Assessing and forecasting atmospheric outflow of α-HCH from China on intra-, inter-, and decadal time scales

Atmospheric outflow of α-HCH from China from 1952 to 2009 was investigated using Chinese Gridded Pesticide Emission and Residue Model (ChnGPERM). The model results show that the outflows via the northeast boundary (NEB, longitude 115-135 °E along 55 °N and latitude 37-55 °N along 135 °E) and the mid-south boundary (MSB, longitude 100-120 °E along 17 °N) of China account for 47% and 35% of the total outflow, respectively. Two climate indices based on the statistical association between the time series of modeled α-HCH outflow and atmospheric sea-level pressure were developed to predict the outflow on different time scales. The first index explains 70/83% and 10/46% of the intra-annual variability of the outflow via the NEB and MSB during the periods of 1952-1984 and 1985-2009, respectively. The second index explains 16% and 19% of the interannual and longer time scale variability in the outflow through the NEB during June-August and via the MSB during October-December for 1991-2009, respectively. Results also revealed that climate warming may potentially result in stronger outflow via the NEB than the MSB. The linkage between the outflow with large scale atmospheric circulation patterns and climate warming trend over China was also discussed.     

Spatial–temporal changes in vegetation coverage in the global coastal zone based on GIMMS NDVI3g data

ABSTRACT

In this paper, we used the Global Inventory Modelling and Mapping Studies (GIMMS) third-generation Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) (GIMMS NDVI3g) dataset. Based on GIMMS NDVI3g data over the global coastal zone from 1982 to 2014, the spatial–temporal characteristics of vegetation coverage were analysed by plotting the spatial pattern and monthly calendar of NDVI; furthermore, historical trends and future evolutions of vegetation coverage change at the pixel scale were studied by performing the Mann-Kendall trend test and calculating the trend slope (β) and Hurst index (H) of NDVI. The main findings are as follows: 1) Vegetation density exhibits dramatic differences in the global coastal zone. Specifically, desert belts mostly have perennial non-vegetation or low vegetation coverage, and tundra belts principally have moderate or high vegetation coverage; additionally, forest belts mainly have dense vegetation coverage. 2) In the global coastal zone, intra-annual variations in vegetation coverage show a ‘∩’-shaped curve with an obvious peak from June to September (maximum in July or August), while inter-annual variations show a fluctuating but generally slowly increasing trend over the entire study period; accordingly, variations in different subregions show significant differences. 3) At monthly, seasonal and annual scales, the overall vegetation coverage increases in the global coastal zone, while there are relatively few areas with decreasing vegetation coverage; furthermore, change trends of vegetation coverage in most areas will demonstrate relatively strong positive persistence in the future. 4) The increasing trend in high-latitude coastal tundra is extremely significant in the growing season because vegetation in the tundra belts is highly sensitive to climate change. 5) Areas with a decreasing trend of vegetation coverage exhibit spatial patterns of aggregation in the ‘circum urban agglomeration’ and ‘nearby desert belt’ regions, that is, the decreasing trend of vegetation coverage is relatively high in coastal urban agglomeration areas and desert belt peripheries. This paper is expected to provide knowledge to support vegetation conservation, ecosystem management, integrated coastal zone management and climate change adaptation in coastal areas.     

SmartGantt – An interactive system for generating and updating rescheduling knowledge using relational abstractions

Generating and updating rescheduling knowledge that can be used in real time has become a key issue in reactive scheduling due to the dynamic and uncertain nature of industrial environments and the emergent trend towards cognitive systems in production planning and execution control. Disruptive events have a significant impact on the feasibility of plans and schedules. In this work, the automatic generation and update through learning of rescheduling knowledge using simulated transitions of abstract schedule states is proposed. An industrial example where a current schedule must be repaired in response to unplanned events such as the arrival of a rush order, raw material delay, or an equipment failure which gives rise to the need for rescheduling is discussed. A software prototype (SmartGantt) for interactive schedule repair in real-time is presented. Results demonstrate that responsiveness is dramatically improved by using relational reinforcement learning and relational abstractions to develop a repair policy.     

G.D.R. patent information system promotes the creation of modern high technologies as well as of complex innovation processes

The article explains the importance attached in the G.D.R. to patent information for formulating and solving R&D tasks. The G.D.R. Office for Inventions and Patents is responsible for the patent information system, which comprises information centres in industries, in various regions of the country and in the Office itself. Specialists engaged in R&D have easy access to patent literature, and the various services provided by the system are described in detail. Building up of the information service is assisted by close co-operation with the U.S.S.R. and other C.M.E.A. member-states. Further development of the system involves the creation of electronic databases containing the bibliographic data and abstracts of the patent documents of the G.D.R. and other major industrialized countries and extension of the network of polytechnic patent libraries with improvement of their services.     

Synthesis and Photocatalytic Performance of Bi<Subscript>12</Subscript>O<Subscript>17</Subscript>Cl<Subscript>2</Subscript> Semiconductors Calcined at Different Temperatures

In the current investigation a series of oxygen-rich bismuth oxychloride Bi₁₂O₁₇Cl₂ samples through an ethylene glycol-solvothermal route were constructed at different calcination temperatures and fully characterized by X-ray diffraction patterns, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectra, X-ray energy dispersion spectroscopy, and photoluminescence spectra. It was demonstrated that the calcination temperatures indeed had a crucial effect on the crystallinity, grain size, morphology, optical property, and charge carrier separation of Bi₁₂O₁₇Cl₂ series. These Bi₁₂O₁₇Cl₂ samples showed significantly improved photocatalytic degradation over dye Rhodamine B and colorless antibiotic tetracycline hydrochloride. Particularly, the best candidate, the sample 350 °C—Bi₁₂O₁₇Cl₂ could show apparent reaction rate constants that were nearly 28.2, 1.2 times of N–TiO₂ over Rhodamine B and tetracycline hydrochloride, respectively. The possible reason of enhancing photocatalytic performance by various Bi₁₂O₁₇Cl₂ samples calcined at different temperatures was discussed and major oxidative radicals maybe generated during photocatalytic processes were detected.     

Structural,electronic and photoluminescence properties of Eu3+-doped CaYAlO4 obtained by using citric acid complexes as precursors

The search for new materials that meet the current technological demands for photonic applications, make the Rare Earth ions embedded in inorganic oxides as excellent candidates for several technological devices. This work presents the synthesis of Eu³⁺-doped CaYAlO₄ using citric acid as ligand to form a complex precursor. The methodology used has big draw due to its easy handling and low cost of the materials. The thermal analysis of viscous solutions was evaluated and the obtained compounds show the formation of a polycrystalline tetragonal phase. Rietveld refinement was used to understand the structural and the cell parameters of the crystalline phase as a function of temperature of heat-treatment. Crystallite size and microstrain were determined and were shown to have a direct relationship with the temperature of the heat-treatment. The band-gap of the CaYAlO₄ doped with 1 and 10 mol% of Eu³⁺ showed values close to 4.30 eV, resulting in their transparency in the visible region between 330 and 750 nm. Besides the intense photoluminescence from Eu³⁺, a study was conducted to evaluate the possible position of the Eu³⁺ in the CaYAlO₄ as host lattice. Lifetime of the emission decay from Eu³⁺ excited state ⁵D₀ show that CaYAlO₄ is a good host to rare earth ions, once it can avoid clustering of these ions in concentration as high as 10 mol%. The predictions of the sublevels of the ⁷F₁ crystal field level are discussed through the method of equivalent nearest neighbours (MENN). The intensity parameters (Ω_λ, λ = 2 and 4) are reproduced with physically reasonable values of average polarizabilities. The set of charge factors used in both calculations are in good agreement with the charge of the europium ion described by the Batista-Longo improved model (BLIM). The quantum efficiencies of the materials were calculated based on Judd-Ofelt theory. Based on the results obtained in this work, the materials have potential use in photonic devices such as lasers and solid state imaging devices in the red region of electromagnetic spectrum.