Nutritional phagostimulants function as male courtship pheromone in the German cockroach, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Blattella germanica</Emphasis>

Summary. Males of the German cockroach, Blattella germanica, secrete a pheromonal substance from the abdominal tergal glands, which elicits a feeding response in females during the sequential courtship behavior. The nuptial secretion consists predominantly of a synergistic mixture of sugars and phospholipids. Cholesterol and a series of amino acids, which are also components of the males glandular secretion, significantly enhanced the phagostimulant activity of the sugar components. The nuptial feeding behavior of the female cockroach is therefore elicited by a complex assortment of nutritive components in the male tergal secretion, including sugars, phospholipids, cholesterol, and amino acids. These results indicate that a mixture of primary metabolites, and not of specific secondary metabolites, serves as a pheromonal cue that appeals to the females gustatory sense and effectively brings her to the precopulatory position. Although the male secretion consists of nutrients, we suggest that these compounds probably do not represent a significant nutrient investment in females and their progeny but rather function as a signal in the mating sequence of B. germanica.     

城市CO2排放量审核方法初探

阐述了一个城市CO2排放量审核的计算方法.依据日本产业技术综合研究所开发的NICE模型,将能源供应纳入计算范围,修正了只计算能源消耗的CO2排放的传统方法.通过对农业、工业、建筑业、第三产业、交通运输业和人民生活6大部门二氧化碳排放量的审核,得出该城市总的CO2排放量.以苏州市为例,对苏州市2005~2008年CO2排...     

Degradation of bisphenol A by photo-fenton processes

The photo-Fenton reactions, which could yield hydroxyl radicals via the catalytic degradation of H₂O₂ by Fe(II), were focused as one of the abiotic degradation processes of bisphenol A (BPA) in surface waters. At pH 6, in the presence of H₂O₂ only, 32% of BPA was degraded after 120?min of irradiation. However, 97% of BPA was degraded in the presence of both H₂O₂ and Fe(II). Without light irradiation, no BPA degradation was observed even in the presence of Fe(II) and H₂O₂. These results show that photo-Fenton processes are effective in the natural attenuation of BPA in surface water. In addition, the presence of humic acids (HAs), which were of more aliphatic nature, resulted in enhancing BPA degradation via the photo-Fenton processes. Therefore, HAs can be one of the important factors in enhancing the degradation of BPA in surface water via the photo-Fenton processes.     

苏州垃圾填埋生命周期清单分析

采用理论计算和实测相结合的方法,求得了苏州七子山垃圾填埋埋场的生命周期清单。实践证明,理论计算和实测相结合是清单分析的有效方法,对今后的同类研究具有参考意义。研究中获得的清单包括生活垃圾的收集和运输、垃圾填埋的物耗和能耗,以及每吨填埋垃圾所排放的大气和水污染物的量,并考察了填埋气用于发电后对清单的影响。这些结果可以为众多的产品生命周期评价提供数据支持。     

Application of lean flammability limit study and large eddy simulation to burner development for an oxy-fuel combustion system

Previously, we developed a model to predict lean flammability limit L and flame propagation velocity Sb for pulverized coal. In the present paper, we have extended the model to apply it in development of oxy-fuel combustion systems. The basic model consists of two particles. One of the two particles burns first, then, the other particle is ignited by the heat of combustion of the one burning particle. We analyzed at what distance the first burning particle could ignite the next particle, and how fast the first burning particle could ignite the next particle. The model was verified both for air and oxy-fuel combustion conditions. Next, a method to support burner development was examined by using the model. Local Sb and L near the ignition points of the burner could be analyzed from the concentration and temperature profiles of CFD results. Flame stability was judged by the calculated Sb and L profiles, and past results of blow-off limits obtained with actual- and pilot-scale experiments. A DS^®T-burner was developed by Hitachi Power Europe, and installed at the Schwarze Pumpe pilot plant. Combination of the technique and large eddy simulation was applied to confirmation of the system.     

Risk reduction concept to provide design criteria for Emergency Systems for onshore LNG plants

The functional safety requirement is widely applied in the process plant industry in accordance with the international standards, such as IEC and ISA. The requirement is defined as safety integrity level (SIL) based on the risk reduction concept for protection layers, from original process risk to tolerable risk level. Although the standards specify both, the Prevention System and the Emergency System, as level of protection layers, the standards specify in detail only the use of the Prevention System (i.e., Safety Instrumented System (SIS)). The safety integrity level is not commonly allocated to the Emergency System (e.g., Fire and Gas System, Emergency Shutdown System and Emergency Depressuring System). This is because the required risk reduction can be normally achieved by only the Prevention System (i.e., SIS and Pressure Safety Valve (PSV)). Further, the risk reduction level for the Emergency System is very difficult to be quantified by the actual SIL application (i.e., evaluated based on the single accident scenario, such as an accident from process control deviation), since the escalation scenarios after Loss of Containment (LOC) greatly vary depending on the plant design and equipment. Consequently, there are no clear criteria for evaluating the Emergency System design. This paper aims to provide the functional safety requirement (i.e., required risk reduction level based on IEC 61508 and 61511) as design criteria for the Emergency System.In order to provide clear criteria for the Emergency System evaluation, a risk reduction concept integrated with public’s perception of acceptable risk criteria is proposed and is applied to identify the required safety integrity level for the Emergency System design. Further, to verify the safety integrity levels for the Emergency Systems, the probabilistic model of the Emergency Systems was established considering each Emergency System (e.g., Fire and Gas System, Emergency Shutdown System and Emergency Depressuring System) relation as the Overall Emergency System. This is because the Overall Emergency System can achieve its goal by the combined action of each individual system, including inherent safe design, such as separation distance.The proposed approach applicability was verified by conducting a case study using actual onshore Liquefied Natural Gas Plant data. Further, the design criteria for Emergency Systems for LNG plants are also evaluated by sensitivity analysis.     

Persistent organochlorines in human breast milk collected from primiparae in Dalian and Shenyang, China

The present study determined the concentrations of organochlorines (OCs) such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane and its metabolites (DDTs), hexachlorocyclohexane isomers (HCHs), chlordane compounds (CHLs), hexachlorobenzene (HCB) and tris(4-chlorophenyl)methane (TCPMe) in human breast milk collected from primiparae in Dalian and Shenyang, northeastern China during 2002. In addition, dioxins and related compounds in pooled samples of human breast milk from Dalian and Shenyang were also analyzed. OCs were detected in all the human breast milk samples analyzed in this study. The predominant contaminants in human breast milk were HCHs, DDTs and HCB, and the levels were relatively higher than those in other countries. On the other hand, concentrations of dioxins and related compounds, PCBs, and CHLs were relatively low. Concentrations of OCs in human breast milk from Dalian, which is located along the coast of Bo Hai Strait, were significantly higher than those from Shenyang, implying that the residents in Dalian might be mainly exposed to these contaminants from seafood. When the relationship between concentrations of OCs in human breast milk and age of primiparae was examined, no significant correlation was observed. This might be caused by the limited sample numbers and narrow range of mother's age and/or recent ban of DDT and HCH production and use. Significant correlation between concentrations of TCPMe and DDTs in human breast milk suggested that technical DDT might be a source of TCPMe in the Chinese population. When daily intakes of DDTs and HCHs to infants through human breast milk were estimated, human breast milk from Dalian showed significantly higher contribution than Shenyang, implying that infants in Dalian might be at higher risk by these contaminants.     

Dangerous levels of climate change for agricultural production in China

There are increasing attempts to define the measures of ‘dangerous anthropogenic inference with the climate system’ in context of Article 2 of the Framework Convention on Climate Change, due to its linkage to goals for stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations. The criteria for identifying dangerous anthropogenic interference may be characterized in terms of the consequences of climate change. In this study, we use the water stress index (WSI) and agricultural net primary production (NPP) as indictors to assess where and when there might be dangerous effects arising from the projected climate changes for Chinese agricultural production. The results showed that based on HadCM3-based climate change scenarios, the region between the North China Plain and Northeast China Plain (34.25–47.75°N, 110.25–126.25°E) would be vulnerable to the projected climate change. The analyses on inter-annual variability showed that the agricultural water resources conditions would fluctuate through the period of 2001–2080 in the region under IPCC SRES A2 scenario, with the period of 2021–2040 as critical drought period. Agricultural NPP is projected to have a general increasing trend through the period of 2001–2080; however, it could decrease during the period of 2005–2035 in the region under the IPCC SRES A2 scenario, and during the period of 2025–2035 under IPCC SRES B2 scenario. Generally, while projected climate change could bring some potentially improved conditions for Chinese agriculture, it could also bring some critical adverse changes in water resources, which would affect the overall outcome. At this stage, while we have identified certain risks and established the general shape of the damage curve expressed as a function of global mean temperature increase, more works are needed to identify specific changes which could be dangerous for food security in China. Therefore, there is a need for the development of more integrated assessment models, which include social-economic, agricultural production and food trade modules, to help identify thresholds for impacts in further studies.     

Resource management for sustainable development: a community- and GIS-based approach

A combined approach utilizing GIS, Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) and Focus Group Discussion (FGD) has been developed for resource mapping in a rural poverty-prone area of Bangladesh. This model integrated GIS and participatory tools to include the voices of the stakeholders in assessing available resources and needs. The resource mapping framework, developed using PRA with local community people and community gatekeepers, was aimed at sustainable resource management, and ArcView GIS was used to digitize the resource maps as a Decision Support System (DSS). A detailed assessment and analysis of the quality, quantity and physical status of resources was first mapped in the field and then digitized using GIS. FGD-based interaction with community people at each union in a subdistrict of Bangladesh revealed stakeholders’ opinions on land and water body management. The present paper demonstrates the power of this model as a policy-making tool for sustainable development and poverty eradication. It also recognized the need for collaboration between interdisciplinary policy planners and researchers to develop and implement a policy on agricultural resource management for poverty-prone areas.     

Evaluation of environmentally friendly lubricant for aluminum cold forging using friction test based on spline extrusion

It is required to replace the aluminum fluoride coating, which is a popular lubricant for aluminum alloy cold forging in Japan, with environmentally friendly lubricants, because the aluminum fluoride coating has high environmental risks and needs much expense. Evaluations of lubrication performance are necessary before lubricant replacement. The authors proposed new friction test based on combined forward spline-backward can extrusion. It can realize large surface expansion, which is a characteristic of aluminum cold forging. In the present paper, a double-layer-type environmentally friendly solid lubricant film and the aluminum fluoride coating were applied to a precipitation hardened aluminum alloy. The lubrication performance was evaluated by the friction test. The double-layer-type lubricant showed superior performance enough for the replacement. The effect of surface treatment applied to workpiece on the lubrication performance was also investigated. The surface asperity generated by a wet-blasting showed high pickup resistance and low friction.