Modified thermoelectric figure of merit estimated from enhanced mobility of [100] oriented beta-FeSi<Subscript>2</Subscript> thin film

The modification of thermoelectric figure of merit was estimated from enhanced mobility of [100] oriented beta-FeSi₂ film. beta-FeSi₂ on Si(001) substrate was prepared by molecular beam epitaxy method using an Fe source. The crystallographic orientation of beta-FeSi₂ film on Si(001) substrate was characterized by using X-ray diffraction. Using scanning electron microscopy, surface morphology and film thickness of samples were observed and estimated, respectively. The mobility of beta-FeS₂ film on Si(001) substrate were also characterized by Hall measurement at room temperature. A part of the enhancement of figure of merit was evaluated as the functions of mobility and crystallographic orientation of samples.     

Relationships between Bacteroides 16S rRNA genetic markers and presence of bacterial enteric pathogens and conventional fecal indicators

Occurrence and prevalence of different bacterial enteric pathogens as well as their relationships with conventional (total and fecal coliforms) and alternative fecal indicators (host-specific Bacteroides 16S rRNA genetic markers) were investigated for various water samples taken from different sites with different degrees of fecal contamination. The results showed that a wide range of bacterial pathogens could be detected in both municipal wastewater treatment plant samples and in surface water samples. Logistic regression analysis revealed that total and human-specific Bacteroides 16S rRNA genetic markers showed significant predictive values for the presence of Escheriachia coli O-157, Salmonella, heat-labile enterotoxin (LT) of enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC), and heat-stable enterotoxin for human (STh) of ETEC. The probability of occurrence of these pathogenic bacteria became significantly high when the concentrations of human-specific and total Bacteroides 16S rRNA genetic markers exceeded 10(3) and 10(4) copies/100 mL. In contrast, Clostridium perfringens was detected at high frequency regardless of sampling sites and levels of Bacteroides 16S rRNA genetic markers. No genes related to Shigella spp., Staphylococcus aureus and Vibrio cholerae were detected in any samples analyzed in this study. Conventional indicator microorganisms had low levels of correlation with the presence of pathogens as compared with the alternative fecal indicators. These results suggested that real-time PCR-based measurement of alternative Bacteroides 16S rRNA genetic markers was a rapid and sensitive tool to identify host-specific fecal pollution and probably associated bacterial pathogens. However, since one fecal indicator might not represent the relative abundance of all pathogenic bacteria, viruses and protozoa, combined application of alternative indicators with conventional ones could provide more comprehensive pictures of fecal contamination, its source and association with pathogenic microorganisms.     

Quantification of anaerobic ammonium-oxidizing bacteria in enrichment cultures by real-time PCR

The anaerobic ammonium-oxidizing (ANAMMOX) bacteria were enriched from a rotating disk reactor (RDR) biofilm in semi-batch cultures. Based on fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis, this enrichment led to a relative population size of 36% ANAMMOX bacteria. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that all the detected clones were related to the previously reported ANAMMOX bacteria, Candidatus Brocadia anammoxidans (AF375994), with 92% sequence similarity. Furthermore, we successfully developed a real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay to quantify populations of ANAMMOX bacteria in the enrichment cultures. For this real-time PCR assay, PCR primer sets targeting 16S ribosomal RNA genes of ANAMMOX bacteria were designed and used. The quantification range of this assay was 6 orders of magnitude, from 8.9x10(1) to 8.9x10(6) copies per PCR, corresponding to the detection limit of 3.6x10(3) target copies mL(-1). A significant correlation was found between the increase in copy numbers of 16S rRNA gene of ANAMMOX bacteria and the increase in nitrogen removal rates in the enrichment cultures. Quantifying ANAMMOX bacterial populations in the enrichment culture made it possible to estimate the doubling time of the enriched ANAMMOX bacteria to be 3.6 to 5.4 days. The real-time PCR assay gave comparable population sizes in the enrichment cultures with the FISH results. These results suggest that the real-time PCR assay developed in this study is useful and reliable for quantifying the populations of ANAMMOX bacteria in environmental and engineering samples.     

Population structure of Cladophora-borne Escherichia coli in nearshore water of Lake Michigan

We previously reported that the macrophytic green alga Cladophora harbors high densities (up to 10(6) colony-forming units/g dry weight) of the fecal indicator bacteria, Escherichia coli and enterococci, in shoreline waters of Lake Michigan. However, the population structure and genetic relatedness of Cladophora-borne indicator bacteria remain poorly understood. In this study, 835 E. coli isolates were collected from Cladophora tufts (mats) growing on rocks from a breakwater located within the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore in northwest Indiana. The horizontal fluorophore enhanced rep-PCR (HFERP) DNA fingerprinting technique was used to determine the genetic relatedness of the isolates to each other and to those in a library of E. coli DNA fingerprints. While the E. coli isolates from Cladophora showed a high degree of genetic relatedness (92% similarity), in most cases, however, the isolates were genetically distinct. The Shannon diversity index for the population was very high (5.39). Both spatial and temporal influences contributed to the genetic diversity. There was a strong association of isolate genotypes by location (79% and 80% for lake- and ditch-side samplings, respectively), and isolates collected from 2002 were distinctly different from those obtained in 2003. Cladophora-borne E. coli isolates represented a unique group, which was distinct from other E. coli isolates in the DNA fingerprint library tested. Taken together, these results indicate that E. coli strains associated with Cladophora may be a recurring source of indicator bacteria to the nearshore beach.     

Effects of Water Content Distribution on Hydraulic Conductivity of Prehydrated GCLS against Calcium Chloride Solutions

When geosynthetic clay liners (GCLs) are applied as bottom liners at waste containment facilities, they are naturally prehydrated by absorbing moisture in the underlying base layers. In order to evaluate the effects of cations contained in waste leachates, this study investigated the effects of the water content distribution of the GCLs prehydrated with actual soils on their hydraulic conductivities against CaCl₂ solutions. The “prehydration tests”, which were conducted prior to the hydraulic conductivity tests, showed that the water content distribution of the prehydrated GCLs depends on the properties of the GCLs and the base layers. In particular, drastic differences between GCLs with powdered bentonite and GCLs with granular bentonite were observed in the prehydration water content and its distribution. Prehydrated GCLs with powdered bentonite had a higher water content and a more homogenous distribution than those with granular bentonite. The hydraulic conductivity tests showed that most of the prehydrated GCLs exhibit a low hydraulic conductivity of k?1.0×10^-8 cm/s against CaCl₂ solutions with 0.1-0.5 M. However, GCLs with granular bentonite may be difficult to homogeneously prehydrate and exhibit an unstable hydraulic conductivity, which varies from k=2.9×10^-9 cm/s to k=1.5×10^-6 cm/s. The homogeneity of the water content distribution has been considered an important factor to obtain a required barrier performance under prehydration conditions, which are naturally generated in actual sites.     

Study on sustainable redevelopment of a densely built-up area in Tokyo by introducing a distributed local energy supply system

“Distributed local energy systems” had been expected to rationalize the supply of energy to built-up areas, but until now very little research has been performed to estimate the effect of their application to actual cities. In this research, therefore, a future vision for the year 2030 in the Sancha Area (SANCHA VISION 2030), a typical densely built-up area in Tokyo, has been elaborated including a simulation to estimate benefits from the application of distributed energy systems in terms of reduced energy consumption and CO₂ emissions as well as mitigation of the heat-island phenomenon. As a result, it was demonstrated that a “distributed local energy system”, which provides a district with both electrical power and heat through an integrated distribution system, may contribute to a considerable improvement in energy efficiency for those areas. In addition, it may also provide other benefits, including enhancement of living amenity and urban security in times of emergency.     

Atomically flat diamond (111) surface formation by homoepitaxial lateral growth

A process of homoepitaxial growth of diamond (111) films by microwave plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition has been investigated characterizing areas by ex-situ atomic force microscopy. The evolution of surface morphology during a lateral growth of (111) diamond was visualized utilizing a mesa structure as a marker. Lateral growth forms atomically flat surfaces, which show atomically flat terraces over several hundred nm widths and single bilayer steps of (111) diamond.     

Temperature control for the expansion of artificial DNA motif

The DNA, which forms a double helical conformation by the highly selective base-pairing rule with the width of 2 nm, is one of the polymers utilized as a template for nanoparticle assembly. Then, holiday junction structure, where two different DNA double strands intersect and replace each complement strand, is an important artificial motif for forming two-dimensional mesh-like DNA morphology. In this study, the two-dimensional sheet with the mesh-like conformation is formed and the growth of the DNA morphology is controlled by changing the temperature in the formation process. The influence of the cooling procedure on the formation process of the two-dimensional DNA sheet is observed by atomic force microscope, and the formation of double strands in the process is traced by absorption spectra. The spectroscopic results demonstrate that the two-dimensional DNA sheet is strongly dependent on the correlation between the applied cooling process and the melting temperature of double helical conformation, and that the growth of the two-dimensional DNA sheet can be manipulated by the cooling procedure. Further, we will show the size control of the DNA sheet by mixing the designed DNA which inhibits the growth of the DNA sheet.