Average Rate Research Articles

Energy, exergy and economic investigation of novel hybrid dryer, indirect solar dryer and traditional shade drying

By integrating a secondary energy source into solar dryers, more moisture can be removed from food products in the same time period. For this purpose, tomato slices of different thicknesses (7 mm, 15 mm and quarter size) were dried to see the drying, energy, exergy and economic performance of an innovative hybrid dryer consisting of an indirect solar dryer and geothermal heat exchanger unit. The hybrid dryer’s performance was compared simultaneously with indirect solar dryer and traditional shade drying. The analyzes were evaluated according to the feeding of drying air from the solar air collector and geothermal heat exchanger unit. Compared to the other two dryers, the hybrid dryer dried the 7 mm, 15 mm and quarter size samples in the earliest time, with an average of 1380, 2476.3 and 2397.3 min, respectively. The average highest specific moisture extraction rate (0.87 kg/kWh) and dryer efficiency (45.25 %) and the lowest specific energy consumption (4.75 kWh/kg) for hybrid dryer were obtained for the 15 mm. The highest exergy efficiency for the solar air collector and drying chamber of the hybrid dryer was determined at 7 mm with 3.08 % and 38.9 %, respectively. The lowest payback period for the hybrid dryer was found to be 0.37 years for 7 mm. The results showed that the hybrid dryer was superior to the other two dryers by drying continuously day and night. Hybrid dryer can create a successful commercial ecosystem as an important drying alternative for locations where geothermal energy is available.

Availability of essential, generic medicines before and during COVID-19 at selected public pharmaceutical supply agencies in Ethiopia: a comparative cross-sectional study

ObjectivesLockdowns and border closures impacted medicine availability during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to assess the availability of essential, generic medicines for chronic diseases at public pharmaceutical supply agencies...

Developing a General Daily Lake Evaporation Model and Demonstrating Its Application in the State of Texas

AbstractOpen water evaporation, which often consumes a large fraction of annual storage (especially in arid and semi‐arid regions), is a controlling variable for modern water resource management. Developing a daily reservoir evaporation data set is necessary for reservoir operations to consider the influence of evaporation in a timely manner. However, over the past few decades, the quantification of reservoir evaporation has primarily relied on monthly Class A pan evaporation observations, which might lead to largely biased estimations because they do not incorporate the effects of heat storage and fetch. In this study, we developed a general Daily Lake Evaporation Model (DLEM) based on Penman's equation combined with daily atmospheric reanalysis data sets, to improve the validity and frequency of reservoir evaporation monitoring. Compared with daily evaporation estimates from eddy covariance systems, the DLEM showed good quality and reliability, with R2 values ranging from 0.50 to 0.73 and RMSE values ranging from 1.13 to 1.97 mm day−1 in four different sites. By applying DLEM to all 188 major reservoirs in Texas, we generated a long‐term data set of (1 January 1981–31 December 2021) daily evaporation rates. The results reveal a clear geographic distribution and strong seasonality of evaporation throughout Texas, where the mean evaporation rate is highest during July, with 6.85 mm day−1. Trend analysis indicates that the annual average evaporation rate has significantly increased since 1981 at a rate of 0.076 mm day−1 decade−1. This study provides sufficient data support for water resource operations and management, and regional water planning.

The short-term effect of Blood Pressure Reduction after Biofeedback in Malignant Hypertension: A case report

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to report the short-term blood pressure-lowering effects observed in a patient with malignant hypertension through slow breathing maneuver with heart rate variability(HRV) biofeedback.Methods: Biofeedback sessions, totaling 13, each lasting 10 minutes, were administered. Blood pressure was measured pre and post-treatment, as well as thrice daily at 10 am, 4 pm, and 8 pm. Systolic blood pressure(SBP), diastolic blood pressure(DBP), and pulse rate were recorded for comparative analysis.Results: Before biofeedback, the average SBP, DBP, and pulse rate were 227.2±18.3, 135.2±11.0, and 104.4±5.3, respectively. Immediately post-biofeedback, these values changed to 213.7±15.2, 126.9±8.5, and 99.2±3.6. However, sustained long-term blood pressure reduction was not observed.Conclusions: The findings suggest that biofeedback therapy induces a short-term reduction in blood pressure in cases of malignant hypertension, potentially associated with autonomic nervous system regulation. Integrating biofeedback with other Korean medicine treatments, such as acupuncture or moxibustion, may offer a comprehensive approach for managing malignant hypertension.

Electrochemical-thermochemical complementary hydrogen production system for efficient full-spectrum solar energy storage

Solar hydrogen production, which can store unstable solar energy into clean hydrogen, has garnered widespread attention from researchers. However, there are some shortcomings in the single solar hydrogen production pathway: Photovoltaic-electrolytic green hydrogen production primarily harnesses short-wavelength solar energy, neglecting a significant portion of solar energy in the long-wavelength, while solar thermochemical methane reforming for gray hydrogen production underutilizes high-grade solar energy and emits carbon dioxide. This study presents a hybrid system capable of concurrently producing green and gray hydrogen, effectively harnessing the entire spectrum of solar energy while minimizing carbon emissions. Thermodynamic investigations reveal that the system attains energy efficiency of 47.43 %, exergy efficiency of 41.93 %, and solar-to-hydrogen efficiency of 25.61 % at the direct normal irradiance (DNI) of 1000 W/m2. It is intriguing to observe the discrepancy in the proportions of energy input from solar energy and methane, along with their respective impacts on hydrogen production. Although solar energy input constitutes 85.26–63.44 % of the total energy input, its contribution to hydrogen production is 64.94 %–33.71 %. Despite the reduced proportion of solar energy's contribution to hydrogen production compared to its input proportion, it significantly contributes to reducing fossil energy usage and carbon emissions. This system's average carbon dioxide reduction rate stands at around 16.84–13.80 kg/kgH2. The proposed system offers an efficient approach to full-spectrum solar energy storage and hydrogen production, thus contributing to a cleaner energy future.

Deciphering the effect of variation in slope on flow characteristics in a vertical slot fishway

The effects of a vertical slot fishway slope (with slope values from 1.5% to 6%) on a flow field are numerically investigated, using a re-normalization group k – ε model. The distribution of the velocity, turbulence kinetic energy (TKE), average energy dissipation rate per unit volume (E), and vorticity for different slopes are systemically explored. The results indicate that, with an increase in slope, the appearance of downward flow in conjunction with an increase in vertical velocity results in three-dimensional flow characteristics. The recirculation region in Hs, at a 6.0% slope, was 20.9% less than that at a 1.5% slope. Meanwhile, the flow velocity in the vertical slot region grew with increasing slope, which would limit the passage of fish with burst speed lower than the velocity in the vertical slot region. The TKE and E may locally exceed the threshold at larger slopes. Furthermore, vorticity distribution shows little variability with increasing slope, but may interfere with the equilibrium of the fish in the vertical slot region. In addition, the change in water level has little effect on the flow field, which is changed by the increase in slope. These findings can aid vertical slot fishway designs especially in terms of the efficiency of fish passage.

The Price of Pain: Workers Compensation Costs for Musculoskeletal Claims in the State of Kansas, 2014-2022.

The aim of the study is to describe cost and frequency of work-related musculoskeletal disorders in Kansas. Data were provided by the Kansas Department of Labor and included all closed workers' compensation claims entailing indemnity and medical costs from 2014 to 2022. Work-related musculoskeletal disorder claims entailed a median total cost of $20,097. Medical comprised 48.4% of costs, indemnity 46.4%, and legal 5.2%. The most frequently injured and costliest body part was the shoulder. Manufacturing comprised 28.4% of claims, followed by health care and office. Lifting was the most common cause, generating 32.0% of claims. Education, transportation, and mining were among industries with above average claim rates. Very few studies use workers' compensation data to assess work-related musculoskeletal disorder costs. This study introduces a state not yet analyzed and presents more recent years of data than available in the literature.

A Distributional Perspective on Multiagent Cooperation With Deep Reinforcement Learning.

Among various value decomposition-based multiagent reinforcement learning (MARL) algorithms, the overall performance of the multiagent system is represented by a scalar global Q value and optimized by minimizing the temporal difference (TD) error with respect to that global Q value. However, the global Q value cannot accurately model the distributed dynamics of the multiagent system, since it is only a simplified representation for different individual Q values of agents. To explicitly consider the correlations between different cooperative agents, in this article, we propose a distributional framework and construct a practical model called distributional multiagent cooperation (DMAC) from a novel distributional perspective. Specifically, in DMAC, we view the individual Q value for the executed action of a random agent as a value distribution, whose expectation can further represent the overall performance. Then, we employ distributional RL to minimize the difference between the estimated distribution and its target for the optimization. The advantage of DMAC is that the distributed dynamics of agents can be explicitly modeled, and this results in better performance. To verify the effectiveness of DMAC, we conduct extensive experiments under nine different scenarios of the StarCraft Multiagent Challenge (SMAC). Experimental results show that the DMAC can significantly outperform the baselines with respect to the average median test win rate.

Restrictive diets are unnecessary for colonoscopy: Non-inferiority randomized trial.

Background and study aims In colonoscopy, preparation is often regarded as the most burdensome part of the intervention. Traditionally, specific diets have been recommended, but the evidence to support this policy is insufficient. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of the decision not to follow a restrictive diet on bowel preparation and colonoscopy outcomes. Patients and methods This was a multicenter, controlled, non-inferiority randomized trial with FIT-positive screening colonoscopy. The subjects were assigned to follow the current standard (1-day low residue diet [LRD]) or a liberal diet. The allocation was balanced for the risk of inadequate cleansing using the Dik et al. score. All participants received the same instructions for morning colonoscopy preparation. The primary outcome was the rate of adequate preparations as defined by the Boston Bowel Preparation Scale. Secondary outcomes included tolerability and measures of colonoscopy performance and quality. Results A total of 582 subjects were randomized. Of these, 278 who received the liberal diet and 275 who received the 1-day LRD were included in the intent-to-treat analysis. Non-inferiority was demonstrated with adequate preparation rates of 97.8% in the 1-day LRD and 96.4% in the liberal diet group. Tolerability was higher with the liberal diet (94.7% vs. 83.2%). No differences were found with respect to cecal intubation time, aspirated volume, or length of the examination. Global and right colon average adenoma detection rates per colonoscopy were similar. Conclusions The liberal diet was non-inferior to the 1-day LRD, and increased tolerability. Colonoscopy performance and quality were not affected. (NCT05032794).

Effect of New Bio-component of Cytoplasmic Polyhedrosis Virus (Cypovirus1) with Silver Nanoparticles against Four Pests in Stored Food Products

This study was conducted to develop an approach for reducing severe damage to grains caused by various insect pests using the biological control agent Cypovirus1 and silver nanoparticles, both alone and in combination. Four types of beetles that infest stored products, including drugstore beetle (Stegobium paniceum), saw-toothed grain beetle (Oryzaephilus surinamensis), warehouse beetle (Trogoderma variabile), and Cowpea weevil (Callosobruchus maculates), were collected from seven different areas in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, specifically Mecca regions. We determined the morphological characteristics of the pests in various grains. Corn borer pupae and larvae of corn plants infected with Cypovirus1 were collected from the stems of live and dead maize plants in fields in Mecca regions to isolate Cypovirus1. Infected samples were examined using triple antibody sandwich-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (TAS-ELIZA) and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis revealed virus-containing occlusion bodies inside infected cells of corn borer larvae with irregular shapes and dimensions of 2.2–4.9 µm. The effects of different concentrations of the virus activated by synthetic spherical silver nanoparticles with an average diameter of 36.32 nm on the larva of grain pests taken were evaluated, and all treatments led to an increased mortality percentage after 72 h compared to at 48 h. The treatment mixture consisting of 10/100 viral and 400 µg/kg AgNPs led to the highest average death rates of the four insect larvae at 72 h after treatment. Protein bands that were present in the virus-infected larvae of the four pests were absent from healthy larvae, indicating viral infection.

Delivery at an inadequate level of maternal care is associated with severe maternal morbidity

BackgroundImplementing levels of maternal care is one strategy proposed to reduce maternal morbidity and mortality. The levels of maternal care framework outline individual medical and obstetric comorbidities, along with hospital resources required for individuals with these different comorbidities to deliver safely. The overall goal is to match individuals to hospitals, so all birthing people get appropriate resources and personnel during delivery to reduce maternal morbidity. ObjectivesThis study examined the association between delivery in a hospital with an inappropriate level of maternal care and the risk of experiencing severe maternal morbidity. Study designThe 40 birthing hospitals in Massachusetts were surveyed using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Levels of Care Assessment Tool. We linked individual delivery hospitalizations from the Massachusetts Pregnancy to Early Life Longitudinal data system to hospital-level data from the Levels of Care Assessment Tool surveys. Level of maternal care guidelines were used to outline 16 high-risk conditions warranting delivery at hospitals with resources beyond those considered basic (level I) obstetric care. We then used the Levels of Care Assessment Tool assessed levels to determine whether delivery occurred at a hospital that had the resources to meet an individual’s needs (i.e., if a patient received risk-inappropriate care).We conducted our analyses in two stages. First, multivariable logistic regression models predicted whether an individual delivered in a hospital that did not have the resources for their risk condition. The main explanatory variable of interest was whether the hospital self-assessed their level of maternal care to be higher than their Levels of Care Assessment Tool -assessment. We then used logistic regression to examine the association between delivery at an inappropriate level and the presence of severe maternal morbidity at delivery. ResultsAmong 64,441 deliveries in Massachusetts from January 1 to December 31, 2019, 33.2% (21,415/64,441) had one or more of the 16 high-risk conditions suggesting delivery should occur at a center designated as a level I or higher. Of the 21,415 individuals with a high-risk condition, 13% (2,793/21,415) or 4% (2,793/64,441) of the entire sample delivered at an inappropriate level of maternal care. Birthing individuals with high-risk conditions delivering at a hospital with an inappropriate level had elevated odds (aOR: 3.34, 95% CI: 2.24, 4.96) of experiencing severe maternal morbidity after adjusting for patient comorbidities, demographics, average hospital severe maternal morbidity rate, hospital level of maternal care, and geographic region. ConclusionsBirthing people who delivered in a hospital with risk-inappropriate resources were significantly more likely to experience severe maternal morbidity. Delivery in a hospital with a discrepancy in their self-assessment and Levels of Care Assessment Tool assessment significantly predicted delivery in a hospital with an inappropriate level of maternal care, suggesting inadequate knowledge of hospitals’ resources and capabilities. Our data demonstrate the potential for the levels of maternal care paradigm to decrease severe maternal morbidity while highlighting the need for robust implementation and education to ensure everyone receives risk-appropriate care.

Factors associated with homicides of women in Brazil, by race or colour, 2016-2020.

This ecological, time-trend study examined rates of homicide against women residing in Brazil, by state and race/colour, from 2016 to 2020, by performing. Multiple analysis by regression model on longitudinal data. During the study period, 20,405 homicides of women were recorded in Brazil. Standardised homicides rates were higher among black women (6.1/100,000) than among white women (3.4/100,000). From 2016 to 2020, rates decreased 25.2%, from 4.7 deaths per 100,000 women in 2016 to 3.5 in 2020, with a statistically significant downward trend among both black and white women. Statistically significant inverse relationships were found between female homicide rates and HDI, illiteracy rate and proportion of ill-defined causes. The average homicide rate decreased in 2019 and 2020, as compared with 2016. Despite the decreasing time trend in homicide rates for both black and white women, they differed substantially by race, with worse outcomes for black women.

The incubation environment does not explain significant variation in heart rate plasticity among avian embryos.

The conditions an organism experiences during development can modify how they plastically respond to short-term changes in their environment later in life. This can be adaptive because the optimal average trait value and the optimal plastic change in trait value in response to the environment may differ across different environments. For example, early developmental temperatures can adaptively modify how reptiles, fish and invertebrates metabolically respond to temperature. However, whether individuals within populations respond differently (a prerequisite to adaptive evolution), and whether this occurs in birds, which are only ectothermic for part of their life cycle, is not known. We experimentally tested these possibilities by artificially incubating the embryos of Pekin ducks (Anas platyrhynchos domesticus) at constant or variable temperatures. We measured their consequent heart rate reaction norms to short-term changes in egg temperature and tracked their growth. Contrary to expectations, the early thermal environment did not modify heart rate reaction norms, but regardless, these reaction norms differed among individuals. Embryos with higher average heart rates were smaller upon hatching, but heart rate reaction norms did not predict subsequent growth. Our data also suggests that the thermal environment may affect both the variance in heart rate reaction norms and their covariance with growth. Thus, individual avian embryos can vary in their plasticity to temperature, and in contrast to fully ectothermic taxa, the early thermal environment does not explain this variance. Because among-individual variation is one precondition to adaptive evolution, the factors that do contribute to such variability may be important.

Long-term exposure to transportation noise in relation to global cognitive decline and cognitive impairment: Results from a Swedish longitudinal cohort

Background and aimsTransportation noise is an environmental exposure with mounting evidence of adverse health effects. Besides the increased risk of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, recent studies suggest that long-term noise exposure might accelerate cognitive decline in older age. We examined the association between transportation noise and cognitive function in a cohort of older adults. MethodsThe present study is based on 2594 dementia-free participants aged 60 + years from the Swedish National study on Aging and Care in Kungsholmen (SNAC-K). Global cognition score and CIND (cognitive impairment, no dementia) were assessed with a comprehensive neuropsychological battery at baseline and up to 16 years. Residential transportation noise resulting from road traffic, railway, and aircraft were estimated at the most exposed façade and the time-weighted average exposure was assessed. Linear mixed-effect models were used to assess the effect of long-term traffic noise exposure on the rate of change in global cognition score. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) of CIND by transportation noise exposure were obtained with Cox proportional hazard models. ResultsGlobal cognition score decreased at an average rate of −0.041 (95 %CI −0.043, −0.039) per year. Aircraft noise was associated with a 0.007 (per 10 dB Lden; 95 %CI −0.012, −0.001) faster annual rate of decline. Global cognition score seems to be not affected by road traffic and railway noise. During the follow-up, 422 (21 %) participants developed CIND. A 10-dB Lden difference in exposure to aircraft and railway noise was associated with a 16 % (HR 1.16, 95 %CI 0.91, 1.49) and 26 % (HR 1.26, 95 %CI 1.01, 1.56) increased hazard of CIND in the multi-pollutant model, respectively. No association was found for road traffic (HR 1.00, 95 %CI 0.83, 1.21). ConclusionsTransportation noise was linked to cognitive impairment and faster cognitive decline among older adults. Future studies are warranted to confirm our results.

Abstract IA011: Understanding field carcinogenesis in obesity-related endometrial cancer

Abstract Over the last decade, endometrial cancer (EC) incidence has increased at an average rate of 0.8% each year. Although cancer death rates decreased during this time, EC showed the greatest increase in cancer death among women. Public awareness of EC remains low, and EC research remains underfunded relative to its societal burden. While most women with EC are post-menopausal, up to 30% of cases occur in pre-menopausal women under 50 years of age, with obesity being a major risk factor. More than half of all EC is associated with obesity. Obesity is also a leading risk factor for benign endometrial hyperplasia, which is considered the precursor lesion to EC. Like other cancers, the causes of EC are multifactorial, with obesity and somatic mutations playing causal roles. By 2030, half of all adult women in the U.S. are expected to be classified as obese. Therefore, EC incidence is expected to increase. If detected early, EC can be cured with surgical hysterectomy, but this solution is not ideal for all women. Intentional weight loss can lower endometrial cancer risk in obese women, but certain barriers prevent obese, at-risk women from losing weight or maintaining healthy lifestyles while living in obesogenic environments. There is a critical need to understand the biological mechanisms underlying EC pathogenesis in at-risk obese women. Although EC is thought to arise from a hyperplastic endometrial epithelium, our previous findings suggest that high-fat diet induced obesity affects other cell types within the endometrial microenvironment, including endometrial stroma and immune cells, in the absence of histopathological change. Common EC somatic mutations can also arise in the absence of histopathological change or occur in cases of benign disease. Our overarching hypothesis is that a normal appearing endometrium may accrue cell-context dependent alterations in response to obesity and somatic mutations across a pre-malignant tissue field that are predictive of malignant transformation. This presentation will highlight our recent work on the combined molecular and phenotypic effects of obesity and common EC driver mutations on the endometrial tissue field. The identification of high-value molecular targets across the endometrial pre-malignant field may inform new early detection and prevention strategies for EC. Citation Format: Ronald Chandler. Understanding field carcinogenesis in obesity-related endometrial cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Endometrial Cancer: Transforming Care through Science; 2023 Nov 16-18; Boston, Massachusetts. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2024;30(5_Suppl):Abstract nr IA011.

Lending limit in modern Russia

Subject. The article investigates the limit of lending in modern Russia. Objectives. The purpose is to identify the limit of lending in modern Russia. Methods. The study is based on systems approach, using the method of statistical analysis. Results. The study unveils a significant growth and scope of the dynamics of loans with floating (variable) interest rate. The dynamics of the monetary base (M2) and the broad money supply shows a mirror maximum range of growth rates of the broad money supply and M2. The paper establishes an exponential trend of weighted average interest rates on loans in rubles to individuals and a polynomial trend on loans to non?financial organizations. The increase in the credit burden on households is associated with an increase in weighted average interest rates on loans, caused by the need to increase internal borrowings, which is only possible by increasing the average coupon on federal loan bonds. Conclusions. The revealed lending limit in modern Russia, associated with the ability of the non-financial sector and households to cover the debt in the context of increasing the money supply and domestic borrowings, indicates the possibilities for the development of the Russian economy.

Revegetation Changes Main Erosion Type on the Gully–Slope on the Chinese Loess Plateau Under Extreme Rainfall: Reducing Gully Erosion and Promoting Shallow Landslides

AbstractExtreme rainfall events pose a severe challenge to soil and water conservation, even in areas with high vegetation cover on the Loess Plateau. In this study, the artificial extreme rainfalls with cumulative rainfall of 270 mm and intensity of 60 mm · hr−1 were conducted on in‐situ experimental plots (20 × 2.5 m) on a loess gully–slope with gradients of 35°–40° that were treated with different grass coverage: (0%, 30%–40%, 70%–80%, >90%). The ephemeral gully/rill and shallow landslide occurred in plots were analyzed. Revegetation changed the erosion type on gully–slope, reducing gully erosion but promoting shallow landslide due to the change from infiltration–excess runoff to saturation–excess runoff. Under grass coverage of >90%, over 95% of rainfall seeped into the soil, and subsurface flow was generated due to the lower saturated hydraulic conductivity of underlying soil, which increased the possibility of landslides. The average erosion rate (0.36–3.29 g · m−2 min−1; no obvious erosion) in plots with 70%–80% coverage was 95.5% lower than that in bare land plots (27.8–47.5 g · m−2 min−1; ephemeral gully erosion), while due to landslides the average erosion rate in plots with >90% coverage (135.1–184.3 g · m−2 min−1) was 86.5 times higher than that in plots with 70%–80%. For grass, a coverage of 70%–80% was most effective in preventing soil erosion, controlling gully erosion and preventing landslides under extreme rainfall. These results deepen the understanding of the complex relationship between vegetation, gully erosion, and landslides in ecologically sensitive areas.

ConGraph: Advanced Persistent Threat Detection Method Based on Provenance Graph Combined with Process Context in Cyber-Physical System Environment

With the wide use of Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) in many applications, targets of advanced persistent threats (APTs) have been extended to the IoT and industrial control systems. Provenance graph analysis based on system audit logs has become a promising way for APT detection and investigation. However, we cannot afford to ignore that existing provenance-based APT detection systems lack the process–context information at system runtime, which seriously limits detection performance. In this paper, we proposed ConGraph, an approach for detecting APT attacks using provenance graphs combined with process context; we presented a module for collecting process context to detect APT attacks. This module collects file access behavior, network access behavior, and interactive relationship features of processes to enrich semantic information of the provenance graph. It was the first time that the provenance graph was combined with multiple process–context information to improve the detection performance of APT attacks. ConGraph extracts process activity features from the provenance graphs and submits the features to a CNN-BiLSTM model to detect underlying APT activities. Compared to some state-of-the-art models, our model raised the average precision rate, recall rate, and F-1 score by 13.12%, 25.61%, and 24.28%, respectively.

Micro-Catchments, Macro Effects: Natural Water Retention Measures in the Kylldal Catchment, Germany

Floods are among the most devastating and financially burdensome natural disasters in Europe. The combined impact of climate change and land use change is expected to exacerbate and intensify the destructive consequences of river floods. In this study, we analysed the effects of wetland restoration on peak and base flows and on water quality in the Kylldal catchment of the Kyll River in the German Middle Mountains using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool+ (SWAT+). Monthly median daily discharge increases varied between 3% and 33% in the studied (micro)catchments. The higher median flow rates show that discharge peaks were attenuated and distributed over a longer period, making both extreme peak flows and low flows less common. Peak flows tended to decrease, with the largest effects between late fall and early spring when peak flow values decreased by up to 18%. The annual maximum peak flows in each of the three micro-catchments decreased by 12–24% on average. The occurrence of daily average flow rates larger than 1 m3 s−1 was up to 45% lower after wetland restoration. Low flows increased by up to 21% and 13% in the summer and fall, respectively, which suggests that drought risk also decreases after wetland restoration. Average nitrogen exports decreased by 38–50% in the project areas and by 20% at the catchment level. Average phosphorus exports decreased by 52–67% in the project areas and by 25% at the catchment level. The study highlights the potential of wetland restoration for improving hydrological services, mitigating flood risks, and enhancing water quality. Restoring and maintaining freshwater ecosystems and their natural sponge functions is crucial for effectively managing water resources and addressing the challenges posed by climate change and land use changes.

Characterization and microbial mechanism of pollutant removal from stormwater runoff in the composite filler bioretention system

Abstract Bioretention systems are a low-impact development (LID) measure to effectively control stormwater runoff and reduce pollutant concentrations. In this paper, three groups of bioretention cells with different filling materials (1# bioretention soil media (BSM), 2# BSM + 5% biochar, and 3# BSM +5% biochar +biological filler) were constructed to analyze the pollutant removal characteristics and microbial action under different simulated rainfall conditions. Results showed that the overall pollutant removal capacity of systems 2# and 3# was higher than that of system 1#, with system 3# having the lowest effluent concentrations of 2.71 mg/L for total nitrogen (TN) and 64.3 mg/L for chemical oxygen demand (COD). The load reduction effect for heavy metals of the three systems was ranked as 2# > 1# > 3#, and average load reduction rates were 80.3, 75.1, and 84.8% for Cu, Pb, and Zn in 2#. Microbial community analysis indicated that Proteobacteria and Firmicutes were the absolute dominant bacteria of the three bioretention systems, and the dominant genera included Bacillus, Hyphomicrobium, Micrococcaceae, and Nitrospira. In addition, the total number of denitrifying functional bacteria genera in systems 2# and 3# was increased by 1.39 and 52.1% compared to system 1#.