Compost barn system and its influence on the environment, comfort and welfare of dairy cattle

Received: January 16th, 2023 ; Accepted: April 27th, 2023 ; Published: May 15th, 2023 ; Correspondence: [email protected] aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the thermal environment on behavioral and physiological parameters of crossbred cows of different productivity levels confined in a compost barn system. For this, air temperature (Tdb) and relative humidity (RH) data were measured using sensors/registers and wind speed (Vair) was recorded with the aid of an anemometer. Subsequently, these data were used to calculate the Temperature and Humidity Index (THI). Bedding material variables (pH and humidity) were also evaluated. The animals were evaluated for physiological variables (respiratory rate – RR and surface temperature – ST), scores (body condition, locomotion and dirt) and behavior. The analyses were carried out on two groups of cows (Group 1: high production vs. Group 2: medium and low production). The average pH of the bedding material was 8.5, within the recommended range. In the case of the physiological responses of the cows, the respiratory rate (RR) of Group 1 indicated better conditions of thermal comfort in the morning vs. the afternoon. The system was efficient in both groups based on body condition score, indicating favorable conditions for the health of the animals. Regarding the behavioral evaluation, Group 1 and 2 were statistically similar and had the longest rumination times, in relation to the other evaluated behaviors. Regarding active periods, medium production were the most active. Regarding idle time, low production spent more time idle than the other animals

Technical and economic pre-feasibility study for the construction of septic tank-filter-sinkhole with alternative material

Received: February 2nd, 2021 ; Accepted: August 3rd, 2021 ; Published: August 24th, 2021 ; Correspondence: [email protected] study of the different materials used in the construction of septic tanks aims to facilitate and spread the use of this sewage treatment system in places that are not assisted by municipal sewage systems and in the rural area, which despite having a smaller number of inhabitants compared to the urban area This study aims to carry out a technical and economic evaluation of the concrete and tires using in the construction of septic tanks-filter-sinkhole. The wastewater treatment systems were built according to the recommendations in NBR 7229/93 and 13969/97. To evaluate the efficiency of each system built, the following parameters were analyzed: chemical oxygen demand (COD), the potential of hydrogen (pH), alkalinity, acidity, and temperature. In the economic evaluation, the materials and labor required to install the systems were considered using the Brazilian cost database (SINAPI), and an economic and financial feasibility study was carried out. According to the technical and economic analysis of construction, both systems showed the same technical performance, however, the concrete design proved to be more advantageous than the tire design, considering the difficulty in acquiring the tires and the high cost if it is necessary to buy them, in addition to the greater difficulty in handling and installing the tire system compared to the concrete one

Bibliometric analysis on the use of natural fibers in construction materials

Received: February 2nd, 2021 ; Accepted: August 3rd, 2021 ; Published: August 30th, 2021 ; Correspondence: [email protected] to the increasing interest of the population in the sustainability theme, there was a consequent growth in publications related to the theme in the area of civil construction. Agroindustrial waste has become an environmental problem, and with that natural fibers have found space in the reuse of waste due to its characteristics and possibilities of improving the mechanical properties of its products. In order to achieve sustainable construction demand, along with the need to reuse waste, studies have begun to analyze the application of natural fibers in construction materials. The documents provided by the Web of Science (WOS) database through research carried out with the search for the terms ‘Natural Fibers’ and ‘Building materials’ restricted to the period 2010–2020 in the main WOS collection. The institutions involved with the publications, the countries of origin of the documents, the year of publication, the keywords used by the authors and the number of citations for each document were analyzed using bibliometrics in the VOSVIEWER (VOS) software. The result of the analysis shows an increase in documents related to the theme over the years, and that the countries with the most studies in the area are China (16), USA (14) and Brazil (11), respectively. The results presented after analysis of the keywords show that natural fiber (61 occurrences), mechanical properties (44 occurrences) and composites (31 occurrences) are the words with the highest occurrence among the analyzed documents. The present study shows the growth of research related to the theme, in addition to discriminating countries, institutions and authors, which allows monitoring the scientific expansion of the theme and guiding future studies

Thermal comfort of pigs housed in different installations

ArticleIn an intensive production system, the environment directly influences the comfort and welfare of pigs. Animals under heat stress may exhibit behavioural changes and changes in physiological parameters, such as increased body temperature, respiratory and cardiac movements. The aim of this study was to evaluate the thermal comfort of growing and finishing pigs housed in facilities with different construction typologies. The evaluated pens were: pen with water depth (WDP) and pen with partially slatted floor (SLF). Data on the ambient thermal environment in the pens and in the outside were collected automatically using Hobo dataloggers, model U12-013. This equipment recorded the air temperature, relative humidity of the air and black globe temperature in intervals of five minutes. Subsequently the variables were used in the calculation of the temperature index of the globe and humidity. The physiological responses of the animals were collected: Surface Temperature (ST) and Respiratory Rate (RF). When analyzing the parameters: ST and RF, it was observed that the WDP pen presented a significant difference in all the observed hours, with an increase observed throughout the day, and the SLF pen presented a difference at 9:00 a.m. presenting a lower value than the other schedules evaluated. The BGHI inside the pens showed average values in the hottest period of the day slightly above what is recommended for adult pigs. Both facilities during the hottest time of the day demonstrated a similar trend in relation to the evaluated variables, so it was concluded that both pens provided the same conditions of thermal comfort for the animals

Ecological footprint of beef consumption in the state of Rio de Janeiro - Brazil

Received: December 18th, 2020 ; Accepted: April 2nd, 2021 ; Published: April 12th, 2021 ; Correspondence: [email protected] beef production chain can cause considerable impacts on the environment depending on how it is carried out. The need to discuss the impact of the consumption of this food in a country whose production base is mainly agricultural and livestock is relevant in view of the environmental degradation and scarcity of resources. In this work, the ecological footprint of beef consumption was evaluated using the state of Rio de Janeiro as a case study. Data were collected such as population, productive capacity, annual consumption, cattle weight, grazing equivalence factor. Calculations of livestock density, consumption per capita, productivity, number of oxen, area per capita, and total area required were also carried out. The value found for Total Ecological Footprint was 1,117,995.22 gha and for Ecological Footprint per capita was 0.065 gha. It was found that the ecological footprint per capita is higher than the area destined for each inhabitant of the State which is 0.019 ha. It can be inferred that the consumption of beef as it is currently carried out harms the ecosystem in which production is inserted