catena-Poly[[[2-(pyridin-2-yldisulfan­yl)pyridine-κ2 N,S]copper(I)]-μ1,5-dicyanamido]

In the title compound, [Cu(C2N3)(C10H8N2S2)]n, the CuI atoms are connected by bridging dicyanamide ligands, forming chains parallel to [100]. Each CuI atom displays a tetra­hedral coordination environment, formed by one S atom and three N atoms from one 2-(pyridin-2-yldisulfan­yl)pyridine and two dicyanamide ligands. The crystal structure is stabilized by C—H⋯N hydrogen bonds, forming a three-dimensional network

A neural network-based scale-adaptive cloud-fraction scheme for GCMs

Cloud fraction significantly affects the short- and long-wave radiation. Its realistic representation in general circulation models (GCMs) still poses great challenges in modeling the atmosphere. Here, we present a neural network-based diagnostic scheme that uses the grid-mean temperature, pressure, liquid and ice water mixing ratios, and relative humidity to simulate the sub-grid cloud fraction. The scheme, trained using CloudSat data with explicit consideration of grid sizes, realistically simulates the observed cloud fraction with a correlation coefficient (r) > 0.9 for liquid-, mixed-, and ice-phase clouds. The scheme also captures the observed non-monotonic relationship between cloud fraction and relative humidity and is computationally efficient, and robust for GCMs with a variety of horizontal and vertical resolutions. For illustrative purposes, we conducted comparative analyses of the 2006-2019 climatological-mean cloud fractions among CloudSat, and simulations from the new scheme and the Xu-Randall scheme (optimized the same way as the new scheme). The network-based scheme improves not only the spatial distribution of the total cloud fraction but also the cloud vertical structure (r > 0.99). For example, the biases of too-many high-level clouds over the tropics and too-many low-level clouds over regions around 60{\deg}S and 60{\deg}N in the Xu-Randall scheme are significantly reduced. These improvements are also found to be insensitive to the spatio-temporal variability of large-scale meteorology conditions, implying that the scheme can be used in different climate regimes

Using Burkholderia sp. as a biocontrol agent in kiwifruit plants against Neofusicoccum parvum

Actinidia chinensis (kiwifruit) is an important horticultural crop in New Zealand. A fungal pathogen, Neofusicoccum parvum (teleomorph Botryosphaeria), was found causing fruit drop symptoms in kiwifruit orchards. To target this issue, a potential bacterial biocontrol agent, Burkholderia sp. (isolate W4R11), was used to test its efficacy against N. parvum in planta. Molecular approaches and in vitro testing were conducted prior to the glasshouse trial to provide insights on understanding the biology of N. parvum and Burkholderia sp. This work demonstrated the in vitro antagonist effect of Burkholderia sp. against N. parvum. Cultural practices on the two organisms were also conducted in the laboratory, providing inoculant material for the in planta testing. This is the first study testing the use of Burkholderia sp. (isolate W4R11) as a wound protectant in one-year old kiwifruit plants against N. parvum. It demonstrated an apparent competition between the two organisms and provided suggestions on colonization and movement of Burkholderia sp. and N. parvum in kiwifruit plants. The Burkholderia strain can colonise 15 -30% of the plants, which had no substantial differences compared to N. parvum. When examining the stems further from the wound site, Burkholderia sp. showed suppression on N. parvum, resulting in a non-fungal colonization. The result suggested: (1) Burkholderia sp. may have a better colonization ability and faster movement than N. parvum in kiwifruit plants; (2) Burkholderia sp. can be used as a wound protectant after pruning or harvesting of the kiwifruit to inhibit wound-invading pathogens; and (3) to prune the kiwifruit stem 20 cm from the infected site and then applying the biocontrol agent may reduce disease incidence in planta. Future studies should utilize more replicates and field testing to confirm the biocontrol ability of this particular strain.Zespri funde

Molecular characterization of coastal seawater dissolved organic matter by ultrahigh-resolution mass spectrometry: a photochemical study of the Tokyo Bay, Japan

Abstract The coastal seawater in Tokyo Bay contains abundant sulfur (S)-containing DOM compounds because it receives municipal effluents from wastewater treatments. However, the effect of photohalogenation on the molecular composition of these coastal seawater DOM remains unknown. Herein, light irradiation experiments were combined with the Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry to investigate the transformation in the molecular composition of coastal seawater DOM during photohalogenation. In total, 3147 S-containing formulae were identified in the coastal seawater, accounting for 33% of the total number and 24% of the full intensity. Moreover, ~ 44% to ~ 67% of CHOS formulae with high molecular weight, aromaticity, and unsaturation were preferentially photodegraded via decarboxylation and desulfonation. Compared with the visible and UVA lights, UVC light exhibited much significant influences on the molecular composition of coastal seawater DOM. Only a few OBCs and OICs were generated during the photohalogenation, mainly via substitution and addition reactions, from CHO-class DOM belonging to lignin-like compounds. Additionally, the novel DBE-0.5O parameter was proposed as a better indicator of the unsaturation of the carbon skeleton than DBE-O. Our findings provided valuable information on the effect of photohalogenation on the molecular composition of the natural coastal DOM under natural sunlight irradiation. Graphical Abstrac

Rates of oxygen consumption and tolerance of hypoxia and desiccation in Chinese black sleeper (Bostrichthys sinensis) and mudskipper (Boleophthalmus pectinirostris) embryos

The rates of oxygen consumption, tolerance of hypoxia and desiccation of the Chinese black sleeper (Bostrichthys sinensis) and mudskipper (Boleophthalmus pectinirostris) embryos were investigated. The pattern of oxygen consumption of the Chinese black sleeper embryos was similar to that of the mudskipper ones. The lowest rates of oxygen consumption [(1.65 +/- 0.66) nmol/(ind. center dot h)] of the Chinese black sleeper embryos 16 h after fertilization and the lowest rates of oxygen consumption [(0.79 +/- 0.08) nmol/(ind. center dot h)] of the mudskipper embryos 6 h after fertilization were recorded, respectively. Then the rates of oxygen consumption of these two species embryos increased gradually until hatching [8.26 +/- 1.70) nmol/(ind. center dot h) in the Chinese black sleeper, (2.69 +/- 0.23) nmol/(ind. center dot h) in mudskipper]. After exposure to hypoxia water (0.16 mg/dm(3)), bradycardia of the embryos occurred in both the Chinese black sleeper and the mudskipper. However, the Chinese black sleeper embryos survived approximately 45 min longer than the mudskipper ones. After exposure to desiccation at a relative humidity of 58%, bradycardia of the embryos was observed in both the Chinese black sleeper and the mudskipper, and the Chinese black sleeper embryos lived approximately 9 min longer than the mudskipper ones

Combustion characteristics of cross-linked fluorinated polymer supported aluminum/oxidizer microsphere in HTPB propellant

Combustion behaviors of propellant depend heavily on the architecture of the pocket bounded by coarse AP particles. In order to achieve a better control of the meso-scale architecture of the pocket, overcoming random mixing of the fine particles inside propellant, two kinds of cross-linked fluorinated polymer supported Aluminum/Oxidizer microspheres containing fine Al and oxidizer particles are fabricated by emulsion solvent evaporation and in-situ polymerization method (ESV-ISP), which are used to replace the fine Al and oxidizer particles of the Al/AP/HMX/HTPB propellant. The morphologies of the Al/Oxidizer microspheres and the corresponding propellants are studied, it shows that the fine Al and oxidizer particles are well dispersed and arranged in the microspheres. Besides, the average sizes of the microspheres are ranging from 113.9 ± 4.3 μm to 183.0 ± 5.9 μm, and equivalent to that of the Al-rich clusters located inside the pocket. The energy property and combustion performance of the propellants indicated that the combustion heat of the propellants containing Al/Oxidizer microsphere is increased by about 200 J/g, while the fraction of residual active aluminum is decreased by 77.8%, additionally, the D50 and D(4,3) of the combustion residue are both reduced significantly. Large Al aggregate nearby the burning surface is observed clearly in the blank propellant, while it could not be observed in the propellants containing Al/Oxidizer microsphere. Furthermore, compared to the pressure exponent (n), 0.34, of the B-Propellant, the n of the Al/AP-Propellant and the Al/HMX-Propellant significantly drop to 0.24 and 0.25, respectively, and the burning rate (r) could be adjusted and controlled by the Al/Oxidizer microsphere consisting of different fine oxidizer particles. It demonstrates that using the structurally ordered Al/Oxidizer microsphere could successfully achieve a better control of the meso-scale architecture of the pocket in typical Al/AP/HMX/HTPB propellant