Optimizing the lighting regime for Alstroemeria with respect to photoperiod and fluence rates

The Alstroemeria cultivars Diamond, King Cardinal and Libelle were grown for 18 months under five lighting regimes with, and without, soil cooling. The aim was to optimize the daily investment of light energy from artificial sources with respect to photoperiod and photosynthetic fluence rates and to elucidate possible links between reactions to photoperiod and root-zone temperature. The more photons (photosynthetically active radiation, PAR) that were supplied to the plants per day (8, 11 and 13 mol m⁻²), the higher was the total production of flowering stems. The total yield from regimes with 13 mol m⁻² day⁻¹ was higher when the light was spread over 20 and 16 h compared to 12 h. In treatments with soil cooling, the plants flowered continuously under all combinations of photoperiods and photosynthetic fluence rates, and the summer and autumn recession in flower production that occurred for non-cooled ‘King Cardinal' and ‘Diamond' was the same under all lighting regimes. It is concluded that it might be more cost-effective to spread the daily investment of light over 20 rather than 16 or 12 h when the total energy budget and CO₂ costs are taken into consideration.     

冷却剂参数对铣槽喷管低周疲劳寿命的影响

采用有限体积流固耦合计算方法、非线性有限元热结构耦合分析方法和局部应变法研究大面积比铣槽喷管三维再生冷却槽道在循环工作条件下的热结构变形与低周疲劳寿命,并对比分析了冷却剂质量流量与入口温度对铣槽喷管疲劳使用寿命的影响。计算结果表明,铣槽喷管热结构响应呈现复杂的三维效应,应变较大位置主要分布在与肋连接的内衬区域,喷管中部的残余应变量最大；冷却槽道低周疲劳寿命分布和热结构响应基本一致,最小寿命位于喷管中部与肋相连的内衬区域燃气侧；随冷却剂质量流量增加,铣槽喷管低周疲劳寿命不断提高；随冷却剂入口温度增加喷管尾部低周疲劳寿命值不断降低,而喷管中前部的低周疲劳寿命值却不断提高,当冷却剂入口温度为280K左右时,本文的铣槽喷管总体使用寿命达到最大。      

Effect of floor cooling on performance of lactating sows during summer

Forty Landrace × Large White lactating sows were used to evaluate the effects of cooling of the floor when maintained under high temperature conditions during summer on their productive and reproductive performance. The sows were allocated in a completely randomized design with two treatments with 20 replicates according to parity number and body weight, with each animal being considered an experimental unit. The treatments consisted of cooling of the floor under the sow with water circulation at about 17 °C and no cooling. The resulting temperatures of the floor were 27.6 and 35.8 °C for the cooled and the control treatments, respectively. The sows from both treatments were exposed to average maximum and minimum environmental temperatures of 26.9 and 20.8 °C, respectively. Sows maintained on a cooled floor had a higher feed intake (6.47 vs. 5.61 kg/day; P < 0.01). Despite this higher intake, sows maintained on a cooled floor had higher body weight and body protein losses during the lactation period (P < 0.01) in connection with a higher milk yield and subsequent growth of the litter (2280 vs. 1798 g/day; P < 0.01). There was an effect of treatment on rectal temperature, surface temperatures and respiratory rate (P < 0.01) with lower values in sows submitted to floor cooling. It is concluded that floor cooling under the lactating sow improves its productive and reproductive performance, as well as the performance of its litter.     

The effects of cooling and vitrification of embryos from mares treated with equine follicle-stimulating hormone on pregnancy rates after nonsurgical transfer

Equine embryos can remain viable for 12 to 24 hours when cooled and stored at 5°C.¹ Cryopreservation of embryos would allow for long-term preservation of genetic material and more efficient management of embryo recipients. This study compared pregnancy rates after transfer of equine embryos vitrified within 1 hour of collection or cooled for 12 to 19 hours before vitrification. Mares (N = 40) were superovulated using equine follicle-stimulating hormone (eFSH). Embryos were recovered 6.5 days after ovulation or 8 days after human chorionic gonadotropin. Forty morulae or early blastocysts with a grade of 1 to 2 and <300 mm in diameter were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 treatments: Group 1 (n = 20), washed 4 times in a commercial holding medium and then vitrified; Group 2 (n = 20), washed 3 times and then stored in the same holding medium at 5°C to 8°C in a passive cooling device for 12 to 19 hours before being vitrified. To thaw, embryos were warmed by holding the straw in air at room temperature for 10 seconds and then submerged in a water bath (20°C to 22°C) for an additional 10 seconds. The contents of the straw were transferred directly into a recipient that had ovulated 4 to 6 days previously. There were no differences (P > .05) in embryo diameter, grade, or morphology score between treatment groups before vitrification. Pregnancy rates (day 16) were not different (P > .05) between embryos vitrified immediately after collection (15 of 20; 75%) and embryos cooled for 12 to 19 hours before vitrification (13 of 20; 65%). Based on these results, small equine embryos (<300 mm) can be stored at 5°C to 8°C for 12 to 19 hours before vitrification without a significant loss of viability.     

草地螟滞育和非滞育幼虫抗寒能力的研究

对草地螟幼虫过冷却点和冰点测定的结果表明,光照、温度、幼虫滞育的深度以及虫体含水量均可以影响草地螟幼虫的抗寒能力。长光照(16 h)条件下发育成的非滞育幼虫过冷却点、冰点均显著低于短光照(10 h)发育而成的滞育幼虫;无论是非滞育幼虫还是滞育幼虫,经低温处理后抗寒能力都会上升。经4℃处理1 d的非滞育幼虫冰点为-2.28℃,而处理25 d的则降低到-4.76℃,过冷却点可从-13.97℃降低到-21.47℃;经4℃处理25、35 d的滞育幼虫,其过冷却点分别为-25.82、-26.79℃,冰点分别为-5.59-、9.13℃。滞育幼虫的过冷却点、冰点与其体重不相关,但与其体内的含水量显著相关。     

水轮机顶盖取水的应用及分析

根据已有的使用情况，从水轮机顶盖取水作为机组技术供水源存在着一些问题，为此，从止漏环间隙及顶盖取水的水量和水压，顶盖取水管和稳压池的布置，顶盖取水的运行方式及注意事项等方面，探讨了中小型水轮机从顶盖取冷却水的可行性、经济效益及注意事项。     

湿垫内“水─气”间热质交换过程的理论分析

为完善湿垫风机系统在农业建筑夏季蒸发冷却中的应用，研究了湿垫冷却装置在喷淋水完全蒸发条件下的热质交换特征，经理论推导给出了确定喷淋水量及湿垫合理参数的计算式。     

Exertional heat illness in Thoroughbred racehorses – Pathophysiology,case definition and treatment rationale

The combination of extreme heat, humidity and strenuous exercise is potentially challenging to the thermoregulatory system of a Thoroughbred racehorse, and under certain circumstances can cause a condition called exertional heat illness (EHI). It is difficult to predict its occurrence in an individual animal due to the combination on race day of extrinsic and intrinsic risk factors. Education regarding EHI is essential to its prevention, and lack of understanding amongst those responsible for the horse’s care may in fact be the most important risk factor. The pathophysiology of EHI is similar across elite athletic species and is directly related to an elevation in core body temperature that exceeds the ‘critical thermal maximum’, causing widespread destruction of cells. It is not only the high core temperature but also its duration that will dictate outcome. Treatment strategies should decrease the hyperthermia to near normal levels within 30 min of onset, which will minimise adverse consequences. This review article outlines the pathophysiological changes as EHI progresses, and the case definition at each emergent level. Pharmacological treatment strategies and their rationale are presented. Aggressive cooling, however, is the key treatment and requires a technique which is both practical and effective in rapidly reducing core body temperature. The treatment paradigm is early detection, rapid assessment enabling prioritisation of individuals and aggressive cooling. Each stage is critically discussed.     

Mass propagation method from the cutting of three dipterocarp species

We developed a vegetative propagation system for mass-producing three dipterocarps species,Shorea selanica Bl.,Shorea leprosula Mig., andShorea platyclados Sloot. This system uses fog evaporative cooling inside a greenhouse to reduce the leaf-to-air vapor pressure deficit (leaf-to-air VPD) inside the propagator, even under high irradiance conditions. This cooling method has no negative influence on medium conditions such as overwetting. A plastic tent propagator combined with this cooling method was used for vegetative propagation experiments. In mass-production experiments, the annual rooting percentages from the cuttings were low in the first 2 years (1997–1998) due to operational problems of the tent propagator (S. selanica, 48–51%;S. leprosula, 56–59%;S. platyclados: 50–63%). A hard cover propagator improved the rooting percentages in the mass-production experiments in 1999 because it made operations easier (S. selanica, 70%;S. leprosula, 77%;S. platyclados, 77%). This system, which uses a combination of fog evaporative cooling and a hard plastic propagator, should be useful for the mass propagation of these dipterocarp planting stocks. This study was carried out under a joint project of the Ministry of Forestry, Indonesia and Komatsu Ltd. The project was supported by Research Association for Reforestation of Tropical Forest (RETROF) organized by Japanese Forestry Agency.     

清远枢纽二线船闸混凝土通水冷却智能控制

水管通水冷却是大体积混凝土温度控制最常采取的施工温控措施之一,人工操作劳动强度大,成本高。针对船闸结构混凝土温控特点,依据有关规范和借鉴地下水工衬砌混凝土通水冷却智能控制经验,确定了结构混凝土通水冷却智能控制3个参数(通水时间、冷却水温和温降速率),提出了内部温度曲线控制目标和智能控制技术方法,并配套研制了智能化控制设备,在清远二线船闸上闸首底板实践应用。试验结果证明闸首底板混凝土内部最高温度、温降速率全部控制在允许值范围内,全面验证了“温升阶段全时通水降低最高温度、温降阶段间歇性通水控制流量和温降速率”以及终止通水冷却时间控制等技术方法的科学性、适用性,且该智能控制设备操作简便、性能可靠。