Pub Date : 2024-03-28DOI: 10.3390/agriculture14040541
Li Ding, Yufei Dou, Junying Li, Tan Yao, Aobo Ma, Yechao Yuan, Lele Wang, He Li
In order to solve the problem of inconsistent moisture content in particles during the drying process of tiger nuts (Cyperus esculentus) due to uneven air flow and temperature distribution in the drying chamber, an open-hole corner box was designed based on the principle of negative pressure micro-perforated air supply. Using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and discrete element method (DEM) simulation, coupled with the basic theory of interphase heat and mass transfer, a mathematical model for interphase heat and moisture coupling transfer was established. The effects of different aperture rates of corner boxes in the drying chamber, spatial location arrangement, and other related variables on the airfield distribution, temperature field distribution, tiger nut temperature, and moisture content changes were investigated. The results show that the average air velocity below the air inlet gradually increases as the opening ratio increases. When the opening rate is 0.33%, the wind field uniformity is better, and the inhomogeneity of the drying chamber wind field is improved. As the lateral distance increases, the consistency of the moisture content distribution increases and then decreases, and the flow rate of the tiger nuts gradually increases when the grain is discharged. The rate of decrease in water content decreases gradually with the increase in longitudinal distance. When the wind speed reaches 4 m/s, the drying chamber wind field is more uniform, and the water vapor diffusion efficiency at the outlet is basically the same. Therefore, the appropriate corner box has a horizontal distance of 320 mm and a longitudinal distance of 420 mm, providing a basis for the design of tiger nut drying equipment.
{"title":"Design and Optimization of a Mixed-Flow Drying Chamber for Tiger Nuts Based on CFD-DEM Heat and Mass Transfer Model","authors":"Li Ding, Yufei Dou, Junying Li, Tan Yao, Aobo Ma, Yechao Yuan, Lele Wang, He Li","doi":"10.3390/agriculture14040541","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14040541","url":null,"abstract":"In order to solve the problem of inconsistent moisture content in particles during the drying process of tiger nuts (Cyperus esculentus) due to uneven air flow and temperature distribution in the drying chamber, an open-hole corner box was designed based on the principle of negative pressure micro-perforated air supply. Using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and discrete element method (DEM) simulation, coupled with the basic theory of interphase heat and mass transfer, a mathematical model for interphase heat and moisture coupling transfer was established. The effects of different aperture rates of corner boxes in the drying chamber, spatial location arrangement, and other related variables on the airfield distribution, temperature field distribution, tiger nut temperature, and moisture content changes were investigated. The results show that the average air velocity below the air inlet gradually increases as the opening ratio increases. When the opening rate is 0.33%, the wind field uniformity is better, and the inhomogeneity of the drying chamber wind field is improved. As the lateral distance increases, the consistency of the moisture content distribution increases and then decreases, and the flow rate of the tiger nuts gradually increases when the grain is discharged. The rate of decrease in water content decreases gradually with the increase in longitudinal distance. When the wind speed reaches 4 m/s, the drying chamber wind field is more uniform, and the water vapor diffusion efficiency at the outlet is basically the same. Therefore, the appropriate corner box has a horizontal distance of 320 mm and a longitudinal distance of 420 mm, providing a basis for the design of tiger nut drying equipment.","PeriodicalId":503580,"journal":{"name":"Agriculture","volume":"133 44","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140369520","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-03-28DOI: 10.3390/agriculture14040535
Yuzhe Du, Shane Scheibener, Justin George, Narayanan Kannan, Maribel Portilla
The tarnished plant bug, Lygus lineolaris, and the red-banded stink bug, Piezodorus guildinii, pose significant economic threats to cotton and soybean crops in the mid-southern USA. However, the efficacy of insecticide spraying is comparatively low, and adjuvants play a crucial role in optimizing insecticide performance. This study evaluated the impact of two adjuvants, sodium alginate (SA) and polyacrylamide (PAM), on enhancing the efficacy of bifenthrin and imidacloprid via laboratory spray bioassays. Both SA and PAM demonstrated insignificant variation in LC50 values with formulated bifenthrin and imidacloprid. However, SA and PAM exhibited synergistic effects with two technical-grade insecticides. High concentrations of PAM increased the efficacy of bifenthrin by 1.50- and 1.70-fold for L. lineolaris and P. guildinii, respectively. Conversely, no enhancement effect was observed for the SA–technical-grade bifenthrin combination against either insect pests. Additionally, both SA and PAM enhanced the effectiveness of imidacloprid in P. guildinii by up to 2.68- and 2.73-fold, respectively. While a high concentration of PAM had a 1.45-fold synergistic effect on technical-grade imidacloprid, no enhancement effect was observed for the SA/imidacloprid combination in L. lineolaris. This study explored the synergistic impact of SA and PAM on the efficacy of technical-grade and formulated bifenthrin and imidacloprid, providing valuable insights into optimizing pest control strategies in agriculture.
玷污植物蝽 Lygus lineolaris 和红带蝽 Piezodorus guildinii 对美国中南部的棉花和大豆作物造成了严重的经济威胁。然而，杀虫剂的喷洒效果相对较低，而佐剂在优化杀虫剂性能方面起着至关重要的作用。本研究通过实验室喷雾生物测定评估了海藻酸钠（SA）和聚丙烯酰胺（PAM）这两种佐剂对提高联苯菊酯和吡虫啉药效的影响。海藻酸盐和聚丙烯酰胺与配制的联苯菊酯和吡虫啉的半致死浓度值差异不大。不过，SA 和 PAM 与两种工业级杀虫剂具有协同作用。高浓度的 PAM 可使联苯菊酯对 L. lineolaris 和 P. guildinii 的药效分别提高 1.50 倍和 1.70 倍。相反，SA-技术级联苯菊酯组合对这两种害虫都没有增效作用。此外，SA 和 PAM 对吡虫啉的防治效果分别提高了 2.68 倍和 2.73 倍。虽然高浓度 PAM 对工业级吡虫啉的增效作用为 1.45 倍，但在 L. lineolaris 中，SA/吡虫啉组合未观察到任何增效作用。本研究探讨了 SA 和 PAM 对工业级联苯菊酯和吡虫啉药效的协同影响，为优化农业害虫防治策略提供了宝贵的见解。
{"title":"Assessing the Efficacy of Sodium Alginate and Polyacrylamide as Spray Adjuvants Combined with Bifenthrin and Imidacloprid against Lygus lineolaris and Piezodorus guildinii","authors":"Yuzhe Du, Shane Scheibener, Justin George, Narayanan Kannan, Maribel Portilla","doi":"10.3390/agriculture14040535","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14040535","url":null,"abstract":"The tarnished plant bug, Lygus lineolaris, and the red-banded stink bug, Piezodorus guildinii, pose significant economic threats to cotton and soybean crops in the mid-southern USA. However, the efficacy of insecticide spraying is comparatively low, and adjuvants play a crucial role in optimizing insecticide performance. This study evaluated the impact of two adjuvants, sodium alginate (SA) and polyacrylamide (PAM), on enhancing the efficacy of bifenthrin and imidacloprid via laboratory spray bioassays. Both SA and PAM demonstrated insignificant variation in LC50 values with formulated bifenthrin and imidacloprid. However, SA and PAM exhibited synergistic effects with two technical-grade insecticides. High concentrations of PAM increased the efficacy of bifenthrin by 1.50- and 1.70-fold for L. lineolaris and P. guildinii, respectively. Conversely, no enhancement effect was observed for the SA–technical-grade bifenthrin combination against either insect pests. Additionally, both SA and PAM enhanced the effectiveness of imidacloprid in P. guildinii by up to 2.68- and 2.73-fold, respectively. While a high concentration of PAM had a 1.45-fold synergistic effect on technical-grade imidacloprid, no enhancement effect was observed for the SA/imidacloprid combination in L. lineolaris. This study explored the synergistic impact of SA and PAM on the efficacy of technical-grade and formulated bifenthrin and imidacloprid, providing valuable insights into optimizing pest control strategies in agriculture.","PeriodicalId":503580,"journal":{"name":"Agriculture","volume":"36 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140371735","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-03-28DOI: 10.3390/agriculture14040539
Kai Lu, Jing Liang, Mengnan Liu, Zhixiong Lu, Jinzhong Shi, Pengfei Xing, Lin Wang
Transmission efficiency is a key characteristic of Hydro-mechanical Continuously Variable Transmission (HMCVT), which is related to the performance of heavy-duty tractors. Predicting the HMCVT transmission efficiency is beneficial for the real-time adjustment of transmission ratio during heavy-duty tractor operations, so as to obtain better performance. Aiming at the problems of accurate method, low accuracy, and high noise in the prediction of HMCVT transmission efficiency, this paper proposes a method based on Variational Mode Decomposition (VMD), Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), and Back Propagation (BP) neural networks to improve the quality of transmission efficiency prediction. Firstly, a simple theoretical model was established to obtain the influencing factors of transmission efficiency. Then, based on these factors, the transmission efficiency was tested on the bench under multiple conditions and the influence degree of each factor on transmission efficiency was divided using Partial Least Squares (PLS) method. Finally, the VMD method was used to denoise the test data, and a BP model, which was improved using the PSO method, was established to predict the processed data. The results showed that transmission efficiency of HMCVT is most affected by output speed, followed by power, and least by input speed. The VMD method can accurately extract effective signals and noise signals from the original data, and reconstruct signals, reducing the noise proportion. Using three conditions, the prediction regression accuracy of the PSO–BP model is 7.02%, 7.88%, and 9.26% higher than that of the BP model, respectively. In the three prediction experiments, the maximum differences in the MAE, the MAPE, and the RMSE of the PSO–BP model are 0.002, 0.463%, and 0.004, respectively, which are 0.006, 0.796%, and 0.003 lower than those of the BP model.
{"title":"Research on Transmission Efficiency Prediction of Heavy-Duty Tractors HMCVT Based on VMD and PSO–BP","authors":"Kai Lu, Jing Liang, Mengnan Liu, Zhixiong Lu, Jinzhong Shi, Pengfei Xing, Lin Wang","doi":"10.3390/agriculture14040539","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14040539","url":null,"abstract":"Transmission efficiency is a key characteristic of Hydro-mechanical Continuously Variable Transmission (HMCVT), which is related to the performance of heavy-duty tractors. Predicting the HMCVT transmission efficiency is beneficial for the real-time adjustment of transmission ratio during heavy-duty tractor operations, so as to obtain better performance. Aiming at the problems of accurate method, low accuracy, and high noise in the prediction of HMCVT transmission efficiency, this paper proposes a method based on Variational Mode Decomposition (VMD), Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), and Back Propagation (BP) neural networks to improve the quality of transmission efficiency prediction. Firstly, a simple theoretical model was established to obtain the influencing factors of transmission efficiency. Then, based on these factors, the transmission efficiency was tested on the bench under multiple conditions and the influence degree of each factor on transmission efficiency was divided using Partial Least Squares (PLS) method. Finally, the VMD method was used to denoise the test data, and a BP model, which was improved using the PSO method, was established to predict the processed data. The results showed that transmission efficiency of HMCVT is most affected by output speed, followed by power, and least by input speed. The VMD method can accurately extract effective signals and noise signals from the original data, and reconstruct signals, reducing the noise proportion. Using three conditions, the prediction regression accuracy of the PSO–BP model is 7.02%, 7.88%, and 9.26% higher than that of the BP model, respectively. In the three prediction experiments, the maximum differences in the MAE, the MAPE, and the RMSE of the PSO–BP model are 0.002, 0.463%, and 0.004, respectively, which are 0.006, 0.796%, and 0.003 lower than those of the BP model.","PeriodicalId":503580,"journal":{"name":"Agriculture","volume":"101 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140370610","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-03-28DOI: 10.3390/agriculture14040536
Kristina Nakonechna, V. Ilko, M. Berčíková, Vladimír Vietoris, Z. Panovská, Marek Doležal
In the quality monitoring of 18 sunflower oil samples from the EU market, 14 were refined and 4 were cold-pressed. They demonstrated high quality of technological processing with low values of trans-unsaturated fatty acids, acid value, and peroxide value and also met the limits set by legislation in the content of process contaminants 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD) esters and glycidyl esters. Measurements of oxidative stability showed a difference in utility value. The average induction period of the oils from the traditional varieties was 2.6 h, predisposing them to cold cooking or short-term frying, while the 11.8 h of the four high oleic sunflower oils (HOSO) indicates the possibility of long-term heat stress. The nutritional benefit is the average vitamin E content of 663 mg/kg oil. The overall sensory quality of the samples was evaluated by a 12-member panel of trained assessors. On the seven-point category scale, the oils were of good to exceptional quality. The cold-pressed oils (CPOs) differed in having, on average, lower trans-unsaturated fatty acid content, process contaminants at unmeasurable levels, and, on average, higher vitamin E concentrations. The specific organoleptic properties of the CPOs were characterized by a pleasant nutty and sunflower seed flavor.
在对欧盟市场上的 18 个葵花籽油样本进行的质量监测中，14 个是精炼的，4 个是冷榨的。这些葵花籽油样品显示出较高的技术加工质量，反式不饱和脂肪酸、酸值和过氧化值较低，加工过程中污染物 3-单氯丙烷-1,2-二醇（3-MCPD）酯和缩水甘油酯的含量也符合法律规定的限值。氧化稳定性的测量结果显示了实用价值的差异。传统品种葵花籽油的平均诱导期为 2.6 小时，适合冷烹或短期油炸，而四种高油酸葵花籽油（HOSO）的诱导期为 11.8 小时，表明可能会产生长期热应力。维生素 E 的平均含量为每公斤油 663 毫克，具有营养价值。样品的总体感官质量由一个由 12 人组成的训练有素的评估小组进行评估。按照七分制的分类标准，油的质量从良好到特优。冷榨油（CPOs）的不同之处在于，其反式不饱和脂肪酸含量平均较低，加工过程中的污染物含量无法测量，维生素 E 含量平均较高。CPO 的具体感官特性以令人愉悦的坚果和葵花籽香味为特征。
{"title":"Nutritional, Utility, and Sensory Quality and Safety of Sunflower Oil on the Central European Market","authors":"Kristina Nakonechna, V. Ilko, M. Berčíková, Vladimír Vietoris, Z. Panovská, Marek Doležal","doi":"10.3390/agriculture14040536","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14040536","url":null,"abstract":"In the quality monitoring of 18 sunflower oil samples from the EU market, 14 were refined and 4 were cold-pressed. They demonstrated high quality of technological processing with low values of trans-unsaturated fatty acids, acid value, and peroxide value and also met the limits set by legislation in the content of process contaminants 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD) esters and glycidyl esters. Measurements of oxidative stability showed a difference in utility value. The average induction period of the oils from the traditional varieties was 2.6 h, predisposing them to cold cooking or short-term frying, while the 11.8 h of the four high oleic sunflower oils (HOSO) indicates the possibility of long-term heat stress. The nutritional benefit is the average vitamin E content of 663 mg/kg oil. The overall sensory quality of the samples was evaluated by a 12-member panel of trained assessors. On the seven-point category scale, the oils were of good to exceptional quality. The cold-pressed oils (CPOs) differed in having, on average, lower trans-unsaturated fatty acid content, process contaminants at unmeasurable levels, and, on average, higher vitamin E concentrations. The specific organoleptic properties of the CPOs were characterized by a pleasant nutty and sunflower seed flavor.","PeriodicalId":503580,"journal":{"name":"Agriculture","volume":"27 10","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140372906","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Milk, known for its high content of short- and medium-chain fatty acids and unsaturated fatty acids, has attracted substantial attention due to its nutritional and health value. The regulation of fatty acid metabolism by non-coding RNAs has become a subject of growing attention, particularly in relation to fatty acid production at the transcriptional/epigenetic and post-transcriptional levels. This study established the circRNA-11228/miR-103/INSIG1 (insulin-inducible gene) regulatory network using methods such as qRT-PCR, dual luciferase reporting, and Western blot, with INSIG1 serving as the starting point. The experimental validation of circRNA-11228’s impact on cholesterol levels, lipid droplet secretion, and unsaturated fatty acid content was conducted using various assays, including triglycerides, cholesterol, oil red O, andEdU(5-ethynyl-2’-deoxyuridine) in bovine mammary epithelial cells (BMECs). Furthermore, the transfection of mimics and inhibitors synthesized from miR-103 into BMECs confirmed that miR-103 can promote cholesterol synthesis and lipid droplet secretion. Conversely, the INSIG1 gene was found to inhibit cholesterol synthesis and lipid droplet secretion. The “remediation” experiment validated the ability of miR-103 to alleviate the cellular effect of circRNA-11228. Taken together, our findings indicate that the binding of circRNA-11228 to miR-103 inhibits the expression of the target gene INSIG, thereby regulating milk fat production in BMECs. This study offers novel insights into producing high-quality milk and new ways to improve the dietary composition of residents.
{"title":"The Molecular Mechanism of circRNA-11228/miR-103/INSIG1 Pathway Regulating Milk Fat Synthesis in Bovine Mammary Epithelial Cells","authors":"Xiaofen Li, Yanni Wu, Yuhao Wang, Xiaozhi Yang, Rui Gao, Qinyue Lu, Xiaoyang Lv, Zhi Chen","doi":"10.3390/agriculture14040538","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14040538","url":null,"abstract":"Milk, known for its high content of short- and medium-chain fatty acids and unsaturated fatty acids, has attracted substantial attention due to its nutritional and health value. The regulation of fatty acid metabolism by non-coding RNAs has become a subject of growing attention, particularly in relation to fatty acid production at the transcriptional/epigenetic and post-transcriptional levels. This study established the circRNA-11228/miR-103/INSIG1 (insulin-inducible gene) regulatory network using methods such as qRT-PCR, dual luciferase reporting, and Western blot, with INSIG1 serving as the starting point. The experimental validation of circRNA-11228’s impact on cholesterol levels, lipid droplet secretion, and unsaturated fatty acid content was conducted using various assays, including triglycerides, cholesterol, oil red O, andEdU(5-ethynyl-2’-deoxyuridine) in bovine mammary epithelial cells (BMECs). Furthermore, the transfection of mimics and inhibitors synthesized from miR-103 into BMECs confirmed that miR-103 can promote cholesterol synthesis and lipid droplet secretion. Conversely, the INSIG1 gene was found to inhibit cholesterol synthesis and lipid droplet secretion. The “remediation” experiment validated the ability of miR-103 to alleviate the cellular effect of circRNA-11228. Taken together, our findings indicate that the binding of circRNA-11228 to miR-103 inhibits the expression of the target gene INSIG, thereby regulating milk fat production in BMECs. This study offers novel insights into producing high-quality milk and new ways to improve the dietary composition of residents.","PeriodicalId":503580,"journal":{"name":"Agriculture","volume":"77 12","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140371690","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-03-28DOI: 10.3390/agriculture14040537
S. Buragienė, Kristina Lekavičienė, A. Adamavičienė, E. Vaiciukevičius, E. Šarauskis
Farming systems should be sustainable in order to protect the soil from diseases and pests while preserving the environment and generating economic and social benefits. The use of biological products can help reduce the negative characteristics that damage the soil and increase the likelihood of healthy plant growth. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the influence of biotreatment on the physical properties of different soils and substrates as well as strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) yield. In the laboratory trials, “Asia” strawberries were grown one by one in special containers on different soils and substrates: loam (L), clay (C), sandy loam (SL), compost soil (CS), and coconut fiber (CF). The soils and substrates were treated once a week with a biological product based on molasses and magnesium sulfate and fertilized with a complex fertilizer: NPK11-11-21 + K2O + Mg, S, B, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, and Zn, enriched with potassium. Soil and substrate temperature, moisture, density, total porosity, aeration porosity, electrical conductivity as well as strawberry yield were measured in the test containers containing the plants. Studies have shown that the use of bioproducts does not significantly improve the physical properties of soils and substrates. However, the trend of the results shows that using the bioproduct for a longer period of time would have a greater effect on the physical properties of the soils and substrates, especially for peat-based substrates prepared for greenhouse use. Berry yields increased significantly (46.6% and 100%) with biotreatment in the CS and CF variants.
{"title":"The Influence of an Innovative Bioproduct on Soil and Substrate Characteristics during Strawberry Cultivation","authors":"S. Buragienė, Kristina Lekavičienė, A. Adamavičienė, E. Vaiciukevičius, E. Šarauskis","doi":"10.3390/agriculture14040537","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14040537","url":null,"abstract":"Farming systems should be sustainable in order to protect the soil from diseases and pests while preserving the environment and generating economic and social benefits. The use of biological products can help reduce the negative characteristics that damage the soil and increase the likelihood of healthy plant growth. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the influence of biotreatment on the physical properties of different soils and substrates as well as strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) yield. In the laboratory trials, “Asia” strawberries were grown one by one in special containers on different soils and substrates: loam (L), clay (C), sandy loam (SL), compost soil (CS), and coconut fiber (CF). The soils and substrates were treated once a week with a biological product based on molasses and magnesium sulfate and fertilized with a complex fertilizer: NPK11-11-21 + K2O + Mg, S, B, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, and Zn, enriched with potassium. Soil and substrate temperature, moisture, density, total porosity, aeration porosity, electrical conductivity as well as strawberry yield were measured in the test containers containing the plants. Studies have shown that the use of bioproducts does not significantly improve the physical properties of soils and substrates. However, the trend of the results shows that using the bioproduct for a longer period of time would have a greater effect on the physical properties of the soils and substrates, especially for peat-based substrates prepared for greenhouse use. Berry yields increased significantly (46.6% and 100%) with biotreatment in the CS and CF variants.","PeriodicalId":503580,"journal":{"name":"Agriculture","volume":"26 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140373098","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The Chinese government is making vigorous efforts to control agricultural pollution. The promotion of an ecological planting–breeding mix pattern is one of them. Farmers’ mode of production will affect their subjective well-being. Thus, this paper aims to analyze the impact of adopting the ecological planting–breeding mix pattern on farmers’ subjective well-being based on 895 pieces of survey data from the provinces of Hubei, Hunan, and Jiangxi in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Using the endogenous switching regression model, we find that the adoption of the ecological planting–breeding mix pattern has a significant positive effect on farmers’ subjective well-being. Based on this counterfactual hypothesis, if the farmers who actually adopted the ecological planting–breeding mix pattern did not adopt it, their subjective well-being would decrease from 4.006 to 3.669. Further examination indicates that self-worth identification, income increase, and neighborhood communication could be potential mechanisms. Additionally, the effect of the ecological planting–breeding mix pattern on subjective well-being is stronger in the group with low financial support. The technical support provided by the government does not have a significant regulatory effect on the adoption of the ecological planting–breeding mix pattern on subjective well-being. Our results suggest that farmers’ ecological production behavior can affect their subjective well-being. This may be relevant to many developing countries today that are attempting to adopt ecological agriculture patterns.
{"title":"Does Ecological Planting–Breeding Mix Pattern Improve Farmers’ Subjective Well-Being? Evidence from the Middle and Lower Reaches of the Yangtze River","authors":"Xinyao Li, Xicong Wang, Yangyang Zhu, Zhe Liu, Zhenhong Qi","doi":"10.3390/agriculture14040528","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14040528","url":null,"abstract":"The Chinese government is making vigorous efforts to control agricultural pollution. The promotion of an ecological planting–breeding mix pattern is one of them. Farmers’ mode of production will affect their subjective well-being. Thus, this paper aims to analyze the impact of adopting the ecological planting–breeding mix pattern on farmers’ subjective well-being based on 895 pieces of survey data from the provinces of Hubei, Hunan, and Jiangxi in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Using the endogenous switching regression model, we find that the adoption of the ecological planting–breeding mix pattern has a significant positive effect on farmers’ subjective well-being. Based on this counterfactual hypothesis, if the farmers who actually adopted the ecological planting–breeding mix pattern did not adopt it, their subjective well-being would decrease from 4.006 to 3.669. Further examination indicates that self-worth identification, income increase, and neighborhood communication could be potential mechanisms. Additionally, the effect of the ecological planting–breeding mix pattern on subjective well-being is stronger in the group with low financial support. The technical support provided by the government does not have a significant regulatory effect on the adoption of the ecological planting–breeding mix pattern on subjective well-being. Our results suggest that farmers’ ecological production behavior can affect their subjective well-being. This may be relevant to many developing countries today that are attempting to adopt ecological agriculture patterns.","PeriodicalId":503580,"journal":{"name":"Agriculture","volume":"41 9","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-03-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140373765","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The development of an accurate root water-uptake model is pivotal for evaluating crop evapotranspiration; understanding the combined effect of drought and waterlogging stresses; and optimizing water use efficiency, namely, crop yield [kg/ha] per unit of ET [mm]. Existing models often lack quantitative approaches to depicting crop root water uptake in scenarios of concurrent drought and waterlogging moisture stresses. Addressing this as our objective; we modified the Feddes root water-uptake model by revising the soil water potential response threshold and by introducing a novel method to calculate root water-uptake rates under simultaneous drought and waterlogging stresses. Then, we incorporated a water stress lag effect coefficient, φWs, that investigated the combined effect of historical drought and waterlogging stress events based on the assumption that the normalized influence weight of each past stress event decreases with an increase in the time interval before simulation as an exponential function of the decay rate. Further, we tested the model parameters and validated the results obtained with the modified model using data from three years (2016–2018) of rice (Oryza sativa, L) trails with pots in Bengbu, China. The modified Feddes model significantly improved precision by 9.6% on average when calculating relative transpiration rates, particularly post-stress recovery, and by 5.8% on average when simulating soil moisture fluctuations during drought periods. The root mean square error of relative transpiration was reduced by 60.8%, and soil water was reduced by 55.1%. By accounting for both the accumulated impact of past moisture stress and current moisture conditions in rice fields, the modified model will be useful in quantifying rice transpiration and rice water use efficiency in drought–waterlogging-prone areas in southern China.
{"title":"Modeling and Analysis of Rice Root Water Uptake under the Dual Stresses of Drought and Waterlogging","authors":"Jie Huang, Wei Dong, Luguang Liu, Tiesong Hu, Shaobin Pan, Xiaowei Yang, Jianan Qin","doi":"10.3390/agriculture14040532","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14040532","url":null,"abstract":"The development of an accurate root water-uptake model is pivotal for evaluating crop evapotranspiration; understanding the combined effect of drought and waterlogging stresses; and optimizing water use efficiency, namely, crop yield [kg/ha] per unit of ET [mm]. Existing models often lack quantitative approaches to depicting crop root water uptake in scenarios of concurrent drought and waterlogging moisture stresses. Addressing this as our objective; we modified the Feddes root water-uptake model by revising the soil water potential response threshold and by introducing a novel method to calculate root water-uptake rates under simultaneous drought and waterlogging stresses. Then, we incorporated a water stress lag effect coefficient, φWs, that investigated the combined effect of historical drought and waterlogging stress events based on the assumption that the normalized influence weight of each past stress event decreases with an increase in the time interval before simulation as an exponential function of the decay rate. Further, we tested the model parameters and validated the results obtained with the modified model using data from three years (2016–2018) of rice (Oryza sativa, L) trails with pots in Bengbu, China. The modified Feddes model significantly improved precision by 9.6% on average when calculating relative transpiration rates, particularly post-stress recovery, and by 5.8% on average when simulating soil moisture fluctuations during drought periods. The root mean square error of relative transpiration was reduced by 60.8%, and soil water was reduced by 55.1%. By accounting for both the accumulated impact of past moisture stress and current moisture conditions in rice fields, the modified model will be useful in quantifying rice transpiration and rice water use efficiency in drought–waterlogging-prone areas in southern China.","PeriodicalId":503580,"journal":{"name":"Agriculture","volume":"22 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-03-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140375331","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-03-27DOI: 10.3390/agriculture14040533
Tao Wu, Xuegeng Chen, Limin Yan, Haixiao Gou, Ying Li, Jinhao Zhang, Xuanhe Fu
In order to design the structure and optimize the working parameters of a straw-crushing device, and to improve the qualified rate of straw-crushing length and the rate of straw fluidity, the influence of the airflow characteristics and pressure distribution in the working state of the crushing chamber and the different structure and working parameters of the straw-crushing device on the airflow field were studied based on the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software Fluent 19.2. The simulation results show that by changing the rotation speed of the cutter shaft, the negative pressure and mass flow rate of the inlet surface of the flow field reach the maximum values of 63.6 Pa and 1.64 kg/s, respectively, when the rotation speed of the cutter shaft is 2000 rpm, which proves that the rotation speed of the cutter shaft increases, and the feeding performance also increases. In the case of 0, 8 and 16 air knives, the peak flow velocity in the crushing chamber is 43.1 m/s, 50.1 m/s and 54.48 m/s, respectively, and the airflow in the crushing chamber is improved to a certain extent, which proves the feasibility of the air knives’ structure. In order to verify the simulation results, a field experiment was carried out. The results showed that the qualified rate of straw crushing was 94.13% and the drop rate was 4.26% under the conditions of a cutter shaft speed of 1800 rpm, a machine forward speed of 6 km/h and a height of 80 mm of the cutter off the ground. The field experiment and simulation show that the qualified rate of crushing increases with the increase in the rotation speed of the cutter shaft, but the increase rate slows down, and the random speed decreases. The drop rate decreases with the increase in tool height and tool speed. The air knife structure improves the crushing qualification rate and significantly reduces the drop rate, which verifies the simulation accuracy. This study provides a theoretical basis for the optimization of straw-crushing devices.
为了设计秸秆粉碎装置的结构和优化其工作参数，提高秸秆粉碎长度合格率和秸秆流动性率，基于计算流体力学（CFD）软件 Fluent 19.2，研究了粉碎腔工作状态下的气流特性和压力分布，以及秸秆粉碎装置的不同结构和工作参数对气流场的影响。仿真结果表明，通过改变切刀轴的转速，当切刀轴转速为 2000 rpm 时，流场入口表面的负压和质量流量分别达到最大值 63.6 Pa 和 1.64 kg/s，证明切刀轴转速提高，喂入性能也随之提高。在 0、8 和 16 个气刀的情况下，破碎腔内的峰值流速分别为 43.1 m/s、50.1 m/s 和 54.48 m/s，破碎腔内的气流得到了一定程度的改善，证明了气刀结构的可行性。为了验证仿真结果，还进行了现场实验。结果表明，在刀轴转速为 1800 rpm、机器前进速度为 6 km/h、刀具离地高度为 80 mm 的条件下，秸秆粉碎合格率为 94.13%，掉料率为 4.26%。现场实验和模拟结果表明，破碎合格率随刀轴转速的增加而增加，但增加速度减慢，随机速度减小。破碎率随刀具高度和刀具转速的增加而降低。气刀结构提高了破碎合格率，显著降低了落料率，验证了仿真的准确性。本研究为秸秆粉碎装置的优化提供了理论依据。
{"title":"Optimization Design and Experiment of a Cotton Straw-Crushing Device Based on Computational Fluid Dynamics","authors":"Tao Wu, Xuegeng Chen, Limin Yan, Haixiao Gou, Ying Li, Jinhao Zhang, Xuanhe Fu","doi":"10.3390/agriculture14040533","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14040533","url":null,"abstract":"In order to design the structure and optimize the working parameters of a straw-crushing device, and to improve the qualified rate of straw-crushing length and the rate of straw fluidity, the influence of the airflow characteristics and pressure distribution in the working state of the crushing chamber and the different structure and working parameters of the straw-crushing device on the airflow field were studied based on the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software Fluent 19.2. The simulation results show that by changing the rotation speed of the cutter shaft, the negative pressure and mass flow rate of the inlet surface of the flow field reach the maximum values of 63.6 Pa and 1.64 kg/s, respectively, when the rotation speed of the cutter shaft is 2000 rpm, which proves that the rotation speed of the cutter shaft increases, and the feeding performance also increases. In the case of 0, 8 and 16 air knives, the peak flow velocity in the crushing chamber is 43.1 m/s, 50.1 m/s and 54.48 m/s, respectively, and the airflow in the crushing chamber is improved to a certain extent, which proves the feasibility of the air knives’ structure. In order to verify the simulation results, a field experiment was carried out. The results showed that the qualified rate of straw crushing was 94.13% and the drop rate was 4.26% under the conditions of a cutter shaft speed of 1800 rpm, a machine forward speed of 6 km/h and a height of 80 mm of the cutter off the ground. The field experiment and simulation show that the qualified rate of crushing increases with the increase in the rotation speed of the cutter shaft, but the increase rate slows down, and the random speed decreases. The drop rate decreases with the increase in tool height and tool speed. The air knife structure improves the crushing qualification rate and significantly reduces the drop rate, which verifies the simulation accuracy. This study provides a theoretical basis for the optimization of straw-crushing devices.","PeriodicalId":503580,"journal":{"name":"Agriculture","volume":"32 26","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-03-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140373648","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-03-27DOI: 10.3390/agriculture14040529
Amged El-Harairy, J. Jósvai, Ahmed El-Harairy, Alaa Mahfouz
In ant-aphid interactions, various aphid species offer honeydew to the ant partner and increase their density by ant attendance, whilst others never attend ant species, in which case ants tend to treat them as prey. In this regard, ants should have the ability to distinguish myrmecophile aphid species from non-mutualistic species, so that mutualistic aphids will be accepted as partners rather than prey. Although ant-aphid interactions are now the focus of chemical ecology studies, the role of the different chemical stimuli in determining mutualistic interactions has not been completely clarified. Therefore, we have investigated the cuticular hydrocarbon profile of four myrmecophiles aphid species using GC-MS. We also investigated the behavior of the worker-ants (Lasius niger L., Hymenoptera: Formicidae) to different chemical stimuli derived from aphids. We applied four treatments and found that the behavior of the ant workers varied depending on the source of the different treatments. In particular, the real aphid Aphis pomi and the sugar solution proved to be the most attractive to the ants, while the presence of pure extract of the individuals is enough to disturb the behavior of the ants. We provide evidence that the key stimuli of the tending behavior could be the CHC patterns of the aphids and the CHC profile of the aphids tends to be genus specific. This research will promote further investigations to test the behavior of ant workers towards other species of aphids and treatment combinations.
{"title":"Aphid-Ant Relationships: The Role of Cuticular Hydrocarbons and Different Chemical Stimuli in Triggering Mutualistic Behavior","authors":"Amged El-Harairy, J. Jósvai, Ahmed El-Harairy, Alaa Mahfouz","doi":"10.3390/agriculture14040529","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14040529","url":null,"abstract":"In ant-aphid interactions, various aphid species offer honeydew to the ant partner and increase their density by ant attendance, whilst others never attend ant species, in which case ants tend to treat them as prey. In this regard, ants should have the ability to distinguish myrmecophile aphid species from non-mutualistic species, so that mutualistic aphids will be accepted as partners rather than prey. Although ant-aphid interactions are now the focus of chemical ecology studies, the role of the different chemical stimuli in determining mutualistic interactions has not been completely clarified. Therefore, we have investigated the cuticular hydrocarbon profile of four myrmecophiles aphid species using GC-MS. We also investigated the behavior of the worker-ants (Lasius niger L., Hymenoptera: Formicidae) to different chemical stimuli derived from aphids. We applied four treatments and found that the behavior of the ant workers varied depending on the source of the different treatments. In particular, the real aphid Aphis pomi and the sugar solution proved to be the most attractive to the ants, while the presence of pure extract of the individuals is enough to disturb the behavior of the ants. We provide evidence that the key stimuli of the tending behavior could be the CHC patterns of the aphids and the CHC profile of the aphids tends to be genus specific. This research will promote further investigations to test the behavior of ant workers towards other species of aphids and treatment combinations.","PeriodicalId":503580,"journal":{"name":"Agriculture","volume":"19 14","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-03-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140374522","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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