Temporal trends in agricultural water use and the relationships to hydroclimatic factors in the High Plains aquifer region

The High Plains aquifer (HPA) is the primary water source for agricultural irrigation in the US Great Plains. The water levels in many locations of the aquifer have declined steadily over the past several decades because the rate of water withdrawals exceeds recharge, which has been a serious concern to the water resources management in the region. We evaluated temporal trends and variations in agricultural water use and hydroclimatic variables including precipitation, air temperature, reference evapotranspiration, runoff, groundwater level, and terrestrial water storage across the HPA region for different periods from 1985 to 2020 at the grid, county, or region scale. The results showed that water withdrawals decreased from 21.3 km³/year in 1985 to 18.2 km³/year in 2015, while irrigated croplands increased from 71,928 km² in 1985 to 78,464 km² in 2015 in the entire HPA. The hydroclimatic time-series showed wetting trends in most of the northern HPA, but drying and warming trends in the southern region from 1985 to 2020. The groundwater level time-series indicated flat trends in the north, but significant declining in the central and southern HPA. Trends in irrigation water withdrawals and irrigation area across the HPA were controlled by the advancement of irrigation systems and technologies and the management of sustainable water use, but also were affected by dynamical changes in the hydroclimatic conditions.     

土壤污染物的生态毒理效应和风险评估研究进展

环境生态风险评估（ERA）流程已经被纳入全球环境政策中，既用于规范新化学物质的授权和营销（前瞻性环境生态风险评估），也用于评估潜在的污染场地（回顾性环境生态风险评估）。将土壤生态毒理学应用于风险评估，能阐明有毒物质对土壤生态系统中生命有机体的危害程度与范围。笔者主要介绍了应用评估因子法和物种敏感度分布法对基于效应数据进行的外推与估算，并综述了欧美等主要国家和地区的土壤生态风险评估框架、相关法律法规及其实施情况等，为中国开展土壤污染物生态毒理效应和风险评估等相关研究提供参考。     

施工组织正式网络结构特征对组织安全行为的影响关系研究

为提升建筑施工安全管理水平，探讨施工组织正式网络的结构特征对组织安全行为的影响关系。基于社会网络分析方法，引入安全沟通作为中介变量，建立施工组织正式网络结构特征、安全沟通和组织安全行为的假设模型。基于91个施工组织正式网络结构特征分析，使用多层回归分析方法检验假设模型。结果表明:网络密度、出度中心势和聚类系数均显著正向影响组织安全行为；中间中心势和平均路径长度均显著负向影响组织安全行为；入度中心势对组织安全行为影响不显著；安全沟通分别在出度中心势和中间中心势与组织安全行为的关系中起完全中介作用；安全沟通分别在密度、平均路径长度和聚类系数与组织安全行为的关系中起部分中介作用；安全沟通在入度中心势与组织安全行为的关系中未起到中介作用。     

Effect of pyrolysis and oxidation characteristics on lauric acid and stearic acid dust explosion hazards

The effect of pyrolysis and oxidation characteristics on the explosion sensitivity and severity parameters, including the minimum ignition energy MIE, minimum ignition temperature MIT, minimum explosion concentration MEC, maximum explosion pressure P_max, maximum rate of pressure rise (dP/dt)_max and deflagration index K_st, of lauric acid and stearic acid dust clouds was experimentally investigated. A synchronous thermal analyser was used to test the particle thermal characteristics. The functional test apparatuses including the 1.2 L Hartmann-tube apparatus, modified Godbert-Greenwald furnace, and 20 L explosion apparatus were used to test the explosion parameters. The results indicated that the rapid and slow weight loss processes of lauric acid dust followed a one-dimensional diffusion model (D1 model) and a 1.5 order chemical reaction model (F1.5 model), respectively. In addition, the rapid and slow weight loss processes of stearic acid followed a 1.5 order chemical reaction model (F1.5 model) and a three-dimensional diffusion model (D3 model), respectively, and the corresponding average apparent activation energy E and pre-exponential factor A were larger than those of lauric acid. The stearic acid dust explosion had higher values of MIE and MIT, which were mainly dependent on the higher pyrolysis and oxidation temperatures and the larger apparent activation energy E determining the slower rate of chemical bond breakage during pyrolysis and oxidation. In contrast, the lauric acid dust explosion had a higher MEC related to a smaller pre-exponential factor A with a lower amount of released reaction heat and a lower heat release rate during pyrolysis and oxidation. Additionally, due to the competition regime of the higher oxidation reaction heat release and greater consumption of oxygen during explosion, the explosion pressure P_m of the stearic acid dust was larger in low concentration ranges and decayed to an even smaller pressure than with lauric acid when the concentration exceeded 500 g/m³. The rate of explosion pressure rise (dP/dt)_m of the stearic acid dust was always larger in the experimental concentration range. The stearic acid dust explosion possessed a higher P_max, (dP/dt)_max and K_st mainly because of a larger pre-exponential factor A related to more active sites participating in the pyrolysis and oxidation reaction. Consequently, the active chemical reaction occurred more violently, and the temperature and overpressure rose faster, indicating a higher explosion hazard class for stearic acid dust.     

肥煤自燃全过程热动力学特征参数研究

实验测定了林西矿肥煤样品30~900℃煤自燃全过程热动力学特征参数,得出:TG/DTG曲线显示煤样DTG初始临界温度45℃,干裂温度122℃,活性温度195℃,增速温度265℃,质量极大值温度342℃,着火温度465℃,最大热失重速率温度515℃和燃尽温度690℃;DSC曲线显示,煤样初始放热温度60℃、最大热释放速率温度511℃。结合TG-DTG-DSC曲线综合分析可知,煤温达到510℃左右时煤样反应最剧烈。由煤自燃标志气体测定实验系统得出:煤温130℃后CO,CO 2释放量迅速增加,210℃增加速度下降;CH 4,C 2 H 6含量变化具有规律性且两者变化相近;C 2 H 4出现温度为130℃;C 2 H 4/C 2 H 6比值在190~350℃有较强的规律性,呈上升趋势且上升速度较快;350℃之后,CH 4,C 2 H 6,C 2 H 4体积分数均开始急剧增大;C 2 H 4/CO与C 2 H 4/CO 2变化趋势大致相同,在130~350℃时缓慢增长,达到350℃后比值呈指数形式上升。经拟合曲线,得到活化能的3个突变点温度:70,180,220℃,其中180℃与交叉点温度相吻合。通过以上研究,得到了肥煤自燃全过程的热力学特征参数,为实际生产中防治煤自燃提供了理论依据。     

Risk assessment and risk reduction of an acrylonitrile production plant

Reducing accident occurrence in petrochemical plants is crucial, thus appropriately allocating management resources to safety investment is a vital issue for corporate management as international competition intensifies. Understanding the priority of safety investment in a rational way helps achieve this objective.In this study, we targeted an acrylonitrile plant. First, Dow Chemical's Fire and Explosion Index (F&EI) identified the reaction process as having the greatest physical risk. We evaluated the severity of accidents in the reaction process using the Process Safety Metrics advocated by the Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS); however, this index does not express damages a company actually experience. To solve this problem, we proposed a new metric that adds indirect cost to CCPS metrics. We adopted fault tree analysis (FTA) as a risk assessment method. In identifying top events and basic events, we attempted to improve the completeness of risk identification by considering accidents from the past, actual plant operation and equipment characteristics, natural disasters, and cyber-attacks and terrorist attacks. Consequently, we identified the top events with high priority in handling because of serious accidents as fire/explosion outside the reactor, fire/explosion inside the reactor, and reactor destruction. The new CCPS evaluation index proposed in this study found that fire and explosion outside the reactor has the highest severity. We considered the creation of the fault tree (FT) diagram of the top event, estimating the occurrence probability, and identifying the risk reduction part and capital investment aimed at risk reduction. As an economically feasible selection method for risk reduction investment, using the difference in loss amounts before and after safety investments indicated investment priority.     

“Science is Everywhere,but No One Knows It”: Assessing the Cultural Distance to Science of Rural South African Publics

ABSTRACT

In science communication, a prerequisite for reaching different parts of a society is to find out how these publics experience and interpret science. Since rural South African publics are perceived to exhibit a large cultural distance to science, the present exploratory study aimed to know in more detail how rural South Africans perceive and understand science in their local and social contexts. Theoretical notions on cultural distance and the methodological approach of segmentation studies were considered. Semi-structured interviews with rural South Africans were carried out in four towns (n?=?52) that differ with respect to having a large scientific installation in their vicinity, or not. Sensitively comparing local and social contexts helped identifying three different publics who differed regarding their perceptions of science; however, the large scientific installations only made a difference in perceptions for those publics who were generally less exposed to and less knowledgeable about science.     

近15a江苏省水源涵养功能时空变化与影响因素探析

定量评估生态系统服务功能是合理利用自然资源、促进人地关系与可持续发展的基础。以江苏省为研究区，基于InVEST模型产水模块，定量分析了江苏省2000~2015年产水功能和水源涵养功能的时空变化特征，并采用回归分析和主成分分析法评估了水源涵养功能与社会经济要素之间的关系。结果表明：（1）江苏省多年平均产水量为571×108 m³/a，水源涵养总量78.39×108 m³/a；（2）2000~2010年江苏省水源涵养功能呈下降趋势，2010~2015年有所回升，考虑到降水因素，江苏省实际水源涵养功能持续降低；（3）土地利用变化使15a来水源涵养功能下降15.2×108 m³，降低幅度为16.9%；（4）流域尺度上水源涵养功能与江苏社会经济因素相关关系不显著。研究结果可以为土地利用优化、流域水资源管理提供科学参考和支持。     

Who shapes local climate policy? Unpicking governance arrangements in English and German cities

A new framework for analysing subnational policymaking is applied to climate governance in the ‘twin towns’ of Newcastle upon Tyne and Gelsenkirchen. Low levels of resource interdependence between central and local government in England mean that Newcastle Council has to rely heavily on other horizontal actors to achieve its climate objectives. In contrast, Gelsenkirchen Council receives substantial support from higher tiers of government, which gives it greater control over policymaking within the locality. Greater independence between tiers of government can make it more difficult for subnational bodies to adopt the kind of ambitious policies that may be necessary to combat wicked and/or significant policy challenges such as climate change. Instead, interdependent ‘joint-decision’ systems, which facilitate mutual support across tiers of government, may be better equipped to ensure that subnational public bodies have the capacity to act appropriately.     

新形势下对环境统计工作的思考

分析了环境统计工作的定位和内容,以及第二次全国污染源普查、排污许可证与排污税制度、环境质量考核制度给环境统计工作带来的改革契机。针对固定源、城镇生活源与农业面源、移动源,提出了统计调查工作的设想。建议改变环境统计调查焦点,实现污染源统计空间格局"一张图";开拓环境统计分析品牌,推动环境统计方法研究;以政策管理需求为导向,完成环境统计工作体系的重构。