多孔陶瓷球负载纳米晶粒二氧化钛光催化剂的制备及光催化活性

以多孔陶瓷球为载体,采用溶胶-凝胶法在其表面进行纳米TiO2薄膜负载,制备了多孔陶瓷球负载纳米晶粒二氧化钛光催化剂,经X射线衍射法(XRD)等手段对其表征结果表明,复合载体经500℃焙烧后,TiO2以锐钛矿晶型存在。对催化剂降解活性艳蓝溶液的催化活性进行研究表明,催化剂在5 h内可完全降解活性艳蓝染料。     

泡沫铜气体扩散电极处理活性艳红废水

采用铜基泡沫材料作为阴极,并根据泡沫材料电阻小、强度高、孔隙多的特点设计气体扩散电极,开发了一套基于铜基泡沫材料的气体扩散电解废水处理方法.实验结果表明,该方法在电解电压仅为1.65 V时,120 min内原位生成14.29 mg·L-1的H2O2.采用该系统对活性艳红废水进行降解,结果表明其在电解电压为2 V时即可快速高效地降解活性艳红X-3B模拟染料废水,120 min内模拟废水色度去除率达96.19%,色度被快速消除.UV-Vis与LC-TOF MS检测结果表明,降解过程中,萘环、三嗪结构及较稳定的苯环均被同步快速降解.该方法所需降解电压较低,只有2 V,而普通电解方法通常需8—25 V,能耗显著下降.这种低电压气体扩散电极电解不仅极大地抑制了水的无效电解,由于产生了·OH,还能维持相对高的有效氧化还原电位,高效降解污染物,是一种高效低耗的电化学水处理方法.     

Sm3+/TiO2催化剂对光催化还原CO2和H2O合成CH3OH的影响

采用溶胶-凝胶法和溶胶-乳化-燃烧法制备了Sm3+/TiO2光催化剂,并用X射线衍射(XRD)、透射电镜(TEM)、紫外可见吸收光谱(UV-Vis)、红外光谱(IR)等分析技术表征了催化剂,考察了制备方法、离子掺杂量等对催化剂光催化还原CO2和H2O合成CH3OH实验的影响.实验结果表明,掺杂后的催化剂颗粒更均匀,比表面相应增加,溶胶-乳化-燃烧法制备的催化剂晶粒更小,比表面积更大,光催化活性更高.     

新型双槽光电化学反应器对活性艳红的降解研究

用热氧化法制备了TiO2/Ti薄膜电极,并用XRD和AFM对TiO2/Ti薄膜电极的晶形和表面形貌进行了表征。结果表明：热氧化法制备的TiO2主要为锐钛型纳米颗粒,直径在40 nm左右。设计了一种新型双槽光电化学反应器,用于废水的处理。以热氧化法制备的TiO2/Ti薄膜电极为阳极进行光电催化反应,同时以石墨电极为阴极用于产生双氧水,并与紫外光组成UV/H2O2体系。考察了双槽反应器中活性艳红X-3B在不同条件下的降解效果。降解结果表明：在新型反应器的阴阳两极槽中,活性艳红不仅在TiO2/Ti阳极槽中被降解,而且在石墨阴极槽中也得到降解;活性艳红在酸性条件下的降解效果最好;相对于单纯的电化学氧化和光催化,光电化学协同作用对X-3B的降解效果最好。     

TiO2/粉煤灰的制备及光催化性能研究

以钛酸丁酯为原料,以粉煤灰微珠为载体,采用溶胶-凝胶法制备了TiO2/粉煤灰光催化剂.负载于粉煤灰表面的TiO2平均粒径约为7nm,晶型为锐钛矿型,该催化剂在太阳光下降解初始浓度为10mg·l-1的甲基橙,经6h,甲基橙的降解率可达98.9%,将其应用于实际样品的测定,经3h降解率可达96.1%,显示出优越的光催化降解性能.     

稀土修饰的Co/Hβ催化剂催化分解N_2O

以Hβ分子筛为载体,采用浸渍法制备了一系列以钴为主活性组分,稀土元素为助剂的CoM/Hβ（M=La、Ce、Pr、Nd）催化剂,考察了在含氧条件下直接催化分解N2O的性能.采用X射线衍射、热重-质谱联用系统、H2-TPR、NH3-TPD等方法对催化剂进行了表征.XRD结果表明,Co物种主要以Co3O4尖晶石形态存在.NH3-TPD结果表明,催化剂活性与催化剂的酸性有关.活性评价结果显示,稀土助剂的添加使催化剂活性得到改善,其中以Pr为助剂的催化剂活性最好,N2O转化率达到95%时的反应温度为398℃.     

CeO2—CuO／γ—Al2O3催化剂上CO氧化及氧物种脱附与恢复行为的研究

氧化铈(CeO_2)作为贮氧和氧离子的传导物质常在高温下有催化特性,而CuO是普通的氧化物催化剂 本文以CeO_2结合活泼的CuO/γ-Al_2O_3催化剂为研究对象,利用色谱-微反流动法,以及XRD,TPR和TPD-MS等技术,研究了CuO/γ-Al_2O_3催化剂及添加CeO_2对CO和n-C_5H_(14)深度氧化的性能,探讨了催化剂的还原特性及表面氧的脱附与恢复行为 结果表明,CeO_2的存在改善了CuO在γ-Al_2O_3上的分散状态,促进了催化剂上氧物种的脱附与恢复,加速了氧化还原循环,从而提高了催化剂对CO和n-C_6H_(14)的深度氧化活性.     

掺杂方法对Cu-OMS-2催化氧化甲苯性能的影响

分别采用前掺杂法(PI)、离子交换法(IE)和浸渍法(IM)合成了过渡金属Cu掺杂的催化剂Cu-OMS-2,通过XRD、BET、XPS、H_2-TPR等手段对催化剂的结构进行表征,并测试催化剂对甲苯的催化燃烧性能.XRD结果显示,全部掺Cu样品与单纯OMS-2晶相峰相同;XPS结果表明,Cu掺杂有效调控了Mn~(3+)/Mn~(4+)的比例,催化剂表面形成不同数量氧空位,其中前掺杂法和离子交换法制备的催化剂表面生成了更多的氧空位;H_2-TPR结果显示Cu掺杂降低了催化剂还原温度,且前掺杂法和离子交换法制备的催化剂的还原温度低于浸渍法合成的样品.因此,前掺杂法和离子交换法合成的催化剂在甲苯催化氧化中显示出较高的催化活性.     

焙烧温度对N掺杂TiO2催化剂催化性能的影响

以Ti（SO4）2为钛源、碳酸氢铵为氮源,采用均匀沉淀法制得水合沉淀物,在N2保护下对水合沉淀物进行程序升温处理,制得了不同焙烧温度的N掺杂TiO2可见光响应催化剂.以三硝基间苯二酚为目标降解物,研究了所制备微粒在可见光区及紫外光区的光催化活性.对所制备的催化剂采用X射线衍射、热重-差热分析、傅立叶变换红外光谱和紫外-可见漫反射光谱对催化剂进行表征,研究改性催化剂的晶相结构、热稳定性、表面结构和光谱特征.结果表明：N-掺杂TiO2的可见光催化活性显著提高,焙烧温度为300℃时可见光催化活性最为优异,在不降低紫外段催化能力的同时,催化剂的吸收带边红移至468nm.     

还原温度对Pd-CeO2/Al2O3催化剂加氢脱硫性能的影响

采用浸渍法制备CeO2改性的Pd/Al2O3加氢脱硫催化剂,考察了还原温度和还原-氧化预处理对Pd/Al2O3和Pd-CeO2/Al2O3催化剂加氢脱硫性能的影响.结果表明,Pd/Al2O3的活性受还原温度的影响很小.Pd-CeO2/Al2O3还原温度的升高使CeO2发生迁移,导致催化剂表面Pd原子数减少,同时削弱了Pd-Ce界面效应,从而使催化剂的活性降低.还原-氧化预处理使Pd-CeO2/Al2O3的活性有较大提高,预处理能促使Pd的再分散,增加了对H2的吸附活化能力,在Pd-Ce的界面效应共同作用下使催化剂拥有较高的活性.     

Representation of the world's biophysical conditions by the global protected area network

Protected areas (PAs) are often implemented without consideration of already existing PAs, which is likely to cause an overrepresentation of certain biophysical conditions. We assessed the representativeness of the current PA network with regard to the world's biophysical conditions to highlight which conditions are underprotected and where these conditions are located. We overlaid terrestrial and marine PAs with information on biophysical conditions (e.g., temperature, precipitation, and elevation) and then quantified the percentage of area covered by the PA network. For 1 variable at a time in the terrestrial realm, high temperature, low precipitation, and medium and very high elevation were underrepresented. For the marine realm, low and medium sea surface temperature (SST), medium and high sea surface salinity (SSS), and the deep sea were underrepresented. Overall, protection was evenly distributed for elevation across the terrestrial realm and SST across the marine realm. For 2 variables at a time, cold and very dry terrestrial environments had mostly low protection, which was also the case for low SST and low and medium SSS across most depths for marine environments. Low protection occurred mostly in the Sahara and the Arabian Peninsula for the terrestrial realm and along the Tropic of Capricorn and toward the poles for the marine realm. Although biodiversity measures are of prime importance for the design of PA networks, highlighting biophysical gaps in current PAs adds a frequently overlooked perspective. These gaps may weaken the potential of PAs to conserve biodiversity. Thus, our results may provide useful insights for researchers, practitioners, and policy makers to establish a more comprehensive global PA network.     

Quantitative composition of the defensive secretion ofBledius species (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Oxytelinae) is adapted to naturally occurring predators

Summary The adaptation of defensive secretions to their target organisms was examined for the abdominal gland secretions ofBledius furcatus, B. spectabilis andB. arenarius. Therefore the target organisms of the secretion of theseBledius species (i.e. their predators) had to be identified. At the collection sites examined these were the earwigLabidura riparia, the antCataglyphis bicolor, the flyLispe candicans, different carabids of the generaPogonus, Dichirotrichus, Dyschirius, Bembidion andCalathus and the wading birdsHaematopus ostralegus andCalidris alba. The secretion of the abdominal glands contains the toxin ptoluquinone dissolved in either-dodecalactone and 1-undecene (B. furcatus andB. spectabilis) or in octanoic acid and octyloctanoate (B. arenarius). The ratio of these solvents is species-specific. Application experiments using some of the natural insect predators (L. riparia, C. bicolor, Pogonus, Di. gustavii, Dyschirius) revealed that these solvent ratios provided a more effective deterrent than other possible ratios. Thus by combining the solvents in certain ratios, the capability of cuticular penetration and therefore the effectiveness of the defensive secretions are adapted to their natural targets.     

Democracy versus development: New urban debates

The politics of development includes subtexts of choice, as underpinned by community consensus (or lack of it), against the larger backdrop of a liberal democracy, with its intricate power structures that influence the choice of concepts and often lead to complicity rather than consent. A dilemma exists between the understanding of field-level practitioners and that of academics, whose understandings of progress differ. Progress can (and often does) imply long-term change across generations whereas development is often more a matter of crisis management and delivering tangible results to end-users. This makes it a bone of contention across political systems, irrespective of local or global dynamics. Development can emerge as a tool to be wielded for power and further political mileage at the expense of progress. Progress cannot be studied as a counterpoint to development as the sense of history is often missing in development interventions. Development tends to be piecemeal as its very logic often stems from the rationale of power. This is not to suggest, however, that development is only about politics; it is definitely more than the politics of everyday life and involves all of civil society that requires its critical and immediate attention. In this sense, it has become a priority for politicians with an underlying agenda designed to out-manouevre dissent and all statements of protest.     

Achieving Open Access to Conservation Science

Conservation science is a crisis discipline in which the results of scientific enquiry must be made available quickly to those implementing management. We assessed the extent to which scientific research published since the year 2000 in 20 conservation science journals is publicly available. Of the 19,207 papers published, 1,667 (8.68%) are freely downloadable from an official repository. Moreover, only 938 papers (4.88%) meet the standard definition of open access in which material can be freely reused providing attribution to the authors is given. This compares poorly with a comparable set of 20 evolutionary biology journals, where 31.93% of papers are freely downloadable and 7.49% are open access. Seventeen of the 20 conservation journals offer an open access option, but fewer than 5% of the papers are available through open access. The cost of accessing the full body of conservation science runs into tens of thousands of dollars per year for institutional subscribers, and many conservation practitioners cannot access pay‐per‐view science through their workplace. However, important initiatives such as Research4Life are making science available to organizations in developing countries. We urge authors of conservation science to pay for open access on a per‐article basis or to choose publication in open access journals, taking care to ensure the license allows reuse for any purpose providing attribution is given. Currently, it would cost $51 million to make all conservation science published since 2000 freely available by paying the open access fees currently levied to authors. Publishers of conservation journals might consider more cost effective models for open access and conservation‐oriented organizations running journals could consider a broader range of options for open access to nonmembers such as sponsorship of open access via membership fees. Obtención de Acceso Abierto a la Ciencia de la Conservación     

A framework to measure the wildness of managed large vertebrate populations

As landscapes continue to fall under human influence through habitat loss and fragmentation, fencing is increasingly being used to mitigate anthropogenic threats and enhance the commercial value of wildlife. Subsequent intensification of management potentially erodes wildness by disembodying populations from landscape-level processes, thereby disconnecting species from natural selection. Tools are needed to measure the degree to which populations of large vertebrate species in formally protected and privately owned wildlife areas are self-sustaining and free to adapt. We devised a framework to measure such wildness based on 6 attributes relating to the evolutionary and ecological dynamics of vertebrates (space, disease and parasite resistance, exposure to predation, exposure to limitations and fluctuations of food and water supply, and reproduction). For each attribute, we set empirical, species-specific thresholds between 5 wildness states based on quantifiable management interventions. We analysed data from 205 private wildlife properties with management objectives spanning ecotourism to consumptive utilization to test the framework on 6 herbivore species representing a range of conservation statuses and commercial values. Wildness scores among species differed significantly, and the proportion of populations identified as wild ranged from 12% to 84%, which indicates the tool detected site-scale differences both among populations of different species and populations of the same species under different management regimes. By quantifying wildness, this framework provides practitioners with standardized measurement units that link biodiversity with the sustainable use of wildlife. Applications include informing species management plans at local scales; standardizing the inclusion of managed populations in red-list assessments; and providing a platform for certification and regulation of wildlife-based economies. Applying this framework may help embed wildness as a normative value in policy and mitigate the shifting baseline of what it means to truly conserve a species.     

Sexual Predators,Energy Development,and Conservation in Greater Yellowstone

Abstract: In the United States, as elsewhere, a growing debate pits national energy policy and homeland security against biological conservation. In rural communities the extraction of fossil fuels is often encouraged because of the employment opportunities it offers, although the concomitant itinerant workforce is often associated with increased wildlife poaching. We explored possible positive and negative factors associated with energy extraction in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), an area known for its national parks, intact biological diversity, and some of the New World's longest terrestrial migrations. Specifically, we asked whether counties with different economies—recreation (ski), agrarian (ranching or farming), and energy extractive (petroleum)—differed in healthcare (gauged by the abundance of hospital beds) and in the frequency of sexual predators. The absolute and relative frequency of registered sex offenders grew approximately two to three times faster in areas reliant on energy extraction. Healthcare among counties did not differ. The strong conflation of community dishevel, as reflected by in‐migrant sexual predators, and ecological decay in Greater Yellowstone is consistent with patterns seen in similar systems from Ecuador to northern Canada, where social and environmental disarray exist around energy boomtowns. In our case, that groups (albeit with different aims) mobilized campaigns to help maintain the quality of rural livelihoods by protecting open space is a positive sign that conservation can matter, especially in the face of rampant and poorly executed energy extraction projects. Our findings further suggest that the public and industry need stronger regulatory action to instill greater vigilance when and where social factors and land conversion impact biological systems.     

Comparison of the insecticidal effects of water extracted and intact aromatic plants onAcanthoscelides obtectus,a bruchid beetle pest of kidney beans

Summary Acanthoscelides obtectus (Say) is one of the most damaging pests of kidney beans,Phaseolus vulgaris L. worldwide. However, aromatic plants from the families Lamiaceae, Lauraceae, Myrtaceae and Poaceae can protect kidney beans by direct or delayed insecticidal effect, through increased adult mortality and inhibition of beetle reproduction (both oviposition and adult emergence). The efficiency of hydrodistillated and intact plants fromThymus vulgaris andT. serpyllum, Mentha piperata, Rosmarinus officinalis, Satureia hortensis, Eucalyptus globulus, Laurus nobilis, Origanum vulgare, andCymbopogon nardus was compared. For both extracts,Origanum vulgare had the best effect. The insecticidal effect was induced by more than the essential oils because no significant difference was noticed between distilled and intact plants extract. Inhibition of reproduction was particularly important. These results suggest that lipidic as well as non lipidic, allelochemicals, such as phenolics, or non-protein amino-acids, or flavonoids may be involved in the toxicity of aromatic plants to this beetle.     

Rapid,recurring, structured survey versus bioblitz for generating biodiversity data and analysis with a multispecies abundance model

A bioblitz inexpensively and quickly generates biodiversity data, but bioblitzes are often conducted with haphazard, unreplicated sampling. Results tend to be taxonomically, geographically, or temporally biased, lack metadata, and consist of lists of observed taxa that do not enable further analyses or correction for imperfect detection. A rapid, recurring, structured survey (RRSS) uses a structured sampling design and temporal and spatial replication to survey randomly selected sites on a conservation property. We participated in a loosely structured bioblitz and a subsequent RRSS at Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve in Springville (St. Clair County), Alabama (USA) to compare observed richness derived from the 2 survey approaches. The RRSS data structure enabled us to fit models that accounted for imperfect detection to estimate abundances, occupancy probabilities, and habitat associations. The loosely structured bioblitz data could not be used in such models. We present a new integrated multispecies abundance model that we applied to avian RRSS data. Our model extension enables estimation for the community, employs data augmentation to estimate the number of undetected species, and incorporates covariates. The RRSS generated a more comprehensive and less biased list of observed taxonomic richness than the loosely structured bioblitz (e.g., 73 vs. 45 bird species and 104 vs. 63 insect families from the RRSS vs. loosely structured bioblitz, respectively). Models fit to the RRSS data identified seasonal patterns in avian community composition and allowed for estimation of habitat–occupancy relationships for insect taxa. The RRSS protocol has potential for broad transferability as a standardized, quick, and inexpensive way to inventory biodiversity and estimate ecological parameters while providing an outreach opportunity.     

Compliance with and ecosystem function of biodiversity offsets in North American and European freshwaters

Land-use change via human development is a major driver of biodiversity loss. To reduce these impacts, billions of dollars are spent on biodiversity offsets. However, studies evaluating offset project effectiveness that examine components such as the overall compliance and function of projects remain rare. We reviewed 577 offsetting projects in freshwater ecosystems that included the metrics project size, type of aquatic system (e.g., wetland and creek), offsetting measure (e.g., enhancement, restoration, and creation), and an assessment of the projects’ compliance and functional success. Project information was obtained from scientific and government databases and gray literature. Despite considerable investment in offsetting projects, crucial problems persisted. Although compliance and function were related to each other, a high level of compliance did not guarantee a high degree of function. However, large projects relative to area had better function than small projects. Function improved when projects targeted productivity or specific ecosystem features and when multiple complementary management targets were in place. Restorative measures were more likely to achieve targets than creating entirely new ecosystems. Altogether the relationships we found highlight specific ecological processes that may help improve offsetting outcomes.     

Some polyphagous Homoptera gain protection from their natural enemies by feeding on the toxic plantsSpartium junceum andErythrina corallodendrum (Leguminosae)

Summary Interactions were studied among alkaloid-containing legumes (Erythrina corallodendrum andSpartium junceum) and non-toxic plants (Citrus sinensis, Cucurbita moschata andEuphorbia tirucalli), several polyphagous homopterans,Aphis craccivora (Aphididae),Icerya purchasi, I. aegyptiaca (Margarodidae),Lepidosaphes ulmi (Diaspididae) andPlanococcus citri (Pseudococcidae), and some major natural enemies of these homopterans. Significant reductions in survival due to negative effects of alkaloid containing as compared with non-alkaloidal plants were recorded for the predatorsRodolia cardinalis andChilocorus bipustulatus, but not forCryptolaemus montrouzieri (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae),Chrysoperla carnea (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) andSympherobius sanctus (Neuroptera: Sympherobiidae). The development time of the larvae or pupae ofR. cardinalis, C. carnea andS. sanctus was longer on the toxic plants than on the non-toxic ones. The percentage of parasitism ofA. craccivora collected from the non-alkaloidal plantsVicia palaestina andMelilotus albus was much higher than that onS. junceum. The parasitoid complexes ofA. craccivora differed between both plant groups. The nutritive value of honeydew ofI. purchasi andA. craccivora, as expressed by the life span ofEncyrtus infelix (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) adults, was also investigated. Life spans were significantly longer when the wasps fed on honeydew produced on non-alkaloidal plants (C. sinensis andPittosporum tobira) than on alkaloid containing plants whenI. purchasi — but notA. craccivora — was the producer. It is suggested that the chemical defense ofE. corallodendrum andS. junceum is exploited by polyphagous phytophages to reduce predation. In nature, population growth and density of four of the investigated homopterans are conspicuously high when they developed on the alkaloid containing plant species, and very low on non-alkaloid plants. The efficiency of their natural enemies may be reduced by sequestration of alkaloids (or other toxic plant compounds) or their transfer into excreted honeydew. Therefore it is assumed that a generalist phytophagous homopteran may be protected from its natural enemies, although at different rates of efficiency, if it can safely sequester the host allelochemical when it develops on toxic species within its host range.