Past,present, and future use of phosphorus in Chinese agriculture and its influence on phosphorus losses

Large inputs of phosphorus (P) in chemical fertilizers and feed supplements since 1978 have improved soil P status in arable land in China, but have also created challenges by increasing P concentrations in manure and exacerbating water quality degradation. Arable land in China can be divided into five management zones based on soil P chemistry, with 15–92 % of arable land having lower P status than the agronomic optimum and 0.3–7.2 % having severe risks of P leaching losses. A scenario analysis of soil P budget and agronomic P demand during 2011–2030 highlighted the great pressure China faces in sustainable P management and the need for drastic changes in current practices. This includes new policies to reduce P supplementation of feed and improved P use efficiency by livestock and programs to expand the adoption of appropriate fertilization, soil conservation, and drainage management practices to minimize P losses.     

Developing an analytical framework for assessing progress toward ecosystem-based management

Ecosystem-based management (EBM) has become a key instrument of contemporary environmental policy and practice. Given the increasingly important role of EBM, there is an urgent need for improved analytical approaches to assess if and to what extent EBM has been accomplished in any given case. Drawing on the vast literature on EBM, we identify five key ecosystem aspects for assessment. By linking these aspects to four phases of management, we develop an interdisciplinary, analytical framework that enables a high-resolution and systematic assessment of the degree of specificity and integration of ecosystem aspects in an EBM. We then apply the framework to evaluate five coastal EBM initiatives in Sweden, four on the Baltic coast and one on the west coast. Our results demonstrate our framework’s usefulness for in-depth and continuous assessments of processes aiming for EBM, and also provide an empirical basis for inferences about the key challenges for successful EBM.     

Nitrogen fixation by cyanobacteria stimulates production in Baltic food webs

Filamentous, nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria form extensive summer blooms in the Baltic Sea. Their ability to fix dissolved N₂ allows cyanobacteria to circumvent the general summer nitrogen limitation, while also generating a supply of novel bioavailable nitrogen for the food web. However, the fate of the nitrogen fixed by cyanobacteria remains unresolved, as does its importance for secondary production in the Baltic Sea. Here, we synthesize recent experimental and field studies providing strong empirical evidence that cyanobacterial nitrogen is efficiently assimilated and transferred in Baltic food webs via two major pathways: directly by grazing on fresh or decaying cyanobacteria and indirectly through the uptake by other phytoplankton and microbes of bioavailable nitrogen exuded from cyanobacterial cells. This information is an essential step toward guiding nutrient management to minimize noxious blooms without overly reducing secondary production, and ultimately most probably fish production in the Baltic Sea.     

Technology for nature conservation: An industry perspective

Information age technology has the potential to change the game for conservation by continuously monitoring the pulse of the natural world. Whether or not it will depends on the ability of the conservation sector to build a community of practice, come together to define key technology challenges and work with a wide variety of partners to create, implement, and sustain solutions. I describe why these steps are necessary, outline the latest developments in the field and offer actionable ways forward for conservation agencies, universities, funding bodies, professional societies, and technology corporations to come together to realize the revolution that computational technologies can bring for biodiversity conservation.     

Limitations of recreational camera traps for wildlife management and conservation research: A practitioner’s perspective

The availability of affordable ‘recreational’ camera traps has dramatically increased over the last decade. We present survey results which show that many conservation practitioners use cheaper ‘recreational’ units for research rather than more expensive ‘professional’ equipment. We present our perspective of using two popular models of ‘recreational’ camera trap for ecological field-based studies. The models used (for >2 years) presented us with a range of practical problems at all stages of their use including deployment, operation, and data management, which collectively crippled data collection and limited opportunities for quantification of key issues arising. Our experiences demonstrate that prospective users need to have a sufficient understanding of the limitations camera trap technology poses, dimensions we communicate here. While the merits of different camera traps will be study specific, the performance of more expensive ‘professional’ models may prove more cost-effective in the long-term when using camera traps for research.     

初级基质对降解菌Pseudomonas putida共代谢苯扎贝特的影响

通过对3,5-二硝基水杨酸(DNS)法测定还原糖含量各影响因素的筛选,优化确定了显色时间8 min,稳定时间10 min,最佳波长490 nm下进行吸光度测定的检测方法;分析分别以葡萄糖和麦芽糖作为外加碳源时,降解菌Pseudomonas putida B-31的生长情况和共代谢降解典型药物苯扎贝特(BZF)的过程。结果表明,降解菌只有在外加碳源的条件下才可正常生长,而且其在葡萄糖环境中生长得更好;拟合得到的葡萄糖、麦芽糖和BZF代谢动力学结果显示,葡萄糖对BZF去除的促进作用更为明显,同时从葡萄糖培养基中降解菌所提取的酶比活力要高于麦芽糖培养基,分析原因可能是葡萄糖所诱导的降解菌关键酶活力更强,而且还可能会产生不同的蛋白质点位。     

灭多威农药废水处理技术

采用酸化、氧化、铁炭微电解、兼氧-好氧生化技术处理灭多威农药生产废水（简称废水）。实验结果表明：废水经酸化处理后可回收H2S和CH3SH,经氧化处理后可去除废水的恶臭气味,经铁炭微电解处理后COD总去除率平均为90．7％,废水可生化性指标BOD5／COD从0升至0．30以上;预处理后的废水再经过兼氧＋好氧生化处理,COD达到GB8978-1996（污水综合排放标准》中的一级标准100mg/L以下。     

The Properties of Poly(<Emphasis Type="SmallCaps">l</Emphasis>-Lactide) Prepared by Different Synthesis Procedure

Different synthesis methods were applied to determine optimal conditions for polymerization of (3S)-cis-3,6-dimethyl-1,4-dioxane-2,5-dione (l-lactide), in order to obtain poly(l-lactide) (PLLA). Bulk polymerizations (in vacuum sealed vessel, high pressure reactor and in microwave field) were performed with tin(II) 2-ethylhexanoate as the initiator. Synthesis in the vacuum sealed vessel was carried out at the temperature of 150 °C. To reduce the reaction time second polymerization process was carried out in the high pressure reactor at 100 °C and at the pressure of 138 kPa. The third type of rapid synthesis was done in the microwave reactor at 100 °C, using frequency of 2.45 GHz and power of 150 W at the temperature of 100 °C. The temperature in this method was controlled via infrared system for in-bulk measuring. The solution polymerization (with trifluoromethanesulfonic acid as initiator) was possible even at the temperature of 40 °C, yielding PLLA with narrow molecular weight distribution in a very short period of time (less than 6 h). The obtained polymers had the number-average molecular weights ranging from 43,000 to 178,000 g mol⁻¹ (polydispersity index ranging from 1 to 3) according to the gel permeation chromatography measurements. The polymer structure was characterized by Fourier transform infrared and NMR spectroscopy. Thermal properties of the obtained polymers were investigated using thermogravimetry and differential scanning calorimetry.     

Preparation and Properties of Starch/Nanosilicate Layer/Polycaprolactone Composites

Starch nanocomposites have been prepared using mineral clay. Montmorillonite, kaolin and a surface-modified montmorillonite by dimethyl (hydrogenated tallow alkyl) ammonium cation were used. Starch-g-PCL nanocomposites have been prepared with graft polymerization through in situ ring-opening polymerization of ε-caprolactone in the presence of starch, Sn(Oct)₂ (Tin(II) 2-ethyl hexanoate) as an initiator/catalyst and silicate layers. In fact, the related composites were prepared in solution method, bulk polymerization and in situ polymerization methods with introducing the mineral clay. The effect of kind of clay on d-spacing of silicate layers was investigated and the obtained nanocomposites were analyzed using X-ray diffraction. The obtained compounds were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR). Morphology of the prepared nanocomposites was investigated using scanning electron microscopy and DSC enhanced the study of thermal behaviour of the prepared composite compounds.