In situ hyperspectral data analysis for pigment content estimation of rice leaves

Analyses of the correlation between hyperspectral reflectance and pigment content including chlorephyll-a, chlorephyll-b and carotenoid of leaves in different sites of rice were reported in this paper. The hyperspectral reflectance of late rice during the whole growing season was measured using a Spectroradiometer with spectral range of 350 - 1050 nm and resolution of 3 nm. The chlorophyll-a, chlorephyll-b and carotenoid contents in rice leaves in rice fields to which different levels of nitrogen were applied were measured. The chlorephyll-a content of upper leaves was well correlated with the spectral variables. However, the correlation between both chlorephyll-b and careteniod and the spectral variables was far from that of chlorophyll-a. The potential of hyperspectral reflectance measurement for estimating chlorophyll-a of upper leaves was evaluated using univariate correlation and multivariate regression analysis methods with different types of predictors. This study showed that the most suitable estimated model of chlorephyll-a of upper leaves was obtained by using some hyperspectral variables such as SDr , SDb and their integration.     

Effect of Flower Removal on Senescence and Metabolism of Faba Bean(Vicia Faba L.)

In pot experiments at Xichang,China,during 1989～1994,visual senescencesymptoms and associated changes in constituent contents and activities of leaves of fababean(Vicia faba L.)were compared in respones to flower removal.The leaves from upper,middle and lower positions were sampled six times during reproductive developmentphase.At 70 DAP flower removal had caused 37%～189% and 82%～197% increase ofgreen leaf area and green leaf dry weight per plant respectively.Flower removal led to asignificant increase in the chlorophyll,soluble sugar and protein contents and the catalaseactivity.The leaf cell relative electroconductivity of those plants was maintained at a lowerlevel,relative to the control,during the late growing stage.These results certainly impliedthat the leaves of flower removal plants were still fully functional at a very late growingstage,consequently the plants increased many new branches per plant.     

Effect of decarburization annealing temperature and time on the carbon content,microstructure, and texture of grain-oriented pure iron

In this study, the effect of decarburization annealing temperature and time on the carbon content, microstructure, and texture of grain-oriented pure iron was investigated by optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy with electron-backscatter diffraction. The results showed that the efficiency of decarburization dramatically increased with increasing decarburization temperature. However, when the annealing temperature was increased to 825℃ and 850℃, the steel's carbon content remained essentially unchanged at 0.002%. With increasing decarburization time, the steel's carbon content generally decreased. When both the decarburization temperature and time were increased further, the average grain size dramatically increased and the number of fine grains decreased; meanwhile, some relatively larger grains developed. The main texture types of the decarburized sheets were approximately the same:{001}<110> and {112~115}<110>, with a γ-fiber texture. Furthermore, little change was observed in the texture. Compared with the experimental sheets, the texture of the cold-rolled sheet was very scattered. The best average magnetic induction (B₈₀₀) among the final products was 1.946 T.     

Effect of decarburization annealing temperature and time on the carbon content,microstructure,and texture of grain-oriented pure iron

In this study,the effect of decarburization annealing temperature and time on the carbon content,microstructure,and texture of grain-oriented pure iron was investigated by optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy with electron-backscatter diffraction. The results showed that the efficiency of decarburization dramatically increased with increasing decarburization temperature. However,when the annealing temperature was increased to 825°C and 850°C,the steel's carbon content remained essentially unchanged at 0.002%. With increasing decarburization time,the steel's carbon content generally decreased. When both the decarburization temperature and time were increased further,the average grain size dramatically increased and the number of fine grains decreased; meanwhile,some relatively larger grains developed. The main texture types of the decarburized sheets were approximately the same: {001}110 and {112~115}110,with a γ-fiber texture. Furthermore,little change was observed in the texture. Compared with the experimental sheets,the texture of the cold-rolled sheet was very scattered. The best average magnetic induction(B_(800)) among the final products was 1.946 T.     

Comprehensive eco-environmental effects of the shelter-forest ecological engineering along the Tarim Desert Highway

In this work, we report a comprehensive study about the eco-environmental effects of the shelter forest along the Tarim Desert Highway, including the effects on aeolian environment, soil, micro-climate, biodiversity, and groundwater. The results show that: (1) The movement of windblown sand near the ground surface was affected by the shelter forest. The wind speed and sediment transport rate in the shelter forest decreased by 64%―80% and 87.45%―99.02%, respectively. In addition, there were also significant changes in the sand flux structure, the sand grain size, and the deflation and deposition on the ground surface. (2) Compared to the natural mobile sand, the soil bulk density in the forest area decreased while the total salt content, the total porosity, and the water content increased. In addition, the soil fertility was significantly improved in the forest area, and showed the "first rapid, then slow" variation pattern. (3) The shelter forest showed positive effects on the micro-climate. Within the 6 m height above the ground, the air temperature in the shelter forest at different heights was lower than that in the mobile sand, while the air humidity was higher, while, the soil temperature was also lower in the shelter forest than mobile sand. (4) The number of soil microbial species increased significantly with the improvement of habitat in the shelterbelt. However, the population of different species was not distributed evenly across the surveyed area. (5) Currently, no significant effects of groundwater-pumping and forest-irrigation water have been found on the groundwater level and its salinity. The variation amplitude of both groundwater level and salinity was at the level of centimeters and 1g/L, respectively. No obvious variation trend has been observed.     

Erosion-corrosion behavior of SAF3207 hyper-duplex stainless steel

Polarization curves and mass losses of SAF3207 hyper-duplex stainless steel under various conditions were measured. The damaged surfaces after erosion-corrosion tests were characterized by scanning electron microscopy. The results showed that an increase in flow velocity could enhance the electrochemical corrosion and consequently decrease the passivation properties of the steel. The erosion-corrosion damage of the samples increased substantially when the flow velocity exceeded the critical value of 4 m·s-1. The mass loss rate increased as the sand content increased, reaching a maximum at 7wt% sand content, corresponding to the most severe electrochemical corrosion damage. When the sand content was increased further, however, the mass loss rate decreased and then tended stable. The mass loss was divided into incubation, sustained, and stationary periods, with a maximum mass loss rate of 12.97 g·h-1·m-2 after an erosion period of 2.5 h. The erosion-corrosion mechanism was investigated in detail.     

Effect of microstructure on the breakage of tin bronze machining chips during pulverization via jet milling

In this study, jet milling was used to recycle tin bronze machining chips into powder. The main purpose of this study was to assess the effect of the microstructure of tin bronze machining chips on their breakage behavior. An experimental target jet mill was used to pulverize machining chips of three different tin bronze alloys containing 7wt%, 10wt%, and 12wt% of tin. Optical and electron microscopy, as well as sieve analysis, were used to follow the trend of pulverization. Each alloy exhibited a distinct rate of size reduction, particle size distribution, and fracture surface appearance. The results showed that the degree of pulverization substantially increased with increasing tin content. This behavior was attributed to the higher number of machining cracks as well as the increased volume fraction of brittle δ phase in the alloys with higher tin contents. The δ phase was observed to strongly influence the creation of machining cracks as well as the nucleation and propagation of cracks during jet milling. In addition, a direct relationship was observed between the mean δ-phase spacing and the mean size of the jet-milled product; i.e., a decrease in the δ-phase spacing resulted in smaller particles.     

Mitochondrial cytochrome b sequence variations and phylogeny of the East Asian bagrid catfishes

The mitochondrial DNA cytochrome b gene was sequenced from 8 bagrid catfishes in China. Aligned with cytochrome b sequences from 9 bagrid catfishes in Japan, Korea and Russia retrieved from GenBank, and selected Silurus meridionalis, Liobagrus anguillicauda, Liobagrus reini and Phenacogrammus interruptus as outgroups, we constructed a matrix of 21 DNA sequences. The Kimura's two-parameter distances were calculated and molecular phylogenetic trees were constructed by using the maximum parsimony (MP) and neighbor-joining (NJ) methods. The results show that (i) there exist 3-bp deletions of mitochondrial cytochrome b gene compared with cypriniforms and characiforms; (ii) the molecular phylogenetic tree suggests that bagrid catfishes form a monophyletic group, and the genus Mystus is the earliest divergent in the East Asian bagrid catfishes, as well as the genus Pseudobagrus is a monophyletic group but the genus Pelteobagrus and Leiocassis are complicated; and (iii) the evolution rate of the East Asian bagrids mitochondrial cytochrome b gene is about 0.18%～0.30% sequence divergence per million years.     

Influence of moisture on the growth and biomass allocation in Haloxylon ammodendron and Tamarix ramosissima seedlings in the shelterbelt along the Tarim Desert Highway,Xinjiang, China

The authors studied the effects using three different levels of irrigation on the growth and biomass allocation in H. ammodendron and T. ramosissima seedlings in the shelterbelt along the Tarim Desert Highway. The three irrigation amounts were 35 (CK), 24.5 (treatment 1), and 14 (treatment 2) kg·ind. plant-1·once-1, respectively. The results show that (1) the vertical depth of the two seedlings’ root increased with lower levels of irrigation showing that the two species adapted to decreased irrigation by root elongation in the hinterland of the Taklimakan Desert, and the vertical root depth of H. ammodendron under treatment 2 was notably higher than CK. (2) Compared with CK, the belowground biomass of treatment 1 and 2 both showed a significant increase as follows: H. ammodendron seedlings in- creased by 14.51% and 37.03% under treatment 1 and 2, respectively, while T. ramosissima seedlings increased by 68.19% and 25.78% under treatment 1 and 2, respectively. This means that H. ammoden- dron seedlings were more adapted to the conditions in treatment 2 while T. ramosissima seedlings were better adapted to treatment 1 conditions. (3) When compared with CK, the fine root bomass of these two species all exhibited some increase under both treatments, and ANOVA analysis showed that the biomass of deep layer root of the two species under treatment 2 was notably higher than CK and treatment 1. This should help seedlings to more effectively absorb soil water from deep layers during dry conditions. (4) The root-shoot ratio was different for these two species. For H. ammodendron seed- lings, the root-shoot ratio was less than 1, while for T. ramosissim seedlings it was larger than 1. The root-shoot ratio of H. ammodendron seedlings increased with decreasing levels of irrigation, and that of T. ramosissim seedlings also increased under treatment 2. (5) With decreasing levels of irrigation, due to the difference of species, the growth variation of aboveground indexes was also different, while compared with CK, it was not     

Selection of adaptive grass and frutex and their planting benefits in the arid-hot valleys of Yuanmou

In view of the environment character of the soil and content of the soil organic carbon, 278 species of grass and frutex were introduced from abroad and China, Some were selected by applied production and plantation benefit investigations. The results showed that： In the arid-hot valleys of Yuanmou the selected species showed the characteristics of fast growth and high yield （38 227.00 kg/hm2）, high nutrition value （CP% content of legu- minous grass and frutex were 22.47%）, as well as the strong ad- versity resistance to high air temperature and arid climate （soil humidity was 3.4%）. The selected species not only effectively meliorated soil and increased fertility, but also improved small environment weather.     

Spheroidization of silica powders by radio frequency inductively coupled plasma with Ar-H2 and Ar-N2 as the sheath gases at atmospheric pressu

Amorphous spherical silica powders were prepared by inductively coupled thermal plasma treatment at a radio frequency of 36.2 MHz. The effects of the added content of hydrogen and nitrogen into argon (serving as the sheath gas), as well as the carrier gas flow rate, on the spheroidization rate of silica powders, were investigated. The prepared silica powders before and after plasma treatment were examined by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and laser granulometric analysis. Results indicated that the average size of the silica particles increased, and the transformation of crystals into the amorphous state occurred after plasma treatment. Discharge image processing was employed to analyze the effect of the plasma temperature field on the spheroidization rate. The spheroidization rate of the silica powder increased with the increase of the hydrogen content in the sheath gas. On the other hand, the spheroidization rate of the silica power first increased and then decreased with the increase of the nitrogen content in the sheath gas. Moreover, the amorphous content increased with the increase of the spheroidization rate of the silica powder.     

Rapid cooling effect during solidification on macro-and micro-segregation of as-cast Mg–Gd alloy

The high performance of as-cast Mg-RE alloys is always related to their high RE additions.However,RE elements can be readily segregated in Mg alloys and the segregation becomes more significant with the increasing RE content.In this research,the effect of cooling rate on the macro-and micro-segregation in the as-cast Mg-8 Gd alloy was studied.The Gd content at the bottom of the fabricated ingot with the cooling rate of 4.6-6.9℃/s was～1.7 times of that at the top and coarse eutectics as well as some non-equilibrium phases of α-Gd,MgGd,Mg_2 Gd were distributed along the grain boundaries.The formation mechanisms of the specific gravity segregation and grain boundary segregation were also proposed.Upon the application of the water-cooled copper mold with the cooling rate of 27-200℃/s,only fine Mg5 Gd and some nanoscale metastable β_1 and β' phases were found to disperse uniformly in the grain interior,thus the homogeneity of the composition,microstructure,and performance within the whole ingot was considerably improved.It is expected that these results will facilitate the processing design for the fabrication of the highly-homogenized Mg-RE alloy castings.     

Removal of NO<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript> by radical injection

Removal of NOx(DeNOx, NOx is the total of NO and NO2) from flue gas by radical injection has been investigated .the discharge characteristics were examined and the steady streamer corona was acquired hy adjusting the nozzle gases properly. It was Found that an increase in the voltage resulted in a decrease in the NO concentration and the concentration of the NO2 increased at tow voltages but decreased as the voltage rose to a certain level. The DeNOx efficiency increased as the applied voltage rose and reached a maximum of 70% when the voltage approached the breakdown voltage. The hypothetical mechanism of NOx removal suggested that the radicals formed in the discharge process converted the NO and NO2 into acidic species. The Monte Carlo method was used to calculate the rate coefficients and the productivity of the radicals, and then the concentrations of both NO and NO2 and the DeNOx effielencies were calculated with chemical kinetics. The calculated DeNOx efficiencies were coalparable with the experimental DeNOx efficiencies at low voltages, but were lower at high voltages.     

Effect of ash on coal structure and combustibility

Four bituminous coals and one anthracite were used in this study. On the basis of the similar volatile matter contents of the four bituminous coals, the effects of ash in coal on the microstructure, carbonaceous structure, and chemical composition of pulverized coal were studied. Thermogravimetric analysis was used to study the effect of the addition of anthracite on the combustibility of four different bituminous coals. The results showed that with the increase of ash content in pulverized coal, the microstructure of carbon particles in coal was not much different. However, the analysis results of Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction pattern showed that as the ash content increased, the degree of graphitization of coal carbonaceous structure gradually decreased. The combustibility of the four bituminous coals were better than that of the anthracite. When bituminous coal and anthracite were mixed and burned, the combustibility of the mixed sample decreased as the ash content increased.     

Selection and development of representative simple sequence repeat primers and multiplex SSR sets for high throughput automated genotyping in maize

In the current study, 1900 maize simple sequence repeat (SSR) primers published in MaizeGDB were screened utilizing reference literature, 15 representative Chinese maize inbred lines and 15 Chinese maize hybrids from national regional testing. In total, 500 highly polymorphic primers were identified and used to construct a genetic map. 100 evenly distributed primers, 10 primers per chromosome, were further selected as a set of universal SSR core primers, recommended as preferred primers for general studies. These core primers were then redesigned and used to construct a high throughput multiplex PCR system based on a five-color fluorescence capillary detection system. We report here that two sets of ten-plex PCR combinations have been constructed, each consisting of 10 primers, with one primer per chromosome.     

Accumulation and distribution of arsenic and cadmium by tea plants

It is important to research the rules about accumulation and distribution of arsenic and cadmium by tea plants, which will give us some scientific ideas about how to control the contents of arsenic and cadmium in tea. In this study, by field investigation and pot trial, we found that mobility of arsenic and cadmium in tea plants was low. Most arsenic and cadmium absorbed were fixed in feeding roots and only small amount was transported to the above-ground parts. Distribution of arsenic and cadmium, based on their concentrations of unit dry matter, in tea plants grown on un-contaminated soil was in the order： feeding roots〉stems=main roots〉old leaves〉young leaves. When tea plants were grown on polluted soils simulated by adding salts of these two metals, feeding roots possibly acted as a buffer and defense, and arsenic and cadmium were transported less to the aboveground parts. The concentration of cadmium in soil significantly and negatively correlated with chlorophyll content, photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate and biomass production of tea plants.     

Determination of Dimethylallylamine by Titration in Nonaqueous Solvent

The content of dimethylallylamine was determined using glacial acetic acid as solvent, acetic-formic mixture as an anhydrite, perchloric acid-glacial acetic acid as titrant, and 1% crystal violet in acetic acid as indicator in the presence of methylamine and dimethylamine The influences of inert constituents and water on the titration were investigated, and a complete analytical method was determined. The results showed that the determination error of total amines increased with water increasing, while the effect of water on the determination of dimethylallylamine was little when the amount of water was within 5%, the relative error was generally within 1%, and that the end-point was acutely when about 10% chloroform was added. Compared with gas chromatography, this method is simple, convenient and accurate.     

Analysis on water potential of Populus euphratica oliv and its meaning in the lower reaches of Tarim River,Xinjiang

Combined with materials measured on leaves water potential of Populus euphratica oliv in the process of ecological water delivery in the lower reaches of Tarim River, the influence of ground-water depths and soil salinity on leaves water potential of P. euphratica was analyzed. We found that there was evident negative correlation between the leaves water potential of P. euphratica and ground-water depths. The deeper the ground-water depths were, the lower the leaves water potential of P. euphratica was, the more serious drought stress P. euphratica suffered from. Besides, there was evident negative correlation between the soil salinity and the leaves water potential of P. euphratica. The bigger the soil salinity was, the lower the leaves water potential of P euphratica was, the more serious drought stress was indicated from which P. euphratica suffered. For sections rather distant for Daxihaizi Reservoir as well as for those places of wells rather distant from the river course, ground-water depths and the soil salinity were high; the leaves water potential of P. euphratica was low. The leaves water potential of P. euphratica can reflect the degree at which P. euphratica suffers from drought and salt stress, and has an important reference meaning in analyzing proper ground-water depths for the survival and growth of P. euphratic in the lower reaches of Tarim River.     

Analyzing Nonstationary Random Response of a SDOF System under the Evolutionary Random Excitation by Wavelet Transform

For evolutionary random excitations, a general method of analyzing nonstationary random responses of systems was presented in this paper. Firstly, for the evolutionary random excitation model, the evolutionary power spectrum density function （EPSD） of a random excitation was given by wavelet transform. Based on the EPSD, the nonstationary responses of a SDOF system subjected to evolutionary random excitations were studied. The application and validity of presented method were illustrated by numerical examples. In numerical examples, the recently developed stochastic models for El Centro （1934） and Mexico City （1985） earthquakes which preserve the nonstationary evolutions of amplitude and frequency content of ground accelerations were used as excitations. The nonstationary random mean-square responses of a SDOF system under these two excitations were evaluated and compared with simulated results.