New Methods for Testing/Determining the Environmental Exposure to Glyphosate in Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) Plants

Glyphosate is still the subject of much debate, as several studies report its effects on the environment. Sunflower (GK Milia CL) was set up as an experimental plant and treated with glyphosate concentrations of 500 ppm and 1000 ppm in two treatments. Glyphosate was found to be absorbed from the soil into the plant organism through the roots, which was also detectable in the leaf and root. Glyphosate was also significantly detected in the plant 5 weeks after treatment and in plants that did not receive glyphosate treatment directly, so it could be taken up through the soil. Based on the morphological results, treatment with higher concentrations (1000 ppm) of glyphosate increased the dried mass and resulted in shorter, thicker roots. Histological results also showed that basal and transporter tissue distortions were observed in the glyphosate-treated plants compared to the control group. Cells were distorted with increasing concentration, vacuoles formed, and the cell wall was weakened in both the leaf-treated and inter-row-treated groups. In the future, it will be worth exploring alternative agricultural technologies that can reduce the risk of glyphosate while increasing economic outcomes. This may make the use of glyphosate more environmentally conscious.

Effect of a regenerator on hybrid solar gas turbine performance in Barranquilla, Colombia

A thermodynamic analysis of a hybrid gas turbine solar plant, represented in three basic subsystems related to the power cycle, the combustion chamber subsystem, and the solar concentrator subsystem, allows evaluating the performance of a hybrid cycle from a reduced number of parameters, which include energy losses in each of its components. The solar radiation values are estimated with an evaluated and validated theoretical model, the combustion chamber uses natural gas as fuel and the numerical values of the system are taken from the Solugas experimental plant in Spain. This work presents an integrated model that allows to estimate the operation of a hybrid solar Brayton power plant in any place and day of the year. The evaluation of the plant in Barranquilla, Colombia is shown from the influence of the regenerator has on the plant performance and solar concentrating system. The results show that the regenerator can increase the overall efficiency of the plant by 29% and allows reaching a maximum temperature of the central receiver of the concentrator of 1044 K at noon, when solar radiation is maximum.

The vortex layer apparatus as a source of low-grade heat in the process of pretreatment of the substrate before anaerobic digestion

The limiting stage of anaerobic digestion (AD) of organic waste is the hydrolysis of particulate organic matter. One of the most promising and energy-efficient methods of waste pretreatment before AD is its processing in a vortex layer apparatus (VLA). The work was aimed at experimentally determining the energy characteristics of VLA. The description of the experimental plant and its energy balance were given. The ranges of electricity consumption and heat generation were shown. According to experimental data, the coefficient of conversion of electricity into heat was in the range of 0.367-0.515 at a cooling water temperature of 10.6-11.7 oC. Based on the experimental data obtained, it can be argued that VLA is a stable source of low-grade heat that can be utilized using heat pumps.

Use of factors of photoperiod duration and growth regulators to increase the yield of mixoploid plants in C0 generation in meadow clover (Trifolium pratense L.)

It has been established that the studied mode of cultivation of meadow clover under controlled environmental conditions, with continuous illumination with an intensity of 18-20 thousand lux and a constant temperature of + 25 °C, causes significant morphological changes in meadow clover. Compared with the optimal (control), the proposed growing regime halves the development time of plants and by the same amount reduces the severity of morphological traits, while simultaneously causing apical dominance in 54% of plants. Spraying plants with phytohormone in the form of naphthylacetic acid in all studied concentrations reduced the growing season by 4-8 days and increased pollen fertility by 8-10%. The optimal concentration of naphthylacetic acid (NLA) was revealed to suppress the growth of secondary meristems in meadow clover under the conditions of an experimental plant growing regime. The most significant effect on the manifestation of apical dominance was shown by the use of naphthylacetic acid at a concentration of 0.001%. The combined use of the proposed growing regime and treatment with naphthylacetic acid at a concentration of 0.001% increased the yield of plants with apical dominance from 54.5% to 76%. The developed method has shown high efficiency for the creation of tetraploid forms of meadow clover. When growing clover C0 generation and selection of mixoploid plants, the yield of mixoploids increased 5.4 times, the survival rate of seedlings increased by 21%, the time to obtain one generation and the selection of mixoploids decreased by 58%.

The optimization of table beet cultivation by using a boron-containing chelate

In the field experiment, the possibility of optimizing the cultivation of table beet Beta vulgaris L. using a borate complex based on ethylenediamine disuccinic acid (B-EDDS) was investigated. Before sowing, beet seeds were soaked for a day in a solution of this compound, as well as in solutions of boric acid and a borate complex based on ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (B-EDTA), taken for comparison, with a concentration of solutes of 1.5·10-3 mol/L. During the growing season, the plants were sprayed twice with experimental solutions at a rate of 100 ml/m2. In the first decade of August, the content of photosynthetic pigments in plant leaves and microbial carbon in the soil was determined, after harvesting, sugars and betanin in root crops were determined by spectrophotometric methods. The boron content in beet root crops was analyzed by the fluorometric method. According to the results of the two-year experiment, all three boron-containing compounds, to varying degrees, had a positive effect on the experimental plant. In decreasing efficiency, they can be arranged in a row: B-EDDS > H3BO3> B-EDTA. Treatment with the solution of borate-ethylenediamine disuccinate complex increased the boron content in root crops by 65% in comparison with treatment with boric acid. In comparison with the control variant, the sugar content in root crops increased by 37%, the content of betanin increased by 25% and the yield of root crops increased by 39%. At the same time, the mass of microbial carbon in the soil increased by 20%, which serves as one of the arguments confirming the ecological safety of the compound under study. Judging by the results of the experiment, borate-ethylenediamine disuccinate has good prospects for use as boron micronutrient fertilizer.

Study of selected properties of red maple wood (Acer rubrum) from the experimental plot of the forest arboretum in Rogów

Study of selected properties of red maple wood (Acer rubrum) form the experimental plot of the forest arboretum in Rogów. As part of the work, investigation on the dendrometric, physical and mechanical properties of red maple trees and its wood from the Forest Experimental Plant in Rogów has been carried out. The obtained results of the research on the species experimentally introduced in Rogów were compared with the features of the Acer rubrum from the area of natural occurrence in North America. The results of the investigation showed that the trees from the Arboretum area have a lower height, a much smaller trunk diameter and their physical and mechanical properties are weaker than the maple wood grown in native conditions. Despite the above statements, the significant influence of the location of the wood in the trunk (distance to the core) on its density, acoustic properties and static modulus of elasticity, bending and compression strength along the fibers are noted.

The Digital Twin Realization of an Ejector for Multiphase Flows

Despite the extensive use of ejectors in the process industry, it is complex to predict suction and motive fluids mixture characteristics, especially with multiphase flows, even if, in most cases, mixture pressure control is necessary to satisfy process requirements or to avoid performance problems. The realization of an ejector model can allow the operators to overcome these difficulties to have real-time control of the system performance. In this context, this work proposes a framework for developing a Digital Twin of an ejector installed in an experimental plant able to predict the future state of an item and the impact of negative scenarios and faults diagnosis. ANNs have been identified as the most used tool for simulating the multiphase flow ejector. Nevertheless, the complexity in defining their structure and the computational effort to train and use them are not suitable for realizing standalone applications onboard the ejector. The proposed paper shows how Swarm Intelligence algorithms require a low computational complexity and overperform prediction error and computational effort. Specifically, the Grey Wolf optimizer proves to be the best one among those analyzed.

Experimental Characterization of an Alkaline Electrolyser and a Compression System for Hydrogen Production and Storage

Storing renewable energy in chemicals, like hydrogen, can bring various benefits like high energy density, seasonal storability, possible cost reduction of the final product, and the potential to let renewable power penetrate other markets and to overcome their intermittent availability. In the last year’s production of this gas from renewable energy sources via electrolysis has grown its reputation as one feasible solution to satisfy future zero-emission energy demand. To extend the exploitation of Renewable Energy Source (RES), small-scale conversion plants seem to be an interesting option. In view of a possible widespread adoption of these types of plants, the authors intend to present the experimental characterization of a small-scale hydrogen production and storage plant. The considered experimental plant is based on an alkaline electrolyser and an air-driven hydrogen compression and storage system. The results show that the hydrogen production-specific consumption is, on average, 77 kWh/kgH2. The hydrogen compressor energy requirement is, on average, 15 kWh/kgH2 (data referred to the driving compressed air). The value is higher than data found in literature (4.4–9.3 kWh/kgH2), but the difference can be attributed to the small size of the considered compressor and the choice to limit the compression stages.

In Vivo Neuropharmacological Potential of Gomphandra tetrandra (Wall.) Sleumer and In-Silico Study against β-Amyloid Precursor Protein

Medicinal plants possess a surplus of novel and biologically active secondary metabolites that are responsible for counteracting diseases. Traditionally, Gomphandra tetrandra (Wall.) Sleumer is used to treat mental disorders. The present research was designed to explore phytochemicals from the ethanol leaf extract of Gomphandra tetrandra (Wall.) Sleumer to identify the potential pharmacophore(s) in the treatment of neurological disorders. The chemical compounds of the experimental plant were identified through GC-MS analysis. In-vitro antioxidant activity was assessed using different methods. Furthermore, in-vivo neurological activity was assessed in Swiss-albino mice. Computer-aided analysis was appraised to determine the best-fit phytoconstituent of a total of fifteen identified compounds in the experimental plant extract against beta-amyloid precursor protein. The experimental extract revealed fifteen compounds in GC-MS analysis and the highest content was 9, 12, 15-octadecatrienoic acid (z,z,z). The extract showed potent antioxidant activity in in-vitro assays. Furthermore, in in-vivo neurological assays, the extract disclosed significant (p < 0.05) neurological activity. The most favorable phytochemicals as neurological agents were selected via ADMET profiling, and molecular docking was studied with beta-amyloid precursor protein. In the computer-aided study, 1, 5-diphenyl-2h-1, 2, 4-triazoline-3-thione (Pub Chem CID: 2802516) was more active than other identified compounds with strong binding affinity to beta-amyloid precursor protein. The present in vivo and in silico studies revealed neuropharmacological features of G. tetrandra leaf extract as a natural agent against neurological disorders, especially Alzheimer’s disease.

Removal and Survival of Fecal Indicators in a Constructed Wetland after UASB Pre-Treatment

The experimentation plant, based on a sub-surface horizontal flow phytodepuration (SSHFP) unit with a pre-treatment by an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor, proved valuable in treating the sewage of a small rural community located in north Brazil. During a six-month trial, the plant achieved an average removal efficiency of 98.2% (1.74 log removal) for fecal coliforms (FC) and 96.0% (1.40 log removal) for Enterococci (EN), as well as 95.6% for BOD5, 91.0% for COD,00 and 95.4% for suspended solids (SS). The contribution of the UASB reactor to this overall performance was very significant as, alone, it achieved a yield of 62.7% for FC and 60% for EN, in addition to 65.2% for BOD5 and 65.0% for SS. EN was chosen, in addition to FC, because of its higher specificity and strong environmental persistence, leading to an increased risk to human health. In fact, the experimental results confirmed its lower removal efficiency compared to FC. The mechanical and biological mechanisms that led to such a removal efficiency of the two fecal indicators (FIs) are outlined in the article. The same mechanisms led to a good level of equivalence between the removal efficiency of the two FIs with the removal efficiency of SS and BOD5, for both the whole plant and the UASB reactor alone. The research demonstrated the close correlation between the concentrations of EN and FC for the plant effluent. This correlation can be explained by the following mathematical expression of the regression line Log EN = 0.2571 Log FC + 3.5301, with a coefficient of determination R2 = 0.912. This implies that the concentration of the more specific indicator EN could be calculated, with acceptable approximation, from the simple analysis of FC and vice versa. The experimental plant brought important health benefits to the local population. In particular, there were no significant odor emissions; moreover, the risk of fecal pathogenic diseases was drastically reduced; finally, there was no proliferation of insects and other disease vectors, due to the absence of stagnant or semi-stagnant water exposed to the atmosphere.