Modelling of a downdraft gasifier fed by agricultural residues

A non-stoichiometric model for a downdraft gasifier was developed in order to simulate the overall gasification process. Mass and energy balances of the gasifier were calculated and the composition of produced syngas was predicted. The capacity of the modeled gasifier was assumed to be 0.5 MW, with an Equivalence Ratio (EQ) of 0.45. The model incorporates the chemical reactions and species involved, while it starts by selecting all species containing C, H, and O, or any other dominant elements. Olive wood, miscanthus and cardoon were tested in the formulated model for a temperature range of 800-1200 °C, in order to examine the syngas composition and the moisture impact on the supplied fuel. Model results were then used in order to design an olive wood gasification reactor.     

Experimental Study on the Effects of Population Density of Bloodsucking Mosquito (Aedes communis Deg.) Larvae on Their Biological Characteristics

Results of laboratory experiments on the effects of population density of Aedes communis Deg. larvae on their growth, survival, and sex ratio are presented. At the highest density, larval mortality increased by factors of 1.5 and 2.2, the duration of preimaginal development increased significantly, and the weight of pupae was 11 and 14.7% smaller than in low-density populations. The sex ratio was the same in both cases. The absolute numbers and the biomass of insects per cultivation vessel were greater in high-density populations.     

Role of sex and breeding status in grooming and total tick load of impala

The lesser mouse lemur (Microcebus murinus) is a prosimian primate which presents evidence of sex ratio bias of offspring that agrees with the direction of bias predicted by the local resource competition model for facultative sex ratio adjustment. That is, females overproduced sons when grouped prior to mating, whereas isolated females exhibited the opposite tendency. In this solitary species, social communication relies heavily on urinary chemical signals. To test the hypothesis that sex biases induced by social factors may be linked to urinary cues, isolated females were exposed (n = 76) or not (control group, n = 16) to urinary cues from other reproductively active females from the beginning of the breeding season (induced by long photoperiod) until oestrus. During that period, females were either continuously (n = 17) or partially (n = 59) exposed to chemosignal stimulation. Females in oestrus were placed in contact with a breeding male and subsequently isolated until they gave birth. All females entered oestrus but the timing of oestrus was significantly delayed by 1 week in urine-exposed females. A general depressive effect of long-term urine exposure on fecundity was demonstrated, involving fewer impregnations, higher abortion frequency and smaller litter sizes. Among females giving birth (n = 55) to a total of 129 young, a significant positive correlation was found between sex ratio bias towards males and the duration of urine exposure. However, the shift in sex ratio at birth depended on the duration of urine stimulation during a sensitive period extending from the beginning of the long photoperiod until the beginning of the follicular phase. In the absence of urinary cues during the sensitive period, females significantly overproduced daughters (32% males of 53 newborn). As urine exposure increased during the sensitive phase, the proportion of males in litters increased from 54% males (n = 50) in partially urine-exposed females to a significant bias towards males (69.2% of 26 newborn) in totally exposed females. The biased sex ratio in response to chemical cues did not show consistent relationships with maternal body weight, parity or litter size. Although the intrinsic mechanisms involved in sex-biased conceptions are not known, chemical cues could interact with the photoperiodic control of gonadotropin secretions. Received: 14 January 1995/Accepted after revision: 26 November 1995     

Reproductive rates,operational sex ratios and mate choice in St. Peter’s fish

Operational sex ratio (OSR) theory predicts that sexual differences in potential reproductive rates (PRRs) create biases in the OSR and thus determine the relative strength of sexual selection (competition and choice) operating on each sex. Although this theory is well accepted, empirical studies that quantify it are still lacking. This paper presents such a study. I measured the natural OSR of Galilee St. Peter’s fish (Sarotherodon galilaeus) in the field (Lake Kinneret) and examined the direction of mate choice in the laboratory. The OSR in Lake Kinneret was male biased. Both a male-biased sex ratio and higher male reproductive rates (twice as fast as females) contributed to the skew in the OSR, but the sexual differences in PRR were shown to be the main factor causing variation in the OSR. Females, the sex with the lower PRR, were more selective for mates. The faster male reproductive rate may explain why females are more selective for mates despite varying less in quality. Received: 29 May 1995/Accepted after revision: 13 April 1996     

Effect of colour on male orientation to female pheromone in the black chafer Holotrichia loochooana loochooana

Summary. Under field conditions significantly more black chafer, Holotrichia loochooana loochooana (Sawada) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) males landed on black and gray sources than white ones containing 10 mg of female pheromone, anthranilic acid. When a broader spectrum of colours was tested the frequency of male landing was intensively proportional to as the lightness of the colour of the lures. These findings demonstrated that mate location by H. l. loochooana males is dependent on both olfactory and visual stimuli of the source. In contrast, female aggregation was not affected by colour.     

洞庭平原褐家鼠种群动态和繁殖特性

褐家鼠是洞庭平原稻作区的主要害鼠之一，在房舍区数量动态复杂，季节消长基本上属春冬双峰型，在农田区数量季节消长为夏秋双峰型。褐家鼠总雌性比为５２．０％，全年繁殖．３～１０月为繁殖盛期，盛期平均怀孕率为３４．９１±８．６９％，平均胎仔数为８．２±ｌ．０，４、７、９月出现怀孕高峰，１１月至翌年２月为繁殖低潮期。褐家鼠在洞庭平原７０年代数量较低，８０年代初暴发成灾，８０年代后期数量有逐步下降趋势。针对种群特征，提出了控制褐家鼠种群数量的对策。     

浅析氧化沟常用曝气设备的能效值

对污水处理厂常用的几种曝气设备进行了技术对比和经济分析;简述了几种曝气设备能效比值不平衡的基本原因;介绍了一种在同等工艺条件下,工程构筑物占地面积小,高效、低耗的新型曝气设备.     

不同地震荷载对黄土动模量和阻尼比的影响

不同地震荷载对黄土的动力特性有着重要影响。本文利用微机与我们组装的DSD160型电磁式振动三轴仪组成的一个可对试样施加任意波轴向荷载的动三轴试验系统，对黄土在不同地震荷载下的动模量和阻尼比进行了对比试验研究，初步得到了不同地震荷载对一组黄土的动模量及阻尼比影响的一些结果。     

水不耦合装药对深孔预裂爆破应力波能量的影响

从理论上探讨了在深孔预裂爆破过程中,水不耦合装药对爆轰冲击波的形成和应力波传播规律的影响,利用Matlab编程求解了冲击波初始参数和沿爆破孔径向方向上传播到爆破孔孔壁处的参数;并根据弹性理论提出并求解了正入射情况下爆破孔孔壁表面上的初始冲击压力。在淮南矿业集团丁集矿进行了水不耦合装药深孔预裂爆破实验,并对实验获得的应力波信号进行归一化频谱分析研究。数值计算和现场实验均表明:通过在煤层中进行深孔预裂爆破实验研究发现,当ξ的值为1.5左右时,爆生应力波在10~50Hz内的分能量最强,同时具有最高的信噪比,这与理论计算结果相吻合。因而,在利用煤层爆破强化增透技术时应将不耦合装药系数设计为1.5左右,同时适当加大爆破药柱的用量,以获得最佳的增透效果。