Assessment using CFD of the wind direction on the air discharges caused by natural ventilation of a poultry house

Air inside poultry houses must be removed on a regular basis to prevent excess of heat, particles and noxious gases that can imperil animals. To cope with this issue, natural ventilation could be an effective method when assisted by accurate predictions. This study investigates air discharges caused by natural ventilation of a poultry house by means of a three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model. It solves the governing equations of momentum, heat and mass transport, radiative transfers and animal-generated heat. Wind directions of 0°, 36° and 56° (0° corresponds to a wind blowing perpendicular to the ridgeline) were investigated; the CFD model predictions achieved a RMSE of 1.2 °C and 0.6 g[H₂O] kg^?1 [dry air] for internal temperature and absolute humidity, respectively, when air blew with an angle of 36°. Air renewal rates (ARR) were 39.5 (±?1.9), 34.9 (±?2.2) and 33.6 (±?1.7) volumes of the building per hour, when air blew at 0°, 36° and 56°, respectively. Such ARR predictions served to know how the gases contained in air would likely spread downstream from the building in order to define regions of potentially high gas concentration that could endanger neighbouring habitable facilities.     

Reduced-glutathione concentrations in Boleophthalmus pectinirostris tissues exposed to benzo(a)pyrene

ＩｎｔｒｏｄｕｃｔｉｏｎＢｅｉｎｇａｔｙｐｉｃａｌｐｏｌｙｃｙｃｌｉｃａｒｏｍａｔｉｃｈｙｄｒｏｃａｒｂｏｎｓ(ＰＡＨｓ) ,ｂｅｎｚｏ[ａ]ｐｙｒｅｎｅ(ＢａＰ)ｄｅｓｅｒｖｅｓｓｅｒｉｏｕｓｓｔｕｄｙｂｅｃａｕｓｅＰＡＨｓａｒｅｎｏｗｒｅｃｏｇｎｉｚｅｄａｓｍａｊｏｒｅｎｖｉｒｏｎｍｅｎｔａｌｐｏｌｌｕｔａｎｔｓ .ＥｘｐｏｓｕｒｅｔｏＰａＨｓｉｓｖｉｒｔｕａｌｌｙｕｎａｖｏｉｄａｂｌｅａｎｄｉｓｓｔｒｏｎｇｌｙｓｕｓｐｅｎｄｅｄｏｆｂｅｉｎｇａｃａｕｓａｔｉｖｅｆａｃｔｏｒｉｎｃｅｒｔａｉｎｔｕｍｏ…     

Environmental and biological monitoring of methyl ethyl ketone (MEK)

This study was conducted to evaluate the usefulness of various biological parameters for monitoring of workers exposed to methyl ethyl ketone (MEK). Fifty male workers from a large magnetic videotape factory participated in this study. Personal air samples were collected using 3M organic vapor monitors and analysed for MEK by gas chromatography with flame ionisation detector (FID). 10 mL of urine; blood (1 mL) and exhaled air were also collected at the end of an 8-hour workshift. The headspace GC method was applied for measurement of urinary and blood MEK. MEK in expired air was analysed directly by using a GC/FID.The correlation coefficients (r) between environmental MEK and all other biological parameters measured show significant positive relationships. The r for environmental MEK and urine MEK was 0.84; for blood 0.73 and for breath 0.64. The correlation coefficients between blood and urine was 0.72; blood and breath was 0.88 and urine and breath 0.60. These findings suggest that measurements of unmetabolised MEK in blood, exhaled air and urine can be used for biological monitoring of MEK exposure. Nevertheless, laboratory methodological assessment is in favour of measuring urinary MEK as it is non-invasive and does not have to be analysed immediately after collection.     

Trace Element Contaminants in Sediments From the Noaa National Status and Trends Programme Compared to Data From Throughout the World

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Status and Trends (NS&T) Programme has analyzed samples of surface sediment collected at almost 300 coastal and estuarine sites throughout the United States since 1984. the overall distributions for concentrations of each element are approximately lognormal allowing a definition of geometric means and of “high” concentrations as those exceeding the mean plus one standard deviation of the lognormal distribution. Those mean and “high” concentrations should be useful for comparing the NS&T data set and with other reports on sediment contamination. A world-wide data set, constructed from data in the literature, was summarized in an identical manner. It was found, after excluding locally extreme values, that the NS&T and world-wide data sets yielded very similar mean and “high” concentrations for Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn. Chromium was the sole element showing higher summary statistics in the NS&T data set, a result attributed to NS&T sampling in areas of naturally (not contaminated) elevated Cr content. It remains undetermined, however, why the world-wide data set, even with exclusion of “hot spots”, yielded higher means and “highs” for Cd, Hg, As, and Ag.     

Effects of the Ellagic acid on the N‐Acetyltransferase activity and Acetylation of 2‐aminofluorene in the rat

The effects of the ellagic acid on the in vitro and in vivo acetylation of 2‐aminofluorene were investigated in male Sprague‐Dawley rats. For in vitro examination, cytosols with or without ellagic acid co‐treatment showed different percentage of 2‐aminofluorene acetylation. For in vivo examination, pre‐treatment of male rats with ellagic acid (10 mg/kg) 24h prior to the administration of 2‐aminofluorene (50 mg/kg) resulted in a 26% and 29%, respectively, decrease in the urinary and fecal recovery of N‐acetyl‐2‐aminofluorene, and a 37% decrease in the metabolic clearance of 2‐aminofluorene to N‐acetyl‐2‐aminofluorene. This is the first demonstration that ellagic acid decrease the N‐acetylation of carcinogens in vitro and in vivo.     

Potentiometric studies of mixed complexes of cobalt(II) and copper(II) with l‐Asparagine and adenine

A potentiometric titration technique has been used to determine the stability constants for the various complexes of Co(II) and Cu(II) with L‐asparagine and from DNA base, e.g. adenine. Stability constants of ternary systems have been evaluated by the method suggested by Irwing‐Rossotti. In addition, the conditional constants were calculated as a function of pH. The maximum values of the conditional formation constants were found to be in accordance with the mixed‐ligand complex formation constants in a determined pH region. Furthermore, the molar fractions of different species from mixed complexes were calculated by means of formation constants. The values of stability constants of mixed‐ligand complexes at 25°C are as follows: log K= 5.25 for Co(II)‐L‐asparagine‐adenine; log K= 9.30 for Cu(II)‐L‐asparagine‐adenine. The ionic strength was kept constant at I = 0.20 with NaClO₄.     

Evaluation of fodder quality of straw of different landraces of rice (Oryza sativa L.) under cultivation in the Kumaun Region of Indian Central Himalaya

Thirty landraces of rice collected from various locations, across an elevational gradient (1150–2400 m asl), in Kumaun, Central Himalaya and VL-206 (a high-yielding variety recommended for rainfed mountain area) have been evaluated, both in terms of quantity and nutritional quality of straw. Data were collected to estimate the percentage share of fodder in the overall biomass produced. The total biomass harvested at maturity was taken as productivity. In view of the severe scarcity of fodder in hill regions, particularly during winter months, straw was also examined for quality-linked biochemical parameters and dry matter digestibility (DMD) of fodder. The Crude Protein (CP) values ranged from 2.21% (Nandhani) to 6.33% (Dalbadal), and in saceo DMD (nylonbag technique) was highest in Kaladur (48.84%) and lowest in Kantolia (32.25%). While the CP in VL206 was within the range recorded for various landraces (3.61%), DMD value (27.29%) was lower than that of all the landraces tested. In saceo DMD data indicate that the fodder quality of landraces is better than that of the introduced variety. The values for neutral detergent fibre (NDF) ranged from 63.64% (Sabhawati) to 78.46% (Chhotiya) among the rainfed landraces, while in the irrigated landraces, Thapchini had more NDF (87.50 %), as compared to Kantolia (73.88%) and VL206 (74.91%). Values for the acid detergent fibre (ADF) varied from 42.70% (Danbasmati) to 54.58% (Nandhani) in the rainfed group; ADF was slightly higher in Thapchini (49.41%) in comparison to Kantolia (47.19) and VL206 had the highest (56.80%) ADF content. The observed differences with respect to straw productivity, chemical composition and in saceo DMD in various landraces, even when grown under similar conditions at one place, clearly indicate the richness of the gene pool of rice being maintained, through cultivation, in the Kumaun hills. It may be mentioned that agriculture in the hills is biomass based, and livestock form an integral component of subsistence farming.     

A case study of flood control schemes for the Kakehashi river and their socio-cultural consequences

SUMMARY

This paper is concerned with a twenty-five year campaign against the relocation of the Komatsu-Tenmangu shrine as a result of the enlargement of the Kakehashi river. The Komatsu-Tenmangu shrine is an important cultural property of Japan, and was constructed by Toshitsune Maeda, the third dynasty of the Kaga clan in 1657. It is suggested that the primary reason why it took so long to settle this issue is a flaw in our social system for managing public works. It is concluded that preservation of cultural property is not always contrary to land development, and that the proposed procedures or something like them must be put into practice for the real expansion of our culture.     

Determination of three endocrine disrupting chemicals,triclosan, 4-n-nonylphenol,and di-n-butyl phthalate using stir bar sorptive extraction in samples of different matrices

Three endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), triclosan (TCS), 4-n-nonylphenol (4-n-NP), and di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP) were determined using stir bar sorptive extraction (SBSE) along with high-performance liquid chromatography/photodiode array detection (HPLC/DAD). Benzyl butyl phthalate was used as an internal standard. The targeted analytes could be rapidly determined with limits of quantification (LOQ) ranging from 4.1 (DBP), 10 (TCS), to 34 (4-n-NP)?µg?L^?1 in real samples such as bottled waters, personal care products, soaps, lotions, and urine. The results show that the developed analytical scheme is solvent-saving, efficient, and capable of fast screening samples for these common EDCs.     

Correlation between lead and iron in children's blood in Jordan

A total of 200 Jordanian children were classified into two groups: 100 Fe replete and 100 Fe deficient with ages ranging between 3.0 and 12.0 years (6.9 ± 2.7 years). All participants were chosen according to proper selection criteria followed by the sample collection: the samples were analyzed for hemoglobin and red blood cells; ferritin, an immunoassays-based instrument; and levels of Pb, Cu, and Zn. There were no significant differences between genders regarding Fe-deficiency (p = 0.57 and χ2 = 0.33), with a significant association of younger individuals (3.0–9.1 years) with Fe-deficiency (p < 0.05 and χ2 = 22.7).

In addition, there is a significant positive correlation between Fe-deficiency with blood levels of Pb, Cu, and Zn (p < 0.05), (r = 0.43, 0.35, and 0.42, respectively) as compared to control group, this findings supported, by comparing the levels of the examined metals in both groups, in individuals whom close to heavy metals source (highway traffic or oil gas station), and found that the mean of the heavy metals level in close Fe-deficient group higher than in close Fe-replete group.