Kazimierz Wielki University in Bydgoszcz

About: Kazimierz Wielki University in Bydgoszcz is a education organization based out in Bydgoszcz, Poland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Luminescence & Population. The organization has 1109 authors who have published 2923 publications receiving 19548 citations. The organization is also known as: Casimir the Great University & Uniwersytet Kazimierza Wielkiego w Bydgoszczy.

Virtual Reconstruction of Historic Monuments

Abstract: The preservation, conservation and restoration of historic buildings and monuments is of particular importance for countries, nations and communities. However, there are very often serious debates related to the physical reconstruction of such objects. In this paper, we present how the application of virtual reconstruction can be helpful in such situations.

Inferring microevolution from museum collections and resampling: lessons learned from Cepaea.

Abstract: Natural history collections are an important and largely untapped source of long-term data on evolutionary changes in wild populations. Here, we utilize three large geo-referenced sets of samples of the common European land-snail Cepaea nemoralis stored in the collection of Naturalis Biodiversity Center in Leiden, the Netherlands. Resampling of these populations allowed us to gain insight into changes occurring over 95, 69, and 50 years. Cepaea nemoralis is polymorphic for the colour and banding of the shell; the mode of inheritance of these patterns is known, and the polymorphism is under both thermal and predatory selection. At two sites the general direction of changes was towards lighter shells (yellow and less heavily banded), which is consistent with predictions based on on-going climatic change. At one site no directional changes were detected. At all sites there were significant shifts in morph frequencies between years, and our study contributes to the recognition that short-term changes in the states of populations often exceed long-term trends. Our interpretation was limited by the few time points available in the studied collections. We therefore stress the need for natural history collections to routinely collect large samples of common species, to allow much more reliable hind-casting of evolutionary responses to environmental change.

Influence of rare-earth impurities on the Ge and Ga local structure in the Ca3Ga2Ge3O12 glass

Abstract: The present contribution presents X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) measurements and analysis of the Ge and Ga local structure in glass of Ca 3 Ga 2 Ge 3 O 12 composition, doped with rare-earth metals (Ce, Eu, Ho, Er in the amount of 0.7 wt% and Nd in the amount of 1.0 wt%). The Ge and Ga ion neighborhoods in the considered glass samples have been compared with data obtained for undoped glass. The results have shown that introduction of rare-earth ions modifies the local structure around the Ga ions in the glass network, leaving the same occurrence ratio of the GaO 4 and GaO 6 structural units as in undoped Ca 3 Ga 2 Ge 3 O 12 glass. At the same time, the GeO 2 subsystem remains completely unaffected by the presence of rare-earth dopants.

Glycerolysis of Poly(lactic acid) as a Way to Extend the “Life Cycle” of This Material

Abstract: The article concerns the use of glycerolysis reaction as an alternative method of processing post-production and post-consumer waste from poly(lactic acid) (PLA). Management of waste is a very important issue from an environmental protection and economic point of view. Extending the "life cycle" of PLA is extremely important because it allows to make the most of this material. It also limits economic losses resulting from its disposal in the biodegradation process at the same time. This paper presents a method of glycerolysis of poly(lactic acid) waste using various amounts of anhydrous glycerol (mass ratio from 0.3 to 0.5 parts by weight of glycerol per 1.0 part by weight of PLA). This process was also carried out for pure, unmodified PLA Ingeo® (from NatureWorks) to compare the obtained results. The six liquid oligomeric polyhydric alcohols were obtained as a result of the synthesis. Then, they were subjected to physicochemical tests such as determination of color, smell, density, viscosity, and pH. In addition, the obtained raw materials were subjected to analytical tests such as determination of the hydroxyl value, acid value, water content, and elemental composition. The average molecular weights and dispersity were also tested by gel permeation chromatography (GPC). The assumed chemical structure of the obtained compounds was confirmed by spectroscopic methods such as FTIR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR. Glycerolysis products were also subjected to differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) to determine thermal parameters. The obtained research results have allowed the precise characterization of newly obtained products and determination of their suitability, e.g., for the synthesis of polyurethane (PUR) materials.