Integration of techniques for early fault detection and diagnosis for improving process safety: Application to a Fluid Catalytic Cracking refinery process

In this paper we show the integration of techniques for early fault detection and diagnosis of operational faults in industrial processes, and we show an application example in a Fluid Catalytic Cracking refinery process. The early fault detection and diagnosis allow the operators in an industrial process to take the best actions during the real state of the process, avoiding incipient faults to scale to critical situations where there is risk of human lives and economical lost.     

Herbicide selection of Italian ryegrass under different levels of UVB radiation

Ultraviolet-B radiation is an environmental stress for plants and this situation could become aggravated in the next decades. In this study we used Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) as a model system to test whether an environmental stress derived from global change, such as UVB, can influence the efficacy of control procedures and evolution toward herbicide resistance. We grew three generations of Italian ryegrass plants with and without UVB light and subjected them to a series of diclofop-methyl [(+/-)-2-[4-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy) phenoxy] propanoic acid, methyl ester] doses. The effect of selection history was tested with herbicide dose response. The effect of herbicide application on plant survival and biomass varied significantly among herbicide doses and with absence or presence of UVB light. In the absence of herbicide, the decrease in individual fecundity with increasing plant density was similar under both no-UVB and UVB light treatments. Only plants growing without UVB light increased production of reproductive structures in response to the decrease in density caused by herbicide application. Our study shows that UVB light was a weak stress factor for the ryegrass plants. However, when herbicide selection pressure was high, UVB light reduced the evolution toward herbicide tolerance. When selection pressure on the parental plants was lower, the two stress factors had a synergistic effect, causing changes in herbicide efficacy that in turn had demographic and evolutionary consequences. In the field, these interactions between stress factors might be of significance for annual weeds in which seed output is a major determinant in fitness.     

Joint institutional arrangements for addressing transboundary water resources issues—lessons for the GEF

The lofty goals of the 1992 Earth Summit regarding sustainable development will not be achieved without major improvements in the management of transboundary water resources. This paper describes the serious nature of water-related conflicts and environmental damage associated with degradation of marine ecosystems, coastal zones, and shared surface/groundwater systems. Traditional approaches such as international conventions, watercourse agreements with basin organizations, and arbitration have generally fallen short of their objectives. This article suggests that a middle ground centered on multicountry institutional arrangements for joint fact finding, evaluation, and problem resolution may be a more productive approach over the short term to achieve sustainable development. The experience of the International Joint Commission (Canada and U.S.) is described as a way of providing a neutral ground for building trust among nations, for 'leveling the playing field' among small and large countries, and for providing mechanisms for countries to work jointly toward sustainable development of their shared resources without relinquishing their sovereignty. The Global Environment Facility (GEF) is playing a catalytic role in assisting countries to address transboundary water resources issues. The paper describes GEF's Operational Strategy and discusses the implications of joint institutional arrangements for the international waters focal area. Given that the environmental security of many nations rests on improved transboundary cooperation, the GEF provides a pragmatic opportunity for countries to cooperatively address these pressing problems.     

Sorption and desorption of cadmium by different fractions of biosolids-amended soils

To evaluate the importance of both the inorganic and organic fractions in biosolids on Cd chemistry, a series of Cd sorption and desorption batch experiments (at pH 5.5) were conducted on different fractions of soils from a long-term field experimental site. The slope of the Cd sorption isotherm increased with rate of biosolids and was different for the different biosolids. Removal of organic carbon (OC) reduced the slope of the Cd sorption isotherm but did not account for the observed differences between biosolids-amended soils and a control soil, indicating that the increased adsorption associated with biosolids application was not limited to the increased OC from the addition of biosolids. Removal of both OC and Fe/Mn further reduced the slopes of Cd sorption isotherms and the sorption isotherm of the biosolids-amended soil was the same as that of the control, indicating both OC and Fe/Mn fractions added by the biosolids were important to the increased sorption observed for the biosolids-amended soil samples. Desorption experiments failed to remove from 60 to 90% of the sorbed Cd. This "apparent hysteresis" was higher for biosolids-amended soil than the control soil. Removal of both OC and Fe/Mn fractions was more effective in removing the observed differences between the biosolids-amended soil and the control than either alone. Results show that Cd added to biosolids-amended soil behaves differently than Cd added to soils without biosolids and support the hypothesis that the addition of Fe and Mn in the biosolids increased the retention of Cd in biosolids-amended soils.     

Effects of copper on Sambucus nigra L. seedlings studied by electron paramagnetic resonance and atomic absorption spectroscopies

We present in this work preliminary results on the translocation of copper, manganese and iron from soil to leaves of Sambucus nigra L. seedlings in the presence of increasing copper concentrations in the growth medium. The use of electron spin resonance spectroscopy and the comparison with atomic absorption spectroscopy is not presently common in the study of metal absorption in plants. This approach gave promising results both on the detection of some metal ions, as well as of radical species related to the presence of Cu2+ in plant tissues. Copper was found to act synergistically in manganese uptake.     

鄱阳湖防洪减灾研究进展

近年来 ,鄱阳湖防洪减灾研究取得了长足的进展 .本文在分析近年来相关研究的基础上 ,提出湖区发展中亟待解决的几个问题 ,诸如应尽快加深 3S技术与最优化理论在湖区防洪减灾中的应用研究、深入开展湖区洪灾风险的理论研究等     

First-trimester biochemical and molecular diagnoses using chorionic villi: High accuracy in the U.S. collaborative study

The accuracy of biochemical and molecular prenatal diagnoses using chorionic villi as the fetal source was assessed by seven centres participating in the NICHD collaborative study on the safety and accuracy of chorionic villus sampling (CVS) and amniocentesis. Of 601 pregnancies studied, biochemical methods were used to determine the diagnosis in 283 fetuses at risk for 35 different metabolic disorders. Fifteen different lysosomal storage diseases accounted for 81 per cent of the biochemical prenatal diagnoses performed, with 57 per cent of these pregnancies at risk for Tay-Sachs disease. No errors were made in the biochemical diagnoses that predicted affected or unaffected fetuses. However, the diagnoses of certain disorders (e.g., mucopolysacchariodosis type IH, metachromatic leukodystrophy, and Krabbe disease) occasionally required confirmatory studies in cultured amniocytes because the enzyme results were inconclusive in direct and/or cultured villi or due to the presence of a pseudodeficiency allele. Of these, only the diagnosis of a fetus at risk for Krabbe disease remained inconclusive after special studies to discriminate between mutant and pseudodeficiency alleles. Recombinant DNA techniques were used to predict the diagnosis of 318 fetuses at risk for 16 different disorders in which the defective disease gene could be detected either directly or by linkage analysis to a nearby polymorphic marker. Of these, 32 per cent were for haemoglobinopathies, 25 per cent for cystic fibrosis, 24 per cent for Duchenne or Becker muscular dystrophy, and 7 per cent for haemophilias. Pregnancies at risk for known disorders with specific molecular lesions (e.g., sickle cell disease) were accurately diagnosed in direct and/or cultured villi. Diagnoses requiring analyses with closely linked polymorphic markers were occasionally uninformative or inconclusive. Maternal contamination was not reported in any biochemical or molecular-based diagnosis. These studies document the high accuracy and rapidity of both biochemical and mutation-specific prenatal diagnoses with direct and cultured chorionic villi.     

Discharge characteristics of nematocysts isolated from acontia ofCalliactis parasitica

Experiments were performed on specimens ofCalliactis parasitica collected near Plymouth in April 1987 and in the Mediterranean between September 1987 and April 1988. Undischarged nematocysts (basitrichous isorhizas) were separated from the acontia of by using 1M glycerol, 1M citrate, 0.5% Nonidet or 0.5% Triton X-100 as isolating agents, or by freezing the acontial tissue. The mechanisms of extrusion were not studied. The effectiveness of 50 mM thioglycolate in discharging nematocysts isolated by the above methods and suspended in Ca- and Mg-free artificial sea water (ASW) was investigated. Nematocysts extruded in glycerol were more responsive to thioglycolate than those extruded in citrate. Capsules isolated in non-ionic detergents, however, and those obtained by freezing were not discharged by thioglycolate. If capsules extruded in glycerol were suspended in ASW and this was replaced with distilled water, they did not respond to thioglycolate. The effect of distilled water was only partly reversible. It was observed that these nematocysts, unlike those ofPelagia noctiluca andAiptasia mutabilis previously investigated, did not release measurable amounts of free Ca²⁺ during discharge. It is suggested that if calcium is not involved in the mechanism of discharge of isolatedC. parasitica nematocysts then some other ionic species may stabilize the resting condition of these capsules.     

Movement in soft corals: An interaction between Nephthea brassica (Coelenterata: Octocorallia) and Acropora hyacinthus (Coelenterata: Scleractinia)

An interaction between the alcyonarian octocoral Nephthea brassica Kukenthal, 1904 and the scleractinian Acropora hyacinthus Dana was photographed and the assemblage collected at Rib Reef (18°15S; 146°45E), Central Region of the Great Barrier Reef, in September 1980. The interaction, which did not involve allelopathy, was characterised by extensive deposition of undifferentiated aragonite by the scleractinian in the vicinity of the soft coral, which moved across the surface of the acroporid. The basal attachment region of the nephtheid showed structural features which permitted movement. The net effect of this interaction was a series of divided trails across the surface of the acroporid plate evidencing the movement through growth and asexual division of the parent colony. These trails were susceptible to secondary colonisation by epifauna and algae which may reduce the fitness of the acroporid. This movement appears to afford N. brassica a distinct advantage in competing for space with acroporid corals.     

Seasonal Fluctuations in the Nutritional Value of Particulate Organic Matter in A Lagoon

Water samples were collected on a fortnightly basis in the lagoon of S. Gilla (Sardinia, Mediterranean Sea) in order to study seasonal nutritional fluctuations of particulate organic matter. the lagoon is characterized by high quantities of suspended matter throughout the year. Thermohaline conditions had no effect on particulate matter quantity and composition, but the quantity as well as quality of suspended particles was drastically affected by the wind, the major effecter of sediment resuspension. As a result of sediment resuspension, seston was always richer in inorganic fraction. However, throughout the year of investigation, most particulate organic carbon was quite appealing for filter feeding communities, although the best POM quality was available during phytoplankton blooming. the phytoplankton pool of suspended matter was just a small fraction of the bulk, accounting for only 13% on average of particulate organic carbon. in terms of energy available in the seston, the highest amount was stored in organic matter heterotrophic fraction, whilst the smallest was to be found in living phytoplankton.