Obtaining Environmentally Friendly Energy from the Biomass of Extremophilic Organisms

Экологическая обстановка вынуждает искать альтернативу традиционным видам топлива. Интерес исследователей в последнее время направлен на микробные топливные элементы (МТЭ) и получение экологически чистой энергии с помощью микроорганизмов без загрязнения окружающей среды. Мало изученным, но перспективным направлением стало использование экстремофильных микроорганизмов, способных существовать в экстремальных условиях. Примером таких бактерий являются железобактерии, обитающие в почвах угольных отвалов. Субстратом для МТЭ могут служить компоненты сточных вод. Цель исследования – получение биоэнергии с помощью железобактерий. В результате выделено 5 изолированных культур железобактерий путем культивирования суспензии почвы угольного отвала «Моховский». Проведен ряд исследований по подбору оптимальных условий эксплуатации МТЭ. Установлено, что культуры № 1 и № 2 экстремофильные, так как генерировали максимальное напряжение (350,9 мВ и 346,8 мВ) в среде с pH=3. Подтверждено, что отобранные таким образом культуры биосовместимы. Составлен консорциум данных культур в соотношении 1:1, который использовали в дальнейших экспериментах. По итогам исследования установлено, что наиболее оптимальная температура для эксплуатации МТЭ – 37 °С, консорциум бактерий при этом генерировал напряжение 256,1 мВ. Наиболее оптимальным временем эксплуатации МТЭ определено 48 ч, по прошествии которого бактерии генерировали напряжение 212,3 мВ. Наиболее оптимальным субстратом для загрузки в МТЭ оказалась среда, содержащая в своем составе глюкозу и раствор микроэлементов. На этой подложке бактерии генерировали напряжение 403,4 мВ. По прошествии оптимального времени эксперимента зафиксировано осветление субстрата № 1 и выпадение осадка на дно камеры, что свидетельствует о том, что МТЭ может также использоваться для очистки сточных водThe environmental situation forces us to look for an alternative to traditional fuels. The interest of researchers has recently been directed to microbial fuel cells (MFC) and the production of environmentally friendly energy with the help of microorganisms without environmental pollution. A little studied, but promising direction is the use of extremophilic microorganisms capable of existing in extreme conditions. An example of such bacteria are iron bacteria that live in the soils of coal dumps. Wastewater components can serve as a substrate for MFC. The aim of the study is to obtain bioenergy with the help of iron bacteria. As a result, 5 isolated cultures of iron bacteria were isolated by cultivating a suspension of the soil of the Mokhovsky coal dump. A number of studies have been conducted on the selection of optimal operating conditions for MFC. It was found that cultures № 1 and № 2 are extremophilic, since they generated the maximum voltage (350,9 mV and 346,8 mV) in a medium with pH=3. It is confirmed that the cultures selected in this way are biocompatible. A consortium of these cultures was compiled in a ratio of 1:1, which was used in further experiments. As a result of the study, it was found that the most optimal temperature for the operation of the MFC is 37 oC, while the consortium of bacteria generated a voltage of 256,1 mV. The most optimal operating time of the MTE was 48 hours, after which the bacteria generated a voltage of 212,3 mV. The most optimal substrate for loading into the MFC was a medium containing glucose and a solution of trace elements. On this substrate, the bacteria generated a voltage of 403,4 mV. After the optimal time of the experiment, the clarification of substrate No. 1 and precipitation to the bottom of the chamber were recorded, which indicates that MFC can also be used for wastewater treatmen

Phenological shifts of abiotic events, producers and consumers across a continent

Ongoing climate change can shift organism phenology in ways that vary depending on species, habitats and climate factors studied. To probe for large-scale patterns in associated phenological change, we use 70,709 observations from six decades of systematic monitoring across the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Among 110 phenological events related to plants, birds, insects, amphibians and fungi, we find a mosaic of change, defying simple predictions of earlier springs, later autumns and stronger changes at higher latitudes and elevations. Site mean temperature emerged as a strong predictor of local phenology, but the magnitude and direction of change varied with trophic level and the relative timing of an event. Beyond temperature-associated variation, we uncover high variation among both sites and years, with some sites being characterized by disproportionately long seasons and others by short ones. Our findings emphasize concerns regarding ecosystem integrity and highlight the difficulty of predicting climate change outcomes. The authors use systematic monitoring across the former USSR to investigate phenological changes across taxa. The long-term mean temperature of a site emerged as a strong predictor of phenological change, with further imprints of trophic level, event timing, site, year and biotic interactions.Peer reviewe

Chronicles of nature calendar, a long-term and large-scale multitaxon database on phenology

We present an extensive, large-scale, long-term and multitaxon database on phenological and climatic variation, involving 506,186 observation dates acquired in 471 localities in Russian Federation, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Belarus and Kyrgyzstan. The data cover the period 1890-2018, with 96% of the data being from 1960 onwards. The database is rich in plants, birds and climatic events, but also includes insects, amphibians, reptiles and fungi. The database includes multiple events per species, such as the onset days of leaf unfolding and leaf fall for plants, and the days for first spring and last autumn occurrences for birds. The data were acquired using standardized methods by permanent staff of national parks and nature reserves (87% of the data) and members of a phenological observation network (13% of the data). The database is valuable for exploring how species respond in their phenology to climate change. Large-scale analyses of spatial variation in phenological response can help to better predict the consequences of species and community responses to climate change.Peer reviewe

Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

Étude d’états électroniques couples par interaction spin-orbite des molécules Rb2, NaCs, et NaK : spectroscopie laser et analyse déperturbative précise par calcul de voies couplées

This thesis investigates regions of marked irregularity in the electronic spectra of alkali dimers. These perturbations, which make it difficult (if not impossible) to give the usual unambiguous assignment of molecular quantum numbers, are caused by strong spin-orbit coupling between close-lying electronic states. Numerical methods allow us to solve the radial Schrödinger equation for such systems. We have developed strategies to use analytical forms for molecular energy potentials and spin-orbit coupling functions in order to represent such situations, using Hund’s case (a) basis sets. Calculations are then performed using finite difference and collocation methods, with appropriate coupled-channel molecular Hamiltonians that take into account spin-orbit and spin-rotation interactions. Our analytical mapping procedure, based on a reduced variable representation of the radial coordinate, improves the computational efficiency for uniform finite-difference grid solutions of the coupled channel equations. The method has been successfully tested on published data for NaK (D 1Πd 3Πstates), and also on experimental data obtained by laser induced fluorescence and Fourier transform spectrometry for pairs of strongly coupled excited electronic states of heavier alkali species, Rb2 and NaCs (A 1Σ+(u) and b 3Π(u) states). Optimising the parameters of molecular potentials and spin-orbit functions through iterative non-linear least squares fits, the models achieve the current (Doppler limited) experimental level of precision. The validity of the results is confirmed by investigating the effects of isotopic substitution and intensity patterns. Results have been used to predict transition probabilities for a two-step optical cooling cycle for the NaCs molecule.Cette thèse étudie les régions d'irrégularité marquée dans les spectres électroniques des dimères alcalins. Ces perturbations, qui rendent difficile voire impossible l’attribution habituelle et sans ambiguïté des nombres quantiques moléculaires, sont produites par de forts couplages spin-orbite. Des méthodes numériques nous permettent de résoudre l'équation de Schrödinger radiale pour de tels systèmes. Nous avons élaboré des stratégies permettant d’utiliser des formes analytiques pour les courbes d’énergie potentielle moléculaire et pour les fonctions de couplage spin-orbite. Nous prenons en compte les perturbations d’origine spin-orbite, et les effets de couplage spin-rotation dans des calculs d’états couplés, en utilisant des techniques numériques de différences finies et les méthodes de collocation, avec hamiltoniens moléculaires appropriés. La méthode a été testée avec succès sur des données publiées sur NaK, et également sur des données expérimentales obtenues pour des paires d’états électroniques excités fortement couplés (A 1Σ+(u) et b 3Π(u) pour Rb2 et pour NaCs), suite à des expériences de fluorescence induite par laser analysée par spectrométrie de Fourier. En optimisant les paramètres des potentiels moléculaires et des fonctions spin-orbite par le biais d’ajustements itératifs par moindres carrés non-linéaires, les modèles permettent d'atteindre la précision expérimentale (limite Doppler) actuelle. Les résultats sont controlés par étude des effets de substitution isotopique et des intensités observées. Un schéma pour refroidissement optique de NaCs a été proposé à partir des probabilités de transition calculées.Данная диссертационная работа посвящена изучению возмущений в электронно-колебательно-вращательных спектрах димеров щелочных металлов. Нерегулярности вколебательно-вращательной структуре, вызванные сильным спин-орбитальнымвзаимодействием близко лежащих электронных состояний осложняют, а иногда и делаютневозможным, однозначное отнесение линий в молекулярных спектрах. В данной работе, врамках метода связанных колебательных каналов, разработана модель неадиабатическогоописания энергетических и радиационных свойств синглет-триплетных комплексоввозмущенных состояний, подчиняющихся промежуточным a-b-c случаям связи по Гунду взависимости от величины вращательного квантового числа и межъядерного расстояния.Ключевыми параметрами этой модели являются потенциальные кривые рассматриваемыхсостояний и функции спин-орбитального взаимодействия. Аналитическая замена радиальнойкоординаты в сочетании с аналитическим представлением варьируемых функций позволилиповысить эффективность решения системы уравнений Шредингера для рассматриваемыхсистем, а также улучшить экстраполяционные свойства неэмпирических функцийпотенциальной энергии. Предложенный подход использован для анализа (представленных влитературе) ровибронных энергий молекулы NaK (D1Π , d3Π состояния), а такжеоригинальных экспериментальных данных, полученных в данной работе методом лазерно-индуцированной флуоресценции для сильно возмущенных электронных состояний Rb2 иNaCs ( A1Σ(u)+ и b3Π(u) состояния). Проверка адекватности полученных структурныхпараметров выполнена путем предсказания и сопоставления с экспериментом (1)энергетических свойств для различных изотопомеров; (2) распределения относительныхинтенсивностей в спектрах лазерно-индуцированной флуоресценции с локальновозмущенных уровней комплексов в основное электронное состояние. Результаты,полученные для молекул NaCs, были использованы для расчета оптимальных путейдвухступенчатой оптической конверсии неустойчивых электронно-возбужденных молекул,образующихся в результате столкновений холодных атомов, на низший по энергиировибронный уровень основного электронного состояния

International cooperation in the transport and logistics sector within the EAEU as a factor in the implementation of the strategy of sustainable development of the Eurasian region

The article examines the process of integration of transport and logistics ecosystems within the framework of implementing the goals of the EAEU, its main trends and tasks, as well as the change in the paradigm of cooperation development under the influence of the current geopolitical situation. Improvement, harmonization and unification of the effective legal and regulatory framework is the central task for the implementation of regional policy in the Eurasian region. Its implementation is necessary to create a single legal, digital, infrastructural transport and logistics space, ensuring the growth of both the national economies of the EAEU member states and the synergistic effects of integration processes and the cohesion of economic and transport systems. It appears that the implementation of digital initiatives is necessary to create an ecosystem of seamless transstate logistics interaction

Digital methodology for analyzing the yield of sugar beet on leached chernozem of the Krasnodar Territory

In the article, a mathematical expression is obtained that characterizes the effect of the doses of introduced fertilizers, the content of nutrients in the soil and their absorption by sugar beet plants on the yield of this crop. With the help of the developed mathematical model, the optimal values of the content of macronutrients in soil and plants are determined: nitrogen ~ 21.81 mg/kg and 1.02 %; phosphorus ~ 58.88 mg/kg and 0.33 %; potassium ~ 120.21 mg/kg and 1.33%, respectively, which accumulate when introducing a complete fertilizer at a dose of N80P80K80. This leads to the achievement of the maximum yield of root crops, which corresponds to the calculated value of this indicator ≈of 56.94 and 64.6 t/ha and coincides with the experimental one = 57.9 and 62.0 t/ha, respectively, obtained in this variant. The introduced fertilizers containing boron contributed to a more intensive absorption of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium by root crops. The use of trace elements causes a tendency to increase the yield of this crop

DOUBLE RESONANCE EXCITATION OF THE RUBIDIUM DIMER : THE 2 1Πg^{1}\Pi_g STATE

Author Institution: Department of Chemistry, Moscow State University, 119991; Moscow, Russia\; Institut Lumiere Matiere, Universite Lyon 1 \&amp; CNRS UMR5306, Universite de Lyon, FranceWe have performed a series of optical-optical double resonance experiments with one or two cw Ti:sapphire lasers, to excite the 2~$^{1}\Pi_g$ state of Rb$_2$, recording infrared fluorescence from 2~$^{1}\Pi_g$ on a Fourier transform spectrometer. Fluorescence from the lower vibrational levels of 2~$^{1}\Pi_g$ (T$_e$ = 22069.56 cm$^{-1}$) is dominated by transitions to the B $^{1}\Pi_u$ state studied by Amiot and Verges, Chem. Phys. Lett. 294, 91-98 (1997). Vibrational and rotational relaxation from laser-pumped levels v' $$ 35, occurs also to the 0$^+$ components of the A~$^{1}\Sigma_u^+ \sim$b$~^{3}\Pi_u$ complex. Fitting all available 2~$^{1}\Pi_g \rightarrow$B~$^{1}\Pi_u$ data for $^{85}$Rb$_2$ and $^{85}$Rb$^{87}$Rb (several thousand transitions) has also given an improved description of the bottom of the B $^{1}\Pi_u$ state potential well. The 2~$^{1}\Pi_g$ state correlates at long-range with Rb 5s + Rb 4d $^2D_{3/2}$ atoms (A.-R. Allouche, M. Aubert-Frecon, J. Chem Phys 136, 37-41 (2012)), giving a dissociation energy of 1279.6 cm$^{-1}$. Most new data lie below v = 45, 250 cm$^{-1}$ below this dissociation threshold

On the 2 (1)Pi(g) state of the rubidium dimer

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