Environmental effects of an impact-generated dust cloud: implications for the cretaceous-tertiary extinctions

A model of the evolution and radiative effects of a debris cloud from a hypothesized impact event at the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary suggests that the cloud could have reduced the amount of light at the earth's surface below that required for photosynthesis for several months and, for a somewhat shorter interval, even below that needed for many animals to see. For 6 months to 1 year, the surface would cool; the oceans would cool only a few degrees Celsius at most, but the continents might cool a maximum of 40 Kelvin. Extinctions in the ocean may have been caused primarily by the temporary cessation of photosynthesis, but those on land may have been primarily induced by a combination of lowered temperatures and reduced light.     

Equilibrium studies for the adsorption of dyestuffs from aqueous solutions by low-cost materials

A number of low-cost materials (teakwood bark, ricehusk, coal, bentonite clay, hair and cotton waste) have been used as adsorbents for dyestuffs in aqueous solutions. Four red and four blue dyes have been studied; each color group consisted of an acidic, a basic, a disperse and a direct dye. The equilibrium isotherm for each dye-adsorbent system was determined and adsorption capacities from zero to 200 mg dye g^?1 of adsorbent was obtained. In general basic dyes adsorbed to a greater extent than the other dye classes but no single characteristic of the dye or adsorbent seemed responsible for such dye-adsorbent interactions and adsorption capacities.     

Two resistance mass transfer model for the adsorption of dyes onto Bagasse Pith

The adsorption of four dyestuffs onto bagasse pith has been studied. A method has been presented for the prediction of concentration decay vs time. The model is based on external mass transfer and pore diffusion and enables the external transport coefficients and the effective diffusivities to be determined. Constant mass transport. coefficients were obtained for each dye-pith system to correlate the effects of varying the initial dye concentration and pith mass. The external mass transfer coefficients are 1.4 × 10^?2, 1.24 × 10^?2, 1.5 × 10^?3, and 2.5 × 10^?3 cm s^?1 and the effective diffusivities are 6.5 × 10^?6, 2.6 × 10^?6, 4.5 × 10^?7, and 5.7 × 10^?7 cm² s^?1 for Basic Blue 69, Basic Red 22, Acid Blue 25, and Acid Red 114, respectively.     

Influences of recovery from clear-cut, climate variability, and thinning on the carbon balance of a young ponderosa pine plantation

From 1999 to 2002, the variations in carbon flux due to management practices (shrub removal, thinning) and climate variability were observed in a young ponderosa pine forest originated from clear-cutting and plantation in 1990. These measurements were done at the Blodgett Forest Ameriflux site located in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California. Thinning in spring 2000 decreased the leaf area index (LAI) by 34% and added 496 g C m⁻² of wood and leaf debris at the soil surface. Total ecosystem respiration was not significantly affected by thinning (1261 g C m⁻² in 1999 and 1273 g C m⁻² in 2000), while canopy photosynthesis decreased by 202 g C m⁻². As a result the ecosystem shifted from a net sink of CO₂ in 1999 (−201 g C m⁻²) to a small net source in 2000 (13 g C m⁻²). Woody and leaf debris resulting from thinning only accounted for maximum 1% and 7% of the total respiration flux, respectively. Thinning did not affect the relative proportion of the different components of respiration to an observable degree. Low soil water availability in summer 2001 and 2002 decreased the proportion of soil respiration to the total respiration. It also imposed limitations on canopy photosynthesis: as a result the ecosystem shifted from a sink to a source of carbon 1 month earlier than in a wetter year (1999). The leaf area index and biomass of the stand increased rapidly after the thinning. The ecosystem was again a sink of carbon in 2001 (−97 g C m⁻²) and 2002 (−172 g C m⁻²). The net carbon uptake outside the traditionally-defined growing season can be important in this ecosystem (NEE = −50 g C m⁻² in 2000), but interannual variations are significant due to differences in winter temperatures.     

Fuller's earth and fired clay as adsorbents for dyestuffs

The ability of Fuller's earth to adsorb a basic dye (Astrazone Blue — Basic Blue 69) and an acidic dye (Telon Blue - Acid Blue 25) has been studied. The equilibrium saturation adsorption capacities were 1200 mg dye g^?1 Fuller's earth and 220 mg dye g^?1 Fuller's earth for Astrazone Blue and Telon Blue, respectively. The kinetics of the adsorption processes were studied in an agitated batch adsorber. The time to reach 90% equilibrium value was achieved in less than 1 h. The variables investigated were agitation, adsorbent mass, initial dye concentration and temperature. A limited number of studies were undertaken using a fired clay but significantly lower saturation capacities were obtained, namely, 7 mg dye g^?1 fired clay and 40 mg dye g^?1 fired clay for Telon Blue and Astrazone Blue, respectively.     

Basic dye adsorption on activated carbon

The adsorption of Victoria Blue dye (Basic Blue 26) on carbon has been investigated. Equilibrium data have been found to obey the Langmuir isotherm. The effects of contact time, agitation, initial dye concentration and carbon particle size range were also studied.     

Molecular expression and identification of caprine estrogen receptor gene 1 for fertility status in bucks

Estrogen and its receptors are essential for sexual development and reproduction. Oestrogen receptor alpha (ERα) is a nuclear receptor activated by the hormone oestrogen. In male, ERα is encoded by the gene ESR1 (oestrogen receptor1) responsible for better fertility. ESR1 is involved in the reabsorption of luminal fluid during the transit of spermatozoa from the testis to the head of the epididymis which is important for their survival and maturation during epididymal storage. The absence of ESR1 leads to reduced epididymal sperm content, reduced sperm motility and fertilizing ability. The present study was undertaken to investigate the expression and presence of ESR1 gene in fertile and low-fertile male goat breeds. We identified ESR1 gene through various molecular tools. Genotyping was carried out by high resonance melting analysis using Roche Light Cycler 480(LC-480) system and found three different genotypes. Genotypic frequency-AA (blue-0.67), BB(Red-0.2), AB(Green-0.08) with allele frequency A(0.71 and B (0.29). The predominance of this gene in head of epididymis in fertile bucks was confirmed by SDS-PAGE, Western blotting and immunohistochemistry. From the results, we corroborated that the present study provides a useful and effective way to predict male fertility in goat breeds, which in turn increases the percentage of fertility in flock leading to more number of offspring in a kidding season.     

Sorption of Copper(II) from Aqueous Solution by Peat

The use of peat for removal of copper(II) from aqueous solution has been investigated at various initial copper ion concentrations and masses of peat. The equilibrium sorption study can be described by the Langmuir equation and defined in terms of the operating lines for each batch contacting system. The mechanisms of the rate of sorption of copper(II) were analysed using the Elovich equation and a pseudo-second-order model. Both rate mechanisms provided a very high degree of correlation of the experimental sorption rate data suggesting either model could be used in design applications.