Biopolymers - facts and statistics 2024

One of the main concerns of this publication is to furnish a more rational basis for discussing bioplastics and use fact-based arguments in the public discourse. Furthermore, “Biopolymers – facts and statistics” aims to provide specific, qualified answers easily and quickly for decision-makers in particular from public administration and the industrial sector. Therefore, this publication is made up like a set of rules and standards and largely foregoes textual detail. It offers extensive market-relevant and technical facts presented in graphs and charts, which means that the information is much easier to grasp. The reader can expect comparative market figures for various materials, regions, applications, process routes, agricultural land use, water use or resource consumption, production capacities, geographic distribution, etc

Towards a Double-Edged Sword: Modelling the Impact in Agile Software Development

Agile methods are state of the art in software development. Companies worldwide apply agile to counter the dynamics of the markets. We know, that various factors like culture influence the successful application of agile methods in practice and that sucess varies from company to company. To counter these problems, we combine two causal models presented in literature: The Agile Practices Impact Model and the Model of Cultural Impact. In this paper, we want to better understand the two facets of factors in agile: Those influencing their application and those impacting the results when applying them. This papers core contribution is the Agile Influence and Impact Model, describing the factors influencing agile elements and the impact on specific characteristics in a systematic manner

Retrospective Analysis of Penicillin G Minimum Inhibitory Concentration for Gram-Positive Isolates of Non-Severe Clinical Mastitis

Background: Despite penicillin having a longstanding reputation as being scientifically approved for the treatment of bovine mastitis, its market share and practical application rate seem rather low. While in some countries, cases of mild and moderate mastitis are treated almost completely with simple penicillin, in other countries, penicillin is rarely used as a mono-substance in udder tubes. Methods: Based on minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) studies of 1489 isolates of Gram-positive microorganisms isolated from bovine mastitis cases, the extent to which penicillin preparations can fulfil their role as first-line treatment and in how many cases insufficient efficacy must be assumed was assessed in comparison with more recent studies on the achievable levels of active substances in milk. Results: Of the isolates, 76% had an MIC of ≤0.125 µg/mL and 95% of the isolates had an MIC of ≤1 µg/mL. Conclusions: The data show that in Northern Germany, it can be assumed that penicillin is a good choice in most cases of mastitis caused by Gram-positive mastitis pathogens, at least from the perspective of antibiotic resistance

Milking System Changeover and Effects Thereof on the Occurrence of Intramammary Infections in Dairy Cows

Adopting a new milking system at a dairy farm causes various changes. This study examined the impact on udder health when changing from a conventional milking system to an automatic milking system. For this purpose, quarter milk samples were taken six times from 138 cows at one conventional dairy farm in Northern Germany over a five-week period around the time of the milking system changeover. To assess udder health, the absolute number of new intramammary infections and the causative pathogen genera and species were analysed for each individual study time point. Pathogen species were detected using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionisation time-of-flight, and the infection dynamics were analysed using two Poisson regression models. In addition, the prevalence and incidence of new intramammary infections and the infection dynamics of the four most frequently isolated pathogen species were calculated. Mixed models were used to determine the development of the new infection rate, the somatic cell count, the teat-end condition, and the udder hygiene between the individual study time points and to compare the new infection rate before and after the changeover of the milking system. After the automatic milking system had been installed, a significant increase in the quarter-level somatic cell count occurred (p < 0.001). Two days before the installation of the automatic milking system, the mean quarter-level somatic cell count was 11,940 cells/mL milk; one sampling date later, 8 days after the changeover, a mean quarter-level somatic cell count of 60,117 cells/mL milk was measured. The significant increase in somatic cell count was probably caused by the time between the last milking and the quarter milk sampling. Additionally, significantly more udders were scored as clean 8 days (95%) and 15 days (96%) after the changeover of the milking system compared to at the last sampling date (88%). Also, significantly more teat ends were classified as free of hyperkeratosis 15 days (80%) compared to 22 days (67%) after the changeover of the milking system. The highest number of absolute new intramammary infections was detected 8 days before the transition of the milking system (28.6%). The lowest number of absolute new intramammary infections occurred 8 days after the change to the automatic milking system (11.0%). Minor mastitis pathogens, such as non-aureus staphylococci and coryneform bacteria, were mainly responsible for the development of new intramammary infections. The most frequently isolated pathogen species were Staphylococcus sciuri, Staphylococcus chromogenes, Staphylococcus haemolyticus, and Corynebacterium amycolatum, with a prevalence of up to 23.9, 10.7, 8.4, and 5.3%, respectively. By comparing the new infection rate before and after the changeover of the milking system, it was possible to establish that the changeover to the automatic milking system had no significant influence on the new intramammary infection rate (p = 0.988). Therefore, this trial confirmed that the changeover from a conventional milking system to an automatic milking system had no negative influence on udder health

Fempreneurship – Ein Guide für Gründungsberater*innen

Der Sammelband gibt Gründungsberater*innen an (hochschulischen) Beratungseinrichtungen praxisnahe Tipps und Tricks zur Gestaltung ihrer Fempreneurship-Aktivitäten an die Hand. Anhand von 11 Erfolgsfaktoren in 7 Rubriken bekommen die Leser*innen im Sinne eines "Motivationsbüchleins" Einblicke in die vielfältige Fempreneurship-Praxis von Gründungseinrichtungen in ganz Deutschland

Warum sich unser Bildungssystem in Zeiten von ChatGPT neu erfinden muss

Sprachmodelle wie ChatGPT werden den Bildungssektor weit stärker verändern, als viele heute glauben, da sie auf den Kern der Bildungssysteme zielen: die Bildung

Proceedings of the 4th OPU-HsH Japanese-German Symposium 2025 : An experimental learning program that merges cutting-edge technology with traditional craftsmanship

Proceedings of the OPU-HsH symposium on Industry 4.0 and Society 5.0. The symposium was held on February 14th 2025 in Okayama, Japan with members of the Okayama Prefectual University and the Hochschule Hannover. It was sponsored by the Sakura Science Program of Japan

Comparison of Different Variants of Intermediate Cluster Disinfection

Intermediate cluster disinfection plays a vital role in preventing the transmission of mastitis pathogens during milking. This study evaluates the efficacy of different disinfection methods on teat liners through a randomized controlled field trial conducted on three dairy farms in Germany. The treatments assessed included dipping the liners in water, peracetic acid solution (PAS, 0.1%), and plasma-activated buffered solution (PABS). Total bacterial count (TBC) and the bacterial load of presumptive Staphylococcus (S.) aureus were measured using the wet–dry swab method. The results showed that PAS significantly reduced both TBC and S. aureus by 90% and 99%, respectively. PABS also demonstrated a significant reduction in the bacterial load of S. aureus. In contrast, dipping in water had no significant effect on either TBC or S. aureus bacterial counts. This study suggests that while PAS is the more effective disinfectant, PABS may offer an alternative with some antimicrobial activity. Further research on intermediate cluster disinfection in general is necessary to optimize its application and assess its long-term effectiveness in dairy farming practices

Influence of the Halogen Anion Combination on the Spin Crossover Properties of Iron(II) Triazole Complexes

In this paper we study a series of solid iron(II)‐triazole spin crossover complexes of the formula [Fe(NH2trz)3]Br2(x−1)Cl2x, where the counterions bromide and chloride are present in the same structure in different ratios. Thus, the spin transition temperature also changes in the temperature range between the pure complexes [Fe(NH2trz)3]Br2 and [Fe(NH2trz)3]Cl2. Since these switching temperatures of the pure complexes are rather far apart, this allows us to examine how the SCO behavior of iron(II) triazole complexes with mixed counterions changes with different ratios. To achieve this, the complexes were synthesized with both counterions simultaneously using the salts FeBr2 and FeCl2 ⋅ 4 H2O. The complexes were analyzed by IR and XRD measurements to confirm a successful synthesis. Energy dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy (EDX) was further used to validate the results and to verify a homogeneous distribution of the mixed anions in all samples. This study reveals a linear switching behavior of the complexes depending on the substitution ratio with a temperature range between the homo ionic samples

Cascade Induction Machines: brushless doubly fed Generator Systems – Analysis of Rotor Windings known from the Literature

Bürstenlose Generatorsysteme mit doppelt gespeisten Kaskadenmaschinen werden zurzeit für die regenerative Energieerzeugung z. B. mit Windkraftanlagen untersucht. Sie sind eine Alternative zu Generatorsystemen mit doppelt gespeisten Induktionsmaschinen. Kaskadenmaschinen arbeiten mit zwei Drehfeldern verschiedener Polpaarzahlen. Im Stator befinden sich zwei Wicklungen für die beiden Polpaarzahlen oder eine Wicklung zur gleichzeitigen Erzeugung der beiden Drehfelder über jeweils getrennte Anschlüsse. Der Rotor trägt eine in sich kurzgeschlossene Wicklung, die gleichzeitig mit beiden Drehfeldern verkettet ist und deren Strom beide Drehfelder gleichzeitig erzeugt. Für den Rotor ist eine Wicklung erforderlich, die die beiden Grunddrehfelder mit geringen Oberfeldern, kleinen Stromwärmeverlusten und mit einem bestimmten Induktionsverhältnis miteinander koppelt. In der Literatur finden sich verschiedene Wicklungen mit unterschiedlichem Aufbau. Der folgende Beitrag vergleicht die Eigenschaften der Wicklungen miteinander. Dabei werden als Vergleichsgrößen für die verschiedenen Polpaarzahlen die Oberfeldstreuung, der Wicklungsfaktor und das Induktionsverhältnis für die Grundfelder ermittelt.Brushless generator systems with doubly-fed cascade machines are currently being investigated for renewable energy generation, e.g. with wind turbines. They are an alternative to generator systems with doubly-fed induction machines. Cascade machines work with two rotating fields with different numbers of pole pairs. There are two windings in the stator for the two numbers of pole pairs or one winding for the simultaneous generation of the two rotating fields with separate connections for the two rotating fields. The rotor has a short-circuited winding that is linked to both rotating fields at the same time and whose current generates both rotating fields simultaneously. A winding is required for the rotor, which couples the two basic rotating fields with low fields, low current heat losses and with a specific induction ratio. Various windings with different structures can be found in the literature. The following article compares the properties of the windings with each other. For the different numbers of pole pairs, the upper field leakage, the winding factor and the induction ratio for the base fields are determined as comparative variables