A Comparison of Static Pile and Turned Windrow Methods for Poultry Litter Compost Production

Alternate technologies of compost manufactured from poultry litter (manure) were studied as a means of producing a value-added product for the landscape and nursery industry. Static pile and turned windrow technologies were investigated on a commercial scale with the composting of nearly 300 tons of material. The major difference between the technologies is the amount of energy and labor required. Static pile systems require less energy but more time than windrow turned systems. There was no process advantage found for passively aerated static piles over static piles but costs of passive aeration for pipes and labor were higher than for static piles. Machine turned windrows completed active temperature production within 100 days while portions of both the static and passively aerated piles continued to actively compost past 300 days. Process operational costs and compost quality were similar among the compost methods studied. Production operational cost is driven by the cost of compost ingredients and accounted for 60 to 70% of the cost in the pilot study. Ingredients were poultry litter, wood chips and sawdust. Screened compost was produced at an operational cost of $30 while unscreened compost could be produced for $20 per ton of compost. A production scheme where poultry litter is static pile composted on farms for later transport to regional processing centers appears feasible. This two-part composting procedure will eliminate the transport of raw litter and improve poultry biosecurity. Most likely, a private compost business would provide the expertise, on-farm compost procedures and operate the regional facility.     

Rasterelektronenmikroskopische Untersuchungen über die Ultrastruktur von Kleberproteinfraktionen

Investigations of the submicroscopic structure of gluten protein fractions by means of SEM have revealed significant changes in the structure of glutenins due to the removal of flour lipids by extraction with petroleum ether and chloroform-methanol resp. Defatting of the flour caused a rupture of the sheetlike structure observed in the glutenin of untreated flour and an increase of the amount of fibrillar components. The number of spherical particles arising from delipidation with petroleum ether decreases considerably in the glutenin from chloroform-methanol defatted flour. It has been concluded that these spherical particles may consist mainly of chloroform-methanol soluble lipoproteids originally existing in wheat flour. Furthermore it could be shown that the gliadin fraction also is very heterogenous and consists of sheetlike, fibrillar, and spherical aggregates.     

Breeding for organic agriculture: the example of winter wheat in Austria

Breeding for organic agriculture (BFOA) is a strategy for a commercial breeding company based on the exploitation of the frequently observed high correlation for many traits between conventional, low input (LI) and organic agriculture (ORG). Indirect selection under LI can be useful to roughly divide the germplasm into the genotypes better adapted to high input and those better adapted to LI or ORG conditions. BFOA is an evolving process, in which two methods are currently applied: early generations are either selected following the pedigree system under LI, or grown as bulk populations on ORG fields. In the latter case the system switches to LI after individual ear selection under ORG conditions. In both methods, the first replicated yield trial is grown parallel under ORG and LI. Subsequently, the genotypes are grouped into conventional or ORG advanced trial series. The BFOA strategy allows that the larger genetic variability of both the organic and conventional gene pool can be exploited in the selection for ORG. Hitherto, seven winter wheat varieties were released in Austria after exclusive organic VCU testing.     

生殖生长期光富集和遮阴对大豆干物质分配及产量品质的影响

大豆冠层截获的太阳辐射强度是决定大豆生长发育和产量的重要环境因素.通过对蛋白质、脂肪含量不同的三个大豆品种在生殖生长期进行光处理,研究田间条件下,群体光富集和遮阴对大豆干物质分配、产量及品质的影响.结果表明:与自然光照相比,光富集后大豆积累的光合产物更多地分配到库;而遮阴后大豆积累的光合产物更多地分配给了源.光富集显著增加大豆单株产量、荚数和粒数,不同品种(系)单株产量增加幅度为27.7%～71.7%、单株荚数增加幅度为33.3%～71.1%、单株粒数增加幅度为35.5%～85.7%;遮阴显著减少大豆单株产量、荚数和粒数,不同品种(系)单株产量降低幅度为34.4%～49.7%、单株荚数降低幅度为43.0%～47.7%、单株粒数降低幅度为33.4%～52.6%.生殖生长期光富集有增加籽粒蛋白质含量和降低籽粒脂肪含量的趋势,而遮阴有降低籽粒内蛋白质含量和增加籽粒脂肪含量的趋势,品种间有一定差异.     

Flour Protein Composition and Functional Properties of Transgenic Rye Lines Expressing HMW Subunit Genes of Wheat

Flours from nonsprouted (ns) kernels and dried sprouted (s) kernels of transgenic rye expressing HMW glutenin subunits (HMW‐GS) 1Dy10 (L10) or 1Dx5+1Dy10 (L5+10) from wheat were compared with flours from the corresponding wildtype rye (Lwt). The crude protein content of nonsprouted flours ranged from 9.2% (Lwt) to 10.4% (L5+10) and was lowered by ≈1% due to sprouting. Flour proteins were separated into albumins/globulins, prolamins, and glutelin subunits by a modified Osborne fractionation and into SDS‐soluble and insoluble fractions. Portions of the prolamin fractions were reduced in the same manner as glutelins. The different fractions were then characterized and quantified by RP‐HPLC on C₈ silica gel. The proportion of albumins/globulins did not significantly differ between transgenic lines and wildtype. The proportions of alcohol‐insoluble glutelins and SDS‐insoluble proteins drastically increased in transgenic rye due to a shift of HMW and γ‐75k secalins into the polymeric fractions. Significant differences in the proportion of highly polymeric proteins between nonsprouted and sprouted flours could not be detected. The quantitative data demonstrated that the expression of HMW‐GS led to a higher degree of polymerization of storage proteins in rye flour. The HMW‐GS combination 1Dx5+1Dy10 showed stronger effects than 1Dy10 alone. The analyzed flours contained two HMW secalins (R1, R2), whose amino acid compositions were closely related to those of 1Dy10 and 1Dx5, respectively. The amounts of R1 in Lwt flours determined by RP‐HPLC were 221 mg (ns) and 186 mg (s) per 100 g and those of R2 were 344 mg (ns) and 298 mg (s), respectively. These amounts increased to 240 mg (ns)/201 mg (s) (R1) and 479 mg (ns)/432 mg (s) (R2) in L10 flours. In L5+10 flours, the amount of R1 decreased to 150 mg (ns)/132 mg (s) while R2 increased to 432 mg (ns)/338 mg (s). The amount of HMW‐GS 1Dy10 was almost the same as that of R2 in L10 flours but was strongly increased in L5+10 flour (633 mg [ns]/538 mg [s]). HMW‐GS 1Dx5 was, by far, the major subunit in L5+10 flours (987 mg 7[ns]/896 mg [s]). The summarized amounts of all HMW subunits increased from ≈0.5 g (Lwt) to ≈1.1 g (L10) and ≈2.0 g (L5+10). Thus only L10 flours were similar to wheat flours in HMW subunit content. The baking performance of L10 flour determined by a microbaking test was improved compared with Lwt flour, whereas L5x10 flour showed very poor properties obviously due to the strongly increased proportion of highly cross‐linked glutelins. The breadmaking quality of flours from 1Dy10 seeds and wildtype seeds was reduced by the same degree when flours from sprouted seeds were analyzed.     

Chondrules with peculiar REE patterns: implications for solar nebular condensation at high C/O

Rare earth element (REE) data from two ordinary chondrite chondrules show distinct negative chondrite-normalized concentration anomalies of samarium, europium, and ytterbium. The peculiar patterns may be the result of REE gas/solid fractionation at an oxygen fugacity lower than has been assumed for the canonical solar nebula. We suggest that the two ordinary chondrite chondrules acquired the fractionated REE patterns by incorporation of highly reduced, ultrarefractory condensates in their precursors. This interpretation implies that high-temperature condensation processes occurred in nebular environments with a strong deficit in oxygen, such as regions with an enhanced carbon/oxygen ratio.     

增加光照及其与改变源库互作对大豆产量构成因素的影响

生殖生长期间的光照强度是决定大豆产量的关键环境因素.在美国麻省和中国黑龙江两地,通过在不同时期,对不同密度的大豆群体进行增加光照和改变源库处理,研究了两地产量及产量构成因素对增加光照光变化的反应.结果表明,不同时期增加光照光处理的增产效果不同,开花初期和结荚初期增加光照最为明显,花期增加光照增加单株荚粒数,而结荚初期增加光照增加百粒重.鼓粒期增加光照处理,百粒重不同品种在不同密度条件下增产不显著,说明鼓粒期后的光照条件对大豆产量及百粒重的调节有限.在不同的光照条件下,源库在产量形成中的作用不同.在自然光照条件下,剪叶处理产量下降幅度较去荚大,即源在产量形成中更加重要些,而在花期的增加光照处理条件下,库也成为影响产量的重要因子,可见,光照条件在源库关系中起着显著的协调作用.     

Hf-W chronometry of lunar metals and the age and early differentiation of the Moon

The use of hafnium-tungsten chronometry to date the Moon is hampered by cosmogenic tungsten-182 production mainly by neutron capture of tantalum-181 at the lunar surface. We report tungsten isotope data for lunar metals, which contain no 181Ta-derived cosmogenic 182W. The data reveal differences in indigenous 182W/184W of lunar mantle reservoirs, indicating crystallization of the lunar magma ocean 4.527 +/- 0.010 billion years ago. This age is consistent with the giant impact hypothesis and defines the completion of the major stage of Earth's accretion.