Erfassung und Bewertung der Vorkommen der Asiatischen Keiljungfer und der Grünen Flussjungfer an der Elbe bei Roßlau

Die Asiatische Keiljungfer (Gomphus flavipes) und die Grüne Flussjungfer (Ophiogomphus cecilia) sind Fließgewässer bewohnende Libellenarten mit hoher Naturschutzrelevanz. Beide Arten sind in ihrem Vorkommen sowohl in Sachsen-Anhalt als auch deutschlandweit gefährdet. Nach fast vollständigem Erlöschen der Populationen von G. flavipes in Mitteleuropa vor 70 Jahren wird in Sachsen-Anhalt seit Anfang der 1990er Jahre die Elbe von dieser Art wiederbesiedelt, vermutlich aufgrund der gestiegenen Wasserqualität. Bei O. cecilia liegen keine ausreichend belastbaren historischen Daten vor, wahrscheinlich ist die Situation bei dieser Art jedoch ähnlich. Es wird vermutet, dass beide Arten mittlerweile die Mittlere Elbe wieder weitgehend vollständig besiedeln. Das Elbegebiet besitzt daher europaweite Bedeutung als Reservoir für den Erhalt der beiden Arten

Reverse supply network design for circular economy pathways of wind turbine blades in Europe

Wind energy installations are increasing rapidly and so is their end-of-life waste. Wind turbine blades consist primarily of glass fibers and are usually landfilled. Given the significant amounts of blade waste expected in the future, circular economy pathways need to be identified for this waste stream. This study investigates the feasibility of the circular economy pathway of mechanical recycling for reuse of end-of-life blades at composite material manufacturing, while optimising the required reverse supply network design in Europe, for 2020 and for 2050. This is achieved through formulating and solving to optimality a Mixed Integer Linear Programming model for the wind blades Supply Chain Network Design problem. The findings indicate a semi-decentralised optimal network design, with 3-4 processing facilities proposed around Europe in all scenarios. The proposed circular economy pathway is economically viable without additional policy support only in 2050; while focusing the efforts only in more favourable areas of end-of-life blade availability can reduce system-wide costs. This study contributes to academic knowledge by formulating and solving for the first time the Supply Chain Network Design problem for end-of-life wind blades and to practice and policy-making by providing insights on the optimal network design, its feasibility and the related implications

Offshore and onshore wind turbine blade waste material forecast at a regional level in Europe until 2050

Wind power is a key renewable electricity source for Europe that is estimated to further develop significantly by 2050. However, the first generation of wind turbines is reaching their End of Life and the disposal of their blades is becoming a crucial waste management problem. Wind turbine blades consist primarily of reinforced composites and currently there is a lack of a sustainable solution to recycle them. The aim of this study is to estimate the wind turbine blade waste material for Europe until 2050 and is the first study adopting a high geographical granularity level in Europe, while distinguishing between offshore and onshore. In addition, the wind turbines' lifespan is not considered as a fixed value, but rather as a stochastic distribution based on historic decommissioning data. This study can support researchers, practitioners and policy makers to understand the future evolution of the blade waste material availability, identify local hotspots and opportunities and assess potential circular economy pathways. The results indicate that wind power capacity in Europe will reach 450 GW in 2050 with the respective total yearly blade waste material reaching 325,000 t. Findings for selected countries reveal that in 2050 Germany will have the majority of blade waste material from onshore wind and the United Kingdom from offshore. There is also a significant fluctuation in the yearly amount of waste expected at the country level, for several countries. Finally, local hotspots of blade waste material are identified

Application performance management : measuring and optimizing the digital customer experience

Nowadays, the success of most companies is determined by the quality of their IT services and application systems. To make sure that application systems provide the expected quality of service, it is crucial to have up-to-date information about the system and the user experience to detect problems and to be able to solve them effectively. Application performance management (APM) is a core IT operations discipline that aims to achieve an adequate level of performance during operations. APM comprises methods, techniques, and tools for i) continuously monitoring the state of an applications system and its usage, as well as for ii) detecting, diagnosing, and resolving performance-related problems using the monitored data. This book provides an introduction by covering a common conceptual foundation for APM. On top of the common foundation, we introduce today's tooling landscape and highlight current challenges and directions of this discipline

Using the One-Lung Method to Link p38 to Pro-Inflammatory Gene Expression during Overventilation in C57BL/6 and BALB/c Mice

<div><h3>Introduction</h3><p>The mechanisms of ventilator-induced lung injury (VILI), including the role of MAP kinases, are frequently studied in different mouse strains. A useful model for such studies is the isolated perfused mouse lung. As a further development we present the one-lung method that permits to continue perfusion and ventilation of the right lung after removal of the left lung. This method was used to compare the effect of high pressure ventilation (HPV) on pro-inflammatory signaling events in two widely used mouse strains (C57BL/6, BALB/c) and to further define the role of p38 in VILI.</p> <h3>Methods</h3><p>Lungs were perfused and ventilated for 30 min under control conditions before they were randomized to low (8 cm H₂O) or high (25 cm H₂O) pressure ventilation (HPV) for 210 min, with the left lung being removed after 180 min. In the left lung we measured the phosphorylation of p38, JNK, ERK and Akt kinase, and in the right lung gene expression and protein concentrations of Il1b, Il6, Tnf, Cxcl1, Cxcl2, and Areg.</p> <h3>Results</h3><p>Lung mechanics and kinase activation were similar in both mouse strains. HPV increased all genes (except <em>Tnf</em> in BALB/c) and all mediators in both strains. The gene expression of mRNA for <em>Il1b, Il6, Cxcl1</em> and <em>Cxcl2</em> was higher in BALB/c mice. Backward regression of the kinase data at t = 180 min with the gene and protein expression data at t = 240 min suggested that p38 controls HPV-induced gene expression, but not protein production. This hypothesis was confirmed in experiments with the p38-kinase inhibitor SB203580.</p> <h3>Conclusions</h3><p>The one-lung method is useful for mechanistic studies in the lungs. While C57BL/6 show diminished pro-inflammatory responses during HPV, lung mechanics and mechanotransduction processes appear to be similar in both mouse strains. Finally, the one-lung method allowed us to link p38 to gene expression during VILI.</p> </div

Cytokine (A–C), chemokine (D,E) and amphiregulin (F) concentrations in the bronchoalveolar fluid of C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice.

<p>Lung lavage fluid was obtained from the right lung after 240 min of ventilation and analyzed by ELISA for IL6 (<b>A</b>), Il1b (<b>B</b>), TNF (<b>C</b>), CXCL1 aka KC (<b>D</b>), CXCL2 aka MIP-2α (<b>E</b>) and amphiregulin (<b>E</b>). LPV, white bars; HPV, black bars. Data are mean + SEM with n = 6 per study group. Two way ANOVA was performed and only if a significant intercept (strain × ventilation) was detected, it was followed by individual comparisons (*<i>P</i><0.05; **<i>P</i><0.01; ***<i>P</i><0.001 vs. LPV; #<i>P</i><0.01 vs. C57BL/6).</p

Gene expression of cytokines (A–C), chemokines (D,E) and amphiregulin (F) in C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice.

<p>Right lungs were harvested after 240 min of ventilation and perfusion and probed by RT-qPCR for <i>Il6</i> (<b>A</b>), <i>Il1b</i> (<b>B</b>), <i>Tnf</i> (<b>C</b>), <i>Cxcl1</i> (<b>D</b>), <i>Cxcl2</i> (<b>E</b>) and <i>Areg</i> (<b>E</b>). LPV, white bars; HPV, black bars. Data are mean + SEM with n = 6 per study group. Two way ANOVA was performed and only if a significant intercept (strain × ventilation) was detected, it was followed by individual comparisons (*<i>P</i><0.05; **<i>P</i><0.01; ***<i>P</i><0.001 vs. LPV; #<i>P</i><0.01 vs. C57BL/6).</p

Ventilation and strain-dependent differences in kinase phosphorylation in C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice.

<p>Left lungs were harvested after 180 min of ventilation and perfusion and probed for phosphorylation of ERK (<b>A</b>), JNK (<b>B</b>), p38 (<b>C</b>) and Akt (<b>D</b>). LPV, white bars; HPV, black bars. Data are mean + SEM with n = 6 per study group. Data are expressed as the ratio of the phosphorylated and the native form of the respective kinase; these data were then normalized to the BALB/c HPV group. Two way ANOVA was performed, and only if a significant interaction (strain × ventilation) was detected, individual comparisons were made (*<i>P</i><0.05; **<i>P</i><0.01; ***<i>P</i><0.001 vs. LPV; #<i>P</i><0.01 vs. C57BL/6).</p