Energy Consumption, Carbon Emissions and Global Warming Potential of Wolfberry Production in Jingtai Oasis, Gansu Province, China

During the last decade, China's agro-food production has increased rapidly and been accompanied by the challenge of increasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and other environmental pollutants from fertilizers, pesticides, and intensive energy use. Understanding the energy use and environmental impacts of crop production will help identify environmentally damaging hotspots of agro-production, allowing environmental impacts to be assessed and crop management strategies optimized. Conventional farming has been widely employed in wolfberry (Lycium barbarum) cultivation in China, which is an important cash tree crop not only for the rural economy but also from an ecological standpoint. Energy use and global warming potential (GWP) were investigated in a wolfberry production system in the Yellow River irrigated Jingtai region of Gansu. In total, 52 household farms were randomly selected to conduct the investigation using questionnaires. Total energy input and output were 321,800.73 and 166,888.80 MJ ha−1, respectively, in the production system. The highest share of energy inputs was found to be electricity consumption for lifting irrigation water, accounting for 68.52%, followed by chemical fertilizer application (11.37%). Energy use efficiency was 0.52 when considering both fruit and pruned wood. Nonrenewable energy use (88.52%) was far larger than the renewable energy input. The share of GWP of different inputs were 64.52% electricity, 27.72% nitrogen (N) fertilizer, 5.07% phosphate, 2.32% diesel, and 0.37% potassium, respectively. The highest share was related to electricity consumption for irrigation, followed by N fertilizer use. Total GWP in the wolfberry planting system was 26,018.64 kg CO2 eq ha−1 and the share of CO2, N2O, and CH4 were 99.47%, 0.48%, and negligible respectively with CO2 being dominant. Pathways for reducing energy use and GHG emission mitigation include: conversion to low carbon farming to establish a sustainable and cleaner production system with options of raising water use efficiency by adopting a seasonal gradient water pricing system and advanced irrigation techniques; reducing synthetic fertilizer use; and policy support: smallholder farmland transfer (concentration) for scale production, credit (small- and low-interest credit) and tax breaks

Life-cycle cost optimization of prestressed simple-span concrete bridges with simple and spliced girders

In this paper, determination of the design variable optimum values of simple and spliced pre-tensioned girders in bridges is addressed by considering the life cycle cost of the whole structure. To this end, a program called OBPG is written with FORTRAN, consisting of the analysis, design and optimization subroutines based on the feasible direction method. AASHTO principles are used, assuming initial values for the design variables such as the dimensions of the girders and the deck, and the strands number. Then, using the analysis outcomes and considering the design criteria, the total cost of the structure, including that of the girders and slabs concreting, pre-tensioning cables performance, reinforcement and frameworks, are minimized as functions of the design variables. Although the initial optimization cost using life cycle cost is slightly more than that using the initial cost, optimization of the life cycle cost proves to be more economical. Ultimately, a program capable of analyzing simple and spliced pre-tensioned bridge girders is developed which calculates the life cycle and gives an optimum design. © Shiraz University

Effects of pozzolans together with steel and polypropylene fibers on mechanical properties of RCC pavements

Effects of pozzolans and fibers on mechanical properties of RCC are addressed. The mechanical properties were evaluated using optimum moisture with different amounts of pozzolans, steel and polypropylene fibers. Using pozzolans, maximum increase in compressive strength was observed to occur between 28 and 90 days of age, rupture modulus was found to decrease; but toughness indices did not change considerably. The influence of steel fibers on compressive strength was often more significant than that of PP fibers; but neither steel nor PP fibers did contribute to increase in the rupture modulus independently from pozzolans. Also, the toughness indices increased when steel fibers were used. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved