Search results for "Forestry"
showing 10 items of 1998 documents
Combustion properties of spruce black liquor droplets : Sulfur-free pulping and influence of hot-water pretreatment
2016
Hot-water pretreatment of lignocellulosics prior to sulfur-free alkaline pulping is an interesting approach for recovering value-added carbohydrate- and lignin-derived materials. This paper investigated the chemical composition variations and combustion properties of the black liquors (BLs) from three different cooking processes: two sulfur-free soda-anthraquinone (soda-AQ) and oxygen-alkali (O2-NaOH) cooks and kraft cook, before and after hot-water pretreatment of the spruce sawdust. Relatively less aliphatic acids but more lignin were present in the BLs after hot-water pretreatment as cooking time prolonged. In general, the burning time decreased as follows: soda-AQ BL > O2-NaOH BL ≅ kraf…
Salmo salar fish waste oil: Fatty acids composition and antibacterial activity
2020
Background and aims Fish by-products are generally used to produce fishmeal or fertilizers, with fish oil as a by-product. Despite their importance, fish wastes are still poorly explored and characterized and more studies are needed to reveal their potentiality. The goal of the present study was to qualitatively characterize and investigate the antimicrobial effects of the fish oil extracted from Salmo salar waste samples and to evaluate the potential use of these compounds for treating pathogen infections. Methods Salmo salar waste samples were divided in two groups: heads and soft tissues. Fatty acids composition, and in particular the content in saturated (SAFAs), mono-unsaturated (MUFA…
New technique for measuring water depth in rill channels
2019
Abstract Water erosion is one of the most important soil degradation processes and rill erosion contribution to total soil loss is usually dominant as compared to interrill erosion. Rill erosion modelling requires that rill flow has to be adequately modelled. Flow depths in rills are typically of the order of millimeters to several centimeters and bed topography, characterized by steep slope values, significantly affects flow hydraulics. In this paper, a new technique for measuring the water depth inside a rill channel is proposed and the effects on flow resistance estimate are examined. This technique couples an accurate ground survey of the rill channel, obtained by close-range photogramm…
The significance of soils and soil science towards realization of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
2016
Abstract. In this forum paper we discuss how soil scientists can help to reach the recently adopted UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the most effective manner. Soil science, as a land-related discipline, has important links to several of the SDGs, which are demonstrated through the functions of soils and the ecosystem services that are linked to those functions (see graphical abstract in the Supplement). We explore and discuss how soil scientists can rise to the challenge both internally, in terms of our procedures and practices, and externally, in terms of our relations with colleague scientists in other disciplines, diverse groups of stakeholders and the policy arena. To meet th…
Effectiveness of cover crops to reduce loss of soil organic matter in a rainfed vineyard
2020
Cover crops (CCs) minimize the loss of soil in permanent cropping systems where the soil is usually bare due to intense tillage or overuse of herbicides. The topsoil, the richer layer in soil organic carbon and organic matter (OM), is affected by water erosion. Nature-based solutions appear as a suitable option for sustainable farming. In this study, the effectiveness of two years of CC management to reduce the OM loss is evaluated in a rainfed vineyard in a rolling landscape (Huesca, NE Spain). Two sediment traps collected runoff over 15 months. Topsoil OM contents (1.64% and 1.60%) and sediment/soil OM enrichment ratio (2.61 and 3.07) were similar. However, the average annual rate of OM l…
Using Beerkan experiments to estimate hydraulic conductivity of a crusted loamy soil in a Mediterranean vineyard
2019
Abstract In bare soils of semi-arid areas, surface crusting is a rather common phenomenon due to the impact of raindrops. Water infiltration measurements under ponding conditions are becoming largely applied techniques for an approximate characterization of crusted soils. In this study, the impact of crusting on soil hydraulic conductivity was assessed in a Mediterranean vineyard (western Sicily, Italy) under conventional tillage. The BEST (Beerkan Estimation of Soil Transfer parameters) algorithm was applied to the infiltration data to obtain the hydraulic conductivity of crusted and uncrusted soils. Soil hydraulic conductivity was found to vary during the year and also spatially (i.e., ro…
Connectivity in hydrology and sediment dynamics
2020
Connectivity has emerged as a significant conceptual framework for understanding the transfer of surface water and sediment through landscapes. The concept has been widely adopted in the field of catchment hydrology but has also been valuable to investigate rates of soil erosion by water and sediment export across landscapes. To study connectivity, we gathered a group of scientists that worked on synthesizing and consolidating all theories and aspects of connectivity research. Within the EU-funded ESSEM COST Action CONNECTEUR (ES1306), five working groups were established: (a) theory, (b) measuring, (c) modelling, (d) indices, and (e) society. One of the outputs of this COST Action is this …
Runoff Generation in Badlands
2019
Capítulo 5.
A review of preferential water flow in soil science
2018
A better understanding of preferential water flow is important because water-related crises, i.e., water scarcity and security, are strongly associated with water retention rates in different landscapes. This review aims to evaluate significant advances in the main themes of preferential water flow to establish the inconsistent roles of preferential water flow in eco-hydrology and suggest promising areas for future work. Results showed that preferential water flow studies have made significant advances in our understanding of certain parameters functioning at multiple scales but that most studies focus on preferential water flow in the vadose zone, whereas few studies on the soil surface. …
Unsaturated Soil Hydraulic Properties
2016
In the first part of this chapter, the tension infiltrometer (TI) technique is illustrated. After having described apparatus and instruments as well as the operative procedures in the field, the solutions based on the Wooding’s equation for steady-state flow are presented. Specific focus is given to the multi-potential approaches that allow determination of unsaturated soil hydraulic conductivity, K 0, corresponding to a sequence of pressure head values, h 0, imposed on the soil surface. The analytical model proposed by Haverkamp et al. (1994) to describe three-dimensional transient infiltration from a circular source is introduced and a single-test approach is presented that allows estimat…