Hybrid laser for optical communications, and transmitter, system, and method

In the interest of ease of manufacture, hybrid lasers of distributed-Bragg-reflector type are preferred for use as light sources in optical communications. Such lasers are made to operate away from mode instabilities by adjusting a laser parameter such as, e.g., laser temperature, thereby assuring highly error-free transmission. Alternatively, by suitable design of the Bragg reflector it is possible to render mode instability of negligible influence on error rate.Published versio

Reflection Seismic Imaging for Mineral Exploration in the Sotiel-Coronada Area, Southwest Spain

Near Surface Geoscience Conference & Exhibition Online 2020This work explores the first results of the seismic data acquired in the Sotiel-Coronada mine as part of the SIT4ME (Seismic Imaging Techniques for Mineral Exploration) project. In this experiment, a multi-source seismic data-set was acquired at the end of 2018 in the Sotiel- Coronada area of the Iberian Pyrite Belt (IPB) (southwest Spain). In the seismic experiment presented, 653 seismic receivers were deployed distributed in a pseudo 3D grid and six crooked lines across the study area. The sensors recorded c. 900 vibration points produced by a 32 Tn vibrotruck. Here, we present the stack results of the 2D seismic sections. Data from over 100 wells have been incorporating to aid in the structural interpretation. The preliminary interpretation reveals the complexity of this highly faulted ore-bearing area. Correlations between well log data information and 2D seismic profiles, suggest the location of a potentially mineralized area. The SIT4ME project has been funded by EIT Raw Materials (17024)

Fewer rainy days and more extreme rainfall by the end of the century in Southern Africa

Future changes in the structure of daily rainfall, especially the number of rainy days and the intensity of extreme events, are likely to induce major impacts on rain-fed agriculture in the tropics. In Africa this issue is of primary importance, but the agreement between climate models to simulate such descriptors of rainfall is generally poor. Here, we show that the climate models used for the fifth assessment report of IPCC simulate a marked decrease in the number of rainy days, together with a strong increase in the rainfall amounts during the 1% wettest days, by the end of the 21st century over Southern Africa. These combined changes lead to an apparent stability of seasonal totals, but are likely to alter the quality of the rainy season. These evolutions are due to the superposition of slowly-changing moisture fluxes, mainly supported by increased hygrometric capacity associated with global warming, and unchanged short-term atmospheric configurations in which extreme events are embedded. This could cause enhanced floods or droughts, stronger soil erosion and nutriment loss, questioning the sustainability of food security for the 300 million people currently living in Africa south of the Equator

Conservation status of a recently described endemic land snail, Candidula coudensis, from the Iberian Peninsula

Research ArticleWe assessed the distribution, population size and conservation status of Candidula coudensis, a recently described endemic land snail from Portugal. From March 2013 to April 2014, surveys were carried out in the region where the species was described. We found an extent of occurrence larger than originally described, but still quite small (13.5 km2). The species was found mainly in olive groves, although it occurred in a variety of other habitats with limestone soils, including grasslands, scrublands and stone walls. Minimum population estimate ranged from 110,000–311,000 individuals. The main identified potential threats to the species include wildfires, pesticides and quarrying. Following the application of IUCN criteria, we advise a conservation status of either “Least Concern” or “Near-threatened” under criterion D (restricted population)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Active and passive-source seismic imaging for exploration of deep-seated massive sulphide mineralization in the Zinkgruvan mine, south-central Sweden

[EN]This communication presents the acquisition of active and passive source seismic data in the Zinkgruvan mine in Sweden in an effort to develop highly resolved and cost-effective exploration method

Local Difference Measures between Complex Networks for Dynamical System Model Evaluation

Acknowledgments We thank Reik V. Donner for inspiring suggestions that initialized the work presented herein. Jan H. Feldhoff is credited for providing us with the STARS simulation data and for his contributions to fruitful discussions. Comments by the anonymous reviewers are gratefully acknowledged as they led to substantial improvements of the manuscript.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Textile-reinforced mortar (TRM) versus fibre-reinforced polymers (FRP) in flexural strengthening of RC beams

The aim of this paper is to compare the flexural performance of reinforced concrete (RC) beams strengthened with textile-reinforced mortar (TRM) and fibre-reinforced polymers (FRP). The investigated parameters included the strengthening material, namely TRM or FRP; the number of TRM/FRP layers; the textile surface condition (coated and uncoated); the textile fibre material (carbon, coated basalt or glass fibres); and the end-anchorage system of the external reinforcement. Thirteen RC beams were fabricated, strengthened and tested in four-point bending. One beam served as control specimen, seven beams strengthened with TRM, and five with FRP. It was mainly found that: (a) TRM was generally inferior to FRP in enhancing the flexural capacity of RC beams, with the effectiveness ratio between the two systems varying from 0.46 to 0.80, depending on the parameters examined, (b) by tripling the number of TRM layers (from one to three), the TRM versus FRP effectiveness ratio was almost doubled, (c) providing coating to the dry textile enhanced the TRM effectiveness and altered the failure mode; (d) different textile materials, having approximately same axial stiffness, resulted in different flexural capacity increases; and (e) providing end-anchorage had a limited effect on the performance of TRM-retrofitted beams. Finally, a simple formula proposed by fib Model Code 2010 for FRP reinforcement was used to predict the mean debonding stress developed in the TRM reinforcement. It was found that this formula is in a good agreement with the average stress calculated based on the experimental results when failure was similar to FRP-strengthened beams

Bioenergy production and sustainable development: science base for policymaking remains limited

The possibility of using bioenergy as a climate change mitigation measure has sparked a discussion of whether and how bioenergy production contributes to sustainable development. We undertook a systematic review of the scientific literature to illuminate this relationship and found a limited scientific basis for policymaking. Our results indicate that knowledge on the sustainable development impacts of bioenergy production is concentrated in a few well-studied countries, focuses on environmental and economic impacts, and mostly relates to dedicated agricultural biomass plantations. The scope and methodological approaches in studies differ widely and only a small share of the studies sufficiently reports on context and/or baseline conditions, which makes it difficult to get a general understanding of the attribution of impacts. Nevertheless, we identified regional patterns of positive or negative impacts for all categories – environmental, economic, institutional, social and technological. In general, economic and technological impacts were more frequently reported as positive, while social and environmental impacts were more frequently reported as negative (with the exception of impacts on direct substitution of GHG emission from fossil fuel). More focused and transparent research is needed to validate these patterns and develop a strong science underpinning for establishing policies and governance agreements that prevent/mitigate negative and promote positive impacts from bioenergy production

Reflection seismic imaging to unravel subsurface geological structures of the Zinkgruvan mining area, central Sweden

The Zinkgruvan mining area is located on the south-eastern part of the Bergslagen district, one of the three major mineral producing regions in Sweden. In this study, we present the results from three (P1, P2 and P8) reflection seismic profiles each approximately 3000 m-long crossing the Zinkgruvan Zn-Pb-Ag-(Cu) mining area. P1 was acquired using cabled geophones with 10 m receiver and source interval and crossed major geological features. The other two profiles (P2 and P8) were acquired by wireless recorders with 20 m receiver and 10 m source interval and ran perpendicular to P1. Through a special data processing workflow adapted to this dataset, good quality seismic sections were obtained along these profiles, although a high noise level due to high voltage electric power lines was present. The interpretations were constrained by (1) seismic P-wave velocity and density data from a series of downhole logging measurements, (2) 3D forward reflection traveltime modelling in both pre- and post-stack domains, and (3) other geophysical and geological observations available from the site. Despite the notably complex geology, the processed seismic sections clearly reveal a series of horizontal to gently dipping reflections associated with known geological formations. Results indicate that most structures and lithological contacts dip or plunge to the northeast, including the targeted Zinkgruvan Formation. The results from this seismic survey are encouraging regarding the potential of the seismic method for base-metal exploration in Sweden and in particular in the Bergslagen district. It shows the high resolving power of the reflection seismic methods for imaging complex geological structures in a cost-effective and environmentally-friendly way.EIT-RawMaterials is gratefully thanked for funding this up-scaling project 17024.Peer reviewe