Effects of soil moisture content on CO2 triggered soil physicochemical properties in a near-surface environment

Journal of Soils and Sediments - Carbon capture and storage (CCS) has been frequently discussed as a strategy for meeting CO2 emission reduction and its targets. However, some critical issues have...     

Monitoring of the fermentation media of citric acid by the trimethylsilyl derivatives of the organic acids formed

In this approach, a derivatization method is described for monitoring of organic acids in fermentation media without any separation step. The aqueous phase of fermentation media was evaporated and heated in a silylation reagent to form trimethylsilyl (TMS) derivatives. The silylated compounds are analyzed by 29Si nuclear magnetic resonance (29Si NMR) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). 29Si NMR can qualitatively monitor the components produced in the Krebs cycle. Quantification of these compounds is investigated by using selected ion monitoring mode of mass spectrometry. In this mode, mass to charge (m/z) values of their [M - 15]+ ions, which are 465, 275, 247, 221, 335, 251, and 313 of TMS derivatives of citric, alpha-ketoglutaric, succinic, fumaric, l-malic, oxaloacetic, and palmitic (as an internal standard), acids, respectively, are used. The limit of detection and the linear working range for derivatized citric acid were found to be 0.1 mg L(-1) and 10-3 x 10(4) mg L(-1). The relative standard deviation of the method for five replicates was 2.1%. The average recovery efficiency for citric acid added to culture media was approximately 97.2%. Quantitative results of GC-MS are compared with those obtained by an ultraviolet-visible method.     

Effect of Different Drying Methods on the Physicochemical Properties and Bioactive Components of Saffron Powder

Plant Foods for Human Nutrition - Saffron is the most expensive spice in the world; so, determining optimum conditions for its processing is crucial. The most important processing stage of saffron...     

Successful Biodegradation of a Refractory Pharmaceutical Compound by an Indigenous Phenol-Tolerant <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pseudomonas aeruginosa</Emphasis> Strain

This study provides an alternative solution for the bioremediation of a recalcitrant pharmaceutical micropollutant. Clofibric acid (CLA) was chosen as target molecule, because of its environmental persistence and resistance to wastewater treatment technologies. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential of a phenol-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain isolated from the activated sludge to degrade CLA. In order to evaluate the effect of acclimation process with glucose as carbon co-substrate, two protocols were performed, in which the transfer of the inoculum is carried out either in the exponential growth phase or in the decline phase. The results showed a removal efficiency of CLA of 35% when cells in the decline phase were used for inoculation. In contrast, a very low removal yield (10%) was achieved when cells harvested in the exponential phase were used as inoculum. This work is the first one reporting on the capability of this bacterium to remove this drug. The obtained data showed that the isolated strain is able to degrade target molecule and might be a promising agent for the elimination of this refractory compound.     

Ability of sorption–desorption experiments to predict potassium leaching from calcareous soils

When potassium (K⁺) fertilizers are applied to the soil, K⁺ is subject to displacement through the soil profile. Leaching can play an important role in agricultural K⁺ losses that can decrease groundwater quality. To avoid overfertilization, estimation of K⁺ leaching from soil is important. The ability of the soils to retain K⁺ against leaching varies according to the adsorption coefficient of the soils. The aim of this study was to relate the K⁺ leaching from a wide range of calcareous soils to the values obtained from a sorption–desorption experiment. The soil columns were leached with 10 mM CaCl₂ solution and the leachate was analyzed for K⁺. The breakthrough curves for K⁺ were different, and the amounts of K⁺ leached varied considerably between different soils. In these calcareous soils where crops are irrigated with water containing significant concentrations of Ca²⁺ and other cations, large amounts of K⁺ will be leached. Cumulative K⁺ leached after five pore volumes leaching with 10 mM CaCl₂ was significantly (r = 0.776, p < 0.01) related to the equilibrium K⁺ concentration. The results of this study enabled us in many cases to estimate the K⁺ leaching from soil without conducting column experiments, minimizing the laborotary work.     

Effect of ginger- and garlic-supplemented diet on growth performance,some hematological parameters and immune responses in juvenile Huso huso

Physiological parameters and growth performance of Huso huso fingerlings fed with diet supplemented with herbal plants were studied in this study. Dietary treatments were 0 g (= control), 1.0 g (garlic) and 1.0 g (ginger) of 100 g^?1 feed for 60 days. Specific growth rate, body weight gain and condition factor were significantly increased in ginger treatment at the end of the trial. Highest levels of erythrocyte and hematocrit were observed in fingerlings ginger group after 60 days. Globulin increased significantly in ginger group, and the highest level of albumin was observed in garlic group. To sum up, it seems that herbal diet can improve some growth and physiological parameters in this species.     

Soil moisture index improves models of forage production in central Iran

This study is focused on the relative importance of bioclimatic variables and soil moisture index (SMI) for predicting forage production in Central Iran rangelands. We used a dataset of 93 forage production collected from 16 rangeland sites during 8 years in Isfahan province. Climatic and topographic variables were obtained using a digital elevation model and geographical information system. SMI is derived using a triangle space concept between the land surface temperature and normalized difference vegetation index from MODIS satellite data over Isfahan province. Using Nonparametric Multiplicative Regression model, we produced two distinct models to predict forage production, the first model with climatic and topographic variables (reduced model) and the second model with climatic, topographic and SMI variables (complete model). The inclusion of SMI significantly improved the quality of forage production predictions within the study area. The forage production is predicted to vary from 41.4 to 474 kg ha^?1 in first model and 20.5 to 485 kg ha^?1 in second model. We anticipated that using SMI would improve standing crop estimates relative to using bioclimatic variables. The cross-validated R² (×R²) increased from 57% to 63% when SMI is added to NPMR model.     

Responses of Anise Medicinal Plant Species in Terms of Essential Oil Contents and Concentrations to Different Planting Times and Various Nitrogen Fertilizer Sources under Semi-Arid Climatic Conditions

Essential oil content and concentration of anise plant planted in different times under various sources of nitrogen was evaluated in this study. The experiment was conducted in a split plot based on a randomized complete block (RCB) design (different sources of fertilizer as the main plot and planting dates as subplots) with three replications in the Agricultural Research Station at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad in 2015–2016. Treatments included: planting times (sub plot factor): (27^th of October, 27^th of November, 1^st of March, 10^th of March, and 8^th of April) and nutritional sources (main plot factor): (Cow Manure, Chemical Fertilizer, and mixture of Cow Manure + Chemical Fertilizer). The results showed that the anise plant essential oil qualitative characteristics were significantly influenced by treatments. Also, interaction between the fertilizer treatments and planting dates on the essential oil content and concentration of the plants were significant. The highest percentage of plant essential oil (3.71%) was found in the cow manure treatment, and the lowest percentage of essential oil (2.95%) was obtained in the chemical fertilizer. The highest essential oil yield (16.09 kg/ha) was found in the mixed treatment of the cow manure and the chemical fertilizer, and the chemical fertilizer treatment had the lowest rate of essential oil yield (11.41 kg/ha). The highest percentages of the plant oil (14.31%) and the plant oil yield (77.46 kg/ha) were found in the integrated treatment of the cow manure and the chemical fertilizers. The lowest amounts of the plant oil (12.19%) and the plant oil yield (41.28 kg/ha) were found in the chemical fertilizer. According to the percentage and the yield of the essential oil, the best planting time and fertilizer treatment was the one on 10th of March and using integrated cow manure and chemical fertilizer.