Breeding Quality Protein Maize (QPM): Protocols for Developing QPM Cultivars

This manual is intended for maize breeders who would like to start developing quality protein maize (QPM) cultivars. It is a compilation and consolidation of several breeding protocols successfully used at CIMMYT over two decades of QPM development and breeding. A brief background and the basic theory of QPM genetics are explained, leading up to detailed methods and procedures of QPM development.Zea mays, Plant breeding, Breeding methods, Genetic resources, Protein quality, Protein content, Application methods, Lysine, Tryptophan, Food composition, Crop Production/Industries, F30, Q04,

Numerical investigation of the energy performance of a guideless irregular heat and mass exchanger with corrugated heat transfer surface for dew point cooling

© 2016 The Author(s) The paper presents an investigation into the energy performance of a novel irregular heat and mass exchanger for dew point cooling which, compared to the existing flat-plate heat exchangers, removed the use of the channel supporting guides and implemented the corrugated heat transfer surface, thus expecting to achieve the reduced air flow resistance, increased heat transfer area, and improved energy efficiency (i.e. Coefficient of Performance (COP)) of the air cooling process. CFD simulation was carried out to determine the flow resistance (K) factors of various elements within the dry and wet channels of the exchanger, while the ‘finite-element’ based ‘Newton-iteration’ numerical simulation was undertaken to investigate its cooling capacity, cooling effectiveness and COP at various geometrical and operational conditions. Compared to the existing flat-plate heat and mass exchangers with the same geometrical dimensions and operational conditions, the new irregular exchanger could achieve 32.9%–37% higher cooling capacity, dew-point and wet-bulb effectiveness, 29.7%–33.3% higher COP, and 55.8%–56.2% lower pressure drop. While undertaking dew point air cooling, the irregular heat and mass exchanger had the optimum air velocity of 1 m/s within the flow channels and working-to-intake air ratio of 0.3, which allowed the highest cooling capacity and COP to be achieved. In terms of the exchanger dimensions, the optimum height of the channel was 5 mm while its length was in the range 1–2 m. Overall, the proposed irregular heat and mass exchanger could lead to significant enhanced energy performance compared to the existing flat-plate dew point cooling heat exchanger of the same geometrical dimensions. To achieve the same amount cooling output, the irregular heat and mass exchanger had the reduced size and cost against the flat-plate ones

Aménagements hydro-agricoles et santé (vallée du fleuve Sénégal)

Près de 1 500 personnes résidant dans les villages rattachés au périmètre irrigué MO 6bis (périmètre de Diomandou, département de Podor) ont fait l'objet de prélèvements d'urine et/ou de selle afin de déterminer la prévalence de la bilharziose urinaire, de la bilharziose intestinale ainsi que des autres parasitoses entériques. Chez les riverains du périmètre, 1 295 urines ont été examinées, parmi lesquelles sept contenaient des oeufs viables de #Schistosoma haematobium$, ce qui représente un taux de prévalence de 0,5$, ce qui correspond à un indice d'infestation de 0,1%. Il s'agissait là aussi d'un individu dont la contamination avait eu lieu en dehors de la zone d'étude. #Eschirichia coli$est la parasite entérique le plus répandu avec 17,2$, #Strongyloïdes stercoralis, #Ascaris lumbricoïdes et #Trichiuris trichiura$ sont rares et ne concernent qu'un peu moins de 2% des sujets examinés. Ces résultats démontrent l'absence, pour l'instant tout au moins, de foyers de transmission des bilharzioses dans les villages du périmètre de Diomandou. Le risque d'apparition de ces maladies est cependant important et dépend à la fois de l'évolution des infrastructures et de l'éventuelle apparition d'hôtes intermédiaires encore absent du réseau hydrographique de ce périmètre mis en place récemment. (Résumé d'auteur