Prediction of the Behaviour of Biomass Ash in Fluidized Bed Combustors and Gasifiers

Two types of agricultural residues (wheat straw and olive residue) in untreated and pretreated (fractionation, leaching) form were tested as concerns their ash melting behaviour during fluidized bed combustion and gasification by means of thermal analysis techniques. The techniques applied included DSC, simultaneous DSC/TG and TG-MS for the determination of low-temperature ash melts and losses caused by the volatilization of alkali material. In combination with ash elemental analyses on the materials, the applied techniques proved to offer valuable information for prediction of the ash behaviour in fluidized bed reactors. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Numerical simulation of a 4WD–4WS tractor turning in a rice field

For the steady-state circular turning of a 4WD–4WS (4 wheel driven–4 wheel steered) tractor in a rice field, a numerical simulation was achieved. Equations of motion of this tractor were developed in a vehicle fixed x–y coordinate system. By comparing the calculated and measured results of acting forces on the tractor tires, this simulation was evaluated. Then, the characteristic parameters of the turning vehicle, which are the side slip angle and the yaw angular velocity of the vehicle center of gravity, were simulated in several combinations of the steering wheel angle and the forward speed. Also the same simulation applied to a 4WD–2WS tractor which had the same body as the 4WD–4WS tractor. The simulated results showed a clear difference of turnability between 4WS and 2WS. ©     

Targeted Multiresidue Method for the Analysis of Different Classes of Pesticides in Agro-Food Industrial Sludge by Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Sludge generated after washing of fruits and vegetables during agro-food processes is a complex matrix and selective methods for the identification and quantification of pesticides’ residues are necessary in order to achieve a sustainable and effective management of the total sewage. The present work describes the development and validation of a reliable, simple and fast analytical method based on liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for the determination of 47 pesticides of different chemical classes, including organosphosphates, pyrethroids, neonicotinoids, triazoles and others, in sludge samples after QuEChERS sample preparation. The necessity of the individual steps of QuEChERS was investigated and the LC-ESI-MS/MS conditions were optimized to achieve maximum sensitivity of the target analytes. The method limits of detection (LODs) ranged between 0.0005 mg/kg (imidacloprid) and 0.05 mg/kg (beta cyfluthrin). The recoveries ranged between 71–120% and the repeatability of the method was ≤25% expressed as relative standard deviation. The method was applied to sludge samples generated after washing of fruits in an agro-fruit-packaging unit in Greece. The results showed the presence of 37 pesticides’ active substances with concentrations ranging from low ppbs, such as fludioxinil (5 μg/kg) up to low ppms such as beta cyfluthrin (3.5 mg/kg) and with their sum concentration reaching up to 19 mg/kg.     

Pesticides Burden in Neotropical Rivers: Costa Rica as a Case Study

Neotropical ecosystems are highly biodiverse; however, the excessive use of pesticides has polluted freshwaters, with deleterious effects on aquatic biota. This study aims to analyze concentrations of active ingredients (a.i) of pesticides and the risks posed to freshwater Neotropical ecosystems. We compiled information from 1036 superficial water samples taken in Costa Rica between 2009 and 2019. We calculated the detection frequency for 85 a.i. and compared the concentrations with international regulations. The most frequently detected pesticides were diuron, ametryn, pyrimethanil, flutolanil, diazinon, azoxystrobin, buprofezin, and epoxiconazole, with presence in >20% of the samples. We observed 32 pesticides with concentrations that exceeded international regulations, and the ecological risk to aquatic biota (assessed using the multi-substance potentially affected fraction model (msPAF)) revealed that 5% and 13% of the samples from Costa Rica pose a high or moderate acute risk, especially to primary producers and arthropods. Other Neotropical countries are experiencing the same trend with high loads of pesticides and consequent high risk to aquatic ecosystems. This information is highly valuable for authorities dealing with prospective and retrospective risk assessments for regulatory decisions in tropical countries. At the same time, this study highlights the need for systematic pesticide residue monitoring of fresh waters in the Neotropical region.     

Spatial organization of vegetation arising from non-local excitation with local inhibition in tropical rainforests

The Janzen-Connell (JC) effect, which hypothesizes that recruitment and growth of seedlings is positively correlated to the distance from the parent tree, is shown to generate highly organized vegetation biomass spatial patterns when coupled to a revised Fisher-Kolmogorov (FK) equation. Spatial organization arises through a novel mechanism of non-local activation and local inhibition. Over a single generation, the revised FK model calculations predict a “hen and chicks” dynamic pattern with mature trees surrounded by new seedlings growing at characteristic spatial distances in agreement with field data. Over longer timescales, the importance of stochastic dynamics, such as those associated with randomly occurring light gaps, increase thereby causing a substantial deviation between predictions from the deterministic FK model and its stochastic counterpart derived to account for such random disturbances. At still longer timescales, however, statistical measures of the spatial organization, specifically the spatial density of mature trees and their minimum spacing, converge between these two model representations.     

公共投资对粮食主产区农业生产率增长的驱动效应分析——基于吉林省1989-2006年数据的实证检验

粮食主产区是我国农业发展的重心,而公共投资是推动粮食主产区农业生产率增长最主要的驱动力。因此,本文以吉林省为例运用Malmquist指数模型定量评估粮食主产区的农业生产率,并进一步应用向量误差修正(VEC)模型分析了公共投资与农业生产率之间的长期均衡关系,实证检验了公共投资对农业生产率的驱动效应。     

基于Copula-ECM-GARCH模型的农产品期货套期保值绩效研究

Copula函数具有可以准确刻画变量间的相依结构、精准描述金融时间序列"尖峰厚尾"分布特点的良好统计性质.针对传统计量模型在计算套期保值比率时存在的局限性,利用Copula函数描述变量的尾部相关性,并结合ECM-GARCH模型,对大豆、小麦、玉米三种国内农产品期货进行套期保值研究,分别计算最优的套期保值比率及其绩效,并与OLS、B-VAR、ECM和ECM-GARCH模型进行比较.结果表明,对于大豆来说,运用Copula-ECM-GARCH模型计算得到的套期保值比率进行对冲操作,可以最大化降低现货市场的价格风险,为投资者提供了一种可以更好规避价格风险的工具选择.     

涉农企业信用评价动态指标隶属度向量判别研究

对涉农企业信用评价中的动态指标的隶属度向量进行判别研究.首先借鉴X-12-A砒MA季节调整法的思想对信用数据进行剥离,构建一种过程连续性的动态信用指标;其次通过时间序列三指数平滑模型对动态信用数据的变化进行预测,得到动态信用指标隶属度向量;再次,结合熵权-AHP法确定的权重,确定动态信用指标的综合隶属度向量;最后实证检验了方法在企业信用评价中应用的有效性.     

Evaluation of heavy metal bioavailability in soil amended with poultry manure using single and BCR sequential extractions

In the present study, three-step Community Bureau of Reference sequential extraction scheme (BCR-SES) and single extraction methods were performed to assess the mobility and availability of heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Pb, Fe and Zn) in an agricultural soil before and after amendment with poultry waste (PW).The PW samples were collected from poultry farms, situated in Hyderabad Sindh, Pakistan. The extractable heavy metals were measured by flame and electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry. The validation of the method was carried out by analysis of a certified reference material of soil amended with sewage sludge (BCR-483). The single extractions using calcium chloride and EDTA, separately, while BCR-SESs were developed to evaluate the available heavy metals to plants and their environmental accessibility for control soil (CS), PW and soil amended with PW (SPW).The pH of the PW and SPW were found to be < 6.0, which may enhance the leaching of heavy metals to agricultural soil. The results from the partitioning study indicated that easily mobilised forms (acid exchangeable) of Cd were higher than other heavy metals. The oxidisable fractions of all heavy metals were dominant in PW and SPW as compared to found in CS samples. The EDTA- and CaCl₂-extractable heavy metals correspond to 5.0 to 10 and 0.5 to 3.0%, respectively of total contents in all three solid samples. Contamination factors revealed that the retention of Pb and Zn were higher compared with Cu, Cd and Fe in CS, PW and SPW samples.     

TOWARD CONTROLLING NONPOINT SOURCE POLLUTION OF GROUNDWATER: A HIERARCHICAL POLICY FORMULATION GAME

An integrative approach to formulating agricultural policy instrument levels is suggested for controlling groundwater quality deterioration from agricultural chemical-use, while reconciling the conflicting goals of primary interest groups in the farm policy process. The paper develops a Stackelberg game-theoretic model of public policy formation that simultaneously determines endogenous price supports and nitrogen-use quota, as well as the optimal permissible water contamination. The analysis distinguishes between the private and social opportunity costs of producing agricultural crops and using groundwater as a repository for nitrate leachate from agricultural sources. It is recognized that the social benefit of using nitrogen in agriculture is less than the private benefit to producers. Private and social benefits, as well as optimal production and pollution solutions, will vary as the relative weights which policymakers attach to different social constituents change. The method developed in this paper may be applicable to any policy process in which policymakers exercise indirect influence over industrial production decisions through economic instruments.