Salty Environment Research Articles

The ecology of Ramalina menziesii. II. Variation in water relations and tensile strength across an inland gradient

The lichen Ramalina menziesii Tayl. shows a clear gradient in morphology from coastal to inland sites. Experiments were conducted to evaluate the impact of this morphological variation on water uptake, water loss, and tensile strength properties. The results show that none of these characters is greatly influenced by morphological variation. Artificial loading of thalli with NaCl altered the wetting and drying responses in the same direction as was found in coastal material. This implies that the presence of elevated intrathallus concentrations of NaCl found near the coast is mainly responsible for the small differences in wetting and drying characteristics. It further implies that the morphological variation seen in the field is not an adaptation to the conditions near the coast but, rather, is the imposed result of a permanently moist, cool, and salty environment.

Fundamental research on corrosion resistance of precoated steel sheets for automobiles.

Corrosion behaviors of Precoated sheets for automobiles were studied basically. Weight loss of unpainted specimens, paint adhesion and perforation resistance were measured. Corrosion of unpainted sheet in a salty environment is cathodically controlled. Cathodic reactions are retarded effectively by corrosion products with a low electrical conductivity, such as Zn(OH)2 and ZnCl2•4Zn(OH)2. Al, Mg, Ni, Co or Mn alloyed Zn coated sheets exhibit a good performance because of the formation of above mentioned corrosion products. Paint adhesion depends greatly on the nature of the underlying phosphate layer. During cathodic electrodeposition of Zn coated sheet part of the phosphate film dissolves and gets defects because of high alkalinity. On the other hand, Zn-Fe and Zn-Ni alloy coated sheets have the defects repairing effect, and therefore show a better paint adhesion than Zn plated sheet. Perforation corrosion is caused by the formation of differential aeration cells in several car components. Perforation resistance was evaluated by the tests in a combined corrosive environment using jointed panel specimens. Heavil Zn coated sheets and primer coated sheets demonstrated a high resistance.

Conservation of Iron Objects Found in a Salty Environments [sic

Conservation of Iron Objects Found in a Salty Environments [sic

On melting icebergs

THE feasibility of towing icebergs to their coasts and melting them on arrival to provide a supply of fresh water is being studied in various parts of the world. Saudi Arabia, Australia and California1 are amongst those considering such a project. One suggestion for melting the icebergs is to run each iceberg aground in water approximately 250m deep, the mean depth of Antarctic icebergs. A relatively shallow pen would then be built around the iceberg and it is conjectured that the melt water will rise, without much mixing, into the pen, from where it will be siphoned off for subsequent use. Neshyba2 claims, however, that melt water produced by icebergs may be responsible for a large amount of upwelling and mixing in the Antarctic's Weddell Sea. He asserts that as the melt water rises up the side of an iceberg, it entrains a sizeable quantity of warmer, saltier water from the environment. Neshyba calculates that an average-sized iceberg is thus responsible for a vertical volume transport into the upper layer of the Weddell Sea of 3.3 × 108 cm3 s−1. This is a considerable transport, and the raising of water and nutrients from depth by this mechanism would be of importance in determining the physical and biological properties of the Weddell Sea. The first suggestion, that fresh melt water rises to the surface, and Neshyba's claims that the melt water will have mixed significantly with its salty environment before reaching the surface, cannot both be correct. We show here that both may be in error.

Using in Vitro Selection to Distinguish Red Clover Mutations that Tolerate Salinity

In this paper are presented the results of some research made to obtain cellular lines tolerating salinity from embryogen callus and non embryogen red clover, from the di- and tetraploid genotypes to verify if the potential mutants, shown by us, may manifest some salinity tolerance. Our studies aimed both untreated biological material and chemical mutagens (DES and DMS).
 It was observed that salty environment influences in a negative way the development of callus by decreasing growth and by necrosis appearance on areas more or less extended.
 Under the aspect of the genotype reaction towards the salinity, the tetraploid cultivar has proved more tolerant, compared to the diploid one.
 At a concentration of 0,5% NaCl the percentage of survival of the red clover callus is of 53,2% at Napoca-tetra cultivar, 23,4% at Apollo-tetra and 23,4% at Roxana diplod, respectively 21,0% at Select. At the concentration of 1,0% NaCl the callus growing is strongly inhibited, up to 19,3% at Napoca-tetra, 17,4% at Apollo-tetra and 4,3 and 3,2% at Roxana (2n), respectively Select (2n).
 Following the genotypes behavior of red clover, which are potential mutants, resulted after the treatment with DMS and DES, pointed out positive reaction of the obtained callus at these plants, on medium culture with 0,5% NaCl.
 The transfer of callus on culture medium with NaCl 1,0% points out also a growing of the callus surface, but in a low percent, especially at Roxana cultivar (2n).

A late Pleistocene fauna and flora from Upton Warren, Worcestershire

A large fauna and a large flora are described from terrace deposits of the River Salwarpe at Upton Warren, Worcestershire. The fossils occur in several extensive lenticular bands of silt in the lower half of a gravel succession. From the stratigraphy and a radiocarbon age of 42 000 years, the deposits are ascribed to the beginning of the Gottweig Interstadial, immediately following the maximum of the Midland Irish Sea Glaciation. The latter is thus considered to belong to the last and most severe episode of the Early Würm. The silt bands represent a succession of ancient pools which contained an extensive fauna of vertebrates, molluscs, ostracods, insects and spiders and a large flora which call for explanation in ecological and climatological terms. The beetles include a substantial component not now British; there is a strong northern element but others are more southern in their present-day distribution, one or two are continental and at least three appear to be extinct. The flora is akin to that of present day south Sweden except for a great scarcity of trees. There is evidence from several directions of the existence of brine springs, causing the water of one pool to be mildly brackish and affecting its fauna and flora. Some of the drier land plants also suggest a salty environment. Apart from this complication, the fauna shows an unexpected mixture of northern and less northern forms which nowadays would be mutually incompatible. This is explained as due to a very rapid amelioration of climate following the glacial maximum, with Arctic species still persisting against the inroads of the more thermophilous species coming from the south. The scarcity of trees is not ascribed to true tundra conditions but it is suggested that the grazing of large herds of bison may have had a controlling influence on tree growth.