7,986 research outputs found
A simple reactive-transport model of calcite precipitation in soils and other porous media
Calcite formation in soils and other porous media generally occurs around a localised source of reactants, such as a plant root or soil macro-pore, and the rate depends on the transport of reactants to and from the precipitation zone as well as the kinetics of the precipitation reaction itself. However most studies are made in well mixed systems, in which such transport limitations are largely removed. We developed a mathematical model of calcite precipitation near a source of base in soil, allowing for transport limitations and precipitation kinetics. We tested the model against experimentally-determined rates of calcite precipitation and reactant concentration–distance profiles in columns of soil in contact with a layer of HCO3−-saturated exchange resin. The model parameter values were determined independently. The agreement between observed and predicted results was satisfactory given experimental limitations, indicating that the model correctly describes the important processes. A sensitivity analysis showed that all model parameters are important, indicating a simpler treatment would be inadequate. The sensitivity analysis showed that the amount of calcite precipitated and the spread of the precipitation zone were sensitive to parameters controlling rates of reactant transport (soil moisture content, salt content, pH, pH buffer power and CO2 pressure), as well as to the precipitation rate constant. We illustrate practical applications of the model with two examples: pH changes and CaCO3 precipitation in the soil around a plant root, and around a soil macro-pore containing a source of base such as urea
Optically pure heterobimetallic helicates from self-assembly and click strategies
Single diastereomer, diamagnetic, octahedral Fe(II) tris chelate complexes are synthesised that contain three pendant pyridine proligands pre-organised for coordination to a second metal. They bind Cu(I) and Ag(I) with coordination geometry depending on the identity of the metal and the detail of the ligand structure, but for example homohelical (ΔFe,ΔCu) configured systems with unusual trigonal planar Cu cations are formed exclusively in solution as shown by VT-NMR and supported by DFT calculations. Similar heterobimetallic tris(triazole) complexes are synthesised via clean CuAAC reactions at a tris(alkynyl) complex, although here the configurations of the two metals differ (ΔFe,ΛCu), leading to the first optically pure heterohelicates. A second series of Fe complexes perform less well in either strategy as a result of lack of preorganisation
Rice genotype differences in tolerance of zinc-deficient soils: evidence for the importance of root-induced changes in the rhizosphere
The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpls.2015.01160Zinc (Zn) deficiency is a major constraint to rice production and Zn is also often deficient in humans with rice-based diets. Efforts to breed more Zn-efficient rice are constrained by poor understanding of the mechanisms of tolerance to deficiency. Here we assess the contributions of root growth and root Zn uptake efficiency, and we seek to explain the results in terms of specific mechanisms. We made a field experiment in a highly Zn-deficient rice soil in the Philippines with deficiency-tolerant and -sensitive genotypes, and measured growth, Zn uptake and root development. We also measured the effect of planting density. Tolerant genotypes produced more crown roots per plant and had greater uptake rates per unit root surface area; the latter was at least as important as root number to overall tolerance. Tolerant and sensitive genotypes took up more Zn per plant at greater planting densities. The greater uptake per unit root surface area, and the planting density effect can only be explained by root-induced changes in the rhizosphere, either solubilizing Zn, or neutralizing a toxin that impedes Zn uptake (possibly HCO − 3
HCO3− or Fe2+), or both. Traits for these and crown root number are potential breeding targets.This research was funded by a grant from the UK's Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC, Grant Ref. BB/J011584/1) under the Sustainable Crop Production Research for International Development (SCPRID) programme, a joint multi-national initiative of BBSRC, the UK Government's Department for International Development (DFID) and (through a grant awarded to BBSRC) the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Support to AKN in the form of a fellowship awarded by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) is gratefully acknowledged
Constructing Spin Interference Devices from Nanometric Rings
The study of nanospintronic devices utilizing coherent transport through
molecular scale multiply-connected geometries in the presence of moderate
magnetic fields is presented. It is shown how two types of simple devices, spin
filters and spin splitters (or Stern-Gerlach devices) may be constructed from
molecular nanometric rings utilizing the Aharonov-Bohm effect. The current is
calculated within a single electron approximation and within a many-body master
equation approach where charging effects are accounted for in the Coulomb
Blockade regime. We provide rules and tools to develop and analyze efficient
spintronic devices based on nanometric interferometers.Comment: 16 pages, 8 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Evidence for a Young Stellar Population in NGC 5018
Two absorption line indices, Ca II and Hdelta/FeI4045, measured from high
resolution spectra are used with evolutionary synthesis models to verify the
presence of a young stellar population in NGC 5018. The derived age of this
population is about ~2.8 Gyr with a metallicity roughly solar and it completely
dominates the integrated light of the galaxy near 4000 A.Comment: 13 pages, 7 figures (figs 3-7 are color figures), to be published in
the May 2000 issue of the Astrophysical Journa
Diffuse retro-reflective imaging for improved mosquito tracking around human baited bednets
Robust imaging techniques for tracking insects have been essential tools in numerous laboratory and field studies on pests, beneficial insects and model systems. Recent innovations in optical imaging systems and associated signal processing have enabled detailed characterisation of nocturnal mosquito behaviour around bednets and improvements in bednet design, a global essential for protecting populations against malaria. Nonetheless, there remain challenges around ease of use for large scale in situ recordings and extracting data reliably in the critical areas of the bednet where the optical signal is attenuated. Here we introduce a retro-reflective screen at the back of the measurement volume, which can simultaneously provide diffuse illumination, and remove optical alignment issues whilst requiring only one-sided access to the measurement space. The illumination becomes significantly more uniform, although, noise removal algorithms are needed to reduce the effects of shot noise particularly across low intensity bednet regions. By systematically introducing mosquitoes in front and behind the bednet in lab experiments we are able to demonstrate robust tracking in these challenging areas. Overall, the retro-reflective imaging setup delivers mosquito segmentation rates in excess of 90% compared to less than 70% with back-lit systems
Flutter Research on Skin Panels
Representative experimental results are presented to show the current status of the panel flutter problem. Results are presented for unstiffened rectangular panels and for rectangular panels stiffened by corrugated backing. Flutter boundaries are established for all types of panels when considered on the basis of equivalent isotropic plates. The effects of Mach number, differential pressure, and aerodynamic heating on panel flutter are discussed. A flutter analysis of orthotropic panels is presented in the appendix
Nonperturbative QCD Coupling and its function from Light-Front Holography
The light-front holographic mapping of classical gravity in AdS space,
modified by a positive-sign dilaton background, leads to a nonperturbative
effective coupling . It agrees with hadron physics data
extracted from different observables, such as the effective charge defined by
the Bjorken sum rule, as well as with the predictions of models with built-in
confinement and lattice simulations. It also displays a transition from
perturbative to nonperturbative conformal regimes at a momentum scale
GeV. The resulting function appears to capture the essential
characteristics of the full function of QCD, thus giving further
support to the application of the gauge/gravity duality to the confining
dynamics of strongly coupled QCD. Commensurate scale relations relate
observables to each other without scheme or scale ambiguity. In this paper we
extrapolate these relations to the nonperturbative domain, thus extending the
range of predictions based on .Comment: 32 pages, 7 figures. Final version published in Phys. Rev.
Light-Front Quantization and AdS/QCD: An Overview
We give an overview of the light-front holographic approach to strongly
coupled QCD, whereby a confining gauge theory, quantized on the light front, is
mapped to a higher-dimensional anti de Sitter (AdS) space. The framework is
guided by the AdS/CFT correspondence incorporating a gravitational background
asymptotic to AdS space which encodes the salient properties of QCD, such as
the ultraviolet conformal limit at the AdS boundary at , as well as
modifications of the geometry in the large infrared region to describe
confinement and linear Regge behavior. There are two equivalent procedures for
deriving the AdS/QCD equations of motion: one can start from the Hamiltonian
equation of motion in physical space time by studying the off-shell dynamics of
the bound state wavefunctions as a function of the invariant mass of the
constituents. To a first semiclassical approximation, where quantum loops and
quark masses are not included, this leads to a light-front Hamiltonian equation
which describes the bound state dynamics of light hadrons in terms of an
invariant impact variable which measures the separation of the partons
within the hadron at equal light-front time. Alternatively, one can start from
the gravity side by studying the propagation of hadronic modes in a fixed
effective gravitational background. Both approaches are equivalent in the
semiclassical approximation. This allows us to identify the holographic
variable in AdS space with the impact variable . Light-front
holography thus allows a precise mapping of transition amplitudes from AdS to
physical space-time. The internal structure of hadrons is explicitly introduced
and the angular momentum of the constituents plays a key role.Comment: Invited talk presented by GdT at the XIV School of Particles and
Fields, Morelia, Mexico, November 8-12, 201
SiFTO: An Empirical Method for Fitting SNe Ia Light Curves
We present SiFTO, a new empirical method for modeling type Ia supernovae (SNe
Ia) light curves by manipulating a spectral template. We make use of
high-redshift SN observations when training the model, allowing us to extend it
bluer than rest frame U. This increases the utility of our high-redshift SN
observations by allowing us to use more of the available data. We find that
when the shape of the light curve is described using a stretch prescription,
applying the same stretch at all wavelengths is not an adequate description.
SiFTO therefore uses a generalization of stretch which applies different
stretch factors as a function of both the wavelength of the observed filter and
the stretch in the rest-frame B band. We compare SiFTO to other published
light-curve models by applying them to the same set of SN photometry, and
demonstrate that SiFTO and SALT2 perform better than the alternatives when
judged by the scatter around the best fit luminosity distance relationship. We
further demonstrate that when SiFTO and SALT2 are trained on the same data set
the cosmological results agree.Comment: Modified to better match published version in Ap
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