Exploration of the land potential for the production of biomass for energy in the Netherlands

The energy potential for energy crops and biomass residues in the Netherlands is assessed. The analysis explores the possible use of land for biomass production in the future. Various government memorandums and analyses of the expected future land use in various sectors have served as the basis for the assessment of the supply of and the demand for land in the future. In this study the potential supply of agricultural land is based on expected productivity increments in agriculture and assumptions with respect to the future demand for agricultural products. Various future claims for infrastructure, forestry, urban areas and nature are subtracted from the expected supply. The net projected supply of land ranges from zero to 52 000 ha in 2000 to 110 000-250 000 ha in 2015. The supply of agricultural land depends however on a number of supra-national factors, such as the European agricultural policy, world market developments and the agricultural production in the countries in Eastern Europe. Uncertainties remain, therefore, and the projected supply of agricultural land should be considered as a possible scenario based on current trends. If the calculated land potential is used for energy crops like miscanthus and short rotation coppice, this land could contribute 0-10 PJ in 2000 and 27-59 PJ in 2015. Secondary biomass yields, such as those from forestry, agricultural residues, wood from prunings, etc., could contribute a further 34 PJ in 2000, decreasing to approximately 28 PJ in 2015. Taken together these potentials could satisfy 1-1.5% of the energy requirements of the Netherlands in 2000 and 1.5-2.5% in 2015, provided that energy farming is an economically feasible activity for farmers.     

Close-range blast loading on empty recyclable metal beverage cans for use in sacrificial cladding structure

This article deals with the experimental and numerical blast study on a single empty recyclable metal beverage can. The idea is to make a macro-foam (sacrificial cladding structure) out of these cans to protect the main load bearing members of civil engineering structures from the air blast load. Close-range free air blast tests have been conducted to understand the crushing behaviour and the energy absorption of a single empty beverage can in detail. To conduct such an air blast test a special small-scale test set-up was designed and manufactured. The effect of skin plate surface area and its nature on the blast parameters is studied. Furthermore, the effect of inertia of the skin plate on the crushing performance of the beverage can is evaluated. Tests have been conducted with different plates (made of aluminium and sandwich composite materials) with different masses which represent the skin plate of the proposed sacrificial structure. The measured blast parameters from the experimental tests were compared with ConWep predicted data. Furthermore, the influence of the finite surface area of the skin plate on the clearing of the reflected pressure waves was also studied. The deformation behaviour and the corresponding energy absorption of empty beverage cans were captured. During the experimental blast tests it was observed that a part of the total reflected impulse (∼30%) was lost before it transfers to the non-sacrificial structure. Hence, in order to investigate this phenomenon Eulerian-Lagrangian coupled analyses were conducted using Hydrocodes. The results from these analyses showed that the diffraction and ground reflected pressure wave caused the loss in impulse. The results from the numerical studies have been compared and validated with the experimental results.     

Multi-laboratory evaluations of the performance of Catellicoccus marimammalium PCR assays developed to target gull fecal sources

Here we report results from a multi-laboratory (n = 11) evaluation of four different PCR methods targeting the 16S rRNA gene of Catellicoccus marimammalium originally developed to detect gull fecal contamination in coastal environments. The methods included a conventional end-point PCR method, a SYBR^® Green qPCR method, and two TaqMan^® qPCR methods. Different techniques for data normalization and analysis were tested. Data analysis methods had a pronounced impact on assay sensitivity and specificity calculations. Across-laboratory standardization of metrics including the lower limit of quantification (LLOQ), target detected but not quantifiable (DNQ), and target not detected (ND) significantly improved results compared to results submitted by individual laboratories prior to definition standardization. The unit of measure used for data normalization also had a pronounced effect on measured assay performance. Data normalization to DNA mass improved quantitative method performance as compared to enterococcus normalization. The MST methods tested here were originally designed for gulls but were found in this study to also detect feces from other birds, particularly feces composited from pigeons. Sequencing efforts showed that some pigeon feces from California contained sequences similar to C. marimammalium found in gull feces. These data suggest that the prevalence, geographic scope, and ecology of C. marimammalium in host birds other than gulls require further investigation. This study represents an important first step in the multi-laboratory assessment of these methods and highlights the need to broaden and standardize additional evaluations, including environmentally relevant target concentrations in ambient waters from diverse geographic regions.     

Emergent epileptiform activity in neural networks with weak excitatory synapses.

Brain electrical activity recorded during an epileptic seizure is frequently associated with rhythmic discharges in cortical networks. Current opinion in clinical neurophysiology is that strongly coupled networks and cellular bursting are prerequisites for the generation of epileptiform activity. Contrary to expectations, we found that weakly coupled cortical networks can create synchronized cellular activity and seizure-like bursting. Evaluation of a range of synaptic parameters in a detailed computational model revealed that seizure-like activity occurs when the excitatory synapses are weakened. Guided by this observation, we confirmed experimentally that, in mouse neocortical slices, a pharmacological reduction of excitatory synaptic transmission elicited sudden onset of repetitive network bursting. Our finding provides powerful evidence that onset of seizures can be associated with a reduction in synaptic transmission. These results open a new avenue to explore network synchrony and may ultimately lead to a rational approach to treatment of network pathology in epilepsy.     

Effects of Groyne Layout on the Flow in Groyne Fields: Laboratory Experiments

This research is aimed at finding efficient alternative designs, in the physical, economical, and ecological sense, for the standard groynes as they are found in the large rivers of Europe. In order to test the effects of various groyne shapes on the flow in a groyne field, experiments were performed in a physical model of a schematized river reach, geometrically scaled 1:40. Four different types of schematized groynes were tested, all arranged in an array of five identical groyne fields, i.e., standard reference groynes, groynes with a head having a gentle slope and extending into the main channel, permeable groynes consisting of pile rows, and hybrid groynes consisting of a lowered impermeable groyne with a pile row on top. Flow velocities were measured using particle tracking velocimetry. The design of the experiment was such that the cross-sectional area blocked by the groyne was the same in all cases. Depending on the groyne head shape and the extent of submergence variations in the intensity of vortex shedding and recirculation in the groyne field were observed. The experimental data are used to understand the physical processes like vortex formation and detachment near the groyne head. It is demonstrated that the turbulence properties near and downstream of the groyne can be manipulated by changing the permeability and slope of the groyne head. It is also observed that for submerged conditions the flow becomes complex and locally dominated by three-dimensional effects, which will make it difficult to predict by applying depth average numerical models or by three-dimensional models with a coarse resolution in the vertical direction.     

Splitting forward simulations to copewith liveness

In the literature, the conditions on history variables or forward simulations that are related to liveness are expressed in terms of behaviours, and are stronger than convenient and necessary. In this paper, we propose alternative conditions on the simulation relation, which are expressed in terms of the next state relation, and are closely tied to the weak or strong fairness conditions of the specifications. The proof of soundness of this proposal is based on a new theorem that asserts the existence of a strongly fair scheduler for infinitely many alternatives. The theory is extended to simulations in which the concrete specification (occasionally) does fewer steps than the abstract specification it implements.     

Computer-aided band gap engineering and experimental verification of amorphous silicon–germanium solar cells

A new band gap profile (exponential profile) for the active layer of the a-SiGe:H single junction cell has been designed and experimentally demonstrated. By computer simulations we show how bending the grading of the band gap in the i-layer contributes to the enhancement of the carrier collection, improving the fill factor and efficiency. The differences observed between experiments and simulations are studied using Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry (RBS). The results highlight weak points during the deposition process, whose control enables us to bring together experimental and computational results.     

Isolation and characterization of peroxisomal protein import (Pim−) mutants of Hansenula polymorpha

In the course of our studies on the molecular mechanisms involved in peroxisome biogenesis, we have isolated several mutants of the methylotrophic yeast Hansenula polymorpha impaired in the import of peroximal matrix proteins. These mutants are characterized by the presence of small intact peroxisomes, while the bulk of the peroxisomal matrix protein is not imported and resides in the cytosol (Pim^? phenotype). Genetic analysis of back-crossed mutants revealed five different complementation groups, which were designated PERI–PER5. Mapping studies to determine the linkage relationships indicated that the observed Pim^? phenotypes were determined by single recessive nuclear mutations. The different mutants had comparable phenotypes: (i) they were impaired to utilize methanol as the sole source of carbon and energy but grew well on various other compounds, including nitrogen sources, the metabolism of which is known to be mediated by peroxisome-borne enzymes in wild-type cells; (ii) all peroxisomal enzymes tested were induced, assembled and activated as in wild-type cells although their activities varied between the different representative mutants; (iii) all peroxisomal proteins, whether constitutive or inducible, were found both in the cytosol and in the small peroxisomes. These results suggest that a general, major import mechanism is affected in all mutants.