958 research outputs found
Provincia de Gerona
No full text1 manuscrit. Probablement delineat per Joan Turon i Algans per a la Diputació de Girona. - Paper tela.1:400 00043 x 56 c
Tracking Invasion Histories in the Sea: Facing Complex Scenarios Using Multilocus Data
No full textIn recent years, new analytical tools have allowed researchers to extract historical information contained in molecular data, which has fundamentally transformed our understanding of processes ruling biological invasions. However, the use of these new analytical tools has been largely restricted to studies of terrestrial organisms despite the growing recognition that the sea contains ecosystems that are amongst the most heavily affected by biological invasions, and that marine invasion histories are often remarkably complex. Here, we studied the routes of invasion and colonisation histories of an invasive marine invertebrate Microcosmus squamiger (Ascidiacea) using microsatellite loci, mitochondrial DNA sequence data and 11 worldwide populations. Discriminant analysis of principal components, clustering methods and approximate Bayesian computation (ABC) methods showed that the most likely source of the introduced populations was a single admixture event that involved populations from two genetically differentiated ancestral regions - the western and eastern coasts of Australia. The ABC analyses revealed that colonisation of the introduced range of M. squamiger consisted of a series of non-independent introductions along the coastlines of Africa, North America and Europe. Furthermore, we inferred that the sequence of colonisation across continents was in line with historical taxonomic records - first the Mediterranean Sea and South Africa from an unsampled ancestral population, followed by sequential introductions in California and, more recently, the NE Atlantic Ocean. We revealed the most likely invasion history for world populations of M. squamiger, which is broadly characterized by the presence of multiple ancestral sources and non-independent introductions within the introduced range. The results presented here illustrate the complexity of marine invasion routes and identify a cause-effect relationship between human-mediated transport and the success of widespread marine non-indigenous species, which benefit from stepping-stone invasions and admixture processes involving different sources for the spread and expansion of their range
Provincia de Gerona
No full text1 manuscrit. Probablement delineat per Joan Turon i Algans per a la Diputació de Girona. - Paper tela.1:400 00043 x 56 c
Tough adults, frail babies: an analysis of stress sensitivity across early life-history stages of widely introduced marine invertebrates
No full textAll ontogenetic stages of a life cycle are exposed to environmental conditions so that population persistence depends on the performance of both adults and offspring. Most studies analysing the influence of abiotic conditions on species performance have focussed on adults, while studies covering early life-history stages remain rare. We investigated the responses of early stages of two widely introduced ascidians, Styela plicata and Microcosmus squamiger, to different abiotic conditions. Stressors mimicked conditions in the habitats where both species can be found in their distributional ranges and responses were related to the selection potential of their populations by analysing their genetic diversity. Four developmental stages (egg fertilisation, larval development, settlement, metamorphosis) were studied after exposure to high temperature (30°C), low salinities (26 and 22 ) and high copper concentrations (25, 50 and 100 µg/L). Although most stressors effectively led to failure of complete development (fertilisation through metamorphosis), fertilisation and larval development were the most sensitive stages. All the studied stressors affected the development of both species, though responses differed with stage and stressor. S. plicata was overall more resistant to copper, and some stages of M. squamiger to low salinities. No relationship was found between parental genetic composition and responses to stressors. We conclude that successful development can be prevented at several life-history stages, and therefore, it is essential to consider multiple stages when assessing species' abilities to tolerate stress. Moreover, we found that early development of these species cannot be completed under conditions prevailing where adults live. These populations must therefore recruit from elsewhere or reproduce during temporal windows of more benign conditions. Alternatively, novel strategies or behaviours that increase overall reproductive success might be responsible for ensuring population survival
Manuscrit: Perelada: [mapa planimétrico / Joan Turon Algans delineant]
No full text1 Mapa, manuscrit, col. - En paper tela.[1:11 500 aprox]46 x 85 c
Manuscrit: Perelada: [mapa planimétrico / Joan Turon Algans delineant]
No full text1 Mapa, manuscrit, col. - En paper tela.[1:11 500 aprox]46 x 85 c
Characterization and analysis of conduction welded thermoplastic composite joints considering the influence of manufacturing
No full texthermoplastic composite welding is a key technology that can help to make the aviation industry more sustainable, while at the same time enable high-volume production and cost-efficient manufacturing. In this work, characterization, testing and analysis of thermoplastic composite conduction welded joints is performed while accounting for the influence of the manufacturing process. Test specimens are designed from welds of a half a meter long welding tool that is developed to weld the stiffened structures of the next-generation thermoplastic composite fuselage. In the design, special attention is paid to the weldability of the laminates, while ensuring fracture occurs only at the welded interface. Two specimen configurations are evaluated for the Double Cantilever Beam and End-Notched Flexure characterization tests. Moreover, Single Lap-Shear specimens are tested in tension and in three-point-bending. Finally, the characterized material properties are introduced in finite element analyses to demonstrate that the cohesive zone modeling approach can be used to conservatively predict the strength of these welded joints. New insights are obtained in the relation between the manufacturing process, the quality of the weld and the mechanical properties of the joints, which are significantly different compared to autoclave consolidated composites
Non-lethal effects of an invasive species in the marine environment: the importance of early life-history stages
No full textStudies examining the effects of invasive species have focussed traditionally on the direct/lethal effects of the invasive on the native community but there is a growing recognition that invasive species may also have non-lethal effects. In terrestrial systems, non-lethal effects of invasive species can disrupt early life-history phases (such as fertilisation, dispersal and subsequent establishment) of native species, but in the marine environment most studies focus on adult rather than early life-history stages. Here, we examine the potential for an introduced sessile marine invertebrate (Styela plicata) to exert both lethal and non-lethal effects on a native species (Microcosmus squamiger) across multiple early life-history stages. We determined whether sperm from the invasive species interfered with the fertilisation of eggs from the native species and found no effect. However, we did find strong effects of the invasive species on the post-fertilisation performance of the native species. The invasive species inhibited the settlement of native larvae and, in the field, the presence of the invasive species was associated with a ten-fold increase in the post-settlement mortality of the native species, as well as an initial reduction of growth in the native. Our results suggest that larvae of the native species avoid settling near the invasive species due to reduced post-settlement survival in its presence. Overall, we found that invasive species can have complex and pervasive effects (both lethal and non-lethal) across the early life-history stages of the native species, which are likely to result in its displacement and to facilitate further invasion
The importance of accounting for large deformation in continuum damage models in predicting matrix failure of composites
No full textThe work presented in this paper investigates the ability of continuum damage models to accurately predict matrix failure and ply splitting. Two continuum damage model approaches are implemented that use different stress–strain measures. The first approach is based on small-strain increments and the Cauchy stress, while the second approach account for large deformation kinematics through the use of the Green–Lagrange strain and the 2nd Piola–Kirchhoff stress. The investigation consists of numerical benchmarks at three different levels: (1) single element; (2) unidirectional single ply open-hole specimen and (3) open-hole composite laminate coupon. Finally, the numerically predicted failure modes are compared to experimental failure modes at the coupon level. It is shown that it is important to account for large deformation kinematics in the constitutive model, especially when predicting matrix splitting failure modes. It is also shown that continuum damage models that do not account for large deformation kinematics can easily be adapted to ensure that the damage modes and failure strength are predicted accurately
Characterization and analysis of the interlaminar behavior of thermoplastic composites considering fiber bridging and R-curve effects
No full textThermoplastic composites can enable the development of new manufacturing techniques to make the aviation industry more sustainable while at the same time greatly benefit cost-efficient and high-volume production. One of the thermoplastic composite materials that can enable this transition is AS4D/PEKK-FC. In this work, the interlaminar properties of AS4D/PEKK-FC thermoplastic composite are characterized and analyzed by means of Mode I, II and Mixed Mode I/II at 50:50 tests, while considering fiber bridging and R-curve effects. In order to achieve stable crack propagation the test configurations are adjusted to account for the large fracture process zone ahead of the crack tip and an appropriate data reduction method is selected. The experimental data is reduced using an inverse methodology to extract cohesive laws based on only the load–displacement curves. Additionally, the use of this methodology provides new insights into the validity of two different mode II tests and the influence of fiber bridging on the mixed-mode interlaminar behavior. The interlaminar damage mechanisms are investigated by means of scanning electron microscopy. The resulting cohesive laws are implemented in commercial finite element software in tabular form, without the need for user-subroutines. All experimental test configurations are analyzed using a single material card and it is shown that fiber bridging and R-curve effects are well captured
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