1,721,106 research outputs found
Detecting cow anomalies with precision dairy farming techniques: application to some case studies in the Po Valley
No full textThe increasing interest in precision livestock farming (PLF) for dairy cows allows researchers to collect data from milking robots, collars and pedometers. This makes it possible to develop numerical models based on big data. This work presents two numerical methods for detecting daily milk production anomalies, applied to 15 different case study farms located in the Po valley area. Both algorithms take as input daily resting time and daily milk yield. These methods utilize statistical calculations based on data from pedometers and automatic milking systems. Data are recorded respectively by the pedometers worn by the cows and by the automatic milking system of the barns. The first method considers two indicators: Difference in Relative Production (DRP) and Daily Rest Time (DRT). DRP measures the relative difference in daily milk yield compared to an ideal trend. An anomaly is identified if both DRP and DRT meet specific conditions for a specific cow and day. The second method improves the reliability of the lactation curve by incorporating robust statistics and the Wood function, the most used model for cow production. By reducing the impact of outliers, a more accurate representation of individual cow performance is obtained. These numerical techniques provide valuable tools for detecting milk yield anomalies and supporting effective animal management practices
Research model for farm building design: General structure and physiognomic characterization phase
Full text linkThe design of contemporary farm buildings often subordinates architectural quality and aesthetic features to economic aspects, thus leading to poor landscape consistency and compatibility. The research presented in this paper is based on the theoretical principle that historic rural buildings, being expression of an accumulation of empirical knowledge broadly associated with high architectural quality, have remarkable potentials to contribute with useful elements to the design of contemporary buildings, and on the awareness that the design process is also necessarily and substantially determined by technological, economic and functional variables. The paper presents the FarmBuiLD model (Farm Building Landscape Design), a research model proposed by the authors as a tool for the analysis of the architectural characteristics of both historical and contemporary rural buildings, as well as the meta-design of new construction and transformation of contemporary rural buildings. In particular, the work focuses on the general structure of this model and a synthesis of the main results of the critical analysis of the scientific literature aimed at identifying a set of synthetic architectural parameters suitable for its implementation, through the interpretation of the main physiognomical characteristics of rural buildings. These parameters are not meant as a tool to obtain quantitative data to be translated into design constraints automatically; on the contrary, they are mainly considered as an interpretive-analytical tool, part of a broader knowledge framework aimed at supporting, stimulating and suggesting the design choices.Keywords: Rural building design, historical-typological consistency, landscape compatibility, architectural quality, analytical and meta-design criteria, Italian rural building heritage Citation: Tassinari P, D. Torreggiani, S. Benni, and E. Dall’Ara. Research model for farm building design: General structure and physiognomic characterization phase. Agric Eng Int: CIGR Journal, 2010; 12(1): 47-54
Morphology and carbohydrate accumulation in Pelargonium cuttings as affected by blue ratio of the supplemental lighting on stock plants
Full text linkThis study evaluated the influence of supplemental top LED lighting on stock plants of Pelargonium × hortorum ‘Ice Crystal’, with 3 R:B rates (H = 73% R + 23% B + 4% FR; M = 63% R + 33% B + 4% FR and L = 53% R + 43% B + 4% FR), on morphology, soluble carbohydrate and starch content of cuttings, in comparison with the natural lighting (NL). All LED lamps supplied the same PPFD at bench level (100±20 μmol m-2 s-1) for 14 h day-1. The growing period (November-January) was characterized by 9.5-10 natural light hours per day and a DLI ranging from 1.1 to 2.5 mol m-2 d-1 at bench level (NL). Supplemental lighting, regardless of the blue rate, reduced petiole length (-22.9%) and canopy diameter (- 16.0%) of stock plants but did not affected significantly their branching (3.7 stems plant-1) and leaf area (2352.4 cm2), compared to NL. Meanwhile, plants under lighting exhibited a double dry weight (+ 107.4%) mainly due to stem dry weight increase (+ 99.4%). Cuttings severed from plants under lighting were characterized by a lower leaf dry weight (-34.3%) and a smaller leaf area (-31.7% under M and L) than those grown under NL, despite of the higher leaf number (8.7 vs. 6.7). Moreover, supplemental lighting, increased carbohydrates concentrations in leaves, from 4.0 up to 10.7 mg g-1 dw and from 4.4 up to 110.4 mg g-1 dw with low blue ratio, for glucose and starch, respectively. At the same time lighting enhanced starch accumulation in stem, from 29.7 in NL up to 230 mg g-1 dw in H light, but halved glucose, indeed its concentration decreased from 6.7 to 3.0 mg g-1 DW under NL and lighting, respectively, without differences among spectra. Blue ratio in LED lamps should not exceed 23% for avoiding leaf damages (e.g., yellow and necrotic lamina) and promoting the production of cuttings with the highest quality
Exploring the land-use urban heat island nexus under climate change conditions using machine learning approach: A spatio-temporal analysis of remotely sensed data
Full text linkUrbanization strongly correlates with land use land cover (LULC) dynamics, which further links to changes in land surface temperature (LST) & urban heat island (UHI) intensity. Each LULC type influences UHI differently with changing climate, therefore knowing this impact & connection is critical. To understand such relations, long temporal studies using remote sensing data play promising role by analysing the trend with continuity over vast area. Therefore, this study is aimed at machine learning centred spatio-temporal analysis of LST and land use indices to identify their intra-urban interaction during 1991–2021 (summer) in Imola city (specifically representing small urban environment) using Landsat-5/8 imageries. It was found that LST in 2021 increased by 38.36% from 1991, whereas average Normalised Difference Built-up Index (NDBI) increased by 43.75%, associating with increased thermal stress area evaluated using ecological evaluation index. Major LULC transformations included green area into agricultural arable-land and built-up. Finally, the modelled output shows that built-up & vegetation index have strongly impacted LST. This study, help to understand the relative impact of land-use dynamics on LST at intra-urban level specifically with respect to the small urban settings. Further assisting in designing and regenerating urban contexts with stable configuration, considering sustainability and liveable climate, for benefit of health of public and fragile population in particular
Shading Screens Characterization by Means of Wind Tunnel Experiments and CFD Modeling
No full textThe use of shading screens in the protected cultivation sector is widespread, due to the fact they allow both to reduce the heat load and thus to control temperature, and to have lower and uniform levels of light intensity inside greenhouses. An extended selection of shading screens is available on the market, with different colors, material, and textures. The choice of the best screen depends on the specific application and needs of the grower. Despite the positive action of the screens, some screens can also negatively affect ventilation and indoor climate, since their porosity can generate extra mass, heat and momentum transfer resistance. Most studies have evaluated the screen-related parameters, such as permeability and porosity, and the screen effect on ventilation referring to screens with simple and regular textures, which is not the case of the new screen types. The reliability of the literature models for these parameters’ estimation of new type of screens is not certain. In this work, these parameters have been evaluated for three new screen types, available on the market, under different approaches. An experimental approach based on image analysis together with wind tunnel tests has been set up to yield the permeability and inertial coefficient. On the other hand, another methodology is based on the detailed modeling of the shading screen and on the CFD simulation to obtain the relation between air velocity through a screen and the relative pressure drop, avoiding any experiment. A representative section of the screen has been chosen for CFD simulations and the numerical results have been validated by comparison with Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) data. This has allowed both to improve the model and to evaluate its effectiveness in simulating this specific fluid dynamics domain. By these novel approaches, the basis for extending the knowledge about the characterization of the screens used in agriculture have been laid
Special Issue “Landscape Analysis, Planning and Regional Development”
Full text linkLandscape analysis and planning have been facing more and more challenging goals with the rapid evolution of socioeconomic and environmental processes, the increasingly strict connections between urban and rural areas and the progressively multifaceted nature of many landscapes, the increasing need of activating virtuous circular processes among the various landscape resources, and the need of more and more integrated policies and plans at the various scales [...
Development of a Pilot Borehole Storage System of Solar Thermal Energy: Modeling, Design, and Installation
Full text linkBorehole thermal energy storage systems represent a potential solution to increase the energy efficiency of renewable energy plants, but they generally have to comply with strict regulatory frameworks, mainly due to the deliberate modification of the subsoil’s natural state. This paper presents the design, testing, and monitoring phases carried out to set up a borehole thermal energy storage (BTES) system able to exploit the excess solar heat from photovoltaic thermal (PVT) collectors. The case study is the refurbishment of a pig nursery barn, hosting up to 2500 weaners, in Northern Italy. This study aims to define a BTES suitable to develop a heating system based on renewable energy, ensuring environmental protection and long-term sustainability. The retrofitting intervention includes the installation of a dual-source heat pump (DSHP), in order to recover the solar heat stored in summer during winter. Specific constraints by the Environmental Authority were as follows: maximum storage temperature of 35 °C, authorization to intercept the shallowest aquifer at a maximum depth of 30 m, obligation of BHE grouting, and the definition of a strategy for continuous measuring and monitoring of the groundwater’s thermophysical properties. The results were used as inputs to optimize the design and installation of the integrated system with PVT, BTES, and DSHP
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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