Utilization Efficiency Indices Research Articles

A Comparative Analysis of the Interaction between Urban-Rural Construction Land Transition and Population Flow: Dominant and Recessive Perspectives

Population flow caused by rapid urbanization has driven the urban-rural construction land transition. A systematic recognition of their interaction is essential for achieving coordinated and sustainable urban-rural development. We chose Hangzhou, one of the most urbanized cities in China, as the study area to analyze this interaction from the perspectives of dominant morphology and recessive morphology during the period of 2010 to 2020. From the perspective of dominant morphology, a structured analysis method is applied to assess the variation in the internal components. A dynamic land utilization efficiency index is proposed and combined with an original static land utilization efficiency index to comprehensively portray a complete periodicity of urban-rural construction land transition and population flow from the perspective of recessive morphology. Results demonstrate that the path dependence of rural industrialization leads to a seemingly stagnant urban-rural construction land transition in Hangzhou. Meanwhile, the rapid increase in the demographic urbanization rate has been supported by the massive inflow of external migrants. Based on the more stringent dynamic land utilization efficiency index and the more comprehensive combination of static and dynamic indices, the moderate expansion of urban construction land increases the proportion of township-level units of the intensive land utilization pattern while, instead of population loss, the general non-intensive land utilization pattern in rural areas has been driven by the overexpansion of rural residential land.

Evaluation of Water Resources Utilization Efficiency Based on DEA and AHP under Climate Change

In the context of climate change, the problem of water scarcity is becoming increasingly serious, and improving the efficiency of water resources use is an important measure to alleviate this problem. The evaluation of water resources utilization efficiency has become the basis of water resource management. Data envelopment analysis (DEA) and analytic hierarchy process (AHP) are widely used in the evaluation of water resources utilization efficiency. However, one of these methods is mostly used for evaluation, which cannot reflect the influence of both objective and subjective factors. Therefore, in this study, we propose a water resources utilization efficiency index (WEI) to evaluate the water resources utilization efficiency of each region in the Tumen River Basin (TRB), combining both DEA and AHP methods. Firstly, the DEA-CCR model was used to quantify domestic, agricultural and industrial water use efficiency in the TRB. The DEA-BCC model was used to analyze the main influences on water use efficiency in each sector. Secondly, the WEI was constructed by assigning weights using the AHP model based on the importance of each water use sector. The results show that the WEI values for most areas within the TRB trended upwards between 2014 and 2019. In particular, domestic water use efficiency ranged from 0.294 to 0.775, while agricultural and industrial water use efficiency ranged from 0.039 to 0.054 and 0.031 to 0.375, respectively. Technical efficiency is the main factor influencing water use efficiency in TRB. This study could provide a basis for water resource management and mitigation of water scarcity in the context of climate change.

Integrated energy management of hybrid power supply based on short-term speed prediction

The energy management strategy and output limitation of energy storage system affect the actual regenerative braking recovery. In order to optimize the performance and energy efficiency of vehicle energy storage system in the process of braking energy recovery, an integrated energy management strategy based on short-term speed prediction is proposed in this paper. Firstly, support vector machine classification method is used for off-line training and on-line recognition of driving patterns, and then input-output hidden Markov model and Gaussian mixture model are fused to establish speed prediction models under urban, suburban, and high-speed conditions for real-time prediction of speed sequences. Then, the power is distributed by the dynamic programming algorithm according to the short-term speed prediction results, and the distribution coefficient is corrected through the integrated strategy of braking force distribution and power distribution. Finally, the simulation results under continuously changing driving conditions show that the pattern recognition with changeable span is conducive to improving its accuracy during the transition period, and the proposed integrated energy management strategy is helpful to optimizing the performance of the hybrid energy storage system. The renewable energy utilization efficiency index indicates the efficiency of the integrated energy management strategy.

Sources and rates of organic substrates in the production of pear Cascatense on quince ‘CP’

The nutritional state of cultivated plants can be influenced, due to the poultry litter doses and basalt powder, thus affecting its proper growth. This work aimed to evaluate the nutritional efficiency of pear, cultivated in different poultry litter doses and basalt powder. The experiment was conducted in the orchard of the fruit growing sector of the Department of Agronomy at the Universidade Estadual do Centro-Oeste, Guarapuava- PR, in 2010, spaced 2.5 x 0.5 m, with the following treatments in the planting hole and reapplied in August of 2012: T1) without fertilization; T2) 2 kg of poultry litter; T3) 2 kg of poultry litter + 2 kg of basalt powder; T4) 4 kg of poultry litter; T5) 4 kg of poultry litter + 2 kg of basalt powder. Samples of the root system, and the shoot segmented in side branches and trunk were collected in January / 2014 (1,190 days) for chemical analysis of nutrient content and dry matter. With these results were calculated the indexes: absorption efficiency; transport efficiency and nutrient utilization efficiency. The treatment 4 kg of poultry litter, result in a higher absorption efficiency ratio for N, and higher utilization efficiency index for S. The transport efficiency suffered a little variation due to the used doses.

Urban development and resource endowments shape natural resource utilization efficiency in Chinese cities

Improving the efficiency with which natural resources are utilized is an indispensable for achieving sustainable development and carbon neutrality. By analyzing the utilization efficiency of energy, water, and land, we established a comprehensive natural resource utilization efficiency index (NRUEI). We then calculated the 2016 index for 165 cities in China, and investigated what caused it to vary. We found three main results: (1) the NRUEI varied greatly across China and there were significant positive correlations between urban energy utilization efficiency (EUE), water utilization efficiency (WUE) and land utilization efficiency (LUE); (2) the NRUEI showed a significant positive correlation with a city's population size, economy (Gross Domestic Product (GDP)), and the level of urban social development (GDP per capita); (3) cities in East China have the highest natural resource utilization efficiency, while cities in Northeast China have the lowest. These results indicate that China's increasing urban development is associated with rising natural resource utilization efficiency and that the city's endowment of natural resources is an important factor affecting that efficiency. Further, the results showed that the determinants of a city's NRUEI differed in large and small cities. Lastly, our results suggest that improving EUE is key for improving NRUEI in urban China, and different efficiencies can be improved intertwined. A major takeaway of this study is that there is great potential for improving natural resource utilization efficiency in Chinese cities and we include city-specific suggestions for efficiency improvements.

Enhanced Growth Performance Physiological and Biochemical Indexes of Trachinotus ovatus Fed With Marine Microalgae Aurantiochytrium sp. Rich in n-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids

Aurantiochytrium sp. is a major source of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs), which are essential nutrients for marine fish. n-3 PUFAs have drawn increasing attention because of their great potential for improving the biological functions of fish. The growth performance and immune response of Trachinotus ovatus were studied by applying diets with various microalgae content from 1.00 to 11.00% for 8 weeks. The results showed that, with the addition of Aurantiochytrium sp., the survival rate, weight gain rate, and specific growth rate of fish increased by a maximum of 1.02, 1.16, and 1.08 times, respectively, indicating that the intake of marine microalgae Aurantiochytrium sp. was beneficial for fish growth. As the microalgae content increased, the feed utilization efficiency index feed conversion ratio decreased (maximum 15.00%) and feed efficiency increased (maximum 1.17 times), showing that the addition of Aurantiochytrium sp. contributed to the assimilation of fish feed. Furthermore, our results showed that as the addition of Aurantiochytrium sp. increased (from 1.00 to 11.00%), the glucose content increased in the blood (from 9.04 to 27.80%). The content of fatty acids ARA, ALA, DHA, and EPA in fish was significantly increased after adding Aurantiochytrium sp. in diets. In liver, ARA content increased from 1.17 to 1.63%, ALA increased from 0.56 to 0.85%, DHA increased from 14.44 to 20.61%, and EPA increased from 1.86 to 4.40%. In muscle, ARA content increased from 0.97 to 1.24%, ALA increased from 0.59 to 0.81%, DHA increased from 14.63 to 14.82%, and EPA increased from 4.58 to 5.19%. Positive changes were observed in the blood cell count of immune related cells (white blood cells, lymphocytes, monocytes, neutrophils, and red blood cells). These results indicated that microalgae rich in n-3 PUFAs could increase the number of immune cells, thus helping to improve fish immunity and disease resistance.

Replacement of Fish Meal by Black Soldier Fly (Hermetia illucens) Larvae Meal: Effects on Growth, Haematology, and Skin Mucus Immunity of Nile Tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus.

Simple SummaryFish meal (FM) is the primary ingredient of the farmed fish’s diet. However, the decline in wild fish catches, and the growing demand for aquaculture feed have resulted in a dramatic reduction of FM supply. Thus, it is essential to seek for alternatives, such as insect meal (IM), to support sustainable aquafeed production. Among insects, the black soldier fly larvae are promising because they are rich in essential amino acids, minerals, and vitamins. Therefore, the present study was performed to assess the effects of IM as a partial or total replacement of FM on the growth and hematological parameters and skin mucus immunity of Nile tilapia. Growth and feed utilization efficiency indices, feed intake, survival rates, and hematological parameters were not significantly different between FM and IM fed fish, while the mucosal immune response was improved in IM fed fish. In conclusion, these results show that IM can be used to substitute FM in the Nile tilapia diet. These findings can be used to develop alternative aquafeed for sustainable aquaculture.Fish meal (FM) is no longer a sustainable source for the increasing aquaculture industry. Animal proteins from insects may be used as a FM alternative source as long as they do not create adverse effects in fish. Black soldier fly larvae meal (BSFLM) was tested in a 12-week experiment on Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). Four hundred and twenty (14.77 ± 2.09 g) fish were divided into seven groups and were fed seven diets: control (0% BSFLM-100% FM), and FM replaced by BSFLM at rates of 10%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80% and 100%. Growth indexes, feed utilization efficiency indices, feed intake, and survival rate were not significantly different (p > 0.05) between FM and BSFLM fed fish. Values of red blood cell, white blood cells, hemoglobin, hematocrit, mean corpuscular volume and hemoglobin, mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration, red blood cell distribution width, and platelet values were not affected by BSFLM. Skin, mucus lysozyme, and peroxidase activities were improved in BSFLM fed fish. BSFLM can be used as a substitution for FM in the Nile tilapia (O. niloticus) diet at up to a 100% rate with no adverse effects.

Analysis of the potential of reclaimed water utilization in typical inland cities in northwest China via system dynamics

Located in the hinterland of the Eurasian continent, the inland areas of northwestern China have an arid climate and are confronted with continuing challenges in water resources quantity and quality. Reclaimed water plays an important role in maintaining the sustainable use of urban water resources, especially in arid regions. In this paper, a system dynamics urban reclaimed water model (SDURWM) considering the status of arid regions in northwestern China was constructed. The supply and demand balance index (RWB) and the utilization efficiency index (RWUE) of reclaimed water were proposed as evaluation indicators. The potential of reclaimed water utilization (2016–2025) in three typical cities with similar natural environments and population sizes but with large economic differences were estimated by the SD model. Then the relevant values of reclaimed water quota, supply and resident awareness were adjusted within the range of 10%–20%. The predicted results from intervention demonstrate that the RWB of three cities will be closer or maintain to the ideal value, and that the RWUE will increase by about 0.1, compared with the non-intervention results. This indicates that a minor change of the targeted policies can invigorate the capacity of reclaimed water use in droughty cities. This paper provides some effective solutions for the government's planning of developing the potential of reclaimed water.

Growth performance, feed utilization and body composition of advanced nursing Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) fed diets containing Black Soldier Fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae meal

A 32-day experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects on the performance, feed utilization efficiency and body composition of a strategic inclusion of Black Soldier Fly larvae meal (MM) in a commercially formulated diet for advance nursing Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). Four isonitrogenous and isoenergetic diets were commercially formulated and manufactured as a control and three test diets with strategic inclusions of MM inclusions (0, 30, 50 and 80 g/kg) and poultry by-product meal substituting gradually three conventional expensive feedstuffs: fish meal, fish oil and soybean meal. Fish (5.7 ± 0.5 g/fish) were nursed in a cage-in-lake system (Volta Lake, Ghana), under conditions similar to commercial farming practices. Control and experimental diets were fed to triplicate cages by hand to visual satiety, six times per day. Growth performance (final weight; weight gain and SGR), feed utilization efficiency indices (FCR and PER) and feed intake were not significantly different (p ≥ .05) between treatments. Survival was significantly different (p < .05) but more likely explained by the stress related to frequent handling on the smaller fish. Fish whole body composition (dry matter, crude protein, lipid, ash and fibre) was unaffected by the treatment (p ≥ .05), except for the fatty acid compositions which mirrored that of the diets.

K-Shortest-Path-Based Evacuation Routing with Police Resource Allocation in City Transportation Networks.

Emergency evacuation aims to transport people from dangerous places to safe shelters as quickly as possible. Police play an important role in the evacuation process, as they can handle traffic accidents immediately and help people move smoothly on roads. This paper investigates an evacuation routing problem that involves police resource allocation. We propose a novel k-th-shortest-path-based technique that uses explicit congestion control to optimize evacuation routing and police resource allocation. A nonlinear mixed-integer programming model is presented to formulate the problem. The model’s objective is to minimize the overall evacuation clearance time. Two algorithms are given to solve the problem. The first one linearizes the original model and solves the linearized problem with CPLEX. The second one is a heuristic algorithm that uses a police resource utilization efficiency index to directly solve the original model. This police resource utilization efficiency index significantly aids in the evaluation of road links from an evacuation throughput perspective. The proposed algorithms are tested with a number of examples based on real data from cities of different sizes. The computational results show that the police resource utilization efficiency index is very helpful in finding near-optimal solutions. Additionally, comparing the performance of the heuristic algorithm and the linearization method by using randomly generated examples indicates that the efficiency of the heuristic algorithm is superior.

Effects ofQuillajasaponins on growth, feed efficiency, digestive enzyme activities and metabolism of common carp (Cyprinus carpioL)

Common carp were fed diets containing various levels of Quillaja saponins (QS) (0, 150, 300 and 450 mg kg−1 dry diet) in a completely computerized respirometric system for 4 weeks. Fish fed diets containing QS exhibited significantly higher ABW and specific growth rate than did those fed the control diet; those fed diets containing QS 150 grew fastest but were not significantly different from those fed diets with QS 300 and QS 00450. All the utilization efficiency indices, namely food conversion efficiency (FCE), protein productive value and PG were increased by QS supplementation. There were no significant differences in the average routine metabolic rate between treatments, indicating that dietary QS at the levels tested were not toxic to the carp. Increases in amylase and trypsin specific activities were observed at QS 300 and QS 450. Enzymes of carbohydrate metabolism such as G6PDH, 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase and pyruvate kinase were not significantly affected by dietary QS. Activities of the aerobic enzyme Cox and to a limited extent that of the anaerobic enzyme lactate dehydrogenase were significantly increased by dietary QS but the net effect was a shift towards aerobic metabolism, indicating absence of stress and favouring the anabolic processes. Thus, Quillaja saponin was beneficial as a feed supplement in the common carp.

Nitrogen Application in Winter Wheat Grown in Mediterranean Conditions: Effects on Nitrogen Uptake, Utilization Efficiency, and Soil Nitrogen Deficit

ABSTRACT Nitrogen (N) is one of the most growth restricting nutrients in cereal grain and represents one of the highest input costs in agricultural systems; therefore, environmental and economic considerations require the effective use of N fertilizer in plant production. This study was conducted for three years to better understand wheat plant response to optimize N fertilizer and how to reduce the risk of ground water pollution. Two of the most important durum wheat cultivars in Southern Italy and four N fertilization levels (0, 60, 120, and 180 kg N ha− 1, indicated as N0, N60, N120, and N180, respectively) were compared in this experiment. During plant growth, fresh and dry matter, plant nutritional state (SPAD readings and stem nitrate content), and N uptake were determined. At harvest, plant N content, N uptake, grain yield, yield components and quality were determined, allowing the calculation of the pre- and postanthesis N uptake and the N utilization efficiency indices. Furthermore, at the beginning and at the end of each year, soil mineral N was measured to calculate mineral N deficit in the soil. The results indicated that the treatment with 120 kg N ha− 1 of fertilizer ensures a good balance between yield and N utilization. In fact, N180 and N120 showed similar yield (3.01 and 3.07 t ha− 1, respectively) and protein content (13.7 and 13.5 %). Meanwhile, throughout the three-year experiment, N180 presented the highest final mineral N content in the soil at the end of the cropping cycles, increasing the amount of N available for leaching. The N120 treatment showed the same values of N utilization indices as compared to N180, indicating that further doses of N fertilizer did not increase wheat N utilization. Plant N status shows that it is possible to modify the N fertilization to reach its optimum level during plant growth, in accordance with variable weather conditions, and consequently the plants requirements. The mean treatments of the preanthesis N uptake were about 67.5% of the total N uptake, and it was significantly and positively correlated with wheat yield. On the contrary, the postanthesis N uptake showed positive correlation with grain protein content, confirming the importance of late N supply in grains quality. The variation of weather conditions affected winter wheat yield, quality, N utilization and plant N status, but any difference throughout years was found between N180 and N120, confirming that higher N rate did not influence wheat growth, yield, and N uptake.

Nitrogen indicators, uptake and utilization efficiency in a maize and barley rotation cropped at different levels and sources of N fertilization

A 3-year experiment was carried out in Mediterranean conditions on two maize–barley rotations to determine the effect of different levels and sources of nitrogen (N) fertilizer on the N uptake, efficiency, soil N deficit and crops yield. The potential for N savings by the use of N indicators was also studied. Five strategies of maize N fertilization were compared on plots laid out in a complete randomized design with three blocks: mineral N (200 kg N ha −1); organic-mineral N (100 kg N ha −1 as olive pomace compost plus 100 kg ha −1 of mineral N); mineral N (100 kg N ha −1); organic N (100 kg N ha −1 as olive pomace compost); unfertilized control. Winter barley was cultivated without fertilization. The use of organic fertilizer, as a partial substitution of mineral N, achieved the same yield of the highest mineral fertilizer treatment in maize (8.8 and 8.9 t ha −1, respectively) and barley (3.2 and 3.5 t ha −1), ensured the highest increases of total organic carbon and the least N mineral soil deficit at the end of the experiment. Furthermore, N utilization efficiency indices did not change between the highest N treatments (mineral and organic-mineral N supply) in both crops, reflecting no difference in N utilization. High level of available N in the soil during the growing seasons strongly affected the total N uptake in both crops and, consequently, yield and N utilization efficiency. In fact, as mean of N treatments, the available N contributed to total N uptake for the 57.4% in the first growing period (maize 2000 and barley 2001) and 45.2% in the second one (maize 2001 and barley 2002). The findings of this research also indicate that the postanthesis N uptake was higher than preanthesis in maize (59.1 and 40.9% of the total N uptake, respectively) but lower in barley (32.8 and 67.2%), although it was correlated with yield in both crops, confirming that the reproductive stage is more important than the vegetative one in Mediterranean conditions. Finally, the results showed that the more reliable N indicator tests of yield for maize were the pre-sowing soil mineral N and the mean of SPAD readings, which presented a linear relationship. In barley, the best N indicator was the mean stem nitrate content, which showed a high correlation and linear relationship with yield.

Flue curing of Virginia tobacco by a tube-in-basket (TiB) burner using rice husk as fuel and barn insulation

Virginia tobacco crop is flue-cured by individual farmers in the field. This highly energy-intensive process consumes enormous quantities of firewood with serious ecological implications. A tube-in-basket (TiB) burner, developed recently, makes it possible to use rice husk, a locally available agrowaste, as an alternative energy source. Tobacco curing trials carried out in an instrumented research barn showed that the fuel cost per kilogram of tobacco leaf cured was lower with rice husk as compared to firewood. The fuel utilization efficiency index could be improved by about 30% by insulating the barn roof with husk. Comparison of detailed temperature profiles indicated that, with insulation, heat losses through the roof were virtually eliminated, vertical temperature spreads inside the barn were much narrower, and the daynight cyclic variations, as well as inversion of temperatures, were either totally suppressed or greatly reduced. It is postulated that the more stable temperature profiles contributed to fuel economy and also to the quality of the cured leaf.