Distribution of Tracheid Lumen Areas within Annual Rings at Different Heights of Larch Stem under Permafrost Conditions. Crown Dieback

Russian Journal of Ecology - Abstract—In the north-taiga larch forests of Siberia, on permafrost, there is a widespread phenomenon of crown dieback. To reveal the factors causing crown...     

Palladium-phosphinous acid complexes catalyzed Suzuki cross-coupling reaction of heteroaryl bromides with phenylboronic acid in water/alcoholic solvents

Highly active, air-stable and water-soluble palladium-phosphinous acid complexes have been applied to Suzuki cross-coupling reaction of heteroaryl bromides under mild conditions in water/alcoholic solvents. Suzuki cross-coupling reaction of heteroaryl bromides with phenylboronic acid occurred efficiently using palladium phosphinous acid complexes (POPd) and phase transfer catalyst (tetrabutylammonium bromide and polyethylene glycol) in water/ethanol mixture, water/propanol mixture and neat water respectively, the corresponding yields of cross-coupling heteroaryl-aryls were satisfied. The tert-butyl substituted ligand di-tert-butylphosphino in combination with POPd was found to be more active than the same family derived catalysts dipalladium complexes POPd1 and POPd2, and other two kinds of Pd-catalysts Pd(PPh₃)₄ and Pd₂(dba)₃. The mechanism of Suzuki cross-coupling reaction between heteroaryl bromides and phenylboronic acid in water was proposed with respect to the key role of phase transfer catalyst on the transmetallation step. Compared with other solid phase transfer catalysts, TBAB was tested as the ideal one. The alkalinity of base and the molar proportion between POPd and TBAB were investigated in water and alcoholic solvents. Notably, in the presence of TBAB adding alcoholic solvents into water enhanced the yields of target products. However in terms of the liquid phase transfer catalyst of PEGs, mixing water into PEGs could slightly decrease the yields with respect to the water free PEGs bulk phase, which was probably due to the homogenous liquid conditions in pure PEGs and weak interactions between PEGs and heteroaryl bromide molecules in water depending on their molecular chain lengths.     

Conservation Covenants on Private Land: Issues with Measuring and Achieving Biodiversity Outcomes in Australia

Conservation covenants and easements have become essential tools to secure biodiversity outcomes on private land, and to assist in meeting international protection targets. In Australia, the number and spatial area of conservation covenants has grown significantly in the past decade. Yet there has been little research or detailed policy analysis of conservation covenanting in Australia. We sought to determine how conservation covenanting agencies were measuring the biodiversity conservation outcomes achieved on covenanted properties, and factors inhibiting or contributing to measuring these outcomes. In addition, we also investigated the drivers and constraints associated with actually delivering the biodiversity outcomes, drawing on detailed input from covenanting programs. Although all conservation covenanting programs had the broad aim of maintaining or improving biodiversity in their covenants in the long term, the specific stated objectives of conservation covenanting programs varied. Programs undertook monitoring and evaluation in different ways and at different spatial and temporal scales. Thus, it was difficult to determine the extent Australian conservation covenanting agencies were measuring the biodiversity conservation outcomes achieved on covenanted properties on a national scale. Lack of time available to covenantors to undertake management was one of the biggest impediments to achieving biodiversity conservation outcomes. A lack of financial resources and human capital to monitor, knowing what to monitor, inconsistent monitoring methodologies, a lack of benchmark data, and length of time to achieve outcomes were all considered potential barriers to monitoring the biodiversity conservation outcomes of conservation covenants.     

Integrating in-situ, Landsat, and MODIS data for mapping in Southern African savannas: experiences of LCCS-based land-cover mapping in the Kalahari in Namibia

Integrated ecosystem assessment initiatives are important steps towards a global biodiversity observing system. Reliable earth observation data are key information for tracking biodiversity change on various scales. Regarding the establishment of standardized environmental observation systems, a key question is: What can be observed on each scale and how can land cover information be transferred? In this study, a land cover map from a dry semi-arid savanna ecosystem in Namibia was obtained based on the UN LCCS, in-situ data, and MODIS and Landsat satellite imagery. In situ botanical relevé samples were used as baseline data for the definition of a standardized LCCS legend. A standard LCCS code for savanna vegetation types is introduced. An object-oriented segmentation of Landsat imagery was used as intermediate stage for downscaling in-situ training data on a coarse MODIS resolution. MODIS time series metrics of the growing season 2004/2005 were used to classify Kalahari vegetation types using a tree-based ensemble classifier (Random Forest). The prevailing Kalahari vegetation types based on LCCS was open broadleaved deciduous shrubland with an herbaceous layer which differs from the class assignments of the global and regional land-cover maps. The separability analysis based on Bhattacharya distance measurements applied on two LCCS levels indicated a relationship of spectral mapping dependencies of annual MODIS time series features due to the thematic detail of the classification scheme. The analysis of LCCS classifiers showed an increased significance of life-form composition and soil conditions to the mapping accuracy. An overall accuracy of 92.48% was achieved. Woody plant associations proved to be most stable due to small omission and commission errors. The case study comprised a first suitability assessment of the LCCS classifier approach for a southern African savanna ecosystem.     

Fuzzy multiphase Markov chains to handle uncertainties in safety systems performance assessment

In this article, we address the problem of imprecision in assessing the performance of safety instrumented systems (SIS) using fuzzy multiphase Markov chains. The elementary probabilities usually considered in Markov chains are replaced by fuzzy numbers. It allows experts to express their uncertainty concerning the basic parameters of systems and to evaluate the impact of this uncertainty on the SIS performance. We show how the imprecision induces significant changes on the Safety Integrity Level of the SIS. The proposed method ensures the relevance of the results. This is validated by a comparison with the results of an enhanced Markov Analysis.     

硝酸异辛酯的热安全性研究

为了研究十六烷值改进剂—硝酸异辛酯(EHN)的热稳定性与热危险性,采用C600微型量热仪测试硝酸异辛酯的热分解特性.利用热分析技术考察温升速率对EHN热分解特性的影响,并利用活化能、TMRad(在绝热条件下最大反应速率到达时间)和自加速分解速率(SADT)方法评价此改进剂的危险性.结果表明,EHN发生分解反应的起始放热温度和最大放热温度均随着温升速率的增加而增大,且四种温升速率的反应机理是一致的.计算得到EHN热分解活化能在143.6-213.6kJ/mol之间.通过绝热条件下TMRad评价得出EHN在常温常压条件下不易发生危险失控,EHN自加速分解温度为98℃＞75℃,即在常温条件下储运是安全的,为储运硝酸异辛酯提供有力的数据支持.     

劳动环境与安全

劳动环境，对劳动者的生理、心理产生着直接影响。而一些企业发生了工伤事故，往往却强调操作者的责任，很少从劳动场所的噪音、空间、空气、照明、尘埃等劳动环境去作综合评价考虑。恰好正是这些环境因素，像一只无形的手，支配和干扰着人们的思想、情绪和行为。     

Effects of 5-year application of municipal solid waste compost on the distribution and mobility of heavy metals in a Tunisian calcareous soil

It is obvious that the application of solid waste compost improves the soil fertility. These wastes, however, may also have some negative effects on the agricultural environment due to their metal content. This research aimed at evaluating the influence of Tunisian municipal solid waste compost and farmyard manure on some chemical properties and the distribution of heavy metals in a calcareous Tunisian soil (clayey–loamy soil). A field plot experiment, without vegetation, was installed since 1999 at the experimental farm of the Agronomic National Institute of Tunis (INAT) in the region of Mornag (20 km south of Tunis, Tunisia). During 5 years, the field received yearly the following treatments: 0, 40, 80 and 120 t/ha of municipal solid waste compost and 0, 40 and 120 t/ha of manure. The fractionation of heavy metals in the soil was evaluated after 5 years using a sequential extraction procedure. The application of the two amendments was found to increase the content of organic matter, the total nitrogen content and the electrical conductivity, whereas it slightly decreased the soil pH. The addition of manure did not have a significant effect on the accumulation of heavy metals in the soil, whereas compost application increased the total concentration of heavy metals in the soil. The distribution of heavy metals between the different fractions in untreated and treated soils showed the residual fraction to be dominant, followed by the fraction bound to Fe and Mn oxides. The amount of Cu bound to the organic fraction increased with the application rate, which is probably caused by the formation of organic complexes. For the other metals, the increase of the association with organic matter is very limited. The application of compost moreover increases the amount of Zn associated with Fe and Mn oxides. The “Mobility Factor (MF)” was quite low and did not change after the 5-year application of the two organic amendments. It always remained lower than 10%, although for Cd it amounted to 17%.