.gov (United States)

Yusuf, Muhammad; Arisoesilaningsih, Endang

2017-11-01

This study aimed to explore some invasive exotic plant species that have the potential to disrupt the growth of revegetation plants in post-coal mining areas. This research was conducted in a revegetation area of PT, Amanah Anugerah Adi Mulia (A3M) Kintap site, South Borneo. Direct observation was carried out on some revegetation areas by observing the growth of revegetation plants disturbed by exotic plant species and the spread of exotic plant species. Based on observation, several invasive exotic plant species were identified including Mikania cordata, Centrosema pubescence, Calopogonium mucunoides, Mimosa pudica, Ageratum conyzoides, and Chromolaena odorata. These five plant species grew wild in the revegetation area and showed ability to disrupt the growth of other plants. In some tree species, such as Acacia mangium, Paraserianthes falcataria, M. cordata could inhibit the growth and even kill the trees through covering the tree canopy. So, the trees could not receive optimum sun light for photosynthesis processes. M. cordata was also observed to have the most widespread distribution. Several exotic plant species such as C. mucunoides, M. pudica, and A. conyzoides were observed to have deep root systems compared with plant species used for revegetation. This growth characteristic allowed exotic plant species to win the competition for nutrient absorption with other plant species.

Electronic plants

Science.gov (United States)

Stavrinidou, Eleni; Gabrielsson, Roger; Gomez, Eliot; Crispin, Xavier; Nilsson, Ove; Simon, Daniel T.; Berggren, Magnus

2015-01-01

The roots, stems, leaves, and vascular circuitry of higher plants are responsible for conveying the chemical signals that regulate growth and functions. From a certain perspective, these features are analogous to the contacts, interconnections, devices, and wires of discrete and integrated electronic circuits. Although many attempts have been made to augment plant function with electroactive materials, plants’ “circuitry” has never been directly merged with electronics. We report analog and digital organic electronic circuits and devices manufactured in living plants. The four key components of a circuit have been achieved using the xylem, leaves, veins, and signals of the plant as the template and integral part of the circuit elements and functions. With integrated and distributed electronics in plants, one can envisage a range of applications including precision recording and regulation of physiology, energy harvesting from photosynthesis, and alternatives to genetic modification for plant optimization. PMID:26702448

Stress tolerant plants

OpenAIRE

Rubio, Vicente; Iniesto Sánchez, Elisa; Irigoyen Miguel, María Luisa

2014-01-01

[EN] The invention relates to transgenic plants and methods for modulating abscisic acid (ABA) perception and signal transduction in plants. The plants find use in increasing yield in plants, particularly under abiotic stress.

The application of plant information system on third Qinshan nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu Wangtian

2005-01-01

Plant overall control has been applied in Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant, which enhances the security of plant operation, but it is not enough to improve the technical administration level. In order to integrate the overall information and to improve the technical administration level more. Third Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant applies the plant information system. This thesis introduces the application of plant information system in Third Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant and the effect to the plant after the system is carried into execution, in addition, it does more analysis and exceptions for application of plant information system in the future. (authors)

Linking plant nutritional status to plant-microbe interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Carvalhais, Lilia C; Dennis, Paul G; Fan, Ben; Fedoseyenko, Dmitri; Kierul, Kinga; Becker, Anke; von Wiren, Nicolaus; Borriss, Rainer

2013-01-01

Plants have developed a wide-range of adaptations to overcome nutrient limitation, including changes to the quantity and composition of carbon-containing compounds released by roots. Root-associated bacteria are largely influenced by these compounds which can be perceived as signals or substrates. Here, we evaluate the effect of root exudates collected from maize plants grown under nitrogen (N), phosphate (P), iron (Fe) and potassium (K) deficiencies on the transcriptome of the plant growth promoting rhizobacterium (PGPR) Bacillus amyloliquefaciens FZB42. The largest shifts in gene expression patterns were observed in cells exposed to exudates from N-, followed by P-deficient plants. Exudates from N-deprived maize triggered a general stress response in FZB42 in the exponential growth phase, which was evidenced by the suppression of numerous genes involved in protein synthesis. Exudates from P-deficient plants induced bacterial genes involved in chemotaxis and motility whilst exudates released by Fe and K deficient plants did not cause dramatic changes in the bacterial transcriptome during exponential growth phase. Global transcriptional changes in bacteria elicited by nutrient deficient maize exudates were significantly correlated with concentrations of the amino acids aspartate, valine and glutamate in root exudates suggesting that transcriptional profiling of FZB42 associated with metabolomics of N, P, Fe and K-deficient maize root exudates is a powerful approach to better understand plant-microbe interactions under conditions of nutritional stress.

Plant diversity and plant identity influence Fusarium communities in soil.

Science.gov (United States)

LeBlanc, Nicholas; Kinkel, Linda; Kistler, H Corby

2017-01-01

Fusarium communities play important functional roles in soil and in plants as pathogens, endophytes, and saprotrophs. This study tests how rhizosphere Fusarium communities may vary with plant species, changes in the diversity of the surrounding plant community, and soil physiochemical characteristics. Fusarium communities in soil associated with the roots of two perennial prairie plant species maintained as monocultures or growing within polyculture plant communities were characterized using targeted metagenomics. Amplicon libraries targeting the RPB2 locus were generated from rhizosphere soil DNAs and sequenced using pyrosequencing. Sequences were clustered into operational taxonomic units (OTUs) and assigned a taxonomy using the Evolutionary Placement Algorithm. Fusarium community composition was differentiated between monoculture and polyculture plant communities, and by plant species in monoculture, but not in polyculture. Taxonomic classification of the Fusarium OTUs showed a predominance of F. tricinctum and F. oxysporum as well of the presence of a clade previously only found in the Southern Hemisphere. Total Fusarium richness was not affected by changes in plant community richness or correlated with soil physiochemical characteristics. However, OTU richness within two predominant phylogenetic lineages within the genus was positively or negatively correlated with soil physiochemical characteristics among samples within each lineage. This work shows that plant species, plant community richness, and soil physiochemical characteristics may all influence the composition and richness of Fusarium communities in soil.

Plant Density Effect in Different Planting Dates on Growth Indices, Yield and

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F Azizi

2013-04-01

Full Text Available In order to determine the appropriate plant density in different planting dates for sweet corn cultivar KSC403su, an experiment was conducted using a randomized complete block design in split plot lay out with three replications at Seed and Plant Improvement Institute in Karaj in 2006. Three planting dates (22 May, 5 June and 22 June were assigned as main plots and three plant densities (65000, 75000 and 85000 plants per hectare were considered as sub plots. Effect of planting date on row/ear, 1000 kernels weight, biological yield and harvest index was significant at 1% probability level and it was significant at 5% probability level for kernels/ear row and grain yield. All traits decreased with postponement of planting date to 5 June except for row/ear, kernels/row and grain yield. More delay in planting from 22 May to 22 June caused that grain yield was decreased significantly about 32.5% (from 14.45 to 9.78 ton/ha. Effect of plant density was significant at 1% probability level for all the traits. All of the traits decreased significantly with increasing plant density except for biological yield. The highest grain yield was resulted from 65000 plants per hectare density (14.20 ton/ha. Interaction effect of planting date and plant density was significant at 5% probability level for biological yield and harvest index but it wasn’t significant for the other traits. Growth indices decreased with delay in planting date and increasing plant density. Only leaf area index increased in more plant densities. From the results of this experiment it might be resulted that appropriate planting date to produce the highest grain yield is 22 May to 5 June for sweet corn cultivar KSC403su and also the highest grain yield can obtain from 65000 plants per hectare density.

Medicinal Plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Phillipson, J. David

1997-01-01

Highlights the demand for medicinal plants as pharmaceuticals and the demand for health care treatments worldwide and the issues that arise from this. Discusses new drugs from plants, anticancer drugs, antiviral drugs, antimalarial drugs, herbal remedies, quality, safety, efficacy, and conservation of plants. Contains 30 references. (JRH)

Regulatory requirements for desalination plant coupled with nuclear reactor plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yune, Young Gill; Kim, Woong Sik; Jo, Jong Chull; Kim, Hho Jung; Song, Jae Myung

2005-01-01

A small-to-medium sized reactor has been developed for multi-purposes such as seawater desalination, ship propulsion, and district heating since early 1990s in Korea. Now, the construction of its scaled-down research reactor, equipped with a seawater desalination plant, is planned to demonstrate the safety and performance of the design of the multi-purpose reactor. And the licensing application of the research reactor is expected in the near future. Therefore, a development of regulatory requirements/guides for a desalination plant coupled with a nuclear reactor plant is necessary for the preparation of the forthcoming licensing review of the research reactor. In this paper, the following contents are presented: the design of the desalination plant, domestic and foreign regulatory requirements relevant to desalination plants, and a draft of regulatory requirements/guides for a desalination plant coupled with a nuclear reactor plant

Plant simulator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fukumitsu, Hiroyuki

1998-01-01

A simulator of a reactor plant of the present invention comprises a plurality of distributed computers, an indication processing section and an operation section. The simulation calculation functions of various kinds of plant models in the plant are shared by the plurality of computers. The indication processing section controls collection of data of the plant simulated by the computers and instructions of an operator. The operation section is operated by the operator and the results of operation are transmitted to the indication processing section, to conduct operation trainings and display the results of the simulation. Each of the computers and the indication processing portion are connected with each other by a network having a memory for common use. Data such as the results of calculation of plant models and various kinds of parameters of the plant required commonly to the calculators and the indication processing section are stored in the common memory, and adapted to be used by way of the network. (N.H.)

Loss Aversion and Time-Differentiated Electricity Pricing

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Spurlock, C. Anna [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

2015-06-01

I develop a model of loss aversion over electricity expenditure, from which I derive testable predictions for household electricity consumption while on combination time-of-use (TOU) and critical peak pricing (CPP) plans. Testing these predictions results in evidence consistent with loss aversion: (1) spillover effects - positive expenditure shocks resulted in significantly more peak consumption reduction for several weeks thereafter; and (2) clustering - disproportionate probability of consuming such that expenditure would be equal between the TOUCPP or standard flat-rate pricing structures. This behavior is inconsistent with a purely neoclassical utility model, and has important implications for application of time-differentiated electricity pricing.

Dynamique de transfert des matières organiques et inorganiques le long du continuum fluvial de la Garonne : impact de la retenue de Malause

OpenAIRE

Mamoudou, Mohamadou

2008-01-01

Les fleuves sont à l'origine des transferts de matières organiques et inorganiques des continents vers les océans. Ces matières peuvent être séparées par filtration (généralement à 0,45 ou 0,22µm) entre une phase particulaire et une phase dissoute. Le devenir des formes organiques va dépendre de leurs origines. Les formes labiles sont souvent rapidement minéralisées lors de leur transfert tandis que les formes réfractaires ont un comportement conservatif. Nous avons étudié la dynamique de tou...

L’apprentissage de la coopération intercommunale : modalités et instruments

OpenAIRE

Loubet, Lilian

2012-01-01

Le développement de l’intercommunalité donne lieu à des recompositions territoriales et gouvernementales majeures. Les élus se confrontent alors à l’exercice complexe de la coopération et à la définition d’un projet territorial. Il s’agira d’étudier la coopération intercommunale au regard des apprentissages (techniques, politiques et territoriaux) opérés par les maires et de concentrer l’analyse sur les « instruments » de ce processus. Ce propos est illustré par l’étude de l’agglomération tou...

[Distribution of HCB discharged from a chemical plant in plants].

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Jing; Wang, Lin-Ling; Lu, Xiao-Hua; Yuan, Song-Hu; Liu, Xi-Xiang; Wang, Yue; Zhao, Qian; Mei, Ling-Fang

2009-04-15

The distribution characteristics of hexachlorobenzene (HCB) in plant and rhizosphere soil in contamination conduit, a nearby river and a cropland were studied and the impact factors were also discussed. The results are summarized as follows: the range of the HCB concentration in plant and rhizosphere soil in investigation area were respectively from 4.45 microg x kg(-1) to 1,189.89 microg x kg(-1) (dw) and from 27.93 microg x kg(-1) to 3,480.71 microg x kg(-1) (dw). Higher enrichment of HCB in woodplant than herbs due to higher fat concentration in woodplant in the contamination conduit and the rich concentrtion factor of woodplant and herbs were 0.41-2.55 and 0.01-1.34. The range of HCB concentrations in plants in nearby croplands was significantly wide (4.45-333.1 microg x kg(-1)) while HCB concentrations in different parts of plant were various, e.g. HCB concentrations in fruit, root and shoot of taro were 318.77 microg x kg(-1), 281.02 microg x kg(-1) and 10.94 microg x kg(-1). There was a remarkable positive relation between the concentrations of HCB in plant and fat concentration of plant while no relativity between the concentrations of HCB in plant and those in ground soils in the contamination conduit and cropland. The concentration levels of HCB in plant and rhizosphere soil in river were dramatically decreased with increasing distance from contaminated conduit. There was a remarkable positive relation between the concentrations of HCB in plant and those in ground soils but no relation between concentrations of HCB in plant and fat concentration of plant in river. The distribution characteristics of HCB in plants were influenced by contaminated levels, fat concentration and Partition-transfer model.

Plant extraction process

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2006-01-01

A method for producing a plant extract comprises incubating a plant material with an enzyme composition comprising a lipolytic enzyme.......A method for producing a plant extract comprises incubating a plant material with an enzyme composition comprising a lipolytic enzyme....

Integrating Studies on Plant-Pollinator and Plant-Herbivore Interactions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lucas-Barbosa, Dani

2016-01-01

Research on herbivore-induced plant defence and research on pollination ecology have had a long history of separation. Plant reproduction of most angiosperm species is mediated by pollinators, and the effects of herbivore-induced plant defences on pollinator behaviour have been largely neglected.

On-line acquisition of plant related and environmental parameters (plant monitoring) in gerbera: determining plant responses

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Baas, R.; Slootweg, G.

2004-01-01

For on-line plant monitoring equipment to be functional in commercial glasshouse horticulture, relations between sensor readings and plant responses on both the short (days) and long term (weeks) are required. For this reason, systems were installed to monitor rockwool grown gerbera plants on a

Prospects to solar energy power generation in space. Uchu taiyo hatsuden eno tenbo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kudo, I. (Electrotechnical Laboratory, Tsukuba (Japan))

1993-05-01

Solar energy power generation in space uses large arrays of solar cells developed on a geosynchronous orbit to obtain electric energy, which is transmitted to the earth using microwaves. The idea had already been advocated in 1968, which was followed a decade later by joint discussions done by NASA and DOE. The concept intended to take care of the U.S. power demand by using 60 power plant satellites, each having an output of 5 GW. This expanse of the scale, regarded reasonable even today, calls for the solar cell arrays in space spreading over an area of 10 km [times] 5 km if silicon solar cells with a conversion efficiency of 15% are used, and rectenna on the ground (a received wave converting facility) forming an ellipse of 10 km [times] 13 km (assuming a location at the north latitude of 36[degree]). Although there are a number of problems in the idea such as transportation means to lift construction materials into the space and effect of microwaves on the ionosphere and the ecosystems, the Agency of Industrial Science and Technology organized a 'committee for investigating and studying the space power generation systems' in the fiscal year 1991, and has been moving discussions forward since then. 7 refs., 5 figs.

Plutonium Plant, Trombay

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yadav, J.S.; Agarwal, K.

2017-01-01

The journey of Indian nuclear fuel reprocessing started with the commissioning of Plutonium Plant (PP) at Trombay on 22"n"d January, 1965 with an aim to reprocess the spent fuel from research reactor CIRUS. The basic process chosen for the plant was Plutonium Uranium Reduction EXtraction (PUREX) process. In seventies, the plant was subjected to major design modifications and replacement of hardware, which later met the additional demand from research reactor DHRUVA. The augmented plutonium plant has been operating since 1983. Experience gained from this plant was very much helpful to design future reprocessing plant in the country

[Intoxications with plants].

Science.gov (United States)

Kupper, Jacqueline; Reichert, Cornelia

2009-05-01

Ingestions of plants rarely lead to life-threatening intoxications. Highly toxic plants, which can cause death, are monkshood (Aconitum sp.), yew (Taxus sp.) and autumn crocus (Colchicum autumnale). Lethal ingestions of monkshood and yew are usually suicides, intoxications with autumn crocus are mostly accidental ingestions of the leaves mistaken for wild garlic (Allium ursinum). Severe intoxications can occur with plants of the nightshade family like deadly nightshade (Atropa belladonna), angel's trumpet (Datura suaveolens) or jimsonweed (Datura stramonium). These plants are ingested for their psychoactive effects. Ingestion of plant material by children most often only causes minor symptoms or no symptoms at all, as children usually do not eat great quantities of the plants. They are especially attracted by the colorful berries. There are plants with mostly cardiovascular effects like monkshood, yew and Digitalis sp. Some of the most dangerous plants belong to this group. Plants of the nightshade family cause an anticholinergic syndrome. With golden chain (Laburnum anagyroides), castor bean (Ricinus communis) and raw beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) we see severe gastrointestinal effects. Autumn crocus contains a cell toxin, colchicine, which leads to multiorgan failure. Different plants are irritative or even caustic to the skin. Treatment is usually symptomatic. Activated charcoal is administered within one hour after ingestion (1 g/kg). Endoscopic removal of plant material can be considered with ingestions of great quantities of highly toxic plants. Administration of repeated doses of charcoal (1-2 g/h every 2-4 hours) may be effective in case of oleander poisoning. There exist only two antidotes: Anti-digoxin Fab fragments can be used with cardenolide glycoside-containing plants (Digitalis sp., Oleander). Physostigmine is the antidote for severe anticholinergic symptoms of the CNS. Antibodies against colchicine, having been developed in France, are not available at

Plant life management and maintenance technologies for nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ikegami, Tsukasa; Aoki, Masataka; Shimura, Takao; Kaimori, Kimihiro; Koike, Masahiro

2001-01-01

Nuclear power generation occupying an important position for energy source in Japan and supplying about one third of total electric power usage is now required for further upgrading of its economics under regulation relaxation of electric power business. And, under execution retardation of its new planning plant, it becomes important to operate the already established plants for longer term and to secure their stability. Therefore, technical development in response to the plant life elongation is promoted under cooperation of the Ministry of Economics and Industries, electric power companies, literate, and plant manufacturers. Under such conditions, the Hitachi, Ltd. has progressed some technical developments on check inspection, repairs and maintenance for succession of the already established nuclear power plants for longer term under securing of their safety and reliability. And in future, by proposing the check inspection and maintenance program combined with these technologies, it is planned to exert promotion of maintenance program with minimum total cost from a viewpoint of its plant life. Here were described on technologies exerted in the Hitachi, Ltd. such as construction of plant maintenance program in response to plant life elongation agreeing with actual condition of each plant, yearly change mechanism grasping, life evaluation on instruments and materials necessary for maintenance, adequate check inspection, repairs and exchange, and so forth. (G.K.)

Plant life management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Charbonneau, S.; Framatome, J.B.

1992-01-01

Plant life assessment and extension studies have been performed by numerous companies all over the world. Critical equipment has been identified as well as various degradation mechanisms involved in the plant aging process. Nowadays one has to think what to implement to improve the existing situation in the Nuclear Power Plant (NPP). FRAMATOME has undertaken this thought process in order to find the right answers and bring them to utilities facing either critical concern for plant life extension or the problem of management of power plant potential longevity. This is why we prepared a Plant Life Improvement Action Plan, comprising 10 (ten) major items described hereafter using examples of work performed by FRAMATOME for its utility customers desiring to manage the lives of their plants, both in France with EDF and abroad

Plant Research '75

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1975-01-01

Research is reported on stomatal regulation of the gas exchanges between plant and environment; inhibitory effects in flower formation; plant growth and development through hormones; hormone action; development and nitrogen fixation in algae; primary cell wall glycoprotein ectensin; enzymic mechanisms and control of polysaccharide and glycoprotein synthesis; molecular studies of membrane studies; sensory transduction in plants; regulation of formation of protein complexes and enzymes in higher plant cell and mechanism of sulfur dioxide toxicity in plants. (PCS)

Plant air systems safety study: Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1982-05-01

The Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant Air System facilities and operations are reviewed for potential safety problems not covered by standard industrial safety procedures. Information is presented under the following section headings: facility and process description (general); air plant equipment; air distribution system; safety systems; accident analysis; plant air system safety overview; and conclusion

PlantCV v2: Image analysis software for high-throughput plant phenotyping

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Malia A. Gehan

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Systems for collecting image data in conjunction with computer vision techniques are a powerful tool for increasing the temporal resolution at which plant phenotypes can be measured non-destructively. Computational tools that are flexible and extendable are needed to address the diversity of plant phenotyping problems. We previously described the Plant Computer Vision (PlantCV software package, which is an image processing toolkit for plant phenotyping analysis. The goal of the PlantCV project is to develop a set of modular, reusable, and repurposable tools for plant image analysis that are open-source and community-developed. Here we present the details and rationale for major developments in the second major release of PlantCV. In addition to overall improvements in the organization of the PlantCV project, new functionality includes a set of new image processing and normalization tools, support for analyzing images that include multiple plants, leaf segmentation, landmark identification tools for morphometrics, and modules for machine learning.

Are atomic power plants saver than nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roeglin, H.C.

1977-01-01

It is rather impossible to establish nuclear power plants against the resistance of the population. To prevail over this resistance, a clarification of the citizens-initiatives motives which led to it will be necessary. This is to say: It is quite impossible for our population to understand what really heappens in nuclear power plants. They cannot identify themselves with nuclear power plants and thus feel very uncomfortable. As the total population feels the same way it is prepared for solidarity with the citizens-initiatives even if they believe in the necessity of nuclear power plants. Only an information-policy making transparent the social-psychological reasons of the population for being against nuclear power plants could be able to prevail over the resistance. More information about the technical procedures is not sufficient at all. (orig.) [de

Stem parasitic plant Cuscuta australis (dodder) transfers herbivory-induced signals among plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Hettenhausen, Christian; Li, Juan; Zhuang, Huifu; Sun, Huanhuan; Xu, Yuxing; Qi, Jinfeng; Zhang, Jingxiong; Lei, Yunting; Qin, Yan; Sun, Guiling; Wang, Lei; Baldwin, Ian T; Wu, Jianqiang

2017-08-08

Cuscuta spp. (i.e., dodders) are stem parasites that naturally graft to their host plants to extract water and nutrients; multiple adjacent hosts are often parasitized by one or more Cuscuta plants simultaneously, forming connected plant clusters. Metabolites, proteins, and mRNAs are known to be transferred from hosts to Cuscuta , and Cuscuta bridges even facilitate host-to-host virus movement. Whether Cuscuta bridges transmit ecologically meaningful signals remains unknown. Here we show that, when host plants are connected by Cuscuta bridges, systemic herbivory signals are transmitted from attacked plants to unattacked plants, as revealed by the large transcriptomic changes in the attacked local leaves, undamaged systemic leaves of the attacked plants, and leaves of unattacked but connected hosts. The interplant signaling is largely dependent on the jasmonic acid pathway of the damaged local plants, and can be found among conspecific or heterospecific hosts of different families. Importantly, herbivore attack of one host plant elevates defensive metabolites in the other systemic Cuscuta bridge-connected hosts, resulting in enhanced resistance against insects even in several consecutively Cuscuta -connected host plants over long distances (> 100 cm). By facilitating plant-to-plant signaling, Cuscuta provides an information-based means of countering the resource-based fitness costs to their hosts.

PlantPAN: Plant promoter analysis navigator, for identifying combinatorial cis-regulatory elements with distance constraint in plant gene groups

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Huang Hsien-Da

2008-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The elucidation of transcriptional regulation in plant genes is important area of research for plant scientists, following the mapping of various plant genomes, such as A. thaliana, O. sativa and Z. mays. A variety of bioinformatic servers or databases of plant promoters have been established, although most have been focused only on annotating transcription factor binding sites in a single gene and have neglected some important regulatory elements (tandem repeats and CpG/CpNpG islands in promoter regions. Additionally, the combinatorial interaction of transcription factors (TFs is important in regulating the gene group that is associated with the same expression pattern. Therefore, a tool for detecting the co-regulation of transcription factors in a group of gene promoters is required. Results This study develops a database-assisted system, PlantPAN (Plant Promoter Analysis Navigator, for recognizing combinatorial cis-regulatory elements with a distance constraint in sets of plant genes. The system collects the plant transcription factor binding profiles from PLACE, TRANSFAC (public release 7.0, AGRIS, and JASPER databases and allows users to input a group of gene IDs or promoter sequences, enabling the co-occurrence of combinatorial transcription factor binding sites (TFBSs within a defined distance (20 bp to 200 bp to be identified. Furthermore, the new resource enables other regulatory features in a plant promoter, such as CpG/CpNpG islands and tandem repeats, to be displayed. The regulatory elements in the conserved regions of the promoters across homologous genes are detected and presented. Conclusion In addition to providing a user-friendly input/output interface, PlantPAN has numerous advantages in the analysis of a plant promoter. Several case studies have established the effectiveness of PlantPAN. This novel analytical resource is now freely available at http://PlantPAN.mbc.nctu.edu.tw.

Los Alamos Nuclear Plant Analyzer: an interactive power-plant simulation program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Steinke, R.; Booker, C.; Giguere, P.; Liles, D.R.; Mahaffy, J.H.; Turner, M.R.

1984-01-01

The Nuclear Plant Analyzer (NPA) is a computer-software interface for executing the TRAC or RELAP5 power-plant systems codes. The NPA is designed to use advanced supercomputers, long-distance data communications, and a remote workstation terminal with interactive computer graphics to analyze power-plant thermal-hydraulic behavior. The NPA interface simplifies the running of these codes through automated procedures and dialog interaction. User understanding of simulated-plant behavior is enhanced through graphics displays of calculational results. These results are displayed concurrently with the calculation. The user has the capability to override the plant's modeled control system with hardware-adjustment commands. This gives the NPA the utility of a simulator, and at the same time, the accuracy of an advanced, best-estimate, power-plant systems code for plant operation and safety analysis

Nuclear Plant Analyzer: an interactive TRAC/RELAP Power-Plant Simulation Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Steinke, R.; Booker, C.; Giguere, P.; Liles, D.; Mahaffy, J.; Turner, M.; Wiley, R.

1984-01-01

The Nuclear Plant Analyzer (NPA) is a computer-software interface for executing the TRAC or RELAP5 power-plant systems codes. The NPA is designed to use advanced supercomputers, long-distance data communications, and a remote workstation terminal with interactive computer graphics to analyze power-plant thermal-hydraulic behavior. The NPA interface simplifies the running of these codes through automated procedures and dialog interaction. User understanding of simulated-plant behavior is enhanced through graphics displays of calculational results. These results are displayed concurrently with the calculation. The user has the capability to override the plant's modeled control system with hardware adjustment commands. This gives the NPA the utility of a simulator, and at the same time, the accuracy of an advanced, best-estimate, power-plant systems code for plant operation and safety analysis

Report on results of contract research. 'Research on MHD generation system'; MHD hatsuden system no kenkyu seika hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1983-03-01

'Research on MHD generation system' was implemented by its expert committee in the electric joint study group, with the results of fiscal 1982 reported. This year is the final year of this research; therefore, reexamination was made from the practical standpoint on the R and D of coal fired MHD generation, evaluating the present technological level as well as clarifying the development procedures, with proposals made as to the R and D from now on. The present technological level in the practicability is still in the basic stage, where the essential problem is the development of combustors, air heaters and generation channels in particular. An examination was conducted for the problems, procedures and period of the development for each component equipment, with the results provided as materials for studying the path to the experimental plant of 100 MW heat input. In the method of proceeding with the R and D in the future, it was decided as essential, in order to enter the stage of the experimental plant from the element technology development, that R and D is carried out on the unestablished component technology, making sure that no excessive risk is taken in scaling up to the next stage. (NEDO)

Gas turbine cogeneration plant for textile dyeing plant in Italy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tonetti, P.E.

1991-01-01

This paper reports the information (i.e., notes on specific plant component weaknesses and defects, e.g., exchanger tube fouling, improper positioning of temperature probes, incorrect choice of flow valves, etc., and relative remedial actions) gained during a one year cogeneration plant debugging campaign at the Colorama textile dyeing plant in Italy. The cogeneration plant consists of a Solar Saturn MK III gas turbine (1,080 kw at terminals, 500 degrees C exhaust gas temperature); a double (steam and hot water) circuit waste heat boiler contemporaneously producing, with 100 degrees C supply water, 4 tonnes/h steam at 5 bars and 9 cubic meters/h of 20 to 80 degrees C hot water; and a 1,470 kVA generator operating at 3 kV connected by a 3kV/15kV transformer to the national grid. The plant is protected against fire by independent halon fire protection systems, one for the gas turbine plant, the other, for the control room. A modem connects the plant control and monitoring system with the firm which supplied the equipment. The plant operator cites an urgent national requirement for trained cogeneration equipment technical consultants and designers in order to better promote the use of innovative cogeneration technology by Italian industry

Plant-phytopathogen interactions: bacterial responses to environmental and plant stimuli.

Science.gov (United States)

Leonard, Simon; Hommais, Florence; Nasser, William; Reverchon, Sylvie

2017-05-01

Plant pathogenic bacteria attack numerous agricultural crops, causing devastating effects on plant productivity and yield. They survive in diverse environments, both in plants, as pathogens, and also outside their hosts as saprophytes. Hence, they are confronted with numerous changing environmental parameters. During infection, plant pathogens have to deal with stressful conditions, such as acidic, oxidative and osmotic stresses; anaerobiosis; plant defenses; and contact with antimicrobial compounds. These adverse conditions can reduce bacterial survival and compromise disease initiation and propagation. Successful bacterial plant pathogens must detect potential hosts and also coordinate their possibly conflicting programs for survival and virulence. Consequently, these bacteria have a strong and finely tuned capacity for sensing and responding to environmental and plant stimuli. This review summarizes our current knowledge of the signals and genetic circuits that affect survival and virulence factor expression in three important and well-studied plant pathogenic bacteria with wide host ranges and the capacity for long-term environmental survival. These are: Ralstonia solanacerarum, a vascular pathogen that causes wilt disease; Agrobacterium tumefaciens, a biotrophic tumorigenic pathogen responsible for crown gall disease and Dickeya, a brute force apoplastic pathogen responsible for soft-rot disease. © 2016 Society for Applied Microbiology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Plant diagnosis device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tozuka, Shin-ichi.

1996-01-01

Standard data approximately defined are inputted as 1:1 functional data between at least two or more plant data and each of plant data are inputted. Diagnosis data corresponding to each of process data are formed based on the functional data. Limit value data to be a threshold value which determines whether the diagnosis data are in a predetermined state or not are formed. The diagnosis data and the limit value data are displayed in a recognizable state. If diagnosis data of a plurality of plants are displayed simultaneously, all of the plant data are substantially the same value with one standard datum if the plant is in a normal state. When abnormality should occur in the plant, the difference between the diagnosis data and the standard data is remarkable, and the difference between the diagnosis data of other normal plant data and the standard data are also made remarkably, accordingly, the display of a plurality of diagnosis data is scattered thereby capable of diagnosing the abnormality of the plant. (N.H.)

Interannual variability of plant phenology in tussock tundra: modelling interactions of plant productivity, plant phenology, snowmelt and soil thaw

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wijk, van M.T.; Williams, M.; Laundre, J.A.; Shaver, G.R.

2003-01-01

We present a linked model of plant productivity, plant phenology, snowmelt and soil thaw in order to estimate interannual variability of arctic plant phenology and its effects on plant productivity. The model is tested using 8 years of soil temperature data, and three years of bud break data of

Methylobacterium-plant interaction genes regulated by plant exudate and quorum sensing molecules

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Manuella Nóbrega Dourado

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Bacteria from the genus Methylobacterium interact symbiotically (endophytically and epiphytically with different plant species. These interactions can promote plant growth or induce systemic resistance, increasing plant fitness. The plant colonization is guided by molecular communication between bacteria-bacteria and bacteria-plants, where the bacteria recognize specific exuded compounds by other bacteria (e.g. homoserine molecules and/or by the plant roots (e.g. flavonoids, ethanol and methanol, respectively. In this context, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of quorum sensing molecules (N-acyl-homoserine lactones and plant exudates (including ethanol in the expression of a series of bacterial genes involved in Methylobacterium-plant interaction. The selected genes are related to bacterial metabolism (mxaF, adaptation to stressful environment (crtI, phoU and sss, to interactions with plant metabolism compounds (acdS and pathogenicity (patatin and phoU. Under in vitro conditions, our results showed the differential expression of some important genes related to metabolism, stress and pathogenesis, thereby AHL molecules up-regulate all tested genes, except phoU, while plant exudates induce only mxaF gene expression. In the presence of plant exudates there is a lower bacterial density (due the endophytic and epiphytic colonization, which produce less AHL, leading to down regulation of genes when compared to the control. Therefore, bacterial density, more than plant exudate, influences the expression of genes related to plant-bacteria interaction.

Plant dynamics studies towards design of plant protection system for PFBR

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Natesan, K., E-mail: natesan@igcar.gov.in [Nuclear and Safety Engineering Group, Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam 603 102 (India); Kasinathan, N.; Velusamy, K.; Selvaraj, P.; Chellapandi, P. [Nuclear and Safety Engineering Group, Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam 603 102 (India)

2012-09-15

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Analysis of various design basis events in a fast breeder reactor towards design of plant protection system. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Plant dynamic modeling of a sodium cooled fast breeder reactor. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Selection of optimum set of plant parameters for considering best plant availability. - Abstract: Prototype fast breeder reactor (PFBR) is a 500 MWe (1250 MWt) liquid sodium cooled pool type reactor currently under construction in India. For a safe and efficient operation of the plant, it is necessary that the reactor is protected from all the transients that may occur in the plant. In order to accomplish this, adequate number of SCRAM parameters is required in the plant protection system with reliable instrumentation. For identifying the SCRAM parameters, the neutronic and thermal hydraulic responses of the plant for various possible events need to be established. Towards this, a one dimensional plant dynamics code DYANA-P has been developed with thermal hydraulic models for reactor core, hot and cold pools, intermediate heat exchangers, pipelines, steam generator, primary sodium circuits and secondary sodium circuits. The code also incorporates neutron kinetics and reactivity feedback models. By a comprehensive plant dynamics study an optimum list of SCRAM parameters and the maximum permissible response time for various instruments used for deriving them have been arrived at.

Employing modern power plant simulators in nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Niedorf, V.; Storm, J.

2005-01-01

At the present state of the art, modern power plant simulators are characterized by new qualitative features, thus enabling operators to use them far beyond the traditional field of training. In its first part, this contribution presents an overview of the requirements to be met by simulators for multivalent uses. In part two, a survey of the uses and perspectives of simulation technology in power plants is presented on the basis of experience accumulated by Rheinmetall Defence Electronics (RDE).Modern simulators are shown to have applications by far exceeding traditional training areas. Modular client - sever systems on standard computers allow inexpensive uses to be designed at several levels, thus minimizing maintenance cost. Complex development and running time environments, like the SEMS developed by RDE, have made power plant simulators the workhorses of power plant engineers in all power plant areas. (orig.)

Plant-plant interactions in the restoration of Mediterranean drylands

Science.gov (United States)

Valdecantos, Alejandro; Fuentes, David; Smanis, Athanasios

2014-05-01

Plant-plant interactions are complex and dependent of both local abiotic features of the ecosystem and biotic relationships with other plants and animals. The net result of these interactions may be positive, negative or neutral resulting in facilitation, competition or neutralism, respectively (role of phylogeny). It has been proposed that competition is stronger between those individuals that share functional traits than between unrelated ones. The relative interaction effect of one plant on a neighbour may change in relation to resource availability - especially water in drylands. In addition, plants develop above and belowground biomass with time increasing the level and, eventually, changing the intensity and/or the direction of the interaction. In the framework of the restoration of degraded drylands, many studies have focused on the positive (nurse) effects of adult trees, shrubs and even grasses on artificially planted seedlings by improving the microclimate or providing protection against herbivores, but little is known about the interactions between seedlings of different life traits planted together under natural field conditions. In 2010 we established planting plots in two contrasted sites under semiarid Mediterranean climate and introduced one year old seedlings in different combinations of three species, two shrubs (Olea europaea and Pistacia lentiscus) and one grass (Stipa tenacissima). Half of the planting holes in each site were implemented with low-cost ecotechnological inputs to increase water availability by forcing runoff production and promoting deep infiltration (small plastic fabric + dry well). This resulted in four levels of abiotic stress. Biotic interactions were assessed by monitoring seedling survival and growth for three years after planting. The Relative Interaction Index (RII) of S. tenacissima on O. europaea was almost flat and close to 0 along the stress gradient since the beginning of the study suggesting limited interaction

Plant Phenotype Characterization System

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Daniel W McDonald; Ronald B Michaels

2005-09-09

This report is the final scientific report for the DOE Inventions and Innovations Project: Plant Phenotype Characterization System, DE-FG36-04GO14334. The period of performance was September 30, 2004 through July 15, 2005. The project objective is to demonstrate the viability of a new scientific instrument concept for the study of plant root systems. The root systems of plants are thought to be important in plant yield and thus important to DOE goals in renewable energy sources. The scientific study and understanding of plant root systems is hampered by the difficulty in observing root activity and the inadequacy of existing root study instrumentation options. We have demonstrated a high throughput, non-invasive, high resolution technique for visualizing plant root systems in-situ. Our approach is based upon low-energy x-ray radiography and the use of containers and substrates (artificial soil) which are virtually transparent to x-rays. The system allows us to germinate and grow plant specimens in our containers and substrates and to generate x-ray images of the developing root system over time. The same plant can be imaged at different times in its development. The system can be used for root studies in plant physiology, plant morphology, plant breeding, plant functional genomics and plant genotype screening.

PlantNATsDB: a comprehensive database of plant natural antisense transcripts.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Dijun; Yuan, Chunhui; Zhang, Jian; Zhang, Zhao; Bai, Lin; Meng, Yijun; Chen, Ling-Ling; Chen, Ming

2012-01-01

Natural antisense transcripts (NATs), as one type of regulatory RNAs, occur prevalently in plant genomes and play significant roles in physiological and pathological processes. Although their important biological functions have been reported widely, a comprehensive database is lacking up to now. Consequently, we constructed a plant NAT database (PlantNATsDB) involving approximately 2 million NAT pairs in 69 plant species. GO annotation and high-throughput small RNA sequencing data currently available were integrated to investigate the biological function of NATs. PlantNATsDB provides various user-friendly web interfaces to facilitate the presentation of NATs and an integrated, graphical network browser to display the complex networks formed by different NATs. Moreover, a 'Gene Set Analysis' module based on GO annotation was designed to dig out the statistical significantly overrepresented GO categories from the specific NAT network. PlantNATsDB is currently the most comprehensive resource of NATs in the plant kingdom, which can serve as a reference database to investigate the regulatory function of NATs. The PlantNATsDB is freely available at http://bis.zju.edu.cn/pnatdb/.

Effects of plant diversity on the concentration of secondary plant metabolites and the density of arthropods on focal plants in the field

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kostenko, O.; Mulder, Patrick P. J.; Courbois, Matthijs; Bezemer, T. Martijn

2017-01-01

1.The diversity of the surrounding plant community can directly affect the abundance of insects on a focal plant as well as the size and quality of that focal plant. However, to what extent the effects of plant diversity on the arthropod community on a focal plant are mediated by host plant quality

Plant synthetic biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Wusheng; Stewart, C Neal

2015-05-01

Plant synthetic biology is an emerging field that combines engineering principles with plant biology toward the design and production of new devices. This emerging field should play an important role in future agriculture for traditional crop improvement, but also in enabling novel bioproduction in plants. In this review we discuss the design cycles of synthetic biology as well as key engineering principles, genetic parts, and computational tools that can be utilized in plant synthetic biology. Some pioneering examples are offered as a demonstration of how synthetic biology can be used to modify plants for specific purposes. These include synthetic sensors, synthetic metabolic pathways, and synthetic genomes. We also speculate about the future of synthetic biology of plants. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Plant neurobiology and green plant intelligence : science, metaphors and nonsense

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Struik, P.C.; Yin, X.; Meinke, H.B.

2008-01-01

This paper analyses the recent debates on the emerging science of plant neurobiology, which claims that the individual green plant should be considered as an intelligent organism. Plant neurobiology tries to use elements from animal physiology as elegant metaphors to trigger the imagination in

Improvement of plant reliability in PT. Badak LNG plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Achmad, S.; Somantri, A.

1997-01-01

PT. Badak's LNG sales commitment has been steadily increasing, therefore, there has been more emphasis to improve and maintain the LNG plant reliability. From plant operation historical records, Badak LNG plant experienced a high number of LNG process train trips and down time for 1977 through 1988. The highest annual number of LNG plant trips (50 times) occurred in 1983 and the longest LNG process train down time (1259 train-hours) occurred in 1988. Since 1989, PT. Badak has been able to reduce the number of LNG process train trips and down time significantly. In 1994 the number of LNG process train trips and was 18 times and the longest LNG process train down time was 377 train-hours. This plant reliability improvement was achieved by implementing plant reliability improvement programs beginning with the design of the new facilities and continuing with the maintenance and modification of the existing facilities. To improve reliability of the existing facilities, PT. Badak has been implementing comprehensive maintenance programs, to reduce the frequency and down time of the plant, such as Preventive and Predictive Maintenance as well as procurement material improvement since PT. Badak location is in a remote area. By implementing the comprehensive reliability maintenance, PT. Badak has been able to reduce the LNG process train trips to 18 and down time to 337 train hours in 1994 with the subsequent maintenance cost reduction. The average PT. Badak plant availability from 1985 to 1995 is 94.59%. New facilities were designed according to the established PT. Badak design philosophy, master plan and specification. Design of new facilities was modified to avoid certain problems from past experience. (au)

Ecology and Genomic Insights into Plant-Pathogenic and Plant-Nonpathogenic Endophytes.

Science.gov (United States)

Brader, Günter; Compant, Stéphane; Vescio, Kathryn; Mitter, Birgit; Trognitz, Friederike; Ma, Li-Jun; Sessitsch, Angela

2017-08-04

Plants are colonized on their surfaces and in the rhizosphere and phyllosphere by a multitude of different microorganisms and are inhabited internally by endophytes. Most endophytes act as commensals without any known effect on their plant host, but multiple bacteria and fungi establish a mutualistic relationship with plants, and some act as pathogens. The outcome of these plant-microbe interactions depends on biotic and abiotic environmental factors and on the genotype of the host and the interacting microorganism. In addition, endophytic microbiota and the manifold interactions between members, including pathogens, have a profound influence on the function of the system plant and the development of pathobiomes. In this review, we elaborate on the differences and similarities between nonpathogenic and pathogenic endophytes in terms of host plant response, colonization strategy, and genome content. We furthermore discuss environmental effects and biotic interactions within plant microbiota that influence pathogenesis and the pathobiome.

MIPS PlantsDB: a database framework for comparative plant genome research.

Science.gov (United States)

Nussbaumer, Thomas; Martis, Mihaela M; Roessner, Stephan K; Pfeifer, Matthias; Bader, Kai C; Sharma, Sapna; Gundlach, Heidrun; Spannagl, Manuel

2013-01-01

The rapidly increasing amount of plant genome (sequence) data enables powerful comparative analyses and integrative approaches and also requires structured and comprehensive information resources. Databases are needed for both model and crop plant organisms and both intuitive search/browse views and comparative genomics tools should communicate the data to researchers and help them interpret it. MIPS PlantsDB (http://mips.helmholtz-muenchen.de/plant/genomes.jsp) was initially described in NAR in 2007 [Spannagl,M., Noubibou,O., Haase,D., Yang,L., Gundlach,H., Hindemitt, T., Klee,K., Haberer,G., Schoof,H. and Mayer,K.F. (2007) MIPSPlantsDB-plant database resource for integrative and comparative plant genome research. Nucleic Acids Res., 35, D834-D840] and was set up from the start to provide data and information resources for individual plant species as well as a framework for integrative and comparative plant genome research. PlantsDB comprises database instances for tomato, Medicago, Arabidopsis, Brachypodium, Sorghum, maize, rice, barley and wheat. Building up on that, state-of-the-art comparative genomics tools such as CrowsNest are integrated to visualize and investigate syntenic relationships between monocot genomes. Results from novel genome analysis strategies targeting the complex and repetitive genomes of triticeae species (wheat and barley) are provided and cross-linked with model species. The MIPS Repeat Element Database (mips-REdat) and Catalog (mips-REcat) as well as tight connections to other databases, e.g. via web services, are further important components of PlantsDB.

Morphological Plant Modeling: Unleashing Geometric and Topological Potential within the Plant Sciences

Science.gov (United States)

Bucksch, Alexander; Atta-Boateng, Acheampong; Azihou, Akomian F.; Battogtokh, Dorjsuren; Baumgartner, Aly; Binder, Brad M.; Braybrook, Siobhan A.; Chang, Cynthia; Coneva, Viktoirya; DeWitt, Thomas J.; Fletcher, Alexander G.; Gehan, Malia A.; Diaz-Martinez, Diego Hernan; Hong, Lilan; Iyer-Pascuzzi, Anjali S.; Klein, Laura L.; Leiboff, Samuel; Li, Mao; Lynch, Jonathan P.; Maizel, Alexis; Maloof, Julin N.; Markelz, R. J. Cody; Martinez, Ciera C.; Miller, Laura A.; Mio, Washington; Palubicki, Wojtek; Poorter, Hendrik; Pradal, Christophe; Price, Charles A.; Puttonen, Eetu; Reese, John B.; Rellán-Álvarez, Rubén; Spalding, Edgar P.; Sparks, Erin E.; Topp, Christopher N.; Williams, Joseph H.; Chitwood, Daniel H.

2017-01-01

The geometries and topologies of leaves, flowers, roots, shoots, and their arrangements have fascinated plant biologists and mathematicians alike. As such, plant morphology is inherently mathematical in that it describes plant form and architecture with geometrical and topological techniques. Gaining an understanding of how to modify plant morphology, through molecular biology and breeding, aided by a mathematical perspective, is critical to improving agriculture, and the monitoring of ecosystems is vital to modeling a future with fewer natural resources. In this white paper, we begin with an overview in quantifying the form of plants and mathematical models of patterning in plants. We then explore the fundamental challenges that remain unanswered concerning plant morphology, from the barriers preventing the prediction of phenotype from genotype to modeling the movement of leaves in air streams. We end with a discussion concerning the education of plant morphology synthesizing biological and mathematical approaches and ways to facilitate research advances through outreach, cross-disciplinary training, and open science. Unleashing the potential of geometric and topological approaches in the plant sciences promises to transform our understanding of both plants and mathematics. PMID:28659934

Morphological Plant Modeling: Unleashing Geometric and Topological Potential within the Plant Sciences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexander Bucksch

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The geometries and topologies of leaves, flowers, roots, shoots, and their arrangements have fascinated plant biologists and mathematicians alike. As such, plant morphology is inherently mathematical in that it describes plant form and architecture with geometrical and topological techniques. Gaining an understanding of how to modify plant morphology, through molecular biology and breeding, aided by a mathematical perspective, is critical to improving agriculture, and the monitoring of ecosystems is vital to modeling a future with fewer natural resources. In this white paper, we begin with an overview in quantifying the form of plants and mathematical models of patterning in plants. We then explore the fundamental challenges that remain unanswered concerning plant morphology, from the barriers preventing the prediction of phenotype from genotype to modeling the movement of leaves in air streams. We end with a discussion concerning the education of plant morphology synthesizing biological and mathematical approaches and ways to facilitate research advances through outreach, cross-disciplinary training, and open science. Unleashing the potential of geometric and topological approaches in the plant sciences promises to transform our understanding of both plants and mathematics.

Reassessing apoptosis in plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Dickman, Martin; Williams, Brett; Li, Yurong; de Figueiredo, Paul; Wolpert, Thomas

2017-10-01

Cell death can be driven by a genetically programmed signalling pathway known as programmed cell death (PCD). In plants, PCD occurs during development as well as in response to environmental and biotic stimuli. Our understanding of PCD regulation in plants has advanced significantly over the past two decades; however, the molecular machinery responsible for driving the system remains elusive. Thus, whether conserved PCD regulatory mechanisms include plant apoptosis remains enigmatic. Animal apoptotic regulators, including Bcl-2 family members, have not been identified in plants but expression of such regulators can trigger or suppress plant PCD. Moreover, plants exhibit nearly all of the biochemical and morphological features of apoptosis. One difference between plant and animal PCD is the absence of phagocytosis in plants. Evidence is emerging that the vacuole may be key to removal of unwanted plant cells, and may carry out functions that are analogous to animal phagocytosis. Here, we provide context for the argument that apoptotic-like cell death occurs in plants.

Ethno-Botanical Survey Of Medicinal Plants In The Plant Genetic ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The ethno-botanical uses and mode of administration of twenty-nine medicinal plants found in the arboretum of the Plant Genetic Resource Centre located at Bunso in the Eastern region of Ghana against some disease conditions are hereby documented. Key words: Ethnobotany, medicinal plants, arboretum, Ghana. Nig.

Kansas Power Plants

Data.gov (United States)

Kansas Data Access and Support Center — The Kansas Power Plants database depicts, as point features, the locations of the various types of power plant locations in Kansas. The locations of the power plants...

Gender in Plants

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

What is the difference between plant sex and plant gender? Why does stress .... environmental sex determination is often predictable. Sunlit patches favour .... ensures that these self-incompatible plants receive cross-pollen only. i emporal ...

Hydroelectric Power Plants Dobsina

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Majercak, V.; Srenkelova, Z.; Kristak, J.G.

1997-01-01

In this brochure the Hydroelectric Power Plants Dobsina, (VED), subsidiary of the utility Slovenske Elektrarne, a.s. (Slovak Electric, plc. Bratislava) are presented. VED is mainly aimed at generating peak-load electrical energy and maintenance of operational equipment. Reaching its goals, company is first of all focused on reliability of production, economy and effectiveness, keeping principles of work safety and industry safety standards and also ecology. VED operates eight hydroelectric power plants, from which PVE Ruzin I and PVE Dobsina I are pump storage ones and they are controlled directly by the Slovak Energy Dispatch Centre located in Zilina thought the system LS 3200. Those power plants participate in secondary regulation of electrical network of Slovakia. They are used to compensate balance in reference to foreign electrical networks and they are put into operation independently from VED. Activity of the branch is focused mainly on support of fulfilment of such an important aim as electric network regulation. Beginnings of the subsidiary Hydroelectric Power Plants Dobsina are related to the year of 1948. After commissioning of the pump storage Hydroelectric Power Plants Dobsina in 1953, the plant started to carry out its mission. Since that time the subsidiary has been enlarged by other seven power plants, through which it is fulfilling its missions nowadays. The characteristics of these hydroelectric power plants (The pump-storage power plant Dobsina, Small hydroelectric power plant Dobsina II, Small hydroelectric power plant Rakovec, Small hydroelectric power plant Svedlar, Hydroelectric power plant Domasa, The pump-storage power plant Ruzin, and Small hydroelectric power plant Krompachy) are described in detail. Employees welfare and public relations are presented

Not all GMOs are crop plants: non-plant GMO applications in agriculture.

Science.gov (United States)

Hokanson, K E; Dawson, W O; Handler, A M; Schetelig, M F; St Leger, R J

2014-12-01

Since tools of modern biotechnology have become available, the most commonly applied and often discussed genetically modified organisms are genetically modified crop plants, although genetic engineering is also being used successfully in organisms other than plants, including bacteria, fungi, insects, and viruses. Many of these organisms, as with crop plants, are being engineered for applications in agriculture, to control plant insect pests or diseases. This paper reviews the genetically modified non-plant organisms that have been the subject of permit approvals for environmental release by the United States Department of Agriculture/Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service since the US began regulating genetically modified organisms. This is an indication of the breadth and progress of research in the area of non-plant genetically modified organisms. This review includes three examples of promising research on non-plant genetically modified organisms for application in agriculture: (1) insects for insect pest control using improved vector systems; (2) fungal pathogens of insects to control insect pests; and (3) virus for use as transient-expression vectors for disease control in plants.

Air pollution impedes plant-to-plant communication, but what is the signal?

Science.gov (United States)

Blande, James D; Li, Tao; Holopainen, Jarmo K

2011-07-01

Since the first reports that undamaged plants gain defensive benefits following exposure to damaged neighbors, the idea that plants may signal to each other has attracted much interest. There has also been substantial debate concerning the ecological significance of the process and the evolutionary drivers. Part of this debate has centered on the distance over which signaling between plants occurs in nature. In a recent study we showed that an ozone concentration of 80 ppb, commonly encountered in nature, significantly reduces the distance over which plant-plant signaling occurs in lima bean. We went on to show that degradation of herbivore-induced plant volatiles by ozone is the likely mechanism for this. The key question remaining from our work was that if ozone is degrading the signal in transit between plants, which chemicals are responsible for transmitting the signal in purer air? Here we present the results of a small scale experiment testing the role of the two most significant herbivore-induced terpenes and discuss our results in terms of other reported functions for these chemicals in plant-plant signaling.

Effects of planting date and plant density on crop growth of cut chrysanthemum

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lee, J.H.; Heuvelink, E.; Challa, H.

2002-01-01

The effects of planting date (season) and plant density (32, 48 or 64 plants m-2) on growth of cut chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum (Indicum group)) were investigated in six greenhouse experiments, applying the expolinear growth equation. Final plant fresh and dry mass and number of flowers per plant

Plant diversity increases spatio?temporal niche complementarity in plant?pollinator interactions

OpenAIRE

Venjakob, Christine; Klein, Alexandra?Maria; Ebeling, Anne; Tscharntke, Teja; Scherber, Christoph

2016-01-01

Ongoing biodiversity decline impairs ecosystem processes, including pollination. Flower visitation, an important indicator of pollination services, is influenced by plant species richness. However, the spatio-temporal responses of different pollinator groups to plant species richness have not yet been analyzed experimentally. Here, we used an experimental plant species richness gradient to analyze plant-pollinator interactions with an unprecedented spatio-temporal resolution. We observed four...

Alien plant invasions and native plant extinctions: a six-threshold framework

Science.gov (United States)

Downey, Paul O.; Richardson, David M.

2016-01-01

Biological invasions are widely acknowledged as a major threat to global biodiversity. Species from all major taxonomic groups have become invasive. The range of impacts of invasive taxa and the overall magnitude of the threat is increasing. Plants comprise the biggest and best-studied group of invasive species. There is a growing debate; however, regarding the nature of the alien plant threat—in particular whether the outcome is likely to be the widespread extinction of native plant species. The debate has raised questions on whether the threat posed by invasive plants to native plants has been overstated. We provide a conceptual framework to guide discussion on this topic, in which the threat posed by invasive plants is considered in the context of a progression from no impact through to extinction. We define six thresholds along the ‘extinction trajectory’, global extinction being the final threshold. Although there are no documented examples of either ‘in the wild’ (Threshold 5) or global extinctions (Threshold 6) of native plants that are attributable solely to plant invasions, there is evidence that native plants have crossed or breached other thresholds along the extinction trajectory due to the impacts associated with plant invasions. Several factors may be masking where native species are on the trajectory; these include a lack of appropriate data to accurately map the position of species on the trajectory, the timeframe required to definitively state that extinctions have occurred and management interventions. Such interventions, focussing mainly on Thresholds 1–3 (a declining population through to the local extinction of a population), are likely to alter the extinction trajectory of some species. The critical issue for conservation managers is the trend, because interventions must be implemented before extinctions occur. Thus the lack of evidence for extinctions attributable to plant invasions does not mean we should disregard the broader

Design and simulation of a plant control system for a GCFR demonstration plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Estrine, E.A.; Greiner, H.G.

1980-02-01

A plant control system is being designed for a 300 MW(e) Gas Cooled Fast Breeder Reactor (GCFR) demonstration plant. Control analysis is being performed as an integral part of the plant design process to ensure that control requirements are satisfied as the plant design evolves. Plant models and simulations are being developed to generate information necessary to further define control system requirements for subsequent plant design iterations

Anatomical Alterations in Plant Tissues Induced by Plant-Parasitic Nematodes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juan E. Palomares-Rius

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Plant-parasitic nematodes (PPNs interact with plants in different ways, for example, through subtle feeding behavior, migrating destructively through infected tissues, or acting as virus-vectors for nepoviruses. They are all obligate biotrophic parasites as they derive their nutrients from living cells which they modify using pharyngeal gland secretions prior to food ingestion. Some of them can also shield themselves against plant defenses to sustain a relatively long lasting interaction while feeding. This paper is centered on cell types or organs that are newly induced in plants during PPN parasitism, including recent approaches to their study based on molecular biology combined with cell biology-histopathology. This issue has already been reviewed extensively for major PPNs (i.e., root-knot or cyst nematodes, but not for other genera (viz. Nacobbus aberrans, Rotylenchulus spp.. PPNs have evolved with plants and this co-evolution process has allowed the induction of new types of plant cells necessary for their parasitism. There are four basic types of feeding cells: (i non-hypertrophied nurse cells; (ii single giant cells; (iii syncytia; and (iv coenocytes. Variations in the structure of these cells within each group are also present between some genera depending on the nematode species viz. Meloidogyne or Rotylenchulus. This variability of feeding sites may be related in some way to PPN life style (migratory ectoparasites, sedentary ectoparasites, migratory ecto-endoparasites, migratory endoparasites, or sedentary endoparasites. Apart from their co-evolution with plants, the response of plant cells and roots are closely related to feeding behavior, the anatomy of the nematode (mainly stylet size, which could reach different types of cells in the plant, and the secretory fluids produced in the pharyngeal glands. These secretory fluids are injected through the stylet into perforated cells where they modify plant cytoplasm prior to food removal

The microbiome of medicinal plants: diversity and importance for plant growth, quality and health.

Science.gov (United States)

Köberl, Martina; Schmidt, Ruth; Ramadan, Elshahat M; Bauer, Rudolf; Berg, Gabriele

2013-12-20

Past medicinal plant research primarily focused on bioactive phytochemicals, however, the focus is currently shifting due to the recognition that a significant number of phytotherapeutic compounds are actually produced by associated microbes or through interaction with their host. Medicinal plants provide an enormous bioresource of potential use in modern medicine and agriculture, yet their microbiome is largely unknown. The objective of this review is (i) to introduce novel insights into the plant microbiome with a focus on medicinal plants, (ii) to provide details about plant- and microbe-derived ingredients of medicinal plants, and (iii) to discuss possibilities for plant growth promotion and plant protection for commercial cultivation of medicinal plants. In addition, we also present a case study performed both to analyse the microbiome of three medicinal plants (Matricaria chamomilla L., Calendula officinalis L., and Solanum distichum Schumach. and Thonn.) cultivated on organically managed Egyptian desert farm and to develop biological control strategies. The soil microbiome of the desert ecosystem was comprised of a high abundance of Gram-positive bacteria of prime importance for pathogen suppression under arid soil conditions. For all three plants, we observed a clearly plant-specific selection of the microbes as well as highly specific diazotrophic communities that overall identify plant species as important drivers in structural and functional diversity. Lastly, native Bacillus spec. div. strains were able to promote plant growth and elevate the plants' flavonoid production. These results underline the numerous links between the plant-associated microbiome and the plant metabolome.

Plant-based raw material: Improved food quality for better nutrition via plant genomics

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meer, van der I.M.; Bovy, A.G.; Bosch, H.J.

2001-01-01

Plants form the basis of the human food chain. Characteristics of plants are therefore crucial to the quantity and quality of human food. In this review, it is discussed how technological developments in the area of plant genomics and plant genetics help to mobilise the potential of plants to

Orchestrating an Effective Formulation to Investigate the Impact of EMSs (Energy Management Systems for Residential Units Prior to Installation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Danish Mahmood

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Demand Response (DR programs under the umbrella of Demand Side Management (DSM tend to involve end users in optimizing their Power Consumption (PC patterns and offer financial incentives to shift the load at “low-priced” hours. However, users have their own preferences of anticipating the amount of consumed electricity. While installing an Energy Management System (EMS, the user must be assured that this investment gives optimum comfort of bill savings, as well as appliance utility considering Time of Use (ToU. Moreover, there is a difference between desired load distribution and optimally-scheduled load across a 24-h time frame for lowering electricity bills. This difference in load usage timings, if it is beyond the tolerance level of a user, increases frustration. The comfort level is a highly variable phenomenon. An EMS giving optimum comfort to one user may not be able to provide the same level of satisfaction to another who has different preferences regarding electricity bill savings or appliance utility. Under such a diversity of human behaviors, it is difficult to select an EMS for an individual user. In this work, a numeric performance metric,“User Comfort Level (UCL”isformulatedonthebasisofuserpreferencesoncostsaving,toleranceindelayregardinguse of an appliance and return of investment. The proposed framework (UCL allows the user to select an EMS optimally that suits his.her preferences well by anticipating electricity bill reduction, tolerable delay in ToU of the appliance and return on investment. Furthermore, an extended literature analysis is conducted demonstrating generic strategies of EMSs. Five major building blocks are discussed and a comparative analysis is presented on the basis of the proposed performance metric.

Cooperative consumers in a deregulated electricity market - dynamic consumption strategies and price coordination

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Haemaelaeinen, R.P.; Maentysaari, J. [Helsinki Univ. of Technology (Finland). Systems Analysis Lab.; Ruusunen, J. [Fortum Power and Heat Inc. (Finland); Pineau, P.O. [Helsinki Univ. of Technology (Finland). Systems Analysis Lab.; Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales, Monteal , Quebec (Canada)

2000-09-01

As the trend in electricity markets is strongly towards deregulation, new players, new rules and new behaviors will continue to emerge. One of the new developments on the demand side is purchases made by a coalition of consumers. It seems indeed likely that in the future this will be more common, and that coalitions of consumers will emerge when they are worthwhile. The aim of this paper is to study how such an organization of consumers can be set up in a hierarchical framework. This new approach has not been described before in the deregulated electricity markets but is clearly an important research topic. We focus our interest on electric space heating, which is an energy need especially important in the Nordic countries such as Finland. We examine the consumption strategies of individual electricity buyers within a coalition. The decision problem all consumers face is to find the optimal use of their space heating system with respect to changes in electricity prices and to their tolerance to indoor temperature variation. A mathematical model for this problem is defined. Physical parameters of sample houses were gathered from an experimental field test conducted in Helsinki during the winter of 1996. The coalition buys in the market at marginal cost. However, as marginal cost pricing may not always fulfill metering and communication needs of the members of the coalition, we consider Time-Of-Use (TOU) pricing within the coalition. Different groups of consumer behavior are constructed to simulate this coalition. The optimal marginal price is used as a reference point to estimate the nearest TOU price within the coalition. (author)

Research on intelligent power consumption strategy based on time-of-use pricing

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Wei; Gong, Li; Chen, Heli; He, Yu

2017-06-01

In this paper, through the analysis of shortcomings of the current domestic and foreign household power consumption strategy: Passive way of power consumption, ignoring the different priority of electric equipment, neglecting the actual load pressure of the grid, ignoring the interaction with the user, to decrease the peak-valley difference and improve load curve in residential area by demand response (DR technology), an intelligent power consumption scheme based on time-of-use(TOU) pricing for household appliances is proposed. The main contribution of this paper is: (1) Three types of household appliance loads are abstracted from different operating laws of various household appliances, and the control models and DR strategies corresponding to these types are established. (2) The fuzzified processing for the information of TOU price, which is based on the time intervals, is performed to get the price priority, in accordance with such DR events as the maximum restricted load of DR, the time of DR and the duration of interruptible load and so on, the DR control rule and pre-scheduling mechanism are led in. (3) The dispatching sequence of household appliances in the control and scheduling queue are switched and controlled to implement the equilibrium of peak and valley loads. The equilibrium effects and economic benefits of power system by pre-scheduling and DR dispatching are compared and analyzed by simulation example, and the results show that using the proposed household appliance control (HAC) scheme the overall cost of consumers can be reduced and the power system load can be alleviated, so the proposed household appliance control (HAC) scheme is feasible and reasonable.

Native plant community response to alien plant invasion and removal

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jara ANDREU

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Given the potential ecological impacts of invasive species, removal of alien plants has become an important management challenge and a high priority for environmental managers. To consider that a removal effort has been successful requires both, the effective elimination of alien plants and the restoration of the native plant community back to its historical composition and function. We present a conceptual framework based on observational and experimental data that compares invaded, non-invaded and removal sites to quantify invaders’ impacts and native plant recover after their removal. We also conduct a meta-analysis to quantitatively evaluate the impacts of plant invaders and the consequences of their removal on the native plant community, across a variety of ecosystems around the world. Our results that invasion by alien plants is responsible for a local decline in native species richness and abundance. Our analysis also provides evidence that after removal, the native vegetation has the potential to recover to a pre-invasion target state. Our review reveal that observational and experimental approaches are rarely used in concert, and that reference sites are scarcely employed to assess native species recovery after removal. However, we believe that comparing invaded, non-invaded and removal sites offer the opportunity to obtain scientific information with relevance for management.

Measuring competition in plant communities where it is difficult to distinguish individual plants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Damgaard, Christian

2011-01-01

A novel method for measuring plant-plant interactions in undisturbed semi-natural and natural plant communities where it is difficult to distinguish individual plants is discussed. It is assumed that the ecological success of the different plant species in the plant community may be adequately...... measured by plant cover and vertical density (a measure that is correlated to the 3-dimensional space occupancy and biomass). Both plant cover and vertical density are measured in a standard pin-point analysis in the beginning and at the end of the growing season. In the outlined competition model....... The method allows direct measurements of the competitive effects of neighbouringzplants on plant performance and the estimation of parameters that describe the ecological processes of plantplant interactions during the growing season as well as the process of survival and recruitment between growing seasons...

Role of land-based prototype plants in propulsion nuclear power plants engineering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Voronin, V.E.; Prokhorov, Yu.A.

1993-01-01

Prototype plants provide a powerful tool for accomplishing tasks of development and construction of newly designed new power plants (NPPs). Leaving aside momentary political or economical considerations, one should admit that the use of prototype plants in testing of new NPPs is quite a necessity. To make the most of prototype plant, its commissioning should precede lead plant construction by 2-3 years. To make good use of prototype plants, a set of basic requirements should be fulfilled: greatest possible identity beteen the facility under test and a new series NPP; provision of high performance data acquisitoin, processing and storage firmware and a modelling system using update computer technique; and developed science infrastructure, engineering support and adequate maintenance. Prototype plants should comply with safety requirements to meet environmental protection standards

The use of plants to protect plants and food against fungal pathogens

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Plant fungal pathogens play a crucial role in the profitability, quality and quantity of plant production. These phytopathogens are persistent in avoiding plant defences causing diseases and quality losses around the world that amount to billions of US dollars annually. To control the scourge of plant fungal ...

Origin and evolution of female plant from an identical male plant, in carica papaya

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tariq, R.M.

2014-01-01

A field study was carried during January 2011 to March, 2013, to confirm the origin and evolution of female plant from an identical male plant in, a dioecious plant, the Carica papaya L. The plants were grown from the seeds of a normal female plant fruit. The grown, plants were identified as XX, XY and XYh (in March - April, 2012) on the basis of male and female flower bearing. The identical male plants, which usually bear only male (unisexual) flowers having calyx, corrolla and androecium, were observed also to bear bisexual flower, having calyx, corrolla, and gynoecium (ovary fused with androecium ). The fruits were set having the bisexual flowers in the identical male (hermaphrodite) plant. These fruits were kept under observation from setting to ripening stage. The ripened fruits were harvested from the identical male plants and 90-95% fruits from these plants were found with the seeds. Plants grown from these male fruit seeds produced all three type of plants i.e., male, female and hermaphrodite. This study indicated that an identical male (XYh) plant produced the female (XX) plant naturally, because of the XXY= XYh condition, which can contribute basic genetic material to male and female plants i.e an identical male (XYh = XXY= 2N +1 = 18+1= 19) produced all three type of plants, the pure male, the hermaphrodite and the female plant, originated from a single source of an identical male, as shown here. XYh = XXY g XY + XX + XXY. The propagation of all three sexes of Carica papaya from a single source of an identical male plant seeds is the first report in the world. (author)

Design of comprehensive plant information system considering maintenance indicators in nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takata, Takashi; Yamaguchi, Akira; Yamamoto, Akio

2013-01-01

A safety of a nuclear power plant must be ensured and maintained through its entire plant life. For this plant life cycle safety (PLCS), a comprehensive plant information system, in which an each maintenance record of the plant is taken into consideration, is of importance. In this paper, a development of a plant chart, which is a part of the information system, has been developed based on a defense-in-depth concept that is one of the most important concept to ensure the plant safety. In the chart, an updated probability of loss of a component or function is used as a maintenance indicator and a probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) method is applied to quantify the plant status in the chart. (author)

[Psychoactive plant species--actual list of plants prohibited in Poland].

Science.gov (United States)

Simonienko, Katarzyna; Waszkiewicz, Napoleon; Szulc, Agata

2013-01-01

According to the Act on Counteracting Drug Addiction (20-th of March, 2009, Dz. U. Nr 63 poz. 520.) the list of federally prohibited plants in Poland was expanded to include 16 new species. Until that time the only illegal plant materials were cannabis, papaver, coca and most of their products. The actual list of herbal narcotics includes species which significantly influence on the central nervous system work but which are rarely described in the national literature. The plants usually come from distant places, where--among primeval cultures--are used for ritual purposes. In our civilization the plants are usually used experimentally, recreationally or to gain particular narcotic effects. The results of the consumption vary: they can be specific or less typical, imitate other substances intake, mental disorders or different pathological states. The plant active substances can interact with other medicaments, be toxic to internal organs, cause serious threat to health or even death. This article describes the sixteen plant species, which are now prohibited in Poland, their biochemical ingredients and their influence on the human organism.

TRANSGENIC PLANT CONTAINMENT

Science.gov (United States)

The new technology using plant genetics to produce chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and therapeuitics in a wide array of new plant forms requires sufficient testing to ensure that these new plant introductions are benign in the environment. A recent effort to provide necessary guidan...

Biofuelled heating plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gulliksson, Hans; Wennerstaal, L.; Zethraeus, B.; Johansson, Bert-Aake

2001-11-01

The purpose of this report is to serve as a basis to enable establishment and operation of small and medium-sized bio-fuel plants, district heating plants and local district heating plants. Furthermore, the purpose of this report is to serve as a guideline and basis when realizing projects, from the first concept to established plant. Taking into account all the phases, from selection of heating system, fuel type, selection of technical solutions, authorization request or application to operate a plant, planning, construction and buying, inspection, performance test, take-over and control system of the plant. Another purpose of the report is to make sure that best available technology is used and to contribute to continuous development of the technology. The report deals mainly with bio-fuelled plants in the effect range 0.3 to10 MW. The term 'plant' refers to combined power and heating plants as well as 'simpler' district heating plants. The last-mentioned is also often referred to as 'local heating plant'. In this context, the term bio fuel refers to a wide range of fuel types. The term bio fuel includes processed fractions like powders, pellets, and briquettes along with unprocessed fractions, such as by-products from the forest industry; chips and bark. Bio fuels also include straw, energy crops and cereal waste products, but these have not been expressly studied in this report. The report is structured with appendixes regarding the various phases of the projects, with the purpose of serving as a helping handbook, or manual for new establishment, helping out with technical and administrative advice and environmental requirements. Plants of this size are already expanding considerably, and the need for guiding principles for design/technology and environmental requirements is great. These guiding principles should comply with the environmental legislation requirements, and must contain advice and recommendations for bio fuel plants in this effect range, also in

Annual Plant Reviews

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

, three dimensional structures and functions of each protein in a biological system. In plant science, the number of proteome studies is rapidly expanding after the completion of the Arabidopsis thaliana genome sequence, and proteome analyses of other important or emerging model systems and crop plants...... are in progress or are being initiated. Proteome analysis in plants is subject to the same obstacles and limitations as in other organisms, but the nature of plant tissues, with their rigid cell walls and complex variety of secondary metabolites, means that extra challenges are involved that may not be faced when...... analysing other organisms. This volume aims to highlight the ways in which proteome analysis has been used to probe the complexities of plant biochemistry and physiology. It is aimed at researchers in plant biochemistry, genomics, transcriptomics and metabolomics who wish to gain an up-to-date insight...

On-line acquisition of plant related and environmental parameters (plant monitoring) in gerbera: determining plant responses

OpenAIRE

Baas, R.; Slootweg, G.

2004-01-01

For on-line plant monitoring equipment to be functional in commercial glasshouse horticulture, relations between sensor readings and plant responses on both the short (days) and long term (weeks) are required. For this reason, systems were installed to monitor rockwool grown gerbera plants on a minute-to-minute basis from July 2002 until April 2003. Data collected included, amongst others, crop transpiration from lysimeter data (2 m2), canopy temperature using infrared sensors, rockwool water...

Next Generation Nuclear Plant Project Evaluation of Siting a HTGR Co-generation Plant on an Operating Commercial Nuclear Power Plant Site

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Demick, L.E.

2011-01-01

This paper summarizes an evaluation by the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) Project of siting a High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR) plant on an existing nuclear plant site that is located in an area of significant industrial activity. This is a co-generation application in which the HTGR Plant will be supplying steam and electricity to one or more of the nearby industrial plants.

Next Generation Nuclear Plant Project Evaluation of Siting a HTGR Co-generation Plant on an Operating Commercial Nuclear Power Plant Site

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

L.E. Demick

2011-10-01

This paper summarizes an evaluation by the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) Project of siting a High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR) plant on an existing nuclear plant site that is located in an area of significant industrial activity. This is a co-generation application in which the HTGR Plant will be supplying steam and electricity to one or more of the nearby industrial plants.

Novel weapons testing: are invasive plants more chemically defended than native plants?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eric M Lind

2010-05-01

Full Text Available Exotic species have been hypothesized to successfully invade new habitats by virtue of possessing novel biochemistry that repels native enemies. Despite the pivotal long-term consequences of invasion for native food-webs, to date there are no experimental studies examining directly whether exotic plants are any more or less biochemically deterrent than native plants to native herbivores.In a direct test of this hypothesis using herbivore feeding assays with chemical extracts from 19 invasive plants and 21 co-occurring native plants, we show that invasive plant biochemistry is no more deterrent (on average to a native generalist herbivore than extracts from native plants. There was no relationship between extract deterrence and length of time since introduction, suggesting that time has not mitigated putative biochemical novelty. Moreover, the least deterrent plant extracts were from the most abundant species in the field, a pattern that held for both native and exotic plants. Analysis of chemical deterrence in context with morphological defenses and growth-related traits showed that native and exotic plants had similar trade-offs among traits.Overall, our results suggest that particular invasive species may possess deterrent secondary chemistry, but it does not appear to be a general pattern resulting from evolutionary mismatches between exotic plants and native herbivores. Thus, fundamentally similar processes may promote the ecological success of both native and exotic species.

Competition overwhelms the positive plant-soil feedback generated by an invasive plant.

Science.gov (United States)

Crawford, Kerri M; Knight, Tiffany M

2017-01-01

Invasive plant species can modify soils in a way that benefits their fitness more than the fitness of native species. However, it is unclear how competition among plant species alters the strength and direction of plant-soil feedbacks. We tested how community context altered plant-soil feedback between the non-native invasive forb Lespedeza cuneata and nine co-occurring native prairie species. In a series of greenhouse experiments, we grew plants individually and in communities with soils that differed in soil origin (invaded or uninvaded by L. cuneata) and in soils that were live vs. sterilized. In the absence of competition, L. cuneata produced over 60% more biomass in invaded than uninvaded soils, while native species performance was unaffected. The absence of a soil origin effect in sterile soil suggests that the positive plant-soil feedback was caused by differences in the soil biota. However, in the presence of competition, the positive effect of soil origin on L. cuneata growth disappeared. These results suggest that L. cuneata may benefit from positive plant-soil feedback when establishing populations in disturbed landscapes with few interspecific competitors, but does not support the hypothesis that plant-soil feedbacks influence competitive outcomes between L. cuneata and native plant species. These results highlight the importance of considering whether competition influences the outcome of interactions between plants and soils.

New energy vision of the Gushikami Village area; 2001 nendo Gushikami son chiiki shin energy vision sakutei tou jigyo hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2002-02-01

For the purpose of promoting the introduction of new energy and enhancing the awareness of it in Gushikami Village, Okinawa Prefecture, an investigational study was conducted of the energy demand of the village, existence amount of new energy, plan for new energy introduction, etc., and a vision was worked out. The energy demand of Gushikami Village was estimated at 640.2 x 10{sup 6} MJ/y. By sector, it consisted of 37.1% in the transportation sector, 32.0% in the commercial/residential sector and 30.8% in the industrial sector. The rate of energy source was 73.7% of petroleum-base fuel and 26.3% of electric power. As the plan for new energy introduction, the following were studied: introduction of photovoltaic power generation to the village office/museum/elementary school/junior high school, introduction of solar heat utilization facilities to the meal providing center/gymnasium, introduction of wind power generation to the sports park, project of wind power generation on the sugar cane hill (600kW x 6 turbines), cogeneration by composting of stockbreeding waste and methane, introduction of clean energy car to official vehicle, introduction of natural gas vehicle, installation of experimental plant for conversion of sugar cane to methanol, etc. (NEDO)

Plant foods and plant-based diets: protective against childhood obesity?

Science.gov (United States)

Newby, P K

2009-05-01

The objective of this article is to review the epidemiologic literature examining the role of plant foods and plant-based diets in the prevention of childhood obesity. Available data suggest a protective effect of ready-to-eat cereal on risk of obesity, although prospective studies are still needed. Studies on fruit and vegetables; grains other than cereal; high-protein foods, including beans, legumes, and soy; fiber; and plant-based dietary patterns are inconsistent or generally null. The evidence base is limited, and most studies are fraught with methodologic limitations, including cross-sectional design, inadequate adjustment for potential confounders, and lack of consideration of reporting errors, stage of growth, and genetic influences. Well-designed prospective studies are needed. The lack of evidence showing an association between plant-based diets and childhood obesity does not mean that such diets should not be encouraged. Plant foods are highlighted in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, and children do not meet the current recommendations for most plant foods. Although the advice to consume a plant-based, low-energy-dense diet is sound, ethical questions arise concerning the relatively high price of these diets in the United States and the way in which such diets are perceived in other parts of the world. Reducing the burden of childhood obesity, eliminating health disparities, and preventing the further spread of the disease around the globe will require not only policy interventions to ensure that plant foods are affordable and accessible to children of all income levels but also awareness of sociocultural norms that affect consumption.

THE USE OF PLANTS TO PROTECT PLANTS AND FOOD AGAINST FUNGAL PATHOGENS: A REVIEW.

Science.gov (United States)

Shuping, D S S; Eloff, J N

2017-01-01

Plant fungal pathogens play a crucial role in the profitability, quality and quantity of plant production. These phytopathogens are persistent in avoiding plant defences causing diseases and quality losses around the world that amount to billions of US dollars annually. To control the scourge of plant fungal diseases, farmers have used fungicides to manage the damage of plant pathogenic fungi. Drawbacks such as development of resistance and environmental toxicity associated with these chemicals have motivated researchers and cultivators to investigate other possibilities. Several databases were accessed to determine work done on protecting plants against plant fungal pathogens with plant extracts using search terms "plant fungal pathogen", "plant extracts" and "phytopathogens". Proposals are made on the best extractants and bioassay techniques to be used. In addition to chemical fungicides, biological agents have been used to deal with plant fungal diseases. There are many examples where plant extracts or plant derived compounds have been used as commercial deterrents of fungi on a large scale in agricultural and horticultural setups. One advantage of this approach is that plant extracts usually contain more than one antifungal compound. Consequently the development of resistance of pathogens may be lower if the different compounds affect a different metabolic process. Plants cultivated using plants extracts may also be marketed as organically produced. Many papers have been published on effective antimicrobial compounds present in plant extracts focusing on applications in human health. More research is required to develop suitable, sustainable, effective, cheaper botanical products that can be used to help overcome the scourge of plant fungal diseases. Scientists who have worked only on using plants to control human and animal fungal pathogens should consider the advantages of focusing on plant fungal pathogens. This approach could not only potentially increase

New energy vision of the Tono City area; 2001 nendo Tonoshi shin energy vision. Chiiki shin energy vision sakutei tou jigyo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2002-02-01

As a leading plan to reconsider the resource consumption in large quantities and to change the society to a circulation type, a new energy vision of the Tono City area was worked out in Tono City, Iwate Prefecture. In this vision, FY 2002 was set as the first fiscal year, and FY 2010 as the target year. From the comprehensive judgement based on the objective availability, technical evaluation, civic needs, etc., biomass energy, wind energy, solar energy, etc. were made the main energy in new energy introduction. As model projects, studied were the introduction of solar energy utilization facilities to Kamigo Elementary School, introduction of the photovoltaic power generation to Aozasa Nursery School and disaster prevention base facilities, project on the wind power generation using large wind turbines, biomass alcohol plant, wood pellet production, etc. The target amount of new energy introduction was 2,640 kW in photovoltaic power generation, 19,000 kW in wind power generation, etc. The CO2 reduction amount including that in heat utilization, clean energy car, etc. was 41,374 t-CO2/y. (NEDO)

Density-dependency and plant-soil feedback: former plant abundance influences competitive interactions between two grassland plant species through plant-soil feedbacks

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Xue, W.; Bezemer, T.M.; Berendse, Frank

2018-01-01

Backgrounds and aims Negative plant-soil feedbacks (PSFs) are thought to promote species coexistence, but most evidence is derived from theoretical models and data from plant monoculture experiments. Methods We grew Anthoxanthum odoratum and Centaurea jacea in field plots in monocultures and in

Development of the Chinshan plant analyzer and its assessment with plant data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shihjen Wang; Chunsheng Chien; Jungyuh Jang; Shawcuang Lee

1993-01-01

To apply fast and accurate simulation techniques to Taiwanese nuclear power plants, plant analyzer technology was transferred to Taiwan from the Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) through a cooperative program. The Chinshan plant analyzer is developed on the AD100 peripheral processor systems, based on the BNL boiling water reactor plant analyzer. The BNL plant analyzer was first converted from MPS10 programming for AD10 to ADSIM programming for AD100. It was then modified for the Taiwan Power Company's Chinshan power station. The simulation speed of the Chinshan plant analyzer is eight times faster than real time. A load rejection transient performed at 100% of full power during startup tests was simulated with the Chinshan plant analyzer, and the results were benchmarked against test data. The comparison shows good agreement between calculated results and test data

Major plant retrofits at Monticello nuclear generating plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Larsen, D.E.; Hogg, C.B.

1986-01-01

For the past several years, Northern States Power (NSP) has been making major plant retrofits to Monticello Nuclear generating Station in order to improve plant availability and upgrade the plant components for the potential extension of the operating license (life extension). This paper discusses in detail three major retrofits that have been completed or in the process of completion; recirculation loop piping replacement, reactor pressure vessel (RPV) water level-instrumentation modification, core spray piping replacement, the authors will address the scope of work, design and installation concerns, and life extension considerations during the design and procurement process for these three projects

Patterns and Environmental Determinants of Medicinal Plant : Vascular Plant Ratios in Xinjiang, Northwest China

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Bengang; Xiao, Peigen; Qi, Yaodong; Zhang, Zhao; Liu, Haitao; Li, Xiaojin; Wang, Guoping; Terwei, André

2016-01-01

With both a full collection of native vascular plant distributions and a full checklist of source plants of the Chinese Materia Medica (CMM), the Uygur Medicine (UM), and the Kazak Medicine (KM) for the Xinjiang region, we defined medicinal plant: vascular plant ratios (simplified as medicinal plant ratios hereafter) as the value of medicinal plant richness divided by vascular plant richness. We aimed to find whether the ratios are constant or change in different environments, which environmental variables determine medicinal plant ratios, and whether the ratios are more influenced by human or by natural environments. Finally, suggestions for medicinal plant conservation were addressed. We found that (1) medicinal plant ratios were not constant, and they were high in the Tarim Basin which was largely covered by desert, while they were relatively low in mountainous areas, especially in the Tianshan Mountains where the general species richness was high; (2) medicinal plant ratios were not significantly influenced by human activities, indicated by human population density distributions, but they were highly correlated with plant species richness and climate, i.e. ratios decreased with plant species richness and MAP, and were related quadratically with MAT; (3) CMM ratio and UM ratio were more influenced by plant richness than by climate, while KM ratio was more influenced by climate. We concluded that the percentages of plants used as medicines were not influenced by distances from human settlements, but were determined by species richness or climate. We suggest that (1), in general, the medicinal plant ratio could be a complementary indicator for medicinal plant conservation planning and (2), for the region of Xinjiang, not only high diversity areas, but also some extreme environments should be considered as compensation for a better protection of medicinal plants. PMID:27391239

Patterns and Environmental Determinants of Medicinal Plant : Vascular Plant Ratios in Xinjiang, Northwest China.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liping Li

Full Text Available With both a full collection of native vascular plant distributions and a full checklist of source plants of the Chinese Materia Medica (CMM, the Uygur Medicine (UM, and the Kazak Medicine (KM for the Xinjiang region, we defined medicinal plant: vascular plant ratios (simplified as medicinal plant ratios hereafter as the value of medicinal plant richness divided by vascular plant richness. We aimed to find whether the ratios are constant or change in different environments, which environmental variables determine medicinal plant ratios, and whether the ratios are more influenced by human or by natural environments. Finally, suggestions for medicinal plant conservation were addressed. We found that (1 medicinal plant ratios were not constant, and they were high in the Tarim Basin which was largely covered by desert, while they were relatively low in mountainous areas, especially in the Tianshan Mountains where the general species richness was high; (2 medicinal plant ratios were not significantly influenced by human activities, indicated by human population density distributions, but they were highly correlated with plant species richness and climate, i.e. ratios decreased with plant species richness and MAP, and were related quadratically with MAT; (3 CMM ratio and UM ratio were more influenced by plant richness than by climate, while KM ratio was more influenced by climate. We concluded that the percentages of plants used as medicines were not influenced by distances from human settlements, but were determined by species richness or climate. We suggest that (1, in general, the medicinal plant ratio could be a complementary indicator for medicinal plant conservation planning and (2, for the region of Xinjiang, not only high diversity areas, but also some extreme environments should be considered as compensation for a better protection of medicinal plants.

Patterns and Environmental Determinants of Medicinal Plant : Vascular Plant Ratios in Xinjiang, Northwest China.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Liping; Zhang, Bengang; Xiao, Peigen; Qi, Yaodong; Zhang, Zhao; Liu, Haitao; Li, Xiaojin; Wang, Guoping; Terwei, André

2016-01-01

With both a full collection of native vascular plant distributions and a full checklist of source plants of the Chinese Materia Medica (CMM), the Uygur Medicine (UM), and the Kazak Medicine (KM) for the Xinjiang region, we defined medicinal plant: vascular plant ratios (simplified as medicinal plant ratios hereafter) as the value of medicinal plant richness divided by vascular plant richness. We aimed to find whether the ratios are constant or change in different environments, which environmental variables determine medicinal plant ratios, and whether the ratios are more influenced by human or by natural environments. Finally, suggestions for medicinal plant conservation were addressed. We found that (1) medicinal plant ratios were not constant, and they were high in the Tarim Basin which was largely covered by desert, while they were relatively low in mountainous areas, especially in the Tianshan Mountains where the general species richness was high; (2) medicinal plant ratios were not significantly influenced by human activities, indicated by human population density distributions, but they were highly correlated with plant species richness and climate, i.e. ratios decreased with plant species richness and MAP, and were related quadratically with MAT; (3) CMM ratio and UM ratio were more influenced by plant richness than by climate, while KM ratio was more influenced by climate. We concluded that the percentages of plants used as medicines were not influenced by distances from human settlements, but were determined by species richness or climate. We suggest that (1), in general, the medicinal plant ratio could be a complementary indicator for medicinal plant conservation planning and (2), for the region of Xinjiang, not only high diversity areas, but also some extreme environments should be considered as compensation for a better protection of medicinal plants.

Better plants through mutations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-01-01

This is a public relations film describing problems associated with the genetic improvement of crop plants through induced mutations. Mutations are the ultimate source of genetic variation in plants. Mutation induction is now established as a practical tool in plant breeding. The Joint FAO/IAEA Division and the IAEA's laboratory at Seibersdorf have supported research and practical implementation of mutation breeding of both seed propagated and vegetatively propagated plants. Plant biotechnology based on in vitro culture and recombinant DNA technology will make a further significant contribution to plant breeding

Does chemical aposematic (warning) signaling occur between host plants and their potential parasitic plants?

Science.gov (United States)

Lev-Yadun, Simcha

2013-07-01

Aposematism (warning) signaling is a common defensive mechanism toward predatory or herbivorous animals, i.e., interactions between different trophic levels. I propose that it should be considered at least as a working hypothesis that chemical aposematism operates between certain host plants and their plant predators, parasitic plants, and that although they are also plants, they belong to a higher trophic level. Specific host plant genotypes emit known repelling chemical signals toward parasitic plants, which reduce the level of, slow the directional parasite growth (attack) toward the signaling hosts, or even cause parasitic plants to grow away from them in response to these chemicals. Chemical host aposematism toward parasitic plants may be a common but overlooked defense from parasitic plants.

New plant releases from the USDA-NRCS Aberdeen, Idaho, Plant Materials Center

Science.gov (United States)

L. St. John; P. Blaker

2001-01-01

The Plant Materials Center at Aberdeen, Idaho, is operated by the United States Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service. The purpose of the Plant Materials Center is to evaluate and release plant materials for conservation use and to develop and transfer new technology for the establishment and management of plants. The Center serves portions...

The microbiome of medicinal plants: diversity and importance for plant growth, quality and health

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martina eKöberl

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Past medicinal plant research primarily focused on bioactive phytochemicals, however the focus is currently shifting due to the recognition that a significant number of phytotherapeutic compounds are actually produced by associated microbes or through interaction with their host. Medicinal plants provide an enormous bioresource of potential use in modern medicine and agriculture, yet their microbiome is largely unknown. The objective of this review is i to introduce novel insights into the plant microbiome with a focus on medicinal plants, ii to provide details about plant- and microbe-derived ingredients of medicinal plants, and iii to discuss possibilities for plant growth promotion and plant protection for commercial cultivation of medicinal plants. In addition, we also present a case study performed both to analyse the microbiome of three medicinal plants (Matricaria chamomilla L., Calendula officinalis L. and Solanum distichum Schumach. and Thonn. cultivated on organically managed Egyptian desert farm and to develop biological control strategies. The soil microbiome of the desert ecosystem was comprised of a high abundance of Gram-positive bacteria of prime importance for pathogen suppression under arid soil conditions. For all three plants, we observed a clearly plant-specific selection of the microbes as well as highly specific diazotrophic communities that overall identify plant species as important drivers in structural and functional diversity. Lastly, native Bacillus spec. div. strains were able to promote plant growth and elevate the plants’ flavonoid production. These results underline the numerous links between the plant-associated microbiome and the plant metabolome.

Abattoirs et industrialisation de la production de la viande

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anne-Elène Delavigne

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Une nouvelle ethnographie des abattoirsSaluons l'initiative de la collection « Natures sociales », dirigée par François Sigaut et Raphaël Larrère (édition MSH / Quae qui permet une nouvelle publication sur la thématique des abattoirs, vingt et un ans après l'ouvrage de Noélie Vialles, Le Sang et la Chair. Cet ouvrage qui a fait autorité en sciences sociales sur le sujet était d'ailleurs également publié par la Maison des Sciences de l'Homme. Depuis cette publication en 1987, le champ est tou...

Applicability of SREM to the Verification of Management Information System Software Requirements. Volume II.

Science.gov (United States)

1981-04-30

HRNUCFSSI𔃾G Fq404 ANY OTr1E4 1tOU )EIES OD.CISiJA TAOLES. T.iEr.FUrt9 LJ.31C CONTa~iE) IN T-~3~. U~LT.S HA:S NUT tEEN I t..LEM1NTci) t5CAUiSr. rn.- UPt...8217: PA6i.H 712 TtACE~ TU SJ~sN-tT: -oOCE.,S..TAK.SE.CtCK TOJHLL- EP r-4: MUJM-0.79 I 0)EN 7IF IE~S -C.𔃽- 10,4 PkC-iS I NV0RENCtl: FUCK _.o~T I 4LI S~ufCLEA

Fog and precipitation chemistry at a mid-land forest in central Taiwan.

Science.gov (United States)

Liang, Yang-Ling; Lin, Teng-Chiu; Hwong, Jeen-Liang; Lin, Neng-Huei; Wang, Chiao-Ping

2009-01-01

We analyzed fog and bulk precipitation chemistry at a cloud forest in central Taiwan where mountain agriculture activities are highest. There were 320 foggy days (visibility agriculture has a major impact on atmospheric deposition at the surrounding forest ecosystems. The input of inorganic N reached 125 kg N ha(-1) yr(-1) and likely exceeded the biological demand of the forest ecosystem. Sulfate is the most abundant anion in fog at Chi-tou and in precipitation at various forests throughout Taiwan, suggesting that the emission and transport of large quantities of SO(2,) the precursor of SO(4)(2-), is an island-wide environmental issue.

Applicability of the 'constructional fire prevention for industrial plants' to power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hammacher, P.

1978-01-01

Power plants, especially nuclear power plants, are considered because of their high value and large construction volume to be among the most important industrial constructions of our time. They have a very exposed position from the point of view of fire prevention because of their constructional and operational concept. The efforts in the Federal Republic of Germany to standardize laws and regulations for fire prevention in industrial plants (industrial construction code, DIN 18230) must be supported if only because they would simplify the licensing procedure. However these regulations cannot be applied in many cases and especially in the main buildings of thermal power plants without restricting or even endangering the function or the safety of such plants. At the present state of the art many parts of the power plant can surely be defined as 'fire safe'. Fire endangered plant components and rooms are protected according to their importance by different measures (constructional measures, fire-fighting equipments, extractors for flue gases and for heat, fire-brigade of the plant). (orig.) [de

Plant or Animal?

Science.gov (United States)

Bowman, Frank; Matthews, Catherine E.

1996-01-01

Presents activities that use marine organisms with plant-like appearances to help students build classification skills and illustrate some of the less obvious differences between plants and animals. Compares mechanisms by which sessile plants and animals deal with common problems such as obtaining energy, defending themselves, successfully…

Stainless steels in power plant and plant construction. Papers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-01-01

The conference report comprises 14 papers on the corrosion characteristics of stainless steels in power plant and plant engineering. 9 papers are available as separate records in the ENERGY database. (MM) [de

PLANT-MICROBIAL INTERACTIONS IN THE RHIZOSPHERE – STRATEGIES FOR PLANT GROWTH-PROMOTION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marius Stefan

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR are a group of bacteria that can actively colonize plant rootsand enhance plant growth using different mechanisms: production of plant growth regulators like indoleacetic acid,gibberellic acid, cytokinins and ethylene(Zahir et al., 2003, providing the host plant with fixed nitrogen, solubilizationof soil phosphorus, enhance Fe uptake, biocontrol, reducing the concentration of heavy metals. PGPR are perfectcandidates to be used as biofertilizers – eco-friendly alternative to common applied chemical fertilizer in today’sagriculture. The most important benefit of PGPR usage is related to the reduction of environmental pollution in conditionof increasing crop yield. This review presents the main mechanisms involved in PGPR promotion of plant growth.

Alien plant invasions and native plant extinctions: a six-threshold framework.

Science.gov (United States)

Downey, Paul O; Richardson, David M

2016-01-01

Biological invasions are widely acknowledged as a major threat to global biodiversity. Species from all major taxonomic groups have become invasive. The range of impacts of invasive taxa and the overall magnitude of the threat is increasing. Plants comprise the biggest and best-studied group of invasive species. There is a growing debate; however, regarding the nature of the alien plant threat-in particular whether the outcome is likely to be the widespread extinction of native plant species. The debate has raised questions on whether the threat posed by invasive plants to native plants has been overstated. We provide a conceptual framework to guide discussion on this topic, in which the threat posed by invasive plants is considered in the context of a progression from no impact through to extinction. We define six thresholds along the 'extinction trajectory', global extinction being the final threshold. Although there are no documented examples of either 'in the wild' (Threshold 5) or global extinctions (Threshold 6) of native plants that are attributable solely to plant invasions, there is evidence that native plants have crossed or breached other thresholds along the extinction trajectory due to the impacts associated with plant invasions. Several factors may be masking where native species are on the trajectory; these include a lack of appropriate data to accurately map the position of species on the trajectory, the timeframe required to definitively state that extinctions have occurred and management interventions. Such interventions, focussing mainly on Thresholds 1-3 (a declining population through to the local extinction of a population), are likely to alter the extinction trajectory of some species. The critical issue for conservation managers is the trend, because interventions must be implemented before extinctions occur. Thus the lack of evidence for extinctions attributable to plant invasions does not mean we should disregard the broader threat

Nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Margulova, T.Ch.

1976-01-01

The textbook focuses on the technology and the operating characteristics of nuclear power plants equiped with pressurized water or boiling water reactors, which are in operation all over the world at present. The following topics are dealt with in relation to the complete plant and to economics: distribution and consumption of electric and thermal energy, types and equipment of nuclear power plants, chemical processes and material balance, economical characteristics concerning heat and energy, regenerative preheating of feed water, degassing and condenser systems, water supply, evaporators, district heating systems, steam generating systems and turbines, coolant loops and pipes, plant siting, ventilation and decontamination systems, reactor operation and management, heat transfer including its calculation, design of reactor buildings, and nuclear power plants with gas or sodium cooled reactors. Numerous technical data of modern Soviet nuclear power plants are included. The book is of interest to graduate and post-graduate students in the field of nuclear engineering as well as to nuclear engineers

Plant analyzer for high-speed interactive simulation of BWR plant transients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cheng, H.S.; Lekach, S.V.; Mallen, A.N.; Wulff, W.; Cerbone, R.J.

1984-01-01

A combination of advanced modeling techniques and modern, special-purpose peripheral minicomputer technology was utilized to develop a plant analyzer which affords realistic predictions of plant transients and severe off-normal events in LWR power plants through on-line simulations at speeds up to 10 times faster than actual process speeds. The mathematical models account for nonequilibrium, nonhomogeneous two-phase flow effects in the coolant, for acoustical effects in the steam line and for the dynamics of the entire balance of the plant. Reactor core models include point kinetics with reactivity feedback due to void fraction, fuel temperature, coolant temperature, and boron concentration as well as a conduction model for predicting fuel and clad temperatures. Control systems and trip logic for plant protection systems are also simulated. The AD10 of Applied Dynamics International, a special-purpose peripheral processor, is used as the principal hardware of the plant analyzer

Do invasive alien plants benefit more from global environmental change than native plants?

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Yanjie; Oduor, Ayub M O; Zhang, Zhen; Manea, Anthony; Tooth, Ifeanna M; Leishman, Michelle R; Xu, Xingliang; van Kleunen, Mark

2017-08-01

Invasive alien plant species threaten native biodiversity, disrupt ecosystem functions and can cause large economic damage. Plant invasions have been predicted to further increase under ongoing global environmental change. Numerous case studies have compared the performance of invasive and native plant species in response to global environmental change components (i.e. changes in mean levels of precipitation, temperature, atmospheric CO 2 concentration or nitrogen deposition). Individually, these studies usually involve low numbers of species and therefore the results cannot be generalized. Therefore, we performed a phylogenetically controlled meta-analysis to assess whether there is a general pattern of differences in invasive and native plant performance under each component of global environmental change. We compiled a database of studies that reported performance measures for 74 invasive alien plant species and 117 native plant species in response to one of the above-mentioned global environmental change components. We found that elevated temperature and CO 2 enrichment increased the performance of invasive alien plants more strongly than was the case for native plants. Invasive alien plants tended to also have a slightly stronger positive response to increased N deposition and increased precipitation than native plants, but these differences were not significant (N deposition: P = 0.051; increased precipitation: P = 0.679). Invasive alien plants tended to have a slightly stronger negative response to decreased precipitation than native plants, although this difference was also not significant (P = 0.060). So while drought could potentially reduce plant invasion, increases in the four other components of global environmental change considered, particularly global warming and atmospheric CO 2 enrichment, may further increase the spread of invasive plants in the future. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Plants and men in space - A new field in plant physiology

Science.gov (United States)

Andre, M.; Macelroy, R. D.

1990-01-01

Results are presented on a comparison of nutritional values of and human psychological responses to algae and of higher plants considered for growth as food on long-term missions in space, together with the technological complexities of growing these plants. The comparison shows the advantages of higher plants, with results suggesting that a high level of material recycling can be obtained. It is noted that the issue of space gravity may be not a major problem for plants because of the possibility that phototropism can provide an alternative sense of direction. Problems of waste recycling can be solved in association with plant cultivation, and a high degree of autonomy of food production can be obtained.

Countermeasure to plant life management of the nuclear power plants out of Japan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1999-01-01

Some investigations on countermeasure to plant life management of the nuclear power plants were begun since beginning of 1990s under cooperation with Ministry of International Trade and Industry and all electric power companies under consideration of recent state on abroad and at concept of preventive conservation implementation against the plant life management. As a result, the Tokyo Electric Power Company, the Kansai Electric Power Company and the Japan Atomic Power Company settled each program on countermeasure to plant life management of the Fukushima-1 Power Plant, the Mihama-1 Power Plant and the Tsuruga-1 Power Plant, respectively, which were reported to the Atomic Energy Safety Commission to issue on February, 1999, after deliberation in the Adviser Group of Ministry of International Trade and Industry. Such investigations on countermeasure to the plant life management are also conducted out of Japan in parallel to those in Japan, which contain programs reflecting states of operation and maintenance of nuclear power plants and atmosphere around atomic energy in each country. Here were described on some present states of the countermeasures to plant life management in U.S.A., France, Germany, Sweden, England and so forth. (G.K.)

Experimental plant for sludge composting. Plant experimental de compostaje de lodos

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cadenas, A.; Caellas, N.; Amengual, A.; Calafact, J.

1993-01-01

Results and expertise collected during the first year of exploitation of a compost experimental plant located in Mallorca (Spain): The plant is treating sludge from the biological treatment plant of water at the town of Felanitx and the compost produced is used in agriculture. (Author)

PlantCARE, a plant cis-acting regulatory element database

OpenAIRE

Rombauts, Stephane; Déhais, Patrice; Van Montagu, Marc; Rouzé, Pierre

1999-01-01

PlantCARE is a database of plant cis- acting regulatory elements, enhancers and repressors. Besides the transcription motifs found on a sequence, it also offers a link to the EMBL entry that contains the full gene sequence as well as a description of the conditions in which a motif becomes functional. The information on these sites is given by matrices, consensus and individual site sequences on particular genes, depending on the available information. PlantCARE is a relational database avail...

Report on the results of the R and D of a 200 t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant. Summary - Part 1. Volume 1: Outline of the R and D/Volume 2: Outline of the details of execution of the R and D/Investigational study of verification plant; 1986- 200t/nichi funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden pilot plant no kenkyu seika hokokusho (Matome). Sono 1. Dai 1 hen kenkyu kaihatsu no gaiyo, Dai 2 hen kenkyu kaihatsu jisshi keii no gaiyo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1997-01-01

A project was finished which had been carried out for 11 years since 1986 for technology of the entrained bed coal gasification power generation technology using a 200 t/d coal gasification combined cycle power generation pilot plant, and it was comprehensively summed up. In Volume 1: Outline of the R and D, the following were summarized: object and background, details of selection of the basic system, objectives and subjects of the R and D, developmental items of 200 t/d pilot plant, outline of pilot plant, place of execution of the R and D and system of the R and D, response to procedures for approval from government offices, etc. In Volume 2: Outline of the details of execution of the R and D, state of design/manufacture/construction, state of operational study, state of dismantling study, important notice at the time of design of pilot plant and the evaluation, outline of the execution of element study, outline of the details of the studies made public overseas. In Investigational study of verification plant, the basic viewpoint of conceptual design, conditions for conceptual design/basic design, outline of the results of the study every fiscal year, finally obtained results of the conceptual design, points to be considered in the design of verification plant, etc. (NEDO)

Fuel Gas Demonstration Plant Program. Volume I. Demonstration plant

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1979-01-01

The objective of this project is for Babcock Contractors Inc. (BCI) to provide process designs, and gasifier retort design for a fuel gas demonstration plant for Erie Mining Company at Hoyt Lake, Minnesota. The fuel gas produced will be used to supplement natural gas and fuel oil for iron ore pellet induration. The fuel gas demonstration plant will consist of five stirred, two-stage fixed-bed gasifier retorts capable of handling caking and non-caking coals, and provisions for the installation of a sixth retort. The process and unit design has been based on operation with caking coals; however, the retorts have been designed for easy conversion to handle non-caking coals. The demonstration unit has been designed to provide for expansion to a commercial plant (described in Commercial Plant Package) in an economical manner.

Plant innate immunity

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Plants are invaded by an array of pathogens of which only a few succeed in causing disease. The attack by others is countered by a sophisticated immune system possessed by the plants. The plant immune system is broadly divided into two, viz. microbial-associated molecular-patterns-triggered immunity (MTI) and ...

Plant life extensions for German nuclear power plants? Controversial discussion profit taking of nuclear power plant operators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matthes, Felix C.

2009-10-01

The discussion on the plant life extensions for German nuclear power plants beyond the residual quantity of electricity particularly focus on three aspects: Effects for the emission of carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas; Development of the electricity price for which a reduction or attenuation is postulated due to a plant life extension; Skimming of additional profits at operating companies and their use in the safeguarding of the future (development of renewable energies, support of energy efficiency, promotion of the research, consolidation of the public budget, and so on). Under this aspect, the author of the contribution under consideration reports on the profit taking of nuclear power plant operators. The presented analysis considers three aspects: (a) Specification of the quantity structures for the investigated model of plant life extension; (b) The decisive parameter is the revenue situation and thus the price development for electricity at wholesale markets; (c) Determination and evaluation of the course in time of the profit taking.

Plant-to-plant communication triggered by systemin primes anti-herbivore resistance in tomato.

Science.gov (United States)

Coppola, Mariangela; Cascone, Pasquale; Madonna, Valentina; Di Lelio, Ilaria; Esposito, Francesco; Avitabile, Concetta; Romanelli, Alessandra; Guerrieri, Emilio; Vitiello, Alessia; Pennacchio, Francesco; Rao, Rosa; Corrado, Giandomenico

2017-11-14

Plants actively respond to herbivory by inducing various defense mechanisms in both damaged (locally) and non-damaged tissues (systemically). In addition, it is currently widely accepted that plant-to-plant communication allows specific neighbors to be warned of likely incoming stress (defense priming). Systemin is a plant peptide hormone promoting the systemic response to herbivory in tomato. This 18-aa peptide is also able to induce the release of bioactive Volatile Organic Compounds, thus also promoting the interaction between the tomato and the third trophic level (e.g. predators and parasitoids of insect pests). In this work, using a combination of gene expression (RNA-Seq and qRT-PCR), behavioral and chemical approaches, we demonstrate that systemin triggers metabolic changes of the plant that are capable of inducing a primed state in neighboring unchallenged plants. At the molecular level, the primed state is mainly associated with an elevated transcription of pattern -recognition receptors, signaling enzymes and transcription factors. Compared to naïve plants, systemin-primed plants were significantly more resistant to herbivorous pests, more attractive to parasitoids and showed an increased response to wounding. Small peptides are nowadays considered fundamental signaling molecules in many plant processes and this work extends the range of downstream effects of this class of molecules to intraspecific plant-to-plant communication.

Limiting conditions for nuclear power plant competitiveness vs. fossil and wind plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Feretic, Danilo; Cavlina, Nikola

2010-01-01

The aim of this paper is to compare potential energy options for future electricity generation. The paper considers comparison of discounted total cost of electricity generated by nuclear power plant and by combined natural gas and wind plants, having in total equal electricity generation. Large uncertainty in the future fuel costs makes planning of optimal power generating mix very difficult to justify. Probabilistic method is used in the analysis which allows inclusion of uncertainties in future electricity generating cost prediction. Additionally, an informative functional relation between nuclear plant investment cost, natural gas price and wind plant efficiency, that determines competitive power generation between considered options, is also shown. Limiting conditions for nuclear power plant competitiveness vs. fossil and wind plants are presented. (authors)

Community-level plant-soil feedbacks explain landscape distribution of native and non-native plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Kulmatiski, Andrew

2018-02-01

Plant-soil feedbacks (PSFs) have gained attention for their potential role in explaining plant growth and invasion. While promising, most PSF research has measured plant monoculture growth on different soils in short-term, greenhouse experiments. Here, five soil types were conditioned by growing one native species, three non-native species, or a mixed plant community in different plots in a common-garden experiment. After 4 years, plants were removed and one native and one non-native plant community were planted into replicate plots of each soil type. After three additional years, the percentage cover of each of the three target species in each community was measured. These data were used to parameterize a plant community growth model. Model predictions were compared to native and non-native abundance on the landscape. Native community cover was lowest on soil conditioned by the dominant non-native, Centaurea diffusa , and non-native community cover was lowest on soil cultivated by the dominant native, Pseudoroegneria spicata . Consistent with plant growth on the landscape, the plant growth model predicted that the positive PSFs observed in the common-garden experiment would result in two distinct communities on the landscape: a native plant community on native soils and a non-native plant community on non-native soils. In contrast, when PSF effects were removed, the model predicted that non-native plants would dominate all soils, which was not consistent with plant growth on the landscape. Results provide an example where PSF effects were large enough to change the rank-order abundance of native and non-native plant communities and to explain plant distributions on the landscape. The positive PSFs that contributed to this effect reflected the ability of the two dominant plant species to suppress each other's growth. Results suggest that plant dominance, at least in this system, reflects the ability of a species to suppress the growth of dominant competitors

Kenyan medicinal plants used as antivenin: a comparison of plant usage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kisangau Daniel P

2006-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract The success of snake bite healers is vaguely understood in Kenya, partly due to their unknown materia medica and occult-mystical nature of their practice. A comparison is made of plants used in snake bite treatments by two culturally distinct African groups (the Kamba and Luo. Thirty two plants used for snakebite treatment are documented. The majority of the antidotes are prepared from freshly collected plant material – frequently leaves. Though knowledge of snake bite conditions etiological perceptions of the ethnic groups is similar, field ethnobotanical data suggests that plant species used by the two ethnic groups are independently derived. Antivenin medicinal plants effectively illustrate the cultural context of medicine. Randomness or the use of a variety of species in different families appears to be a feature of traditional snake bite treatments. A high degree of informant consensus for the species was observed. The study indicates rural Kenya inhabitants rely on medicinal plants for healthcare.

Economics of farm biogas plants. Status of 4 plants 1988-92

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hjort-Gregersen, K.

1994-06-01

For the four biogas plants balance sheets have been prepared to show the operating results. Operating income and cost are a mixture of actual accounts, estimates, and calculations. The results are shown both with and without taxes. Only one of the four plants can present a positive result before tax. Three of the plants, however, have positive results after tax. This stresses the importance of the fact that the part of the energy production that is used on the farm is not taxed. The analyses show that one of the plants in 1992 obtained an income, that makes it feasible to assume that the plant would be profitable provided in gets 30% of investment subsidy. An important condition for this is a relatively high gas yield which hardly can be obtained by digesting manures alone. Some of the most important unsolved problems of farm-based biogas plants are the missing possibilities of selling heat, the operating reliability, and the repair costs for generators. (LN)

The prediction of the LWR plant accident based on the measured plant data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miettinen, J.; Schmuck, P.

2005-01-01

In case of accident affecting a nuclear reactor, it is essential to anticipate the possible development of the situation to efficiently succeed in emergency response actions, i.e. firstly to be early warned, to get sufficient information on the plant: and as far as possible. The ASTRID (Assessment of Source Term for Emergency Response based on Installation Data) project consists in developing a methodology: of expertise to; structure the work of technical teams and to facilitate cross competence communications among EP players and a qualified computer tool that could be commonly used by the European countries to reliably predict source term in case of an accident in a light water reactor, using the information available on the plant. In many accident conditions the team of analysts may be located far away from the plant experiencing the accident and their decision making is based on the on-line plant data transmitted into the crisis centre in an interval of 30 - 600 seconds. The plant condition has to be diagnosed based on this information, In the ASTRID project the plant status diagnostics has been studied for the European reactor types including BWR, PWR and VVER plants. The directly measured plant data may be used for estimations of the break size from the primary system and its locations. The break size prediction may be based on the pressurizer level, reactor vessel level, primary pressure and steam generator level in the case of the steam generator tube rupture. In the ASTRID project the break predictions concept was developed and its validity for different plant types and is presented in the paper, when the plant data has been created with the plant specific thermohydraulic simulation model. The tracking simulator attempts to follow the plant behavior on-line based on the measured plant data for the main process parameters and most important boundary conditions. When the plant state tracking fails, the plant may be experiencing an accident, and the tracking

Proteomic Contributions to Medicinal Plant Research: From Plant Metabolism to Pharmacological Action

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Akiko Hashiguchi

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Herbal medicine is a clinical practice of utilizing medicinal plant derivatives for therapeutic purposes. It has an enduring history worldwide and plays a significant role in the fight against various diseases. Herbal drug combinations often exhibit synergistic therapeutic action compared with single-constituent dosage, and can also enhance the cytotoxicity induced by chemotherapeutic drugs. To explore the mechanism underlying the pharmacological action of herbs, proteomic approaches have been applied to the physiology of medicinal plants and its effects on animals. This review article focuses on the existing proteomics-based medicinal plant research and discusses the following topics: (i plant metabolic pathways that synthesize an array of bioactive compounds; (ii pharmacological action of plants tested using in vivo and in vitro studies; and (iii the application of proteomic approaches to indigenous plants with scarce sequence information. The accumulation of proteomic information in a biological or medicinal context may help in formulating the effective use of medicinal plants.

Plant Physiology and Development

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Taiz, Lincoln; Zeiger, Eduardo; Møller, Ian Max

Throughout its twenty-two year history, the authors of Plant Physiology have continually updated the book to incorporate the latest advances in plant biology and implement pedagogical improvements requested by adopters. This has made Plant Physiology the most authoritative, comprehensive......, and widely used upper-division plant biology textbook. In the Sixth Edition, the Growth and Development section (Unit III) has been reorganized and expanded to present the complete life cycle of seed plants from germination to senescence. In recognition of this enhancement, the text has been renamed Plant...... Physiology and Development. As before, Unit III begins with updated chapters on Cell Walls and Signals and Signal Transduction. The latter chapter has been expanded to include a discussion of major signaling molecules, such as calcium ions and plant hormones. A new, unified chapter entitled Signals from...

Plants get sick too!

Science.gov (United States)

Although many people may never have given consideration to plant health, plants can suffer from a wide range of diseases. These plant diseases are caused by micro-organisms, including bacteria, fungi, and viruses. The audience will be introduced to short case studies of several plant diseases that m...

A retrospective of an unconventionally trained plant pathologist: plant diseases to molecular plant pathology.

Science.gov (United States)

Ouchi, Seiji

2006-01-01

Plant pathology evolved from its mycology-oriented origins into a science dealing with biochemical mechanisms of diseases, along with enhanced crop production through disease control. This retrospective describes first my personal experience from my introduction to plant pathology, to the establishment of the concept of accessibility as a model pertaining to genetically defined basic compatibility induced by pathogens. I then refer to the development of molecular plant pathology from physiological and biochemical plant pathology fostered by the growth in recombinant technology in the second half of the past century. This progress was best reflected by the U.S.-Japan Seminar Series held at 4-5-year intervals from 1966 to 2003 and documented by publications in major journals of our discipline. These seminars emphasized that progress in science has always been supported by the invention of novel techniques and that knowledge integrated from modern genomics and subsequent proteomics should contribute to the progress of basic life sciences and, more importantly, to the elaboration of rational measures for disease control.

Plants and fluorine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Garber, K

1962-01-01

A report is given about the contents of fluorine in soil and different plants. It is stated that spinach and several spice herbages are rich in fluorine (0.98 - 21.8 ppm) while in other plants are not more than 5 ppm maximum. An exception is found in Thea sinensis with 178 ppm and more. Tea is, therefore, a source of fluorine for contamination of the human body. An increase of the fluorine contents of plants by manuring with F-salts or mineral manure is possible but of long duration. Damage to plants by uptake of fluorine from soil as well as in a gaseous condition from the atmosphere are described. The rate of damage is related to the type of soil in which the plant is grown.

Plant Biology Science Projects.

Science.gov (United States)

Hershey, David R.

This book contains science projects about seed plants that deal with plant physiology, plant ecology, and plant agriculture. Each of the projects includes a step-by-step experiment followed by suggestions for further investigations. Chapters include: (1) "Bean Seed Imbibition"; (2) "Germination Percentages of Different Types of Seeds"; (3)…

Plant Betterment as Anticipated Measure For Plant Life Management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Louvat, J. P.

1991-01-01

A lot of modifications have been made since critically on each of the 28 standardized 900 MW class PWR units in France. Most of this technical upgrading was accomplished to facilitate operation, improve availability, or bring the unit design in line with evolving regulatory requirements, but a substantial part of the modifications was dedicated to Plant Life Management. As part of the program launched by EDF for plant life management, this paper introduces the Frustum's contribution for plant betterment and enhancement of reactor operation concurrently to ensure or extend plant service life. The solutions contemplated in this field are provided to reduce the frequency of unexpected reactor trip occurrences, to mitigate their negative effects or to smooth off the reactor operation and thus the magnitude of associated transients. The lifetime evaluation of NPP is basically an economical exercise, which tries to determine how long the operation of the plant will remain competitive, taking into account the long term perspective maintenance costs. There cannot be any conflict between lifetime and safety considerations, based upon the pituitary requisite that the safety requirement must be met at any time of the operation. Plant life management needs a consistent approach that can not be improvised on a case by case basis. Instead, it must be kept in mind from the very beginning of unit operation. This is the sense of the backfitting and technical upgrading carried out in France for the PWRs of the 900 MW class. It is thanks to this necessary anticipation that plant life will be actually managed, giving benefit both from the standpoint of availability and from that of the service lives of sensitive components. Substantial savings will thus be obtained

Top 10 plant pathogenic bacteria in molecular plant pathology.

Science.gov (United States)

Mansfield, John; Genin, Stephane; Magori, Shimpei; Citovsky, Vitaly; Sriariyanum, Malinee; Ronald, Pamela; Dow, Max; Verdier, Valérie; Beer, Steven V; Machado, Marcos A; Toth, Ian; Salmond, George; Foster, Gary D

2012-08-01

Many plant bacteriologists, if not all, feel that their particular microbe should appear in any list of the most important bacterial plant pathogens. However, to our knowledge, no such list exists. The aim of this review was to survey all bacterial pathologists with an association with the journal Molecular Plant Pathology and ask them to nominate the bacterial pathogens they would place in a 'Top 10' based on scientific/economic importance. The survey generated 458 votes from the international community, and allowed the construction of a Top 10 bacterial plant pathogen list. The list includes, in rank order: (1) Pseudomonas syringae pathovars; (2) Ralstonia solanacearum; (3) Agrobacterium tumefaciens; (4) Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae; (5) Xanthomonas campestris pathovars; (6) Xanthomonas axonopodis pathovars; (7) Erwinia amylovora; (8) Xylella fastidiosa; (9) Dickeya (dadantii and solani); (10) Pectobacterium carotovorum (and Pectobacterium atrosepticum). Bacteria garnering honourable mentions for just missing out on the Top 10 include Clavibacter michiganensis (michiganensis and sepedonicus), Pseudomonas savastanoi and Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus. This review article presents a short section on each bacterium in the Top 10 list and its importance, with the intention of initiating discussion and debate amongst the plant bacteriology community, as well as laying down a benchmark. It will be interesting to see, in future years, how perceptions change and which bacterial pathogens enter and leave the Top 10. © 2012 The Authors. Molecular Plant Pathology © 2012 BSPP and Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Plant growth and gas balance in a plant and mushroom cultivation system

Science.gov (United States)

Kitaya, Y.; Tani, A.; Kiyota, M.; Aiga, I.

1994-11-01

In order to obtain basic data for construction of a plant cultivation system incorporating a mushroom cultivation subsystem in the CELSS, plant growth and atmospheric CO2 balance in the system were investigated. The plant growth was promoted by a high level of CO2 which resulted from the respiration of the mushroom mycelium in the system. The atmospheric CO2 concentration inside the system changed significantly due to the slight change in the net photosynthetic rate of plants and/or the respiration rate of the mushroom when the plant cultivation system combined directly with the mushroom cultivation subsystem.

Plant neighbor identity influences plant biochemistry and physiology related to defense.

Science.gov (United States)

Broz, Amanda K; Broeckling, Corey D; De-la-Peña, Clelia; Lewis, Matthew R; Greene, Erick; Callaway, Ragan M; Sumner, Lloyd W; Vivanco, Jorge M

2010-06-17

Chemical and biological processes dictate an individual organism's ability to recognize and respond to other organisms. A small but growing body of evidence suggests that plants may be capable of recognizing and responding to neighboring plants in a species specific fashion. Here we tested whether or not individuals of the invasive exotic weed, Centaurea maculosa, would modulate their defensive strategy in response to different plant neighbors. In the greenhouse, C. maculosa individuals were paired with either conspecific (C. maculosa) or heterospecific (Festuca idahoensis) plant neighbors and elicited with the plant defense signaling molecule methyl jasmonate to mimic insect herbivory. We found that elicited C. maculosa plants grown with conspecific neighbors exhibited increased levels of total phenolics, whereas those grown with heterospecific neighbors allocated more resources towards growth. To further investigate these results in the field, we conducted a metabolomics analysis to explore chemical differences between individuals of C. maculosa growing in naturally occurring conspecific and heterospecific field stands. Similar to the greenhouse results, C. maculosa individuals accumulated higher levels of defense-related secondary metabolites and lower levels of primary metabolites when growing in conspecific versus heterospecific field stands. Leaf herbivory was similar in both stand types; however, a separate field study positively correlated specialist herbivore load with higher densities of C. maculosa conspecifics. Our results suggest that an individual C. maculosa plant can change its defensive strategy based on the identity of its plant neighbors. This is likely to have important consequences for individual and community success.

Plant monitoring device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moriyama, Kunio.

1991-01-01

The monitoring device of the present invention is most suitable to early detection for equipment abnormality, or monitoring of state upon transient conditions such as startup and shutdown of an electric power plant, a large-scaled thermonuclear device and an accelerator plant. That is, in existent moitoring devices, acquired data are stored and the present operation states are monitored in comparison. A plant operation aquisition data reproduction section is disposed to the device. From the past operation conditions stored in the plant operation data aquisition reproducing section, the number of operation cycles that agrees with the present plant operation conditions is sought, to determine the agreed aquired data. Since these aquired data are time sequential data measured based on the standard time determined by the operation sequence, aquired data can be reproduced successively on every sample pitches. With such a constitution, aquired data under the same operation conditions as the present conditions are displayed together with the measured data. Accordingly, accurate monitoring can be conducted from the start-up to the shutdown of the plant. (I.S.)

Plant Metabolomics: An Indispensable System Biology Tool for Plant Science

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jun Hong

2016-06-01

Full Text Available As genomes of many plant species have been sequenced, demand for functional genomics has dramatically accelerated the improvement of other omics including metabolomics. Despite a large amount of metabolites still remaining to be identified, metabolomics has contributed significantly not only to the understanding of plant physiology and biology from the view of small chemical molecules that reflect the end point of biological activities, but also in past decades to the attempts to improve plant behavior under both normal and stressed conditions. Hereby, we summarize the current knowledge on the genetic and biochemical mechanisms underlying plant growth, development, and stress responses, focusing further on the contributions of metabolomics to practical applications in crop quality improvement and food safety assessment, as well as plant metabolic engineering. We also highlight the current challenges and future perspectives in this inspiring area, with the aim to stimulate further studies leading to better crop improvement of yield and quality.

Plant Metabolomics: An Indispensable System Biology Tool for Plant Science

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Jun; Yang, Litao; Zhang, Dabing; Shi, Jianxin

2016-01-01

As genomes of many plant species have been sequenced, demand for functional genomics has dramatically accelerated the improvement of other omics including metabolomics. Despite a large amount of metabolites still remaining to be identified, metabolomics has contributed significantly not only to the understanding of plant physiology and biology from the view of small chemical molecules that reflect the end point of biological activities, but also in past decades to the attempts to improve plant behavior under both normal and stressed conditions. Hereby, we summarize the current knowledge on the genetic and biochemical mechanisms underlying plant growth, development, and stress responses, focusing further on the contributions of metabolomics to practical applications in crop quality improvement and food safety assessment, as well as plant metabolic engineering. We also highlight the current challenges and future perspectives in this inspiring area, with the aim to stimulate further studies leading to better crop improvement of yield and quality. PMID:27258266

From IPE [individual plant examinations] to IPEEE [individual plant examination of external events

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Newton, I.M.

1994-01-01

In addition to doing individual plant examinations (IPEs) which assess risk to nuclear plants from internal factors, all US plants are now also required to analyse external events and submit an IPEEE (Individual Plant Examination of External Events). Specifically, the IPEEEs require an assessment of plant-specific risks from the following types of initiating events: seismic events; fire; wind; tornadoes; flooding; accidents involving transportation or nearby facilities, such as oil refineries. (author)

Phase I: the pipeline-gas demonstration plant. Demonstration plant engineering and design. Volume 18. Plant Section 2700 - Waste Water Treatment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

1981-05-01

Contract No. EF-77-C-01-2542 between Conoco Inc. and the US Department of Energy provides for the design, construction, and operation of a demonstration plant capable of processing bituminous caking coals into clean pipeline quality gas. The project is currently in the design phase (Phase I). This phase is scheduled to be completed in June 1981. One of the major efforts of Phase I is the process and project engineering design of the Demonstration Plant. The design has been completed and is being reported in 24 volumes. This is Volume 18 which reports the design of Plant Section 2700 - Waste Water Treatment. The objective of the Waste Water Treatment system is to collect and treat all plant liquid effluent streams. The system is designed to permit recycle and reuse of the treated waste water. Plant Section 2700 is composed of primary, secondary, and tertiary waste water treatment methods plus an evaporation system which eliminates liquid discharge from the plant. The Waste Water Treatment Section is designed to produce 130 pounds per hour of sludge that is buried in a landfill on the plant site. The evaporated water is condensed and provides a portion of the make-up water to Plant Section 2400 - Cooling Water.

78 FR 41866 - Restructuring of Regulations on the Importation of Plants for Planting

Science.gov (United States)

2013-07-12

... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 7 CFR Parts 319 and 340 [Docket No. APHIS-2008-0011] RIN 0579-AD75 Restructuring of Regulations on the Importation of Plants for Planting AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA. ACTION: Proposed rule; reopening of...

Sizes of secondary plant components for modularized IRIS balance of plant design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Williamson, Martin; Townsend, Lawrence

2003-01-01

Herein we report on a conceptual design for a balance of plant (BOP) layout to coordinate with IRIS-like plants. The report consists of results of calculations that sizes of various BOP components. These calculations include the thermodynamic analyses and general sizing of the components in order to determine plant capability and plant layout for studies on modularity and transportability. Mathematical modeling of the BOP system involves a modified ORCENT2 code as well as standard heat transfer methods. Using typical values for PWR type plants, a general BOP design, and IRIS steam generator values, an ORCENT2 heat balance is carried out for the secondary side of the plant. Using the ORCENT2 output, standard heat transfer methods are then used to calculate system performance and component sizes. (author)

Comparative studies between nuclear power plants and hydroelectric power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Menegassi, J.

1984-01-01

This paper shows the quantitative evolution of the power plants in the main countries of the world. The Brazilian situation is analysed, with emphasys in the technical and economical aspects related to power production by hidroelectric or nuclear power plants. The conclusion is that the electricity produced by hidro power plants becomes not economics when is intended to be produced at large distances from the demand centers. (Author) [pt

Plants' essential chemical elements

Science.gov (United States)

Kevin T. Smith

2007-01-01

Every garden center and hardware store sells fertilizer guaranteed to "feed" plants. In a strict sense, we can't feed plants. Food contains an energy source. Green plants capture solar energy and make their own food through photosynthesis! Photosynthesis and other metabolic processes require chemical elements in appropriate doses for plants to survive...

Exotic plant species receive adequate pollinator service despite variable integration into plant-pollinator networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Thompson, Amibeth H; Knight, Tiffany M

2018-05-01

Both exotic and native plant species rely on insect pollinators for reproductive success, and yet few studies have evaluated whether and how exotic plant species receive services from native pollinators for successful reproduction in their introduced range. Plant species are expected to successfully reproduce in their exotic range if they have low reliance on animal pollinators or if they successfully integrate themselves into resident plant-pollinator networks. Here, we quantify the breeding system, network integration, and pollen limitation for ten focal exotic plant species in North America. Most exotic plant species relied on animal pollinators for reproduction, and these species varied in their network integration. However, plant reproduction was limited by pollen receipt for only one plant species. Our results demonstrate that even poorly integrated exotic plant species can still have high pollination service and high reproductive success. The comprehensive framework considered here provides a method to consider the contribution of plant breeding systems and the pollinator community to pollen limitation, and can be applied to future studies to provide a more synthetic understanding of the factors that determine reproductive success of exotic plant species.

Remediation Using Plants and Plant Enzymes: A Progress Report

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

1995-01-01

.... In every case, the sources are plants growing near the sediment. The use of plants for remediation of hazardous materials such as TNT or other munitions like RDX and HMX has led to a new approach to remediation-- phytoremediation...

Nuclear power plants. The market for services, retrofitting, construction of new plants and dismantling of older plants in Europe through 2030

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Briese, Dirk; Hoemske, Tom

2010-01-01

The power plant scene in Europe is characterized by new power plant projects and retrofitting projects everywhere. This is due to the ageing of existing power plants and to increasing energy demand. Currently, there are projects for 48 power plant units with an installed capacity of 70 GW. According to a study of the nuclear power plant sector, about 16 GW will probably be constructed prior to 2030. The reference scenario presented in this article assumes a dynamic increase of 15 thousand million Euros per annum through 2016/2018. (orig.)

Multinationals and plant survival

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bandick, Roger

2010-01-01

The aim of this paper is twofold: first, to investigate how different ownership structures affect plant survival, and second, to analyze how the presence of foreign multinational enterprises (MNEs) affects domestic plants’ survival. Using a unique and detailed data set on the Swedish manufacturing...... sector, I am able to separate plants into those owned by foreign MNEs, domestic MNEs, exporting non-MNEs, and purely domestic firms. In line with previous findings, the result, when conditioned on other factors affecting survival, shows that foreign MNE plants have lower survival rates than non......-MNE plants. However, separating the non-MNEs into exporters and non-exporters, the result shows that foreign MNE plants have higher survival rates than non-exporting non-MNEs, while the survival rates of foreign MNE plants and exporting non-MNE plants do not seem to differ. Moreover, the simple non...

Plants and people

Science.gov (United States)

Kathryn Lynch

2012-01-01

Salal! Salmonberries! Sword ferns! The Northwest is home to a great number of native plant species that humans have used for centuries. Sadly, many local children are unaware of the history and culture connecting people and plants. Yet, from the beginning of time, plants have provided us food, medicine, and material for clothing, shelter, transportation, decoration,...

Diagnosing plant problems

Science.gov (United States)

Cheryl A. Smith

2008-01-01

Diagnosing Christmas tree problems can be a challenge, requiring a basic knowledge of plant culture and physiology, the effect of environmental influences on plant health, and the ability to identify the possible causes of plant problems. Developing a solution or remedy to the problem depends on a proper diagnosis, a process that requires recognition of a problem and...

Development of large scale wind energy conservation system. Development of control techniques for assembly-type wind power generating systems; Ogata furyoku hatsuden system no kaihatsu. Shugogata furyoku hatsuden system no seigyo gijutsu no kaihatsu

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Takita, M [New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization, Tokyo (Japan)

1994-12-01

Described herein are the results of the FY1994 research program for development of control techniques for assembly-type wind power generating systems. The study on optimum system configuration produces 50 to 100kW wind power units for screening small-size wind power plant types, and, at the same time, surveys performance of commercial units and experiences of 9 makers capable of producing the above units. As a result, 3 MICON`s units (output: 100kW, active YAW control, monopole tower, maximum wind speed: 60m/s) are selected. The study on optimum operational techniques integrates 2 medium-size power units into a power line, showing a service factor of 30.2% on the annual average, monthly varying in a range from 11.8 to 45.0%. These units, installed in Miyako Island, were attacked by 3 typhoons of wind velocity of 25m/s or higher in 1994, and the only damage recorded is that of the anemoscope/anemometer. It is found that No.1 unit is located at a better geographical point than the No.2 unit, to produce a higher output. 3 figs., 3 tabs.

Plant ABC transporters enable many unique aspects of a terrestrial plant's lifestyle

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hwang, Jae-Ung; Song, Won-Yong; Hong, Daewoong

2016-01-01

Terrestrial plants have two to four times more ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter genes than other organisms, including their ancestral microalgae. Recent studies found that plants harboring mutations in these transporters exhibit dramatic phenotypes, many of which are related to developmental...... to propose that diverse ABC transporters enabled many unique and essential aspects of a terrestrial plant's lifestyle, by transporting various compounds across specific membranes of the plant....

Rhizosphere Microbiomes Modulated by Pre-crops Assisted Plants in Defense Against Plant-Parasitic Nematodes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ahmed Elhady

2018-06-01

Full Text Available Plant-parasitic nematodes cause considerable damage to crop plants. The rhizosphere microbiome can affect invasion and reproductive success of plant-parasitic nematodes, thus affecting plant damage. In this study, we investigated how the transplanted rhizosphere microbiome from different crops affect plant-parasitic nematodes on soybean or tomato, and whether the plant’s own microbiome from the rhizosphere protects it better than the microbiome from fallow soil. Soybean plants growing in sterilized substrate were inoculated with the microbiome extracted from the rhizosphere of soybean, maize, or tomato. Controls were inoculated with extracts from bulk soil, or not inoculated. After the microbiome was established, the root lesion nematode Pratylenchus penetrans was added. Root invasion of P. penetrans was significantly reduced on soybean plants inoculated with the microbiome from maize or soybean compared to tomato or bulk soil, or the uninoculated control. In the analogous experiment with tomato plants inoculated with either P. penetrans or the root knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita, the rhizosphere microbiomes of maize and tomato reduced root invasion by P. penetrans and M. incognita compared to microbiomes from soybean or bulk soil. Reproduction of M. incognita on tomato followed the same trend, and it was best suppressed by the tomato rhizosphere microbiome. In split-root experiments with soybean and tomato plants, a systemic effect of the inoculated rhizosphere microbiomes on root invasion of P. penetrans was shown. Furthermore, some transplanted microbiomes slightly enhanced plant growth compared to uninoculated plants. The microbiomes from maize rhizosphere and bulk soil increased the fresh weights of roots and shoots of soybean plants, and microbiomes from soybean rhizosphere and bulk soil increased the fresh weights of roots and shoots of tomato plants. Nematode invasion did not affect plant growth in these short-term experiments. In

Plant DB link - PGDBj Registered plant list, Marker list, QTL list, Plant DB link & Genome analysis methods | LSDB Archive [Life Science Database Archive metadata

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available List Contact us PGDBj Registered plant list, Marker list, QTL list, Plant DB link & Genome analysis methods ...e Site Policy | Contact Us Plant DB link - PGDBj Registered plant list, Marker list, QTL list, Plant DB link & Genome analysis methods | LSDB Archive ...

Plant-soil feedbacks and the coexistence of competing plants

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Revilla Rimbach, Tomas; Veen, G. F. (Ciska); Eppinga, Maarten B.; Weissing, Franz J.

Plant-soil feedbacks can have important implications for the interactions among plants. Understanding these effects is a major challenge since it is inherently difficult to measure and manipulate highly diverse soil communities. Mathematical models may advance this understanding by making the

Plant physiology meets phytopathology: plant primary metabolism and plant-pathogen interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Berger, Susanne; Sinha, Alok K; Roitsch, Thomas

2007-01-01

Phytopathogen infection leads to changes in secondary metabolism based on the induction of defence programmes as well as to changes in primary metabolism which affect growth and development of the plant. Therefore, pathogen attack causes crop yield losses even in interactions which do not end up with disease or death of the plant. While the regulation of defence responses has been intensively studied for decades, less is known about the effects of pathogen infection on primary metabolism. Recently, interest in this research area has been growing, and aspects of photosynthesis, assimilate partitioning, and source-sink regulation in different types of plant-pathogen interactions have been investigated. Similarly, phytopathological studies take into consideration the physiological status of the infected tissues to elucidate the fine-tuned infection mechanisms. The aim of this review is to give a summary of recent advances in the mutual interrelation between primary metabolism and pathogen infection, as well as to indicate current developments in non-invasive techniques and important strategies of combining modern molecular and physiological techniques with phytopathology for future investigations.

Are Famine Food Plants Also Ethnomedicinal Plants? An Ethnomedicinal Appraisal of Famine Food Plants of Two Districts of Bangladesh

Science.gov (United States)

Azam, Fardous Mohammad Safiul; Biswas, Anup; Mannan, Abdul; Afsana, Nusrat Anik; Jahan, Rownak

2014-01-01

Plants have served as sources of food and medicines for human beings since their advent. During famines or conditions of food scarcity, people throughout the world depend on unconventional plant items to satiate their hunger and meet their nutritional needs. Malnourished people often suffer from various diseases, much more than people eating a balanced diet. We are hypothesizing that the unconventional food plants that people eat during times of scarcity of their normal diet are also medicinal plants and thus can play a role in satiating hunger, meeting nutritional needs, and serving therapeutic purposes. Towards testing our hypothesis, surveys were carried out among the low income people of four villages in Lalmonirhat and Nilphamari districts of Bangladesh. People and particularly the low income people of these two districts suffer each year from a seasonal famine known as Monga. Over 200 informants from 167 households in the villages were interviewed with the help of a semistructured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method. The informants mentioned a total of 34 plant species that they consumed during Monga. Published literature shows that all the species consumed had ethnomedicinal uses. It is concluded that famine food plants also serve as ethnomedicinal plants. PMID:24701245

Are Famine Food Plants Also Ethnomedicinal Plants? An Ethnomedicinal Appraisal of Famine Food Plants of Two Districts of Bangladesh

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fardous Mohammad Safiul Azam

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Plants have served as sources of food and medicines for human beings since their advent. During famines or conditions of food scarcity, people throughout the world depend on unconventional plant items to satiate their hunger and meet their nutritional needs. Malnourished people often suffer from various diseases, much more than people eating a balanced diet. We are hypothesizing that the unconventional food plants that people eat during times of scarcity of their normal diet are also medicinal plants and thus can play a role in satiating hunger, meeting nutritional needs, and serving therapeutic purposes. Towards testing our hypothesis, surveys were carried out among the low income people of four villages in Lalmonirhat and Nilphamari districts of Bangladesh. People and particularly the low income people of these two districts suffer each year from a seasonal famine known as Monga. Over 200 informants from 167 households in the villages were interviewed with the help of a semistructured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method. The informants mentioned a total of 34 plant species that they consumed during Monga. Published literature shows that all the species consumed had ethnomedicinal uses. It is concluded that famine food plants also serve as ethnomedicinal plants.

ACCUMULATION OF PERCHLORATE IN TOBACCO PLANTS: DEVELOPMENT OF A PLANT KINETIC MODEL

Science.gov (United States)

Previous studies have shown that tobacco plants are tolerant of perchlorate and will accumulate perchlorate in plant tissues. This research determined the uptake, translocation, and accumulation of perchlorate in tobacco plants. Three hydroponics growth studies were completed u...

Sea water pumping-up power plant system combined with nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ichiki, Tadaharu; Tanaka, Masayuki.

1991-01-01

It is difficult to find a site suitable to construction for a sea water pumping-up power plant at a place relatively near the electric power consumption area. Then, a nuclear power plant is set at the sea bottom or the land portion of a sea shore near the power consumption area. A cavity is excavated underground or at the bottom of the sea in the vicinity of the power plant to form a lower pond, and the bottom of the sea, as an upper pond and the lower pond are connected by a water pressure pipe and a water discharge pipe. A pump water turbine is disposed therebetween, to which electric power generator is connected. In addition, an ordinary or emergency cooling facility in the nuclear power plant is constituted such that sea water in the cavity is supplied by a sea water pump. Accordingly, the sea water pumping-up plant system in combination with the nuclear power plant is constituted with no injuring from salts to animals and plants on land in the suburbs of a large city. The cost for facilities for supplying power from a remote power plant to large city areas and power loss are decreased and stable electric power can be supplied. (N.H.)

[Plant hydroponics and its application prospect in medicinal plants study].

Science.gov (United States)

Zeng, Yan; Guo, Lan-Ping; Huang, Lu-Qi; Sun, Yu-Zhang

2007-03-01

This article introduced the theorem and method of hydroponics. Some examples of studies in agriculture and forestry were presented, the effects of elements, environmental stress and hormones on physiology of medicinal plants by using hydroponics were analyzed. It also introduced the feasibility and advantage of hydroponics in intermediate propagation and allelopathy of medicinal plant. And finally it made the conclusion that the way of hydroponics would be widely used in medicinal plant study.

Plant lectins: the ties that bind in root symbiosis and plant defense.

Science.gov (United States)

De Hoff, Peter L; Brill, Laurence M; Hirsch, Ann M

2009-07-01

Lectins are a diverse group of carbohydrate-binding proteins that are found within and associated with organisms from all kingdoms of life. Several different classes of plant lectins serve a diverse array of functions. The most prominent of these include participation in plant defense against predators and pathogens and involvement in symbiotic interactions between host plants and symbiotic microbes, including mycorrhizal fungi and nitrogen-fixing rhizobia. Extensive biological, biochemical, and molecular studies have shed light on the functions of plant lectins, and a plethora of uncharacterized lectin genes are being revealed at the genomic scale, suggesting unexplored and novel diversity in plant lectin structure and function. Integration of the results from these different types of research is beginning to yield a more detailed understanding of the function of lectins in symbiosis, defense, and plant biology in general.

Plant analyzer development for high-speed interactive simulation of BWR plant transients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wulff, W.; Cheng, H.S.; Mallen, A.N.

1986-01-01

Advanced modeling techniques have been combined with modern, special-purpose peripheral minicomputer technology to develop a plant analyzer which provides realistic and accurate predictions of plant transients and severe off-normal events in nuclear power plants through on-line simulations at speeds of approximately 10 times faster than actual process speeds. The new simulation technology serves not only for carrying out routinely and efficiently safety analyses, optimizations of emergency procedures and design changes, parametric studies for obtaining safety margins and for generic training but also for assisting plant operations. Five modeling principles are presented which serve to achieve high-speed simulation of neutron kinetics, thermal conduction, nonhomogeneous and nonequilibrium two-phase flow coolant dynamics, steam line acoustical effects, and the dynamics of the balance of plant and containment systems, control systems and plant protection systems. 21 refs

GenoCAD Plant Grammar to Design Plant Expression Vectors for Promoter Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Coll, Anna; Wilson, Mandy L; Gruden, Kristina; Peccoud, Jean

2016-01-01

With the rapid advances in prediction tools for discovery of new promoters and their cis-elements, there is a need to improve plant expression methodologies in order to facilitate a high-throughput functional validation of these promoters in planta. The promoter-reporter analysis is an indispensible approach for characterization of plant promoters. It requires the design of complex plant expression vectors, which can be challenging. Here, we describe the use of a plant grammar implemented in GenoCAD that will allow the users to quickly design constructs for promoter analysis experiments but also for other in planta functional studies. The GenoCAD plant grammar includes a library of plant biological parts organized in structural categories to facilitate their use and management and a set of rules that guides the process of assembling these biological parts into large constructs.

The impact of whole-plant instruction of preservice teachers' understanding of plant science principles

Science.gov (United States)

Hypolite, Christine Collins

The purpose of this research was to determine how an inquiry-based, whole-plant instructional strategy would affect preservice elementary teachers' understanding of plant science principles. This study probed: what preservice teachers know about plant biology concepts before and after instruction, their views of the interrelatedness of plant parts and the environment, how growing a plant affects preservice teachers' understanding, and which types of activity-rich plant themes studies, if any, affect preservice elementary teachers' understandings. The participants in the study were enrolled in two elementary science methods class sections at a state university. Each group was administered a preinstructional test at the beginning of the study. The treatment group participated in inquiry-based activities related to the Principles of Plant Biology (American Society of Plant Biologists, 2001), while the comparison group studied those same concepts through traditional instructional methods. A focus group was formed from the treatment group to participate in co-concept mapping sessions. The participants' understandings were assessed through artifacts from activities, a comparison of pre- and postinstructional tests, and the concept maps generated by the focus group. Results of the research indicated that the whole-plant, inquiry-based instructional strategy can be applied to teach preservice elementary teachers plant biology while modeling the human constructivist approach. The results further indicated that this approach enhanced their understanding of plant science content knowledge, as well as pedagogical knowledge. The results also showed that a whole-plant approach to teaching plant science concepts is an instructional strategy that is feasible for the elementary school. The theoretical framework for this study was Human Constructivist learning theory (Mintzes & Wandersee, 1998). The content knowledge and instructional strategy was informed by the Principles of Plant

Safe genetically engineered plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosellini, D; Veronesi, F

2007-01-01

The application of genetic engineering to plants has provided genetically modified plants (GMPs, or transgenic plants) that are cultivated worldwide on increasing areas. The most widespread GMPs are herbicide-resistant soybean and canola and insect-resistant corn and cotton. New GMPs that produce vaccines, pharmaceutical or industrial proteins, and fortified food are approaching the market. The techniques employed to introduce foreign genes into plants allow a quite good degree of predictability of the results, and their genome is minimally modified. However, some aspects of GMPs have raised concern: (a) control of the insertion site of the introduced DNA sequences into the plant genome and of its mutagenic effect; (b) presence of selectable marker genes conferring resistance to an antibiotic or an herbicide, linked to the useful gene; (c) insertion of undesired bacterial plasmid sequences; and (d) gene flow from transgenic plants to non-transgenic crops or wild plants. In response to public concerns, genetic engineering techniques are continuously being improved. Techniques to direct foreign gene integration into chosen genomic sites, to avoid the use of selectable genes or to remove them from the cultivated plants, to reduce the transfer of undesired bacterial sequences, and make use of alternative, safer selectable genes, are all fields of active research. In our laboratory, some of these new techniques are applied to alfalfa, an important forage plant. These emerging methods for plant genetic engineering are briefly reviewed in this work

Safe genetically engineered plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rosellini, D; Veronesi, F [Dipartimento di Biologia Vegetale e Biotecnologie Agroambientali e Zootecniche, Universita degli Studi di Perugia, Borgo XX giugno 74, 06121 Perugia (Italy)

2007-10-03

The application of genetic engineering to plants has provided genetically modified plants (GMPs, or transgenic plants) that are cultivated worldwide on increasing areas. The most widespread GMPs are herbicide-resistant soybean and canola and insect-resistant corn and cotton. New GMPs that produce vaccines, pharmaceutical or industrial proteins, and fortified food are approaching the market. The techniques employed to introduce foreign genes into plants allow a quite good degree of predictability of the results, and their genome is minimally modified. However, some aspects of GMPs have raised concern: (a) control of the insertion site of the introduced DNA sequences into the plant genome and of its mutagenic effect; (b) presence of selectable marker genes conferring resistance to an antibiotic or an herbicide, linked to the useful gene; (c) insertion of undesired bacterial plasmid sequences; and (d) gene flow from transgenic plants to non-transgenic crops or wild plants. In response to public concerns, genetic engineering techniques are continuously being improved. Techniques to direct foreign gene integration into chosen genomic sites, to avoid the use of selectable genes or to remove them from the cultivated plants, to reduce the transfer of undesired bacterial sequences, and make use of alternative, safer selectable genes, are all fields of active research. In our laboratory, some of these new techniques are applied to alfalfa, an important forage plant. These emerging methods for plant genetic engineering are briefly reviewed in this work.

Using a plant health system framework to assess plant clinic performance in Uganda

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Danielsen, Solveig; Matsiko, Frank B.

2016-01-01

and expand, new analytical frameworks and tools are needed to identify factors influencing performance of services and systems in specific contexts, and to guide interventions. In this paper we apply a plant health system framework to assess plant clinic performance, using Uganda as a case study...... factors, influenced by basic operational and financial concerns, inter-institutional relations and public sector policies. Overall, there was a fairly close match between the plant health system attributes and plant clinic performance, suggesting that the framework can help explain system functioning....... A comparative study of plant clinics was carried out between July 2010 and September 2011 in the 12 districts where plant clinics were operating at that time. The framework enabled us to organise multiple issues and identify key features that affected the plant clinics. Clinic performance was, among other...

An automated, high-throughput plant phenotyping system using machine learning-based plant segmentation and image analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Unseok; Chang, Sungyul; Putra, Gian Anantrio; Kim, Hyoungseok; Kim, Dong Hwan

2018-01-01

A high-throughput plant phenotyping system automatically observes and grows many plant samples. Many plant sample images are acquired by the system to determine the characteristics of the plants (populations). Stable image acquisition and processing is very important to accurately determine the characteristics. However, hardware for acquiring plant images rapidly and stably, while minimizing plant stress, is lacking. Moreover, most software cannot adequately handle large-scale plant imaging. To address these problems, we developed a new, automated, high-throughput plant phenotyping system using simple and robust hardware, and an automated plant-imaging-analysis pipeline consisting of machine-learning-based plant segmentation. Our hardware acquires images reliably and quickly and minimizes plant stress. Furthermore, the images are processed automatically. In particular, large-scale plant-image datasets can be segmented precisely using a classifier developed using a superpixel-based machine-learning algorithm (Random Forest), and variations in plant parameters (such as area) over time can be assessed using the segmented images. We performed comparative evaluations to identify an appropriate learning algorithm for our proposed system, and tested three robust learning algorithms. We developed not only an automatic analysis pipeline but also a convenient means of plant-growth analysis that provides a learning data interface and visualization of plant growth trends. Thus, our system allows end-users such as plant biologists to analyze plant growth via large-scale plant image data easily.

Plant neighbor identity influences plant biochemistry and physiology related to defense

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Callaway Ragan M

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Chemical and biological processes dictate an individual organism's ability to recognize and respond to other organisms. A small but growing body of evidence suggests that plants may be capable of recognizing and responding to neighboring plants in a species specific fashion. Here we tested whether or not individuals of the invasive exotic weed, Centaurea maculosa, would modulate their defensive strategy in response to different plant neighbors. Results In the greenhouse, C. maculosa individuals were paired with either conspecific (C. maculosa or heterospecific (Festuca idahoensis plant neighbors and elicited with the plant defense signaling molecule methyl jasmonate to mimic insect herbivory. We found that elicited C. maculosa plants grown with conspecific neighbors exhibited increased levels of total phenolics, whereas those grown with heterospecific neighbors allocated more resources towards growth. To further investigate these results in the field, we conducted a metabolomics analysis to explore chemical differences between individuals of C. maculosa growing in naturally occurring conspecific and heterospecific field stands. Similar to the greenhouse results, C. maculosa individuals accumulated higher levels of defense-related secondary metabolites and lower levels of primary metabolites when growing in conspecific versus heterospecific field stands. Leaf herbivory was similar in both stand types; however, a separate field study positively correlated specialist herbivore load with higher densities of C. maculosa conspecifics. Conclusions Our results suggest that an individual C. maculosa plant can change its defensive strategy based on the identity of its plant neighbors. This is likely to have important consequences for individual and community success.

Registered plant list - PGDBj Registered plant list, Marker list, QTL list, Plant DB link & Genome analysis methods | LSDB Archive [Life Science Database Archive metadata

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available List Contact us PGDBj Registered plant list, Marker list, QTL list, Plant DB link & Genome analysis methods ...the Plant DB link list in simple search page) Genome analysis methods Presence or... absence of Genome analysis methods information in this DB (link to the Genome analysis methods information ...base Site Policy | Contact Us Registered plant list - PGDBj Registered plant list, Marker list, QTL list, Plant DB link & Genome analysis methods | LSDB Archive ...

Suppression of Plant Defenses by Herbivorous Mites Is Not Associated with Adaptation to Host Plants

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jéssica T. Paulo

2018-06-01

Full Text Available Some herbivores suppress plant defenses, which may be viewed as a result of the coevolutionary arms race between plants and herbivores. However, this ability is usually studied in a one-herbivore-one-plant system, which hampers comparative studies that could corroborate this hypothesis. Here, we extend this paradigm and ask whether the herbivorous spider-mite Tetranychus evansi, which suppresses the jasmonic-acid pathway in tomato plants, is also able to suppress defenses in other host plants at different phylogenetic distances from tomatoes. We test this using different plants from the Solanales order, namely tomato, jimsonweed, tobacco, and morning glory (three Solanaceae and one Convolvulaceae, and bean plants (Fabales. First, we compare the performance of T. evansi to that of the other two most-commonly found species of the same genus, T. urticae and T. ludeni, on several plants. We found that the performance of T. evansi is higher than that of the other species only on tomato plants. We then showed, by measuring trypsin inhibitor activity and life history traits of conspecific mites on either clean or pre-infested plants, that T. evansi can suppress plant defenses on all plants except tobacco. This study suggests that the suppression of plant defenses may occur on host plants other than those to which herbivores are adapted.

Radioactive uptake by plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Horak, O

1986-01-01

The fundamentals of radionuclide uptake by plants, both by leaves and roots are presented. Iodine, cesium, strontium and ruthenium are considered and a table of the measured concentrations in several agricultural plants shortly after the Chernobyl accident is presented. Another table gives the Cs and Sr transfer factors soil plants for some plants. By using them estimates of future burden can be obtained.

Plant critical concept

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Regan, P.J.

1996-01-01

The objective of the effort summarized in this paper is to support O and M cost reduction efforts by focusing resources on components and processes critical to plant performance. This effort will identify where resources on nonplant critical components and processes can be reduced or eliminated. This method will use a functional assessment as the basis for component-specific evaluations and ranking. This effort consists of two stages conducted in series. The first stage is to deterministically identify that set of plant components that are relevant from a plant performance perspective (i.e., safety, economics, reliability). The second stage probabilistically ranks that set of plant components from an importance perspective, where importance pertains to the particular application and is probabilistically weighted. The results of a pilot study identified that only a relatively small set of components are truly critical from an integrated plant performance perspective. These results are consistent with work being conducted at other nuclear power plants, as well as other commercial facilities. Initial implementation of this effort is estimated to reduce O and M costs on the order of $1 million per year. Subsequent applications are anticipated to increase that savings to $4--$5 million per year

Plant monitoring device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ito, Toru.

1994-01-01

The device of the present invention comprises a data collecting section for periodically collecting processed data sent from plant equipments, a top node induction and processing section for an important plant function model for inducing the plant function to be noted particularly by an operator from important plant function models by using process data and a window screen selection section for selecting a window screen to be displayed based on the result of the evaluation for each of function nodes based on the processing described above and determining the layout and automatically forming the display screen. It is constituted so that the kind and the layout of the window under display are checked if they are the same as those one cycle before or not and, if they are different, the screen is automatically switched to a new screen display. Then, operator's psychological burdens such as selection of information and judgement for the operation upon occurrence of plant abnormality and accident can be mitigated, to provide a safe operation circumstance having reinforced monitoring of the function of the whole plant can be provided. (N.H.)

Plant control device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sato, Masuo; Ono, Makoto.

1995-01-01

A plant control device comprises an intellectual instrumentation group for measuring a predetermined process amount, an intellectual equipment group operating in accordance with a self-countermeasure, a system information space for outputting system information, a system level monitoring and diagnosing information generalization section for outputting system information, a system level maintenance information generalization section for outputting information concerning maintenance, a plant level information space and a plant level information generalization section. Each of them determines a state of the plant autonomously, and when abnormality is detected, each of the intellectual instrumentation, equipments and systems exchange information with each other, to conduct required operations including operations of intellectual robots, as required. Appropriate countermeasures for gauges, equipments and systems can be conducted autonomously at a place where operators can not access to improve reliability of complicate operations in the working site, as well as improve plant safety and reliability. (N.H.)

Plants cultivation in controlled containments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2000-01-01

The plants cultivation in controlled containments permits to the - Departement d'Ecophysiologie Vegetale et de Microbiologie (DVEM) - of the CEA to lead several topics of research. The works of DVEM which are based on the molecular labelling, technique adapted to plants, contribute to understand the plant - soil relationships and the plant growth process. In addition, the staff of DVEM study the impact of pollutant heavy metals, existing in the soil, on plants and the plant stress induced by oxygen, light, ionizing radiations,... and defence mechanisms of plants (F. M.)

Owners of nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wood, R.S.

1991-07-01

This report indicates percentage ownership of commercial nuclear power plants by utility companies. The report includes all plants operating, under construction, docketed for NRC safety and environmental reviews, or under NRC antitrust review, but does not include those plants announced but not yet under review or those plants formally cancelled. Part 1 of the report lists plants alphabetically with their associated applicants or licensees and percentage ownership. Part 2 lists applicants or licensees alphabetically with their associated plants and percentage ownership. Part 1 also indicates which plants have received operating licenses (OLS)

Fuel reprocessing plant: No qualitative differences as compared to other sensitive process plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schweinoch, J.

1986-01-01

Nuclear power plants like the fuel reprocessing plant belong to the highly sensitive installations in respect of safety, but involve the same risks qualitatively as liquid-gas plants or chemical plants. Therefore no consequences for basic rights are discernible. The police can take adequate preventive measures. The regulations governing police action provide proper and sufficient warrants. (DG) [de

Plant control system upgrades in the context of industry trends towards plant life-extension

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

De Grosbois, J.; Basso, R.; Hepburn, A.; Kumar, V.

2002-01-01

Domestic CANDU nuclear plants were brought online between 1972 and 1986. Over the next decade, most of these stations will be nearing the end of their designed operating life. Effort has traditionally been placed on ensuring that the existing installed plant control system equipment could operate reliably until the end of this design life. Until recently, little attention has been given to plant control system upgrades or replacements to meet the expected requirement for 30+ years of additional plant operation following potential plant refurbishments. Industry developments are changing this thinking. The combination of expected increases in electricity demand (and prices), and the many recent successful turnaround stories of U.S. nuclear power plants has resulted in new interest in plant life improvement and plant life extension programs. Plant control system upgrade decisions are now being driven by the need to replace or upgrade these systems to support plant life extension. This article is the first of several that investigate aspects of plant control system upgrades or replacement, specifically in the context of the CANDU station digital control computers (DCCs). It sets the context for the discussion in the subsequent articles by providing a brief review of industry trends favouring plant refurbishment, by outlining the basic issues of aging and obsolescence of control system equipment, by establishing the need for upgrades and replacements, and by introducing some of the basic challenges to be addressed by the industry as it moves forward. (author)

Towards plant wires.

Science.gov (United States)

Adamatzky, Andrew

2014-08-01

In experimental laboratory studies we evaluate a possibility of making electrical wires from living plants. In scoping experiments we use lettuce seedlings as a prototype model of a plant wire. We approximate an electrical potential transfer function by applying direct current voltage to the lettuce seedlings and recording output voltage. We analyse oscillation frequencies of the output potential and assess noise immunity of the plant wires. Our findings will be used in future designs of self-growing wetware circuits and devices, and integration of plant-based electronic components into future and emergent bio-hybrid systems. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Plant Habitat (PH)

Science.gov (United States)

Onate, Bryan

2016-01-01

The International Space Station (ISS) will soon have a platform for conducting fundamental research of Large Plants. Plant Habitat (PH) is designed to be a fully controllable environment for high-quality plant physiological research. PH will control light quality, level, and timing, temperature, CO2, relative humidity, and irrigation, while scrubbing ethylene. Additional capabilities include leaf temperature and root zone moisture and oxygen sensing. The light cap will have red (630 nm), blue (450 nm), green (525 nm), far red (730 nm) and broad spectrum white LEDs. There will be several internal cameras (visible and IR) to monitor and record plant growth and operations.

Plant Transporter Identification

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsen, Bo

Membrane transport proteins (transporters) play a critical role for numerous biological processes, by controlling the movements of ions and molecules in and out of cells. In plants, transporters thus function as gatekeepers between the plant and its surrounding environment and between organs......, tissues, cells and intracellular compartments. Since plants are highly compartmentalized organisms with complex transportation infrastructures, they consequently have many transporters. However, the vast majority of predicted transporters have not yet been experimentally verified to have transport...... activity. This project contains a review of the implemented methods, which have led to plant transporter identification, and present our progress on creating a high-throughput functional genomics transporter identification platform....

Less power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

TASR

2003-01-01

In the Slovak Republic the number of company power plants decreased as against 2001 by two sources. In present time only 35 companies have their own power plants. The companies Slovnaft, Kappa Sturovo, Slovensky hodvab Senica, Matador Puchov, Maytex Liptovsky MikuIas, Kovohuty Krompachy, Chemko Strazske and some Slovak sugar factories belong to the largest company power plants in force of distributing companies. Installed output of present 35 company sources is 531 MW. The largest of separate power plants as Paroplynovy cyklus Bratislava (218 MW) and VD Zilina (72 MW) belong to independent sources. Total installed output of Slovak sources was 8306 MW in the end of last year

Plant life management (PLIM) in Swiss nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stejskal, Jan; Steudler, Daniel; Thoma, Kurt; Fuchs, Reinhard

2002-01-01

Full text: The Swiss Utility Working group for ageing Management (AM) presented their programme for the first time at the PLIM/PLEX 93. In the meantime the key guideline documents have been prepared and the most so called S teckbrief - files for Safety Class 1 (SC1) are issued. The 'Steckbrief' file is a summary of the component history and includes the results of the Reviews performed and measures taken or planned to counteract ageing mechanisms. The scope of these activities does not only serve the important aspect of reliable plant service but also facilitates component and plant life extension feasibility. The older plants have been operated now for up to 30 years, so PLEX will become a more important topic for Swiss NPP. It is very encouraging, that there is an official memorandum of the Swiss authority with the clear statement, that they could not identify any technical reason, why the older plants should not extend their design life of 40 years for at least 10 and the younger for 20 years. The result of this is that a well established Ageing Management Programme (AMP) provide a good basis for Plant Life Extension (PLEX), e.g. the Swiss AMP has to be seen as a PLIM. (author)

Development of hot water utilizing power plants in fiscal 1999. Development of binary cycle power plant (Development of system to detect well bottom information when geothermal hot water is excavated); 1999 nendo nessui riyo hatsuden plant nado kaihatsu seika hokokusho. Binary cycle hatsuden plant no kaihatsu (chinetsusei kussakuji kotei joho kenchi system no kaihatsu)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2000-03-01

Developmental research has been performed on the MWD system to identify on the real time basis the information about well bottom when geothermal hot water is excavated (azimuth, inclination, pressure and temperature). This paper summarizes the achievements in fiscal 1999. In the developmental research on the detection device, attempts were made in improving the zonde, and enhancing its heat resisting performance. In addition, data were acquired on electronics parts as a result of the heat resistance identifying test. For the on-the-ground devices, improvement was made to add the experiment analyzing program with a program to remove the downhole motor pressure noise. The pressure noise during excavation in the actual wells was collected. In the analyzing system, use of PC, improvement, and operation check were performed on the well trace projecting and indicating system. Operation of the well trace estimating system was checked by using the actual data in order to prepare the operation manual. With regard to the well evaluation supporting system, improvement, operation check and that by using the actual data were executed on the PC version temperature analyzing system. Performance of the zonde was verified by the actual geothermal well test. (NEDO)

Photochemical smog and plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sawada, T.

1974-07-01

Surveys of plant damage due to photochemical smog are summarized. The components of smog which appear to be responsible for plant damage include ozone and peroxyacyl nitrates. Their phytotoxic effects are much greater than those due to sulfur oxides. Damage surveys since 1970 reveal the following symptoms appearing on herbaceous plants (morning glory, cocks comb, dahlia, knotweed, petunia, chickweed, Welsh onion, spinach, Chinese cabbage, chard, taro): yellowish-white leaf discoloration, white and brown spots on matured leaves, and silvering of the lower surfaces of young leaves. Symptoms which appear on arboraceous plants such as zelkova, poplar, ginkgo, planetree, rose mallow, magnolia, pine tree, and rhododendron include early yellowing and reddening, white or brown spots, and untimely leaf-fall. The above plants are now utilized as indicator plants of photochemical smog. Surveys covering a broad area of Tokyo and three other prefectures indicate that plant damage due to photochemical smog extends to relatively unpolluted areas.

Modification of water treatment plant at Heavy Water Plant (Kota)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gajpati, C.R.; Shrivastava, C.S.; Shrivastava, D.C.; Shrivastava, J.; Vithal, G.K.; Bhowmick, A.

2008-01-01

Heavy Water Production by GS process viz. H 2 S - H 2 O bi-thermal exchange process requires a huge quantity of demineralized (DM) water as a source of deuterium. Since the deuterium recovery of GS process is only 18-19%, the water treatment plant (WTP) was designed and commissioned at Heavy Water Plant (Kota) to produce demineralized water at the rate of 680 m 3 /hr. The WTP was commissioned in 1980 and till 2005; the plant was producing DM water of required quality. It was having three streams of strong cation resin, atmospheric degasser and strong anion exchange resin with co-current regeneration. In 2001 a new concept of layered bed resin was developed and engineered for water treatment plant. The concept was attractive in terms of saving of chemicals and thus preservation of environment. Being an ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 plant, the modification of WTP was executed in 2005 during major turn around. After modification, a substantial amount of acid and alkali is saved

Application of plant cell and tissue culture for the production of phytochemicals in medicinal plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Pant, Bijaya

2014-01-01

Approximately 80% of the world inhabitants depend on the medicinal plants in the form of traditional formulations for their primary health care system well as in the treatment of a number of diseases since the ancient time. Many commercially used drugs have come from the information of indigenous knowledge of plants and their folk uses. Linking of the indigenous knowledge of medicinal plants to modern research activities provides a new reliable approach, for the discovery of novel drugs much more effectively than with random collection. Increase in population and increasing demand of plant products along with illegal trade are causing depletion of medicinal plants and many are threatened in natural habitat. Plant tissue culture technique has proved potential alternative for the production of desirable bioactive components from plants, to produce the enough amounts of plant material that is needed and for the conservation of threatened species. Different plant tissue culture systems have been extensively studied to improve and enhance the production of plant chemicals in various medicinal plants.

Offshore atomic power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1975-01-01

Various merits of offshore atomic power plants are illustrated, and their systems are assessed. The planning of the offshore atomic power plants in USA is reviewed, and the construction costs of the offshore plant in Japan were estimated. Air pollution problem may be solved by the offshore atomic power plants remarkably. Deep water at low temperature may be advantageously used as cooling water for condensers. Marine resources may be bred by building artificial habitats and by providing spring-up equipments. In the case of floating plants, the plant design can be standardized so that the construction costs may be reduced. The offshore plants can be classified into three systems, namely artificial island system, floating system and sea bottom-based system. The island system may be realized with the present level of civil engineering, but requires the development of technology for the resistance of base against earthquake and its calculation means. The floating system may be constructed with conventional power plant engineering and shipbuilding engineering, but the aseismatic stability of breakwater may be a problem to be solved. Deep water floating system and deep water submerging system are conceivable, but its realization may be difficult. The sea bottom-based system with large caissons can be realized by the present civil engineering, but the construction of the caissons, stability against earthquake and resistance to waves may be problems to be solved. The technical prediction and assessment of new plant sites for nuclear power plants have been reported by Science and Technology Agency in 1974. The construction costs of an offshore plant has been estimated by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry to be yen71,026/kW as of 1985. (Iwakiri, K.)

Herbivore specificity and the chemical basis of plant-plant communication in Baccharis salicifolia (Asteraceae).

Science.gov (United States)

Moreira, Xoaquín; Nell, Colleen S; Katsanis, Angelos; Rasmann, Sergio; Mooney, Kailen A

2016-09-06

It is well known that plant damage by leaf-chewing herbivores can induce resistance in neighbouring plants. It is unknown whether such communication occurs in response to sap-feeding herbivores, whether communication is specific to herbivore identity, and the chemical basis of communication, including specificity. We carried out glasshouse experiments using the California-native shrub Baccharis salicifolia and two ecologically distinct aphid species (one a dietary generalist and the other a specialist) to test for specificity of plant-plant communication and to document the underlying volatile organic compounds (VOCs). We show specificity of plant-plant communication to herbivore identity, as each aphid-damaged plant only induced resistance in neighbours against the same aphid species. The amount and composition of induced VOCs were markedly different between plants attacked by the two aphid species, providing a putative chemical mechanism for this specificity. Furthermore, a synthetic blend of the five major aphid-induced VOCs (ethanone, limonene, methyl salicylate, myrcene, ocimene) triggered resistance in receiving plants of comparable magnitude to aphid damage of neighbours, and the effects of the blend exceeded those of individual compounds. This study significantly advances our understanding of plant-plant communication by demonstrating the importance of sap-feeding herbivores and herbivore identity, as well as the chemical basis for such effects. © 2016 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2016 New Phytologist Trust.

Plant embryogenesis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vries, de Sacco C.; Weijers, Dolf

2017-01-01

Land plants are called ‘embryophytes’ and thus, their collective name is defined by their ability to form embryos. Indeed, embryogenesis is a widespread phenomenon in plants, and much of our diet is composed of embryos (just think of grains, beans or nuts; Figure 1). However, in addition to embryos

Plant actin cytoskeleton re-modeling by plant parasitic nematodes.

Science.gov (United States)

Engler, Janice de Almeida; Rodiuc, Natalia; Smertenko, Andrei; Abad, Pierre

2010-03-01

The cytoskeleton is an important component of the plant's defense mechanism against the attack of pathogenic organisms. Plants however, are defenseless against parasitic root-knot and cyst nematodes and respond to the invasion by the development of a special feeding site that supplies the parasite with nutrients required for the completion of its life cycle. Recent studies of nematode invasion under treatment with cytoskeletal drugs and in mutant plants where normal functions of the cytoskeleton have been affected, demonstrate the importance of the cytoskeleton in the establishment of a feeding site and successful nematode reproduction. It appears that in the case of microfilaments, nematodes hijack the intracellular machinery that regulates actin dynamics and modulate the organization and properties of the actin filament network. Intervening with this process reduces the nematode infection efficiency and inhibits its life cycle. This discovery uncovers a new pathway that can be exploited for the protection of plants against nematodes.

Plant life management study of Japanese nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fukuda, Toshihiko

1999-01-01

Already more than twenty-five years have passed since the first commercial LWR plant went into operation in Japan. In this situation, MITI and 3 electric utilities (Tokyo Electric Power Company, Kansai Electric Power Co., Inc, Japan Atomic Power Company) have started a plant life management (PLM) study from 1994 to evaluate the long-term integrity of major systems, structures and components of aged LWR plants and ensure the safe, steady and highly reliable long-term operation. It consists of two phases: part 1 study and part 2 study. The part 1 study started in 1994 and focused on seven typical safety-related components. The part 1 study reports were made public in 1996. The part 2 study started in 1997. In this study we reviewed not only safety-related components but also plant reliability related components. The part 2 study reports were opened to the public in February 1999. This paper shows a summary of the part 2 study and our future PLM program. (author)

Improvement of the nuclear plant analyzer for Korean Standard Nuclear Power Plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Sung Soo; Han, Byoung Sub; Suh, Jae Seung; Son, Dae Seong

2005-04-01

Accurate analysis of the operating characteristics of Nuclear Power Plants provides valuable information for both norman and abnormal operation. The information can be used for the enhancement of plant performance and safety. Usually, such analysis is performed using computer codes used for plant design or simulators. However, their usages are limited because special expertise is required to use the computer codes and simulators are not portable. Therefore, it deemed necessary to develop an NPA which minimizes those limitations and can be used for the analysis and simulation of Nuclear Power Plants. The purpose of this study is to develop a real-time best-estimate NPA for the Korean Nuclear Power Plants(KSNP). The NPA is an interactive, high fidelity engineering simulator. NPA combines the process model simulating the plant behavior with the latest computer technology such as Graphical User Interface(GUI) and simulation executive for enhanced user interface. The process model includes models for a three-dimensional reactor core, the NSSS, secondary system including turbine and feedtrain, safety auxiliary systems, and various control systems. Through the verification and validation of the NPA, it was demonstrated that the NPA can realistically simulate the plant behaviors during transient and accident conditions

Phytochrome, plant growth and flowering

Science.gov (United States)

King, R. W.; Bagnall, D. J.

1994-01-01

Attempts to use artificially lit cabinets to grow plants identical to those growing in sunlight have provided compelling evidence of the importance of light quality for plant growth. Changing the balance of red (R) to far-red (FR) radiation, but with a fixed photosynthetic input can shift the phytochrome photoequilibrium in a plant and generate large differences in plant growth. With FR enrichment the plants elongate, and may produce more leaf area and dry matter. Similar morphogenic responses are also obtained when light quality is altered only briefly (15-30 min) at the end-of-the-day. Conversely, for plants grown in natural conditions the response of plant form to selective spectral filtering has again shown that red and far-red wavebands are important as found by Kasperbauer and coworkers. Also, where photosynthetic photon flux densities (PPFD) of sunlight have been held constant, the removal of far-red alone alters plant growth. With FR depletion plants grown in sunlight are small, more branched and darker green. Here we examine the implications for plant growth and flowering when the far-red composition of incident radiation in plant growth chambers is manipulated.

Phytochrome, plant growth and flowering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

King, R.W.; Bagnall, D.J. [CSIRO, Canberra (Australia)

1994-12-31

Attempts to use artificially lit cabinets to grow plants identical to those growing in sunlight have provided compelling evidence of the importance of light quality for plant growth. Changing the balance of red (R) to far-red (FR) radiation, but with a fixed photosynthetic input can shift the phytochrome photoequilibrium in a plant and generate large differences in plant growth. With FR enrichment the plants elongate, and may produce more leaf area and dry matter. Similar morphogenic responses are also obtained when light quality is altered only briefly (15-30 min) at the end-of-the-day. Conversely, for plants grown in natural conditions the response of plant form to selective spectral filtering has again shown that red and far-red wavebands are important as found by Kasperbauer and coworkers. Also, where photosynthetic photon flux densities (PPFD) of sunlight have been held constant, the removal of far-red alone alters plant growth. As shown for chrysanthemum, with FR depletion plants grown in sunlight are small, more branched and darker green. We examine the implications for plant growth and flowering when the far-red composition of incident radiation in plant growth chambers is manipulated.

The year 2000 power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roman, H.T.

1989-01-01

Every utility seeks extended service life from its existing power plants before building new ones. It is not easy to justify a new power plant. The licensing and cost of new plants have become uncertain. In response to these conditions, electric utilities are undertaking plant life-extension studies and, in some cases, reconditioning/upgrading old power plants to significantly increase useful service life. Other technologies like robotics and artificial intelligence/expert systems are also being developed to reduce operating and maintenance (O and M) expenses, to remove workers from potentially hazardous environments, and to reduce plant downtime. Together, these steps represent an interim solution, perhaps providing some relief for the next few decades. However, there are serious physical and economic limits to retrofitting new technology into existing power plants. Some old plants will simply be beyond their useful life and require retirement. In nuclear plants, for instance, retrofit may raise important and time-consuming licensing/safety issues. Based on their robotics and artificial intelligence experience, the authors of this article speculate bout the design of the year 2000 power plant - a power plant they feel will naturally incorporate liberal amounts of robotic and artificial intelligence technologies

Engineered Plants as Biosensors

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Stewart, C

2003-01-01

The aim of the research was the creation of a model biosensing plant that could detect plant diseases and to characterize the utility of laser induced fluorescence imaging for detecting the inducible (LIFI) plant signal...

Revisiting the plant hyperaccumulation criteria to rare plants and earth abundant elements

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Branquinho, Cristina [Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Ciencias, Centro de Ecologia e Biologia Vegetal, Campo Grande C2, Piso 4, 1749-016 Lisbon (Portugal) and Universidade Atlantica, Antiga Fabrica da Polvora de Barcarena, 2745-615 Barcarena (Portugal)]. E-mail: cmbranquinho@fc.ul.pt; Serrano, Helena Cristina [Universidade de Lisboa, Museu Nacional de Historia Natural, Jardim Botanico (Portugal); Pinto, Manuel Joao [Universidade de Lisboa, Museu Nacional de Historia Natural, Jardim Botanico (Portugal); Martins-Loucao, Maria Amelia [Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Ciencias, Centro de Ecologia e Biologia Vegetal, Campo Grande C2, Piso 4, 1749-016 Lisbon (Portugal); Universidade de Lisboa, Museu Nacional de Historia Natural, Jardim Botanico (Portugal)

2007-03-15

The several established criteria to define a hyperaccumulator plant were applied to a rare and endangered species, Plantago almogravensis, and to the 3rd most abundant element in the earth crust, Al. Using the most common criteria, P. almogravensis undoubtedly is an Al hyperaccumulator plant. If the recent proposed requirements were considered, most of them matching those for a plant to be used in phytoextraction, it can only be considered an unusual accumulator of Al. A discussion is made concerning the several criteria of a hyperaccumulator plant in order to include rare and endemic ones and abundant elements. In ecological terms, the enrichment in Al and Fe observed may account for the differences in the vegetation pattern. Due to the rarity and endangered nature of this plant, the contribution of this work is also relevant for the ecological understanding and the development of conservation options of this endemic species. - Revisiting plant hyperaccumulation criteria.

Revisiting the plant hyperaccumulation criteria to rare plants and earth abundant elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Branquinho, Cristina; Serrano, Helena Cristina; Pinto, Manuel Joao; Martins-Loucao, Maria Amelia

2007-01-01

The several established criteria to define a hyperaccumulator plant were applied to a rare and endangered species, Plantago almogravensis, and to the 3rd most abundant element in the earth crust, Al. Using the most common criteria, P. almogravensis undoubtedly is an Al hyperaccumulator plant. If the recent proposed requirements were considered, most of them matching those for a plant to be used in phytoextraction, it can only be considered an unusual accumulator of Al. A discussion is made concerning the several criteria of a hyperaccumulator plant in order to include rare and endemic ones and abundant elements. In ecological terms, the enrichment in Al and Fe observed may account for the differences in the vegetation pattern. Due to the rarity and endangered nature of this plant, the contribution of this work is also relevant for the ecological understanding and the development of conservation options of this endemic species. - Revisiting plant hyperaccumulation criteria

Ornamental Plant Breeding

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Flávia Barbosa Silva Botelho

2015-04-01

Full Text Available World’s ornamental plant market, including domestic market of several countries and its exports, is currently evaluated in 107 billion dollars yearly. Such estimate highlights the importance of the sector in the economy of the countries, as well as its important social role, as it represents one of the main activities, which contributes to income and employment. Therefore a well-structured plant breeding program, which is connected with consumers’ demands, is required in order to fulfill these market needs globally. Activities related to pre-breeding, conventional breeding, and breeding by biotechnological techniques constitute the basis for the successful development of new ornamental plant cultivars. Techniques that involve tissue culture, protoplast fusion and genetic engineering greatly aid conventional breeding (germplasm introduction, plant selection and hybridization, aiming the obtention of superior genotypes. Therefore it makes evident, in the literature, the successful employment of genetic breeding, since it aims to develop plants with commercial value that are also competitive with the ones available in the market.

Plant for retention of 14C in reprocessing plants for LWR fuel elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Braun, H.; Gutowski, H.; Bonka, H.; Gruendler, D.

1983-01-01

The 14 C produced from nuclear power plants is actually totally emitted from nuclear power plants and reprocessing plants. Using the radiation protection principles proposed in ICRP 26, 14 C should be retained at heavy water moderated reactors and reprocessing plants due to a cost-benefit analysis. In the frame of a research work to cost-benefit analysis, which was sponsored by the Federal Minister of the Interior, an industrial plant for 14 C retention at reprocessing plants for LWR fuel elements has been planned according to the double alkali process. The double alkali process has been chosen because of the sufficient operation experience in the conventional chemical technique. In order to verify some operational parameters and to gain experiences, a cold test plant was constructed. The experiment results showed that the double alkali process is a technically suitable method with high operation security. Solidifying CaCO 3 with cement gives a product fit for final disposal

Plant designer's view of the operator's role in nuclear plant safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Corcoran, W.R.; Church, J.F.; Cross, M.T.; Porter, N.J.

1981-01-01

The nuclear plant operator's role supports the design assumptions and equipment with four functional tasks. He must set up th plant for predictable response to disturbances, operate the plant so as to minimize the likelihood and severity of event initiators, assist in accomplishing the safety functions, and feed back operating experiences to reinforce or redefine the safety analyses' assumptions. The latter role enhances the operator effectiveness in the former three roles. The Safety Level Concept offers a different perspective that enables the operator to view his roles in nuclear plant safety. This paper outlines the operator's role in nuclear safety and classifies his tasks using the Safety Level Concept

Late Palaeozoic plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Feng, Zhuo

2017-09-11

Land plants are one of the major constituents of terrestrial ecosystems on Earth, and play an irreplaceable role in human activities today. If we are to understand the extant plants, it is imperative that we have some understanding of the fossil plants from the deep geological past, particularly those that occurred during their early evolutionary history, in the late Palaeozoic. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Towards a reference plant trait ontology for modeling knowledge of plant traits and phenotypes

Science.gov (United States)

Ontology engineering and knowledge modeling for the plant sciences is expected to contribute to the understanding of the basis of plant traits that determine phenotypic expression in a given environment. Several crop- or clade-specific plant trait ontologies have been developed to describe plant tr...

Terrestrial plant methane production

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mikkelsen, Teis Nørgaard; Bruhn, Dan; Møller, Ian M.

We evaluate all experimental work published on the phenomenon of aerobic methane (CH4) generation in terrestrial plants. We conclude that the phenomenon is true. Four stimulating factors have been observed to induce aerobic plant CH4 production, i.e. cutting injuries, increasing temperature...... the aerobic methane emission in plants. Future work is needed for establishing the relative contribution of several proven potential CH4 precursors in plant material....

Accident prevention in power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Steyrer, H.

Large thermal power plants are insured to a great extent at the Industrial Injuries Insurance Institute of Instrument and Electric Engineering. Approximately 4800 employees are registered. The accident frequency according to an evaluation over 12 months lies around 79.8 per year and 1000 employees in fossil-fired power plants, around 34.1 per year and 1000 employees in nuclear power plants, as in nuclear power plants coal handling and ash removal are excluded. Injuries due to radiation were not registered. The crucial points of accidents are mechanical injuries received on solid, sharp-edged and pointed objects (fossil-fired power plants 28.6%, nuclear power plants 41.5%), stumbling, twisting or slipping (fossil-fired power plants 21.8%, nuclear power plants 19.5%) and injuries due to moving machine parts (only nuclear power plants 12.2%). However, accidents due to burns or scalds obtain with 4.2% and less a lower portion than expected. The accident statistics can explain this fact in a way that the typical power plant accident does not exist. (orig./GL) [de

Methodology and application of surrogate plant PRA analysis to the Rancho Seco Power Plant: Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gore, B.F.; Huenefeld, J.C.

1987-07-01

This report presents the development and the first application of generic probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) information for identifying systems and components important to public risk at nuclear power plants lacking plant-specific PRAs. A methodology is presented for using the results of PRAs for similar (surrogate) plants, along with plant-specific information about the plant of interest and the surrogate plants, to infer important failure modes for systems of the plant of interest. This methodology, and the rationale on which it is based, is presented in the context of its application to the Rancho Seco plant. The Rancho Seco plant has been analyzed using PRA information from two surrogate plants. This analysis has been used to guide development of considerable plant-specific information about Rancho Seco systems and components important to minimizing public risk, which is also presented herein

Diverse urban plantings managed with sufficient resource availability can increase plant productivity and arthropod diversity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jonathon eMuller

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Buildings structures and surfaces are explicitly being used to grow plants, and these ‘urban plantings’ are typically designed for aesthetic value. Urban plantings also have the potential to contribute significant ‘ecological values’ by increasing urban habitat for animals such as arthropods and by increasing plant productivity. In this study, we evaluated how the provision of these additional ecological values is affected by plant species richness; the availability of essential resources for plants, such as water, light, space; and soil characteristics. We sampled 33 plantings located on the exterior of three buildings in the urban centre of Brisbane, Australia (subtropical climatic region over two, six week sampling periods characterised by different temperature and rainfall conditions. Plant cover was estimated as a surrogate for productivity as destructive sampling of biomass was not possible. We measured weekly light levels (photosynthetically active radiation, plant CO2 assimilation, soil CO2 efflux, and arthropod diversity.Differences in plant cover were best explained by a three-way interaction of plant species richness, management water regime and sampling period. As the richness of plant species increased in a planter, productivity and total arthropod richness also increased significantly - likely due to greater habitat heterogeneity and quality. Overall we found urban plantings can provide additional ecological values if essential resources are maintained within a planter such as water, light and soil temperature. Diverse urban plantings that are managed with these principles in mind can contribute to the attraction of diverse arthropod communities, and lead to increased plant productivity within a dense urban context.

Does plant-Microbe interaction confer stress tolerance in plants: A review?

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Akhilesh; Verma, Jay Prakash

2018-03-01

The biotic and abiotic stresses are major constraints for crop yield, food quality and global food security. A number of parameters such as physiological, biochemical, molecular of plants are affected under stress condition. Since the use of inorganic fertilizers and pesticides in agriculture practices cause degradation of soil fertility and environmental pollutions. Hence it is necessary to develop safer and sustainable means for agriculture production. The application of plant growth promoting microbes (PGPM) and mycorrhizal fungi enhance plant growth, under such conditions. It offers an economically fascinating and ecologically sound ways for protecting plants against stress condition. PGPM may promote plant growth by regulating plant hormones, improve nutrition acquisition, siderophore production and enhance the antioxidant system. While acquired systemic resistance (ASR) and induced systemic resistance (ISR) effectively deal with biotic stress. Arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) enhance the supply of nutrients and water during stress condition and increase tolerance to stress. This plant-microbe interaction is vital for sustainable agriculture and industrial purpose, because it depends on biological processes and replaces conventional agriculture practices. Therefore, microbes may play a key role as an ecological engineer to solve environmental stress problems. So, it is a feasible and potential technology in future to feed global population at available resources with reduced impact on environmental quality. In this review, we have attempted to explore about abiotic and biotic stress tolerant beneficial microorganisms and their modes of action to enhance the sustainable agricultural production. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

The plant-window system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wood, R.T.; Mullens, J.A.; Naser, J.A.

1995-01-01

Power plant data, and the information that can be derived from it, provide the link to the plant through which the operations, maintenance and engineering staff understand and manage plant performance. The increasing use of computer technology in the U.S. nuclear power industry has greatly expanded the capability to obtain, analyze, and present data about the plant to station personnel. However, it is necessary to transform the vast quantity of available data into clear, concise, and coherent information that can be readily accessed and used throughout the plant. This need can be met by an integrated computer workstation environment that provides the necessary information and software applications, in a manner that can be easily understood and used, to the proper users throughout the plant. As part of a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with the Electric Power Research Institute, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory has developed functional requirements for a Plant-Wide Integrated Environment Distributed On Workstations (Plant-Window) System. The Plant-Window System (PWS) can serve the needs of operations, engineering, and maintenance personnel at nuclear power stations by providing integrated data and software applications (e.g., monitoring, analysis, diagnosis, and control applications) within a common environment. The PWS requirements identify functional capabilities and provide guidelines for standardized hardware, software, and display interfaces to define a flexible computer environment that permits a tailored implementation of workstation capabilities and facilitates future upgrades

FY 1989 report on the results of the development of the entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 3. Fabrication/installation of pilot plant (Fabrication/installation drawings and fabrication/installation pictures - 1/2); 1989 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 3. Pilot plant seisaku suetsuke hen (Seisaku suetsukezu oyobi seisaku suetsuke shashin) (1/2)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1990-03-01

For the purpose of establishing the technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, the fabrication, installation work, etc. were conducted of a 200t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant, and drawings of fabrication/installation in the FY 1989 were summarized. In fabrication/installation drawings, drawings of the following were included: layout of the total system and the yard, gasifier facilities (assembly drawing of the pressure part of gasifier, drawing of machinery arrangement of gasifier facilities, system diagram of raw coal receiving device, system diagram of pulverized coal feed equipment, system diagram of char feed equipment, etc.), gas refining facilities - dry desulfurizer (assembly drawing of desulfurizing agent carrying filter, assembly drawing of regeneration tower filter, structural drawing of SO{sub 2} reduction tower filter, assembly drawing of start-up heater, etc.), gas refining facilities - dry dust removal system (assembly drawing of No.1 dust separation filter, installation drawing of elevator, etc.), gas turbine facilities (cross section of gas turbine, front view of gas turbine, structural cross section of gas turbogenerator, etc.), actual-pressure/actual-size combustor test equipment (structural drawing of test stand, structural drawing of exhaust temperature reduction device, assembly/sectioned drawing of low-pressure air compressor, etc.) (NEDO)

FY 1989 report on the results of the development of the entrained bed coal gasification power plant. Part 3. Fabrication/installation of pilot plant (Fabrication/installation drawings and fabrication/installation pictures - 2/2); 1989 nendo seika hokokusho. Funryusho sekitan gaska hatsuden plant kaihatsu - Sono 3. Pilot plant seisaku suetsuke hen (Seisaku suetsukezu oyobi seisaku suetsuke shashin) (2/2)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1990-03-01

For the purpose of establishing the technology of the integrated coal gasification combined cycle power generation, the fabrication, installation work, etc. were conducted of a 200t/d entrained bed coal gasification pilot plant, and fabrication/installation drawings and fabrication/installation pictures were summarized. In fabrication/installation drawings, drawings of the following were included: safety environmental equipment (total system diagram, layout scheme drawing, layout of electric room equipment, layout of control equipment room, etc.), total control system (structural drawing of the total control system, outline drawing of operation control panel, operator console of the integrated load pressure control system, operator console of the integrated sequential control system, central control panel, etc.), 66kV/6.9kV indoor switching station facilities (layout of equipment of indoor switching station facilities, outline drawing of the main transformer, outline drawing of cooler control panel of the main transformer, etc.), common facilities (total layout, diagram of the equipment cooling water pipe system, diagram of the fire-extinguishing water pipe system, etc.) In pictures of fabrication/installation, pictures of the following were included: gasifier equipment, gas refining facilities, gas turbine facilities, actual-pressure/actual-size combustor test equipment, safety environmental equipment, total control system, common facilities, etc. (NEDO)

Plant state display device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kadota, Kazuo; Ito, Toshiichiro.

1994-01-01

The device of the present invention conducts information processing suitable for a man to solve a problem in a plant such as a nuclear power plant incorporating a great amount of information, where safety is required and provides information to an operator. Namely, theories and rules with respect to the flow and balanced state of materials and energy upon plant start-up, and a vapor cycle of operation fluids are symbolized and displayed on the display screen of the device. Then, the display of the plant information suitable to the information processing for a man to dissolve problems is provided. Accordingly, a mechanism for analyzing a purpose of the plant is made more definite, thereby enabling to prevent an erroneous judgement of an operator and occurrence of plant troubles. In addition, a simular effect can also be expected when the theories and rules with respect to the flow and the balanced state of materials and energy and thermohydrodynamic behavior of the operation fluids in a state of after-heat removing operation during shutdown of the plant are symbolized and displayed. (I.S.)

Conditional sterility in plants

Science.gov (United States)

Meagher, Richard B.; McKinney, Elizabeth; Kim, Tehryung

2010-02-23

The present disclosure provides methods, recombinant DNA molecules, recombinant host cells containing the DNA molecules, and transgenic plant cells, plant tissue and plants which contain and express at least one antisense or interference RNA specific for a thiamine biosynthetic coding sequence or a thiamine binding protein or a thiamine-degrading protein, wherein the RNA or thiamine binding protein is expressed under the regulatory control of a transcription regulatory sequence which directs expression in male and/or female reproductive tissue. These transgenic plants are conditionally sterile; i.e., they are fertile only in the presence of exogenous thiamine. Such plants are especially appropriate for use in the seed industry or in the environment, for example, for use in revegetation of contaminated soils or phytoremediation, especially when those transgenic plants also contain and express one or more chimeric genes which confer resistance to contaminants.

Plant status monitor system description

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prather, W.A.; Sly, G.A.

1987-01-01

In today's regulatory and financial environment, improving plant efficiency and safety are necessary elements of plant operations. Public utility commissions are making rate rulings based, in part, on plant availability performance; and the NRC is putting more emphasis on plant operational aspects. This comes at a time when operating, maintaining, and managing a plant are becoming increasingly complex; moreover, the desired number of experienced plant personnel are becoming more difficult to find. This situation can be partially resolved by using computer software tools to assist operations, maintenance, engineering, and management personnel. These software tools provide information and interpretations based on plant and equipment status. They support improved plant availability, technical specification compliance, and administrative functions. A key element or computerization is the ability to operate on integrated information

Building of nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saito, Takashi.

1997-01-01

A first nuclear plant and a second nuclear power plant are disposed in adjacent with each other in a building for a nuclear reactor. A reactor container is disposed in each of the plants, and each reactor container is surrounded by a second containing facility. A repairing chamber capable of communicating with the secondary containing facilities for both of the secondary containing facilities is disposed being in contact with the second containing facility of each plant for repairing control rod driving mechanisms or reactor incorporated-type recycling pumps. Namely, the repairing chamber is in adjacent with the reactor containers of both plants, and situated between both of the plants as a repairing chamber to be used in common for both plants. Air tight inlet/exit doors are formed to the inlets/exits of both plants of the repairing chamber. Space for the repairing chamber can be reduced to about one half compared with a case where the repairing chamber is formed independently on each plant. (I.N.)

[Isolation and characterization of petroleum catabolic broad-host-range plasmids from Shen-Fu wastewater irrigation zone].

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ya-Fei; Wang, Ya-Fei; Li, Hui; Li, Xiao-Bin

2013-11-01

Based on triparental mating, we isolated a total of eight broad host range (BHR) petroleum hydrocarbon catabolic plasmids from the soils, sediments, and wastewater samples in the Shen-Fu irrigation zone. The antibiotic resistance of the plasmids was tested, and then, the plasmids were transferred to Escherichia coli EC100. The plasmids carrying no antibiotic resistance were tagged by miniTn5 transposon consisting of antibiotic resistant genes. The PCR-based incompatibility test revealed that the pS3-2C and pS4-6G belonged to Inc P group, the pS3-2G, pW22-3G, and pA15-7G belonged to Inc N group, the pS7-2G was identified as Inc W plasmid, and the pA23-1G and pA10-1C were placed into Inc Q group. By adopting the reported PCR amplification methods of petroleum hydrocarbon-degrading catabolic genes, the petroleum-degrading capability of these BHR plasmids were preliminarily analyzed. The plasmids pS3-2G, pS7-2G, pA23-1G, pW22-3G, and pA10-1C carried aromatic ring- hydroxylating dioxygenase gene phdA and toluene monooxygenase gene touA; the plasmid pA15-7G carried touA and toluene dioxygenase gene tod; the plasmid pS3-2C carried ben, phdA, and tod; whereas the pS4-6G only carried ben. The host range test showed that all the isolated plasmids except pS3-2C could be transferred and maintained stably in the representative strains Agrobacterium tumefaciens C58, Cupriavidus necator JMP228, and E. coli EC100 of the alpha-, beta-, and gamma-Proteobacteria, respectively.

Plant Breeding Goes Microbial

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wei, Zhong; Jousset, Alexandre

Plant breeding has traditionally improved traits encoded in the plant genome. Here we propose an alternative framework reaching novel phenotypes by modifying together genomic information and plant-associated microbiota. This concept is made possible by a novel technology that enables the

Native Plants and Seeds, Oh My! Fifth Graders Explore an Unfamiliar Subject While Learning Plant Basics

Science.gov (United States)

Pauley, Lauren; Weege, Kendra; Koomen, Michele Hollingsworth

2016-01-01

Native plants are not typically the kinds of plants that are used in elementary classroom studies of plant biology. More commonly, students sprout beans or investigate with fast plants. At the time the authors started their plant unit (November), the school-yard garden had an abundance of native plants that had just started seeding, including…

Selenium accumulation by plants.

Science.gov (United States)

White, Philip J

2016-02-01

Selenium (Se) is an essential mineral element for animals and humans, which they acquire largely from plants. The Se concentration in edible plants is determined by the Se phytoavailability in soils. Selenium is not an essential element for plants, but excessive Se can be toxic. Thus, soil Se phytoavailability determines the ecology of plants. Most plants cannot grow on seleniferous soils. Most plants that grow on seleniferous soils accumulate plant species have evolved tolerance to Se, and commonly accumulate tissue Se concentrations >100 mg Se kg(-1) dry matter. These plants are considered to be Se accumulators. Some species can even accumulate Se concentrations of 1000-15 000 mg Se kg(-1 )dry matter and are called Se hyperaccumulators. This article provides an overview of Se uptake, translocation and metabolism in plants and highlights the possible genetic basis of differences in these between and within plant species. The review focuses initially on adaptations allowing plants to tolerate large Se concentrations in their tissues and the evolutionary origin of species that hyperaccumulate Se. It then describes the variation in tissue Se concentrations between and within angiosperm species and identifies genes encoding enzymes limiting the rates of incorporation of Se into organic compounds and chromosomal loci that might enable the development of crops with greater Se concentrations in their edible portions. Finally, it discusses transgenic approaches enabling plants to tolerate greater Se concentrations in the rhizosphere and in their tissues. The trait of Se hyperaccumulation has evolved several times in separate angiosperm clades. The ability to tolerate large tissue Se concentrations is primarily related to the ability to divert Se away from the accumulation of selenocysteine and selenomethionine, which might be incorporated into non-functional proteins, through the synthesis of less toxic Se metabilites. There is potential to breed or select crops

Plants under dual attack

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ponzio, C.A.M.

2016-01-01

Though immobile, plants are members of complex environments, and are under constant threat from a wide range of attackers, which includes organisms such as insect herbivores or plant pathogens. Plants have developed sophisticated defenses against these attackers, and include chemical responses

Selenium accumulation by plants

Science.gov (United States)

White, Philip J.

2016-01-01

Background Selenium (Se) is an essential mineral element for animals and humans, which they acquire largely from plants. The Se concentration in edible plants is determined by the Se phytoavailability in soils. Selenium is not an essential element for plants, but excessive Se can be toxic. Thus, soil Se phytoavailability determines the ecology of plants. Most plants cannot grow on seleniferous soils. Most plants that grow on seleniferous soils accumulate 100 mg Se kg–1 dry matter. These plants are considered to be Se accumulators. Some species can even accumulate Se concentrations of 1000–15 000 mg Se kg–1 dry matter and are called Se hyperaccumulators. Scope This article provides an overview of Se uptake, translocation and metabolism in plants and highlights the possible genetic basis of differences in these between and within plant species. The review focuses initially on adaptations allowing plants to tolerate large Se concentrations in their tissues and the evolutionary origin of species that hyperaccumulate Se. It then describes the variation in tissue Se concentrations between and within angiosperm species and identifies genes encoding enzymes limiting the rates of incorporation of Se into organic compounds and chromosomal loci that might enable the development of crops with greater Se concentrations in their edible portions. Finally, it discusses transgenic approaches enabling plants to tolerate greater Se concentrations in the rhizosphere and in their tissues. Conclusions The trait of Se hyperaccumulation has evolved several times in separate angiosperm clades. The ability to tolerate large tissue Se concentrations is primarily related to the ability to divert Se away from the accumulation of selenocysteine and selenomethionine, which might be incorporated into non-functional proteins, through the synthesis of less toxic Se metabilites. There is potential to breed or select crops with greater Se concentrations in their edible tissues, which

Reprocessing plants safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Davies, A.G.; Leighton, C.; Millington, D.

1989-01-01

The reprocessing of irradiated nuclear fuel at British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL) Sellafield site consists of a number of relatively self-contained activities carried out in separate plants across the site. The physical conditions and time scales applied in reprocessing and storage make it relatively benign. The potential for minor releases of radioactivity under fault conditioning is minimised by plant design definition of control procedures, training and supervision. The risks to both the general public and workforce are shown to be low with all the safety criteria being met. Normal operating conditions also have the potential for some occupational radiation exposure and the plant and workers are monitored continuously. Exposure levels have been reduced steadily and will continue to fall with plant improvements. (U.K.)

Parasitic plants of the genus Cuscuta and their interaction with susceptible and resistant host plants

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bettina eKaiser

2015-02-01

Full Text Available By comparison with plant-microbe interaction, little is known about the interaction of parasitic plants with their hosts. Plants of the genus Cuscuta belong to the family of Cuscutaceae and comprise about 200 species, all of which live as stem holoparasites on other plants. Cuscuta spp. possess no roots nor fully expanded leaves and the vegetative portion appears to be a stem only. The parasite winds around plants and penetrates the host stems via haustoria, forming direct connections to the vascular bundles of their hosts to withdraw water, carbohydrates and other solutes. Besides susceptible hosts, a few plants exist that exhibit an active resistance against infestation by Cuscuta spp. For example, cultivated tomato (Solanum lycopersicum fends off Cuscuta reflexa by means of a hypersensitive-type response occurring in the early penetration phase. This report on the plant-plant dialogue between Cuscuta spp. and its host plants focuses on the incompatible interaction of Cuscuta reflexa with tomato.