Abstract: Many geometries of plant organs can be described by the Gielis equation, a polar coordinate equation extended from the superellipse equation, . Here, r is the polar radius corresponding to the polar angle φ; m is a positive integer that determines the number of angles of the Gielis curve when φ ∈ [0 to 2π); and the rest of the symbols are parameters to be estimated. The pentagonal radial symmetry of calyxes and corolla tubes in top view is a common feature in the flowers of many eudicots. However, prior studies have not tested whether the Gielis equation can depict the shapes of corolla tubes. We sampled randomly 366 flowers of Vinca major L., among which 360 had five petals and pentagonal corolla tubes, and six had four petals and quadrangular corolla tubes. We extracted the planar coordinates of the outer rims of corolla tubes (in top view) (ORCTs), and then fitted the data with two simplified versions of the Gielis equation with k = 1 and m = 5: (Model 1), and (Model 2). The adjusted root mean square error (RMSEadj) was used to evaluate the goodness of fit of each model. In addition, to test whether ORCTs are radially symmetrical, we correlated the estimates of n2 and n3 in Model 1 on a log-log scale. The results validated the two simplified Gielis equations. The RMSEadj values for all corolla tubes were smaller than 0.05 for both models. The numerical values of n2 and n3 were demonstrated to be statistically equal based on the regression analysis, which suggested that the ORCTs of V. major are radially symmetrical. It suggests that Model 1 can be replaced by the simpler Model 2 for fitting the ORCT in this species. This work indicates that the pentagonal or quadrangular corolla tubes (in top view) can both be modeled by the Gielis equation and demonstrates that the pentagonal or quadrangular corolla tubes of plants tend to form radial symmetrical geometries during their development and growth.

Abstract: Nanoscience and nanotechnologies are of immense importance across many fields of science and for numerous practical applications. In this context, scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) and 4D-STEM are among the most powerful characterization methods at the atomic scale. Annular dark-field (ADF)-STEM can be used to quantify atomic structures in 3D by counting atoms based on a single projection image. In 4D-STEM a full diffraction pattern is recorded at each scan step, which enables more dose efficient imaging and the utilization of various advanced imaging modalities, which can however be complex and slow. Both, STEM and 4D-STEM suffer from noise and distortions. In the first section of this work the most important of these distortions are discussed and it is shown how image restoration with a dedicated convolutional neural network (CNN) can be beneficial for atomic structure quantifications in ADF-STEM. In the second part, a new 4D-STEM imaging method real-time-integrated-centre-of-mass (riCOM) is introduced, which is a very dose-efficient and fast algorithm that enables unprecedented live-imaging capabilities for 4D-STEM. It is based on the integrated centre-of-mass approach, but is reformulated with variable integration ranges and optional filters, which allows for a tunable contrast transfer function. This enables the imaging of light and heavy elements simultaneously at very low doses. In the third part another new 4D-STEM method, coined AIRPI (AI-assisted rapid phase imaging) is introduced, which uses a CNN to retrieve a patch of the specimen's phase image for each scan position, based on the diffraction patterns in the probe's immediate surroundings. This allows also live imaging in principle and surpasses comparable state-of-the-art algorithms in terms of resolution also at low doses. Different atomic columns can be reliably distinguished over a wide range of atomic numbers, enabling a very good image interpretability. Further, AIRPI can recover low frequency image components, which preserves thickness information. This is a unique and important feature which could make quantitative 4D-STEM feasible.

Abstract: When macrophytes are growing in the river, the vegetation induces substantial changes to the water quality. Some effects are the result of direct interactions, such as photosynthetic activity or nutrient uptake, whereas others may be attributed to indirect effects of the water plants on hydrodynamics and river processes. This research focused on the direct effect of macrophytes on oxygen dynamics and nutrient cycling. Discharge, macrophyte biomass density, basic water quality, dissolved oxygen and nutrient concentrations were in situ monitored throughout the year in a lowland river (Nete catchment, Belgium). In addition, various processes were investigated in more detail in multiple ex situ experiments. The field and aquaria measurement results clearly demonstrated that aquatic plants can exert considerable impact on dissolved oxygen dynamics in a lowland river. When the river was dominated by macrophytes, dissolved oxygen concentrations varied from 5 to 10 mg l−1. Considering nutrient retention, it was shown that the investigated in-stream macrophytes could take up dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) from the water column at rates of View the MathML source. And DIN fluxes towards the vegetation were found to vary from 0.03 to 0.19 g N ha−1 h−1 in spring and summer. Compared to the measured changes in DIN load over the river stretch, it means that about 313% of the DIN retention could be attributed to direct nitrogen uptake from the water by macrophytes. Yet, the role of macrophytes in rivers should not be underrated as aquatic vegetation also exerts considerable indirect effects that may have a greater impact than the direct fixation of nutrients into the plant biomass.

Abstract: Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is an extensively studied radiotherapeutic strategy for cancer treatment. BNCT is based on irradiation of malignant tumour cells with neutrons after uptake of a B-10 containing molecule. Alpha particles, locally produced by neutron irradiation kill the cancer cells. Important for ongoing research regarding cellular uptake and cytotoxicity of a large variety of B-10 containing molecules is the accurate determination of boron concentrations in cell cultures. In this work, the sample preparation for quantitative inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) analysis on cell cultures was optimized. By making use of acid digestion combined with UV digestion, low detection limits (0.4 mu g L-1) and full recoveries of boron could be achieved while measurements were free of spectral and non-spectral interferences. Finally, cell-associated boron in the form of 4-borono-l-phenylalanine (l-BPA) in vascular endothelial cell cultures could be determined with ICP-MS as (1.26 +/- 0.10) x 10(9) boron atoms per cell. The developed method can prove its importance for further BNCT research and elemental analysis of cell cultures.

Abstract: When studying paintings with active infrared thermography (IRT), minimizing the temperature fluctuations and thermal shock during a measurement becomes important. Under these conditions, it might be beneficial to use lock-in thermography instead of the conventionally used pulse thermography (PT). This study compared the observations made with lock-in thermography (LIT) and pulse phase thermography (PPT) with halogen light excitation. Three distinctly different paintings were examined. The LIT measurements caused smaller temperature fluctuations and, overall, the phase images appeared to have a higher contrast and less noise. However, in the PPT phase images, the upper paint layer was less visible, an aspect which is of particular interest when trying to observe subsurface defects or the structure of the support. The influence of the spectral range of the cameras on the results was also investigated. All measurements were taken with a mid-wave infrared (MWIR) and long wave infrared (LWIR) camera. The results show that there is a significant number of direct reflection artifacts, caused by the use of the halogen light sources when using the MWIR camera. Adding a long-pass filter to the MWIR camera eliminated most of these artifacts. All results are presented in a side-by-side comparison.

Abstract: The human population is projected to grow to 9.7 billion by 2050, resulting in an estimated increase in protein demand of 50%. From an environmental perspective, the current and future demand of protein cannot be sustainably met as the conventional food production chain is severely altering biogeochemical cycles of nitrogen and phosphorus, biodiversity and land-use, with flows towards the biosphere and oceans that are exceeding the planetary boundaries. Microbial protein (protein derived from microorganisms) has been suggested as an excellent sustainable protein source, a fortiori when produced in a land- and fossil free manner. The photoautohydrogenotrophic cultivation (i.e. with light, CO2 and H2) of purple bacteria links up perfectly with the upcoming green electrification of industry (green H2) and the need for carbon capture and utilization. However, this metabolism represented a gap in literature, and thus this thesis aimed to establish a basic knowledge platform on its kinetic, stoichiometric and nutritional performance. At first, three originally photoheterotrophically enriched purple bacteria were studied of which Rhodobacter capsulatus reached the highest protein productivity of 0.16 g protein/L/d, which aligned well with the commonly-known photoautotrophic microalgae. Moreover, a full dietary essential amino acid match was found for human food, while the fatty acid content was dominated by the health-stimulating vaccenic acid (82-86%). Lastly, the achieved protein yield in photoautohydrogenotrophic purple bacteria was 2.3 times higher compared to hydrogen oxidizing bacteria, indicating a resource-efficient use of H2. Next, a photoautohydrogenotrophic enrichment of wastewater treatment microbiomes was performed in search for specialist species. While the isolates of this enrichment showed improvements in their performance during acclimation, the kinetic and nutritional performance of Rhodobacter capsulatus still excelled. Subsequently, the influence of nutrient limitations (C or N) and nitrogen gas fixation was studied on the nutritional tuning potential. Both the limitations as well as the N2 fixation resulted in the shift of the essential amino acid profiles. Additionally, the limitations significantly decreased the pigment content, while an increase in the storage of poly-P was seen in case of carbon limitations. The next major challenge was the production intensification in a photobioreactor of which the design was linked to minimizing both H2 and light limitations. The chosen bubble-column photobioreactor already resulted in a doubled biomass productivity. Finally, the remaining technological and non-technological challenges ahead for the production of a high-value, cost-efficient, environment-friendly microbial protein that complies with legislative requirements and appeals to future consumers were discussed.

Abstract: Aquafeeds contain protein ingredients such as fishmeal and soybean meal, yet their production puts pressure on the environment. Finding novel protein sources such as dried microbial biomass produced on recovered or renewable resources, so-called single-cell protein or microbial protein, can contribute to a more sustainable aquaculture industry. New microbial protein sources are emerging with photoheterotrophic grown purple non‑sulfur bacteria (PNSB) showing high potential, yet research of PNSB as added-value protein ingredient is limited. This research studied their use as a protein source for the white leg shrimp (Penaeus vannamei) and investigated the shrimp's tolerance against Vibrio and ammonia stress. A 28-day shrimp feeding trial was performed with a commercial formulation without PNSB as experimental control (diet i), two pure PNSB species, namely Rhodopseudomonas palustris (diets ii-iii), Rhodobacter capsulatus (diets iv-v) at two protein inclusion levels of 5 and 11 g PNSBprotein 100 g−1 feedprotein and a PNSB enriched culture at a protein inclusion level of 11 g PNSBprotein 100 g−1 feedprotein (diet vi). For the shrimp fed with Rb. capsulatus, 5–25% higher individual weights (p < .05) and better feed conversion ratios were observed relative to the commercial diet (1.3–1.4 vs. control 1.7 g feed g−1 biomass; p < .05). The diet containing Rps. palustris at 5 g PNSBprotein 100 g−1 feedprotein inclusion also showed higher individual weights (26%, p < .05) and a better feed conversion ratio compared to the commercial feed (1.3 vs. control 1.7 g feed g−1 biomass; p < .05). The challenge test subsequent to the feeding trial showed a higher tolerance against ammonia (3 mg N L−1) for shrimp fed with Rps. palustris (survival 63–75% vs. 8% commercial diet; p < .05). For a post-feeding challenge test with Vibrio parahaemolyticus TW01, mortality rates were equal among all treatments. Yet, in vitro tests in 96-Well plates and agar spot assays showed that the PNSB species (i) Rps. palustris, (ii) Rb. capsulatus, (iii) Rb. sphaeroides, (iv) Rhodospirillum rubrum and (v) Afifella marina suppressed the pathogens V. parahaemolyticus TW01 and V. campbellii LMG 21363. Overall, this study demonstrated the potential of PNSB as an added-value protein ingredient in shrimp nursery feed. This can contribute to a circular economy, as PNSB can be cultivated on recovered or renewable resources (e.g. wastewater).

Abstract: The aim of this study is determination of exergoenvironmental efficiency for using solar technologies in sunflower oil production in Iran. Accordingly, the applications of photovoltaic and photovoltaic/thermal systems were evaluated for both agricultural and industrial phases of sunflower oil production. Energy results reveal that 1 ton of sunflower oil consumes and produces about 180,354 and 39,400 MJ energy, respectively. About 86% of total energy consumption belongs to agricultural phase and electricity with 32%, has the highest share of total energy consumption. IMPACT 2002+ method and cumulative energy demand of life cycle assessment are applied to 3 defined scenarios including Present, photovoltaic and photovoltaic/thermal. Results indicate that total amounts of climate change in Present scenarios is 24537.53 kg CO2 eq.. The highest share of human health (90%), ecosystem quality (90%) and climate change (50%) in all scenarios belongs to direct emissions. Results also illustrates that total cumulative energy demand of Present, photovoltaic and photovoltaic/thermal scenarios are about 177,538, 99,054 and 132,158 MJ 1TSO(-1), respectively. Furthermore, the most contribution of non-renewable resources and fossil fuels belongs to electricity (37%), nitrogen (52%) and photovoltaic/thermal panels (39%) in Present, photovoltaic and photovoltaic/thermal scenarios, respectively. Finally the photovoltaic scenario is the best environmental-friendly scenario. (c) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Abstract: The leaf area, as an important leaf functional trait, is thought to be related to leaf length and width. Our recent study showed that the Montgomery equation, which assumes that leaf area is proportional to the product of leaf length and width, applied to different leaf shapes, and the coefficient of proportionality (namely the Montgomery parameter) range from 1/2 to π/4. However, no relevant geometrical evidence has previously been provided to support the above findings. Here, four types of representative leaf shapes (the elliptical, sectorial, linear, and triangular shapes) were studied. We derived the range of the estimate of the Montgomery parameter for every type. For the elliptical and triangular leaf shapes, the estimates are π/4 and 1/2, respectively; for the linear leaf shape, especially for the plants of Poaceae that can be described by the simplified Gielis equation, the estimate ranges from 0.6795 to π/4; for the sectorial leaf shape, the estimate ranges from 1/2 to π/4. The estimates based on the observations of actual leaves support the above theoretical results. The results obtained here show that the coefficient of proportionality of leaf area versus the product of leaf length and width only varies in a small range, maintaining the allometric relationship for leaf area and thereby suggesting that the proportional relationship between leaf area and the product of leaf length and width broadly remains stable during leaf evolution.

Abstract: Each ton of organic household waste that is collected, transported and composted incurs costs (€75/ton gate fee). Reducing the mass and volume of kitchen waste (
KW) at the point of collection can diminish transport requirements and associated costs, while also leading to an overall reduction in gate fees for final processing. To this end, the objective of this research was to deliver a proof of concept for the so-called “urban pre-composter”; a bioreactor for the decentralized, high-rate pre-treatment of KW, that aims at mass and volume reduction at the point of collection. Results show considerable reductions in mass (33%), volume (62%) and organic solids (32%) of real KW, while provision of structure material and separate collection of leachate was found to be unnecessary. The temperature profile, C/N ratio (12) and VS/TS ratio (0.69) indicated that a mature compost can be produced in 68  days (after pre-composting and main composting). An economic Monte Carlo simulation yielded that the urban pre-composter concept is not more expensive than the current approach, provided its cost per unit is €8,000–€14,500 over a 10-year period (OPEX and CAPEX, in 80% of the cases). The urban pre-composter is therefore a promising system for the efficient pre-treatment of organic household waste in an urban context.