A taste of space: Remote animal observations and discrete-choice models provide new insights into foraging and density dynamics for a large subarctic herbivore.

Competition for resources and space can drive forage selection of large herbivores from the bite through the landscape scale. Animal behaviour and foraging patterns are also influenced by abiotic and biotic factors. Fine-scale mechanisms of density-dependent foraging at the bite scale are likely consistent with density-dependent behavioural patterns observed at broader scales, but few studies have directly tested this assertion. Here, we tested if space use intensity, a proxy of spatiotemporal density, affects foraging mechanisms at fine spatial scales similarly to density-dependent effects observed at broader scales in caribou. We specifically assessed how behavioural choices are affected by space use intensity and environmental processes using behavioural state and forage selection data from caribou (Rangifer tarandus granti) observed from GPS video-camera collars using a multivariate discrete-choice modelling framework. We found that the probability of eating shrubs increased with increasing caribou space use intensity and cover of Salix spp. shrubs, whereas the probability of eating lichen decreased. Insects also affected fine-scale foraging behaviour by reducing the overall probability of eating. Strong eastward winds mitigated negative effects of insects and resulted in higher probabilities of eating lichen. At last, caribou exhibited foraging functional responses wherein their probability of selecting each food type increased as the availability (% cover) of that food increased. Space use intensity signals of fine-scale foraging were consistent with density-dependent responses observed at larger scales and with recent evidence suggesting declining reproductive rates in the same caribou population. Our results highlight potential risks of overgrazing on sensitive forage species such as lichen. Remote investigation of the functional responses of foraging behaviours provides exciting future applications where spatial models can identify high-quality habitats for conservation.

Comparison of four types of membrane bioreactor systems in terms of shear stress over the membrane surface using computational fluid dynamics.

Membrane bioreactors (MBRs) have been used successfully in biological wastewater treatment to solve the perennial problem of effective solids-liquid separation. A common problem with MBR systems is clogging of the modules and fouling of the membrane, resulting in frequent cleaning and replacement, which makes the system less appealing for full-scale applications. It has been widely demonstrated that the filtration performances in MBRs can be greatly improved with a two-phase flow (sludge-air) or higher liquid cross-flow velocities. However, the optimization process of these systems is complex and requires knowledge of the membrane fouling, hydrodynamics and biokinetics. Modern tools such as computational fluid dynamics (CFD) can be used to diagnose and understand the two-phase flow in an MBR. Four cases of different MBR configurations are presented in this work, using CFD as a tool to develop and optimize these systems.

Analytical and numerical modelling of Newtonian and non-Newtonian liquid in a rotational cross-flow MBR.

Fouling is the main bottleneck of the widespread use of MBR systems. One way to decrease and/or control fouling is by process hydrodynamics. This can be achieved by the increase of liquid cross-flow velocity. In rotational cross-flow MBR systems, this is attained by the spinning of, for example, impellers. Validation of the CFD (computational fluid dynamics) model was made against laser Doppler anemometry (LDA) tangential velocity measurements (error less than 8%) using water as a fluid. The shear stress over the membrane surface was inferred from the CFD simulations for water. However, activated sludge (AS) is a non-Newtonian liquid, for which the CFD model was modified incorporating the non-Newtonian behaviour of AS. Shear stress and area-weighted average shear stress relationships were made giving error less that 8% compared with the CFD results. An empirical relationship for the area-weighted average shear stress was developed for water and AS as a function of the angular velocity and the total suspended solids concentration. These relationships can be linked to the energy consumption of this type of systems.

Experimental and CFD simulation studies of wall shear stress for different impeller configurations and MBR activated sludge.

Membrane bioreactors (MBRs) have been used successfully in biological wastewater treatment for effective solids-liquid separation. However, a common problem encountered with MBR systems is fouling of the membrane resulting in frequent membrane cleaning and replacement which makes the system less appealing for full-scale applications. It has been widely demonstrated that the filtration performances in MBRs can be improved by understanding the shear stress over the membrane surface. Modern tools such as computational fluid dynamics (CFD) can be used to diagnose and understand the shear stress in an MBR. Nevertheless, proper experimental validation is required to validate CFD simulation. In this work experimental measurements of shear stress induced by impellers at a membrane surface were made with an electrochemical approach and the results were used to validate CFD simulations. As good results were obtained with the CFD model (<9% error), it was extrapolated to include the non-Newtonian behaviour of activated sludge.

3D modelling of transport, deposition and resuspension of highway deposited sediments in wet detention ponds.

The paper presents results from an experimental and numerical study of flows and transport of primarily particle bound pollutants in highway wet detention ponds. The study presented here is part of a general investigation on road runoff and pollution in respect to wet detention ponds. The objective is to evaluate the quality of long term simulation based on historical rains series of the pollutant discharges from roads and highways. A three-dimensional hydrodynamic and mud transport model is used for the investigation. The transport model has been calibrated and validated on e.g. experiments in a 30 m long concrete channel with width of 0.8 m and a water depth of approximately 0.8 m and in circular flume experiments in order to reproduce near-bed specific processes such as resuspension and consolidation. With a fairly good agreement with measurements, modelling of hydrodynamics, transport of dissolved pollutants and particles in wet detention ponds is possible with application of a three dimensional RANS model and the advection/dispersion equation taken physical phenomena like wind, waves, deposition, erosion and consolidation of the bottom sediment into account.

Organohalogen concentrations in blood and adipose tissue of Southern Beaufort Sea polar bears.

We analyzed 151 organohalogen chemicals (OHCs) in whole blood and subcutaneous fat of 57 polar bears sampled along the Alaskan Beaufort Sea coast in spring, 2003. All major organochlorine pesticides, PCBs, PBDEs and their congeners were assessed. Concentrations of most OHCs continue to be lower among Southern Beaufort Sea polar bears than reported for other populations. Additionally, toxaphenes and related compounds were assessed in adipose tissue, and 8 perflourinated compounds (PFCs) were examined in blood. Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) concentrations exceeded those of any other contaminant measured in blood. SigmaChlordane concentrations were higher in females, and both SigmaPCBs and SigmaChlordane concentrations in adipose tissue decreased significantly with age. The rank order of OHC mean concentrations; SigmaPCB>Sigma10PCB>PCB153>SigmaChlordane>Oxychlordane>PCB180>SigmaHCH>beta-HCH>SigmaDDT>p,p-DDE>SigmaPBDE>HCB>Toxaphene was similar for compounds above detection limits in both fat and blood. Although correlation between OHC concentrations in blood and adipose tissue was examined, the predictability of concentrations in one matrix for the other was limited.

Wind effects on retention time in highway ponds.

The paper presents results from an experimental and numerical study of wind-induced flows and transportation patterns in highway wet detention ponds. The study presented here is part of a general investigation on road runoff and pollution in respect to wet detention ponds. The objective is to evaluate the quality of long term simulations based on historical rain series of the pollutant discharges from roads and highways. The idea of this paper is to evaluate the effects of wind on the retention time and compare the retention time for the situation of a spatial uniform wind shear stress with the situation of a "real" spatial non-uniform shear stress distribution on the surface of the pond. The result of this paper shows that wind plays a dominant role for the retention time and flow pattern. Furthermore, the results shows that the differences in retention time between the use of uniform and non-uniform wind field distributions are not significant to this study.

Mutational analysis of the androgen receptor AF-2 (activation function 2) core domain reveals functional and mechanistic differences of conserved residues compared with other nuclear receptors.

A short C-terminal sequence that forms the core of the activation function-2 (AF-2) domain is conserved in members of the nuclear receptor superfamily and is required for their normal biological function. Despite a high degree of sequence similarity, there are differences in the context and structure of AF-2 in different nuclear receptors. To gain deeper insight into these differences, we carried out an extensive mutational analysis of the AF-2 core in the androgen receptor (AR) and compared the changes in transcriptional activity with similar mutations that have previously been generated in other nuclear receptors. Mutagenesis of Met894 to Asp resulted in substantial decreases in both DNA and ligand binding activities and, consequently, a significant drop in ligand-dependent transcriptional activation. In contrast, substitution of Met894 with Ala did not affect DNA or hormone binding, and the transactivation potential was comparable to that of wild-type AR. Mutagenesis of Glu897 either with Val or Ala significantly impaired ligand-dependent activation that was not due to changes in DNA or ligand binding. There are both similarities and distinct differences between these findings compared with previous mutagenesis studies of the corresponding residues in other nuclear receptors. All mutants efficiently interfered with AP-1 activity, indicating that ligand-dependent activation of transcription and interference with AP-1 activity are separable functions in AR. For the Glu897 substitutions, the decrease in ligand-dependent transactivation could partially be reversed by overexpression of GRIP1 (GR-interacting protein 1) or CBP, putative coactivators for AR. However, there was no correlation between ligand-dependent in vitro or in vivo association with coactivators and the ability of the mutants to support ligand-dependent transactivation. This is in contrast to similar mutations in other nuclear receptors that lose interactions with putative coactivators concomitant with their loss of transcriptional activity. However, the Glu897 mutations disrupted the intramolecular interaction between the N-terminal domain and the ligand-binding domain of AR that was recently suggested to be required for normal AR function. We conclude that residues in the AF-2 core domain of AR make distinctly different contributions to its transcriptional activities compared with those of other nuclear receptors studied to date.

Activated sludge rheology: a critical review on data collection and modelling.

Rheological behaviour is an important fluid property that severely impacts its flow behaviour and many aspects related to this. In the case of activated sludge, the apparent viscosity has an influence on e.g. pumping, hydrodynamics, mass transfer rates, sludge-water separation (settling and filtration). It therefore is an important property related to process performance, including process economics. To account for this, rheological behaviour is being included in process design, necessitating its measurement. However, measurements and corresponding protocols in literature are quite diverse, leading to varying results and conclusions. In this paper, a vast amount of papers are critically reviewed with respect to this and important flaws are highlighted with respect to rheometer choice, rheometer settings and measurement protocol. The obtained rheograms from experimental efforts have frequently been used to build viscosity models. However, this is not that straightforward and a lot of errors can be detected with respect to good modelling practice, including fair model selection criteria, qualitative parameter estimations and proper model validation. These important steps are however recurrently violated, severely affecting the model reliability and predictive power. This is illustrated with several examples. In conclusion, dedicated research is required to improve the rheological measurements and the models derived from them. At this moment, there is no guidance with respect to proper rheological measurements. Moreover, the rheological models are not very trustworthy and remain very "black box". More insight in the physical background needs to be gained. A model-based approach with dedicated experimental data collection is the key to address this.