4 Material und Umwelt
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- 2018 (53) (entfernen)
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- Zeitschriftenartikel (53) (entfernen)
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- Englisch (43)
- Deutsch (8)
- Chinesisch (2)
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- Archaeometry (5)
- Inks (4)
- Non-destructive testing (4)
- Bacteria (3)
- Fungi (3)
- Bioinformatics (2)
- Corrosion evolution (2)
- Disposal repository (2)
- Holzschutz (2)
- Immunity (2)
Organisationseinheit der BAM
- 4 Material und Umwelt (53)
- 4.1 Biologische Materialschädigung und Referenzorganismen (21)
- 4.0 Abteilungsleitung und andere (11)
- 4.3 Schadstofftransfer und Umwelttechnologien (8)
- 4.5 Kunst- und Kulturgutanalyse (7)
- 4.4 Thermochemische Reststoffbehandlung und Wertstoffrückgewinnung (6)
- 6 Materialchemie (5)
- 1 Analytische Chemie; Referenzmaterialien (4)
- 4.2 Material-Mikrobiom Wechselwirkungen (4)
- 1.7 Organische Spuren- und Lebensmittelanalytik (3)
This work presents the non-destructive spectroscopic characterisation of original Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS)parchment fragments from Ronald Reed collection. The fragments are of paramount importance becausethey have never been subjected to any treatment of preservation and restoration, this allows to investi-gate the manufacturing method of real original Jewish parchments. The manufacture of “sacred” Jewishparchments, in fact, is traditionally supposed to use a superficial tannin treatment. To study the DSS frag-ments, it was necessary both to analyse mock-up samples, especially manufactured in order to reproduceancient Oriental Jewish ritual parchments, and to compare the results with those obtained in the analysisof modern and ancient Western Jewish ritual parchments, in order to test the effectiveness of the selectedspectroscopic techniques. Traditionally, the main difference between Oriental and Western traditionalparchment preparation consisted in the dehairing method: enzymatic for Oriental and lime-based forWestern. Moreover, a finishing treatment with tannin was supposed to be applied on ritual Jewish parch-ments. The need of reference samples derives from the knowledge that each parchment preparation,treatment and degradation can induce structural modifications that affect the spectral features. FourierTransform Infrared Spectroscopy by Attenuated Total Reflection (ATR-FTIR), FT-Raman and m-Ramanwere used in this study. The experimental results allowed us to recognise, with different sensitivity, thepresence of tannin by using m-Raman and IR spectroscopies and to prove that not all the archaeologicalsamples were manufactured in the same way with vegetal extracts. Many salts (tschermigite, dolomite,calcite, gypsum and iron carbonate) were found on the surface of DSS fragments. They can derive fromthe degradation processes and storage environment before the discovery or from the manufacture. More-over, the different sensitivities and instrumental characteristics of the used techniques permitted us toestablish an analytical protocol, useful for further studies of similar materials.
Jährlich entstehen in Brasilien ca. 2 bis 10 Millionen Tonnen Aschen aus der Verbrennung von Zuckerrohrbagasse. Die Aschen enthalten schwankende Zusammensetzungen an mineralischen Nährelementen und könnten daher zu Düngezwecken verwendet werden.
Allerdings ist (i) die Nährstoffverfügbarkeit gering, (ii), die entsprechende Nährstoffzusammensetzung nicht optimal für die Nutzung der Aschen als Düngemittel für die Hauptanbaukulturen in Brasilien und (iii) weisen die Aschen aufgrund häufig schlechter Verbrennungsqualitäten hohe organische Kohlenstoffgehalte auf. Im Rahmen des Forschungsprojekts ASHES („Rückführung von Nährstoffen aus Aschen von thermochemischen Prozessen mit Bagasse bzw. Zuckerrohrstroh“), arbeiten 7 deutsche und 4 brasilianische Partner an der Optimierung der thermochemischen Verwertung von Rückständen aus der Zuckerproduktion in Brasilien, inklusive der Formulierung von optimierten Düngemischungen auf Basis der generierten Aschen. In dieser Veröffentlichung wird die Verarbeitung dieser optimierten Mischungen zu Pellets und Granulaten unter Verwendung verfügbarer regionaler Reststoffe wie Filterkuchen (Vinasse-Presskuchen) sowie Hühnertrockenkot beschrieben. Zur Untersuchung der Handlingeigenschaften wurden die produzierten Pellets und Granulate hinsichtlich ihrer mechanischen Stabilität und des Wasseraufnahmevermögens untersucht. Dafür wurden geeignete Prüfverfahren angepasst und entsprechende Versuche durchgeführt.
Test methods for efficacy assessment of antimicrobial coatings are not modelled on a hospital environment, and instead use high humidity (>90%) high temperature (37 ◦C), and no airflow. Therefore, an inoculum will not dry, resulting in an antimicrobial surface exhibiting prolonged antimicrobial activity, as moisture is critical to activity. Liquids will dry quicker in a hospital ward, resulting in a reduced antimicrobial efficacy compared to the existing test, rendering the test results artificially favourable to the antimicrobial claim of the product. This study aimed to assess how hospital room environmental conditions can affect the drying time of an inoculum, and to use this data to inform test parameters for antimicrobial efficacy testing based on the hospital ward. The drying time of different droplet sizes, in a range of environmental conditions likely found in a hospital ward, were recorded (n = 630), and used to create a model to inform users of the experimental conditions required to provide a drying time similar to what can be expected in the hospital
ward. Drying time data demonstrated significant (p < 0.05) variance when humidity, temperature, and airflow were assessed. A mathematical model was created to select environmental conditions for in vitro antimicrobial efficacy testing. Drying time in different environmental conditions demonstrates that experimental set-ups affect the amount of time an inoculum stays wet, which in turn may affect the efficacy of an antimicrobial surface. This should be an important consideration for hospitals and other potential users, whilst future tests predict efficacy in the intended end-use environment.
Wie Länder mit ihren Abfällen umgehen, hängt nicht nur von der Wirtschaftskraft eines Landes ab. Selbst in einem reichen Land wie Australien werden unbehandelte Abfälle einfach deponiert. Im Rahmen der Travelling Conference, einer vom Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (BMBF) geförderten Vortragsreihe, besuchten Fachleute die Länder Südkorea, Vietnam und Australien, um mit Experten vor Ort Fragestellungen aus der Abfallwirtschaft zu diskutieren. Zu den Schwerpunktthemen zählte die Steigerung der Ressourceneffizienz im Spannungsfeld von ökonomischen und umweltpolitischen Interessen. Eine Frage war beispielsweise die Bewertung der Umweltverträglichkeit von mineralischen Abfällen, wenn diese als Ersatzbaustoffe eingesetzt werden. In diesem Beitrag werden Ähnlichkeiten und Unterschiede bei der Entsorgung von Siedlungsabfällen, beim Recycling und bei der Bewertung der Umweltverträglichkeit der Wiederverwertung von Abfällen in den drei besuchten Ländern im Vergleich zu Deutschland aufgezeigt. Dabei ist man sich in Deutschland und den drei besuchten Ländern einig, dass die Abfallbeseitigung auf Deponien ohne Rückgewinnung von Ressourcen oder Energie die schlechteste Abfallentsorgungsoption ist. Einigkeit besteht auch darin, dass die Ziele einer nachhaltigen Abfallwirtschaft der Schutz der menschlichen Gesundheit und der Umwelt sowie die Schonung von Ressourcen sind. In allen drei Ländern werden große Mengen an mineralischen Abfällen erzeugt, die bei Nachweis der Umweltverträglichkeit einen Teil von natürlichem Sand und Kies für die Bauindustrie ersetzen könnten. Ähnlich wie in Deutschland werden recycelte Abfälle im Tiefbau jedoch nur in geringem Maße eingesetzt. Gründe dafür sind fehlende Behandlungsanlagen für mineralische Abfälle und Bedenken im Hinblick auf die Umweltverträglichkeit.
Normativ ist der Holzschutz in Deutschland durch die DIN 68800-Reihe geregelt. Die Normungsarbeit in CEN/TC 38 bildet dafür den Rahmen, der national angepasst und fachspezifisch erweitert wurde. Zusammen mit dem Kommentar ergeben beide ein in Europa einzigartiges Regelkompendium im Holzschutz. In Zukunft wird die Regelsetzung noch stärker durch internationale Zusammenarbeit bestimmt sein. Der interkontinentalen Marktöffnung sollten Verständigungen auf gemeinsame Qualitätsstandards vorausgehen.
Long Term Temperature and Humidity Evolution Forecast in Near Field of Nuclear Waste Container
(2018)
The paper aims to simulate the corrosion environment of nuclear waste containers at different geological disposal periods to obtain temperature and humidity information at the interface between the container and the surrounding environment. The simulated data and calculation results of long term temperature evolution at the surface of nuclear waste (HLW) containers from some typical nuclear countries about the safety disposition were reviewed. Combining different burial patterns, this paper speculated the long term temperature evolution rule for China. According to the study about saturation variation of buffer/backfill material at home and abroad, the humidity evolution of bentonite at the surface of HLW containers was specu- lated. The study showed that the temperature of the container surface increased rapidly at the beginning, and gradually decreased after the climax. For safety reasons, the maximum temperature was designed below 100°C. The saturation of bentonite was af- fected by the mutual influences of the heat released by nuclear waste decay and the infiltration of groundwater. It was dominated by the released heat in the early stage, and later was influenced greatly by the infiltration of groundwater. It is generally believed that the water content at the surface of the container will increase obviously in about 3 years, and will be saturated in about 10 years. The prediction of long-term temperature and humidity evolution will lay a foundation for study of corrosion evolution of nuclear waste containers in China.
Surface environment changes of nuclear waste container, mainly including oxygen contents, buffer pore water components and pH under the conditions of “borehole” type and “In-floor” type with bentonite buffer/backfill and concrete buffer were summarized. This summarization provides a basic corrosion environment reference for the corrosion evolution re- search of high-level radioactive waste disposal repository in our country.
ABSTRACT: A collection of thioimidazolium salts were synthesized and used as a new class of nonvolatile alkylating agents. Their nonvolatility prevents exposure during use or handling and are thus drastically safer than conventional alkylating agents. We discovered that thioimidazolium Iodide salts cannot release volatile compounds in the solid state, but instead only decompose when molten. Since decomposition proceeds via alkyl iodide elimination, SN2 of iodide on the thioimidazolium cation is constrained in the solid state, and instead can occur only upon melting when ions are mobile. By smart design of these alkylators, the melting point and thus the decomposition temperature of these salts can be increased from 106 to 169 °C and release negligible volatile organic compounds prior to melting. Thioimidazolium-bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide (TFSI) ionic liquids act as a completely nonvolatile and air-stable TFSI-based alkylating agent and can be used for high-throughput Synthesis of TFSI ionic liquids without solvent. Alkyl groups from methyl to dodecyl can be transferred to a nucleophile and the product purified by sublimation of the thione byproduct, which can then be recycled. We also found that thioimidazolium salts with a dodecyl chain are bactericidal, yet can hydrolyze in water to form benign neutral products, and thus wont accumulate in the environment. These results demonstrate that thioimidazolium salts are a designable platform for the pursuit of safer and more environmentally friendly alkylating and antiseptic agents.
Microbial activity and functioning in soils are strongly limited by carbon (C) availability, of which a great proportion is released by living roots. Rhizodeposition and especially root exudates stimulate microbial activity and growth, and may shift the stoichiometric balance between C, N, and P. Thereby, exudates heighten microbial nutrient demand and acquisition of N and P from organic matter, leading to an increase in enzyme production. Aim of this study was to determine environmental controls of extracellular enzyme production, and hence on potential enzyme activities (Vmax) and substrate affinities (Km). To determine the controlling factors, we worked on four spatial scales from the microscale (i.e. rhizosphere) through the mesoscale (i.e. soil depth) and landscape scale (relief positions), and finally to the continental scale (1200 km transect within the Coastal Cordillera of Chile). Kinetics of seven hydrolyzing enzymes of the C, N, and P cycles (cellobiohydrolase, β‑glucosidase, β‑xylosidase, β‑N‑acetylglucosaminidase, leucine‑aminopeptidase, tyrosine‑aminopeptidase, and acid phosphatase) were related to soil texture, C and N contents, pH, and soil moisture via redundancy analysis (RDA). Potential activities of C, N, and P acquiring enzymes increased up to 7-times on the continental scale with rising humidity of sites and C and N contents, while substrate affinities simultaneously declined. On the landscape scale, neither Vmax nor Km of any enzyme differed between north and south slopes. From top- to subsoil (down to 120 cm depth) potential activities decreased (strongest of aminopeptidases under humid temperate conditions with up to 90%). Substrate affinities, however, increased with soil depth only for N and P acquiring enzymes. Affinities of cellobiohydrolase and β‑xylosidase, on the contrary, were 1.5- to 3-times higher in top- than in subsoil. Potential activities of N and P acquiring enzymes and β‑glucosidase increased form bulk to roots. Simultaneously, substrate affinities of N and P acquiring enzymes declined, whereas affinities of β‑glucosidase increased. These trends of activities and affinities in the rhizosphere were significant only for acid phosphatase. The RDA displayed a strong relation of potential activities of C and P acquiring enzymes and β‑N‑acetylglucosaminidase to C and N contents in soil as well as to the silt and clay contents. Aminopeptidase activity was mainly dependent on soil moisture and pH. We conclude that substrate availability for microorganisms mainly determined enzyme activity patterns on the continental scale by the humidity gradient. Patterns on the meso- and microscale are primarily controlled by nutrient limitation, which is induced by a shift of the stoichiometric balance due to input of easily available C by roots in the rhizosphere.
In a controlled growth experiment we found that the cyanobacterium Nostoc punctiforme has a bulk cell 26Mg/24Mg ratio (expressed as δ26Mg) that is −0.27‰ lower than the growth solution at a pH of ca. 5.9. This contrasts with a recently published δ26Mg value that was 0.65‰ higher than growth solution for the black fungus Knufia petricola at similar laboratory conditions, interpreted to reflect loss of 24Mg during cell growth. By a mass balance model constrained by δ26Mg in chlorophyll extract we inferred the δ26 Mg value of the main Mg compartments in a cyanobacteria cell: free cytosolic Mg (−2.64‰), chlorophyll (1.85‰), and the nonchlorophyll-bonded Mg compartments like ATP and ribosomes (−0.64‰). The lower δ26Mg found in Nostoc punctiforme would thus result from the absence of significant Mg efflux during cell growth in combination with either (a) discrimination against 26Mg during uptake by desolvation of Mg or transport across protein channels or (b) discrimination against 24Mg in the membrane transporter during efflux. The model predicts the preferential incorporation of 26Mg in cells and plant organs low in Mg and the absence of isotope fractionation in those high in Mg, corroborated by a compilation of Mg isotope ratios from fungi, bacteria, and higher plants.
In nature, the cellular environment of DNA includes not only water and ions, but also other components and co-solutes, which can exert both stabilizing and destabilizing effects on particular oligonucleotide conformations. Among them, ectoine, known as an important osmoprotectant organic co-solute in a broad range of pharmaceutical products, turns out to be of particular relevance. In this article, we study the influence of ectoine on a short single-stranded DNA fragment and on double-stranded helical B-DNA in aqueous solution by means of atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) simulations in combination with molecular theories of solution. Our results demonstrate a conformation-dependent binding behavior of ectoine, which favors the unfolded state of DNA by a combination of electrostatic and dispersion interactions. In conjunction with the Kirkwood–Buff theory, we introduce a simple Framework to compute the influence of ectoine on the DNA melting temperature. Our findings reveal a significant linear decrease of the melting temperature with increasing ectoine concentration, which is found to be in qualitative agreement with results from denaturation experiments. The outcomes of our Computer simulations provide a detailed mechanistic rationale for the surprising destabilizing influence of ectoine on distinct DNA structures.
Social insects employ a range of behaviours to protect their colonies against disease, but little is known about how such collective behaviours are orchestrated. This is especially true for the social Blattodea (termites). We developed an experimental approach that allowed us to explore how the social response to disease is co-ordinated by multistep host-pathogen interactions. We infected the eastern subterranean termite Reticulitermes flavipes with the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae, and then, at different stages of infection, reintroduced them to healthy nestmates and recorded behavioural responses. As expected, termites groomed pathogen-exposed individuals significantly more than controls; however, grooming was significantly elevated after fungal germination than before, demonstrating the importance of fungal status to hygienic behaviour. Significantly, we found that cannibalism became prevalent only after exposed termites became visibly ill, highlighting the importance of host condition as a cue for social hygienic behaviour. Our study reveals the presence of a coordinated social response to disease that depends on stage of infection. Specifically, we show how the host may play a key role in triggering its own sacrifice. Sacrificial self-flagging has been observed in other social insects: our results demonstrate that termites have independently evolved to both recognize and destructively respond to sickness.
Coastal oceans receive large amounts of anthropogenic fixed nitrogen (N), most of which is denitrified in the sediment before reaching the open ocean. Sandy sediments, which are common in coastal regions, seem to play an important role in catalysing this N‐loss. Permeable sediments are characterized by advective porewater transport, which supplies high fluxes of organic matter into the sediment, but also leads to fluctuations in oxygen and nitrate concentrations. Little is known about how the denitrifying communities in these sediments are adapted to such fluctuations. Our combined results indicate that denitrification in eutrophied sandy sediments from the world's largest tidal flat system, the Wadden Sea, is carried out by different groups of microorganisms. This segregation leads to the formation of N2O which is advectively transported to the overlying waters and thereby emitted to the atmosphere. At the same time, the production of N2O within the sediment supports a subset of Flavobacteriia which appear to be specialized on N2O reduction. If the mechanisms shown here are active in other coastal zones, then denitrification in eutrophied sandy sediments may substantially contribute to current marine N2O emissions.
Rohstoffe sind knapp. Hinzu kommt, dass auf dem Weg vom Erz zum Metall viel Energie benötigt wird, mechanische Energie beim Zerkleinern, thermische Energie beim Schmelzen oder elektrische Energie bei der Elektrolyse. Ausgedrückt als Exergie kann man die Verbräuche gut vergleichen. Die meisten technischen Prozesse sind aber vom berechneten thermodynamischen Optimum weit entfernt.
Small grain size fractions of municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) bottom ash (BA) contain elemental and chemically bonded metals in appreciable amounts, especially copper. Investigations with a centrifugal concentrator were carried out using samples, which had been treated with different impact devices. Partly the impacts of single devices were visible in outlines, but mostly the surfaces of the metals were still covered with mineral residues. To generate copper rich fractions, parameters of the separation process should ensure mass yields <2%, best between 0.5 and 1%. The density of the concentrates is then generally >3.2 g/cm3. Best results were achieved with material from a special treatment train which is adapted to grain sizes <2 mm. Reliable copper contents between 20 and 40% (single runs >50%) could be realised.
However, considering the required mass yields, referred to this subset only 150–170 g copper would be recovered from 1 Mg MSWI BA. Furthermore, this copper is only in parts present in elemental form. A
dependable added value of such treatment step seems to be given only, if that enables a recycling of the mineral aggregates (tailings) in parallel to avoid landfill costs.
Bioinformatics meets virology: The European virus bioinformatics center's second annual meeting
(2018)
The Second Annual Meeting of the European Virus Bioinformatics Center (EVBC), held in Utrecht, Netherlands, focused on computational approaches in virology, with topics including (but not limited to) virus discovery, diagnostics, (meta-)genomics, modeling, epidemiology, molecular structure, evolution, and viral ecology. The goals of the Second Annual Meeting were threefold: (i) to bring together virologists and bioinformaticians from across the academic, industrial, professional, and training sectors to share best practice; (ii) to provide a meaningful and interactive scientific environment to promote discussion and collaboration between students, postdoctoral fellows, and both new and established investigators; (iii) to inspire and suggest new research directions and questions. Approximately 120 researchers from around the world attended the Second Annual Meeting of the EVBC this year, including 15 renowned international speakers. This report presents an overview of new developments and novel research findings that emerged during the meeting.
Despite the recognized excellence of virology and bioinformatics, these two communities have interacted surprisingly sporadically, aside from some pioneering work on HIV-1 and influenza. Bringing together the Expertise of bioinformaticians and virologists is crucial, since very specific but fundamental computational approaches are required for virus research, particularly in an era of big data. Collaboration between virologists and bioinformaticians is necessary to improve existing analytical tools, cloud-based systems, computational resources, data sharing approaches, new diagnostic tools, and bioinformatic training. Here, we highlight current progress and discuss potential avenues for future developments in this promising era of virus bioinformatics. We end by presenting an overview of current technologies, and by outlining some of the Major challenges and Advantages that bioinformatics will bring to the field of virology.
The manuscript Codex germanicus 1 (Cod. germ. 1) of the Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Hamburg is a fifteenth-century German-language manuscript. It comprises two codicological units and has an especially complex developmental history. To trace this developmental history, neglected until now in the research literature, the manuscript was investigated, for the first time not solely with classical codicological and palaeographical methods, but also with the aid of X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, in order to determine the composition of the writing materials. These methods made it possible, first, to support and check palaeographic findings and, second, to gain information about the stratigraphy of the manuscript where palaeographic methods find their limits – in regard to short entries, rubrications, and non-alphabetical signs.
It is well documented that throughout Antiquity, ancient Egyptians used mostly carbon inks as a writing material. In Late Antiquity, some metals started to be added to carbon based inks. We have records of five manuscripts from the Dead Sea Scrolls collection whose carbon inks were found to contain copper Also, lead was recently found as an additive in carbon inks on a charred fragment from Herculaneum. Furthermore, the earliest evidence of iron-gall ink was found in the Book of Proverbs (Codex Ms. Berol. orient. oct. 987) dating to the third fourth centuries ce. It has been suggested that along with carbon and iron-gall inks, there is no reason to think that purely tannin inks were not also in use in Egypt. However, so far, we just have evidence of a copper-tannin ink identified in a number of documents from Egypt in the first third centuries bce. In an attempt to fill this gap in this extremely fragmented scenario during our studies of the socio-geographic history of inks, we arrived at the conclusion that the continuous production of Coptic manuscripts from Late Antiquity to the Middle Ages offers a unique opportunity for the historical study of inks across a large geographic area.
Advanced codicological studies of Cod. germ. 6 (Hamburg, Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek): Part 2
(2018)
The work presented here follows the article Combining Codicology and X-Ray Spectrometry to Unveil the History of Production of Codex germanicus 6 (Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Hamburg), published in 2014.1 It confirms the main result of the previous article: the Artusnotiz, the fourth text in the bound manuscript, must have been introduced as the last one. This paper offers further details of the codex production, based on the composition of the black and red inks collected in four measurement campaigns. Furthermore, using imaging μ-XRF, we succeeded in understanding the strong variation of the composition of the red inks in the initials of all the texts except for Parzival and Jeanne d’Arc.