Analysing agricultural users’ patterns of behaviour: The case of OPTIRas™, a decision support system for starch crop selection

Redesigning IT systems for specific user groups encompasses a lot of effort with respect to analysing and understanding user behaviour. The goal of this paper is to provide insights into patterns of behaviour of agricultural users, during the usage of a decision support system called OPTIRas™. This system aids agricultural users in their cultivar selection activities. We analyse logs resulting from OPTIRas™, and we get insights into user’s navigational patterns. We claim that the results of our analysis can be used to support the redesign of decision support systems in order to address specific agricultural users’ characteristics.     

Modelled and measured ratio of PAR to global radiation under cloudless skies

The ratio between photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) and solar broadband irradiance depends on the spectral structure of radiation. Therefore, at the Earth surface, this ratio depends on atmospheric conditions and solar height. Specifically, for cloudless skies, and based on results from a spectral radiative transfer model, a parameterised model is presented here in order to obtain the ratio between PPFD and global irradiance from meteorological routine measurements. The two main input variables of the model are air mass and an estimation of precipitable water column. Modelled values are compared to measurements taken at Girona (NE Iberian Peninsula). A correction to measurements is developed to take into account the non-cosine response of the instruments. Agreement between measurements and model is significantly better than merely considering a constant value of the ratio between PPFD and global broadband irradiance.     

Phosphatase activity does not limit the microbial use of low molecular weight organic-P substrates in soil

Plant roots and soil microorganisms contain significant quantities of low molecular weight (MW) phosphorylated nucleosides and sugars. Consequently, upon death these can represent a significant input of organic-P to the soil. Some of these organic-P substrates must first be dephosphorylated by phosphatases before being assimilated by the soil microbial community while others can be taken up directly from soil solution. To determine whether sorption or phosphatase activity was limiting the bioavailability of low MW organic-P in soil we compared the microbial uptake and C mineralization of a range of ¹⁴C-labeled organic-P substrates [glucose-6-phosphate, adenosine monophosphate (AMP), adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and adenosine triphosphate (ATP)] to that of the parent compounds (adenosine and glucose). In a fertile grassland soil we showed that at low organic-P substrate concentrations (<0.5 mM) phosphatase activity did not limit microbial uptake or mineralization in comparison to their non-phosphorylated counterparts. However, at high substrate concentrations (1-10 mM) the mineralization of the organic-P compounds was significantly lower than that of the non-phosphorylated compounds suggesting that phosphatase activity or microbial transporter capacity limited bioavailability. Sorption to the solid phase followed the series glucose<adenosine<G-6-P<AMP<ADP=ATP. However, sorption of the organic-P compounds to the solid phase did not appear to greatly affect bioavailability. The high adenosine mineralization capacity of the microbial biomass suggests that nucleosides may represent a significant source of C and N to the soil microbial biomass. We conclude that at low organic-P substrate concentrations typical of those in soil, neither phosphatase activity nor sorption greatly limits their bioavailability.     

Modelling compaction of agricultural subsoils by tracked heavy construction machinery under various moisture conditions in Switzerland

In recent years, agricultural land in Switzerland has been increasingly used as temporary access ways for heavy machinery in road and pipeline construction operations. The Swiss soil protection law requires that measures are taken to prevent soil compaction in such operations, but gives no criteria to determine tolerable loads. We studied the compaction sensitivity of a loess soil (Haplic Luvisol) at different soil moisture conditions in a field traffic experiment and by a numerical model on the computer using finite element analysis. Two plots, one wetted by sprinkling and one left dry (no sprinkling), were traversed by heavy caterpillar vehicles during construction of a large overland gas pipeline. Compaction effects were determined by comparing precompression stresses of samples taken from trafficked and non-trafficked soil. A finite element model with a constitutive relation, based on the concept of critical state soil mechanics, was used to interpret the outcome of the field trials.

We found significantly higher precompression stresses in the trafficked (median 97 kPa) compared with the non-trafficked (median 41 kPa) topsoil of the wet plot. No effect was evident in the topsoil of the dry plot as well as in the subsoils of the wet and the dry plot. The observed compaction effects were in agreement with the model predictions if the soil was assumed to be partially drained, but disagreed for the wet subsoil if fully drained conditions were assumed. Agreement between model and experimental results also required that the moisture dependence of the precompression stress was taken into account.     

氟喹诺酮类抗生素在农业紫色土中的吸附研究

抗生素被广泛作为抗菌药物和添加剂使用在畜牧业中,造成大量抗生素随着动物粪便进入到土壤环境。吸附行为是抗生素在土壤中迁移转化的重要过程,对抗生素的风险评估及污染控制具有重要的意义。本文采用吸附试验研究了两种氟喹诺酮类抗生素(诺氟沙星(NOR)和氧氟沙星(OFL))在重庆广泛分布的紫色土中的吸附特性以及影响因素。结果表明:NOR和OFL在紫色土上的吸附过程较快,5 h就能达到吸附平衡,吸附常数Kd能达到3 082 L/kg。Freundlich吸附等温模型能很好拟合紫色土对NOR和OFL的等温吸附过程。由吸附过程的吉布斯自由能ΔG和吸附能E可知,紫色土吸附NOR和OFL主要是通过物理吸附。溶液pH6会降低紫色土对NOR和OFL的吸附。当溶液离子强度从0.005 mol/L增加至0.05 mol/L时,NOR和OFL在紫色土上的吸附量分别降低了10.2%和11.7%。土壤有机质对NOR和OFL的吸附过程影响很小。     

Effects of wood char and activated carbon on the hydrolysis of cellobiose by β-glucosidase from Aspergillus niger

Biochar amendments to soils have been suggested as a strategy to sequester carbon and therefore mitigate global climate change. The enrichment of soils with charred materials also increases their fertility. This fertilising effect of biochar may be caused by various mechanisms; an acceleration of nutrient cycling has been suggested as one such mechanism. The rate-limiting step in nutrient cycling is thought to be the extracellular enzymatic attack on biological macromolecules. In this study, therefore, the effects of chestnut wood char (specific surface area 2.0 m² g⁻¹) and of activated carbon (specific surface area approximately 900 m² g⁻¹) on an extracellular enzymatic reaction involved in the degradation of cellulose (i.e., hydrolysis of cellobiose by β-glucosidase from Aspergillus niger) were investigated. Cellobiose was not adsorbed by chestnut wood char, whereas activated carbon absorbed more than 97% of it. Both charred materials adsorbed more than 99% of β-glucosidase. For chestnut wood char, adsorption of the enzyme caused a decrease of approximately 30% in the reaction rate, whereas for activated carbon, the nearly complete absorption of both substrate and enzyme entirely inhibited the reaction. These results show that β-glucosidase from A. niger retains most of its activity when adsorbed to chestnut wood char and that the reaction it catalyses in nature is only slightly affected by this charred material. On the other hand, a material characterised by a high specific surface area and high porosity, such as activated carbon, can make even a highly soluble substrate unavailable for soil enzymes and therefore completely inhibit the reaction. Thus, charred materials may affect nutrient cycling mainly by regulating the availability of substrates: the degradation of highly soluble substrates may be accelerated by materials with low specific surface area, which maintain an active and protected enzyme pool, whereas materials with high specific surface and high porosity may slow down the degradation by making substrates unavailable.     

Using rainfall simulation and site measurements to predict annual interrill erodibility and phosphorus generation rates from unsealed forest roads: Validation against in-situ erosion measurements

The measurement of soil erosion rates under natural rainfall conditions is costly and time consuming. Data provided by rainfall simulation and static site measurements can be used to predict erosion rates under natural conditions, however the accuracy of this method is largely untested. This is especially true for erosion rates from unsealed forest roads. In this study, the values for a range of erodibility indices calculated from rainfall simulation experiments are compared to observed erodibility index values from 1 year of detailed in-situ erosion monitoring of seven different forest road types. The prediction of phosphorus generation rates from rainfall simulation and/or soil sampling was also evaluated. The results showed that a series of commonly used erodibility indices such as sediment per unit rainfall, sediment per unit runoff, sediment per unit EI₃₀, and sediment per unit rainfall energy were poorly predicted from the rainfall simulation experiments. Five of the six indices tested substantially overpredicted the observed erodibility at one site, a gravel road subjected to minimal traffic. For the other six road sites predictions were poor and highly variable, the coefficient of efficiency ranging from − 13.32 to 0.17 for these erodibility indices. A modified index, the ratio of sediment per unit rainfall energy to the mean rate of rainfall energy input, was able to predict annual erosion rates from six different road surfaces using rainfall simulation data with a coefficient of efficiency of 0.9. The results indicate that existing erodibility indices are not suitable for predicting observed erosion rates on forest roads using rainfall simulation data as collected in this study. It is argued that the modified index is more suited to sites (such as compacted roads) where interrill processes dominate, and erosion rates are less sensitive to peak flows. With respect to nutrient generation rates, rainfall simulation was able to accurately predict the observed proportion by mass of total phosphorus (TP) in runoff with a coefficient of efficiency of 0.96. Direct soil sampling of the road surface could also be used to predict the proportion by mass of TP in runoff. Concentrations of total nitrogen in forest road materials were found to be at the lower detection limit of the laboratory instruments.     

Surface cast production by the earthworm Aporrectodea nocturna in a pre-alpine meadow in Switzerland

Field and laboratory experiments were carried out to describe the effects of Aporrectodea nocturna on soil characteristics in a pre-alpine meadow and to support the development of a model of cast production. In the prealpine meadow, increased cast production, first observed about 20 years ago around a newly planted hedge, was recorded to a distance of maximal 170 m from the hedge. Numbers of A. nocturna between 130 and 165 m from the hedge decreased from 164 to 16 individuals m^-2. In the same area cast production steadily decreased from about 1.5 kg m^-2 week^-1 to nil, the plant community structure changed and the microbial biomass decreased, but the root biomass and the moisture content did not change. Laboratory experiments demonstrated that high cast production was not a specific feature of the A. nocturna population nor of the soil in the meadow. Diapause of A. nocturna was terminated in the laboratory during September. A model of cast production potential by the earthworm A. nocturna was established using laboratory determinations of the relationships with body weight, temperature, and water potential. The model was shown to predict cast production in the field given the assumption that the water potential was 0 MPa. According to the model, 81% of surface cast production was by juveniles, and 19% by adults of A. nocturna.     

线性和非线性方法估计单宁酸共存下形成的无定形铝氧化物上菲的吸附等温线参数比较

采用批实验研究了菲在单宁酸干扰下形成的不同晶形铝氧化物上的吸附现象,并用不同的吸附等温线方程对吸附平衡数据进行了拟合,重点比较了线性和非线性回归方法估计吸附等温线参数的差异。结果表明:菲在各种晶形的铝氧化物上都有明显的吸附,但并不是完全随着单宁酸含量和结晶度的变化而规律性变化。吸附平衡数据以Langmuir、Redlich-Peterson和Dubinin-Radushkevich吸附等温方程,用不同的回归方法估计的等温线参数值均有显著性差异。线性回归得到的参数有不确定性,表明用线性回归来判断吸附等温线能否对吸附平衡数据进行最优拟合是不可靠的。相反,非线性回归能较好地确定菲在不同晶形铝氧化物上的最佳吸附等温线及相应参数。采用R2和χ2共同检验发现,菲在4种不同结晶度(单宁酸与铝的摩尔比(MR)=0,10-3,10-2,10-1)铝氧化物上的最佳吸附等温线方程并不尽相同,分别为Freundlich,Freundlich,Dubinin-Radushkevich和Freundlich,反映了各种晶形的铝氧化物的表面异质性。修正的Freundlich方程比较不同晶形铝氧化物对菲的相对吸附容量顺序为:MR=10-3MR=10-2MR=0MR=10-1。由此,认为菲在无定形铝氧化物上的吸附是熵驱动的结果。     

The potential for soil carbon sequestration in three tropical dryland farming systems of Africa and Latin America: A modelling approach

Historically, agriculturally induced CO₂ release from soils has contributed to rising levels in the atmosphere. However, by using appropriate management, soils can be turned into carbon sinks. Many of the dryland regions of the world are characterised by degraded soils, a high incidence of poverty and a low capacity to invest in agriculture. Two well-proven soil organic matter models (CENTURY 4.0 and RothC-26 3) were used two explore the effects of modifying agricultural practices to increase soil carbon stocks. The changes to land management were chosen to avoid any significant increase in energy input whilst using technologies that would be available without radically altering the current agricultural methodology. Case studies were selected from dryland farming systems in Nigeria, Sudan and Argentina. Modelling showed that it would be possible to make alterations within the structure of the current farming systems to convert these soils from carbon sources to net sinks. Annual rates of carbon sequestration in the range 0.08–0.17 Mg ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ averaged over the next 50 years could be obtained. The most effective practices were those that maximised the input of organic matter, particularly farmyard manure (up to 0.09 Mg ha⁻¹ year⁻¹), maintaining trees (up to 0.15 Mg ha⁻¹ year⁻¹) and adopting zero tillage (up to 0.04 Mg ha⁻¹ year⁻¹). Verification of these predictions will require experimental data collected from field studies.