Utsunomiya University

About: Utsunomiya University is a education organization based out in Utsunomiya, Japan. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Laser & Holography. The organization has 4139 authors who have published 6812 publications receiving 91975 citations. The organization is also known as: Utsunomiya daigaku.

The Effect of Habitat Association and Edaphic Conditions on Tree Mortality during El Niño-induced Drought in a Bornean Dipterocarp Forest

Abstract: The effects of El Nino-induced droughts on dipterocarp forests must be quantified to evaluate the implications of future global climatic changes for the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. We studied the mortality of trees ≥ 1 cm in diameter in a lowland dipterocarp forest in Borneo before, during, and after the 1997/1998 El Nino drought. The annual mortality rates were 1.30, 1.75, and 1.66 percent/yr for the pre-drought, drought, and post-drought periods, respectively. The effect of drought was tree size-dependent being greater for larger trees. Modified logistic regression analysis revealed a significant interaction effect between species' habitat association and edaphic condition on mortality rates in all periods. For species associated with wet habitat, drought effect was greater in dry conditions than in wet conditions, in both the drought and post-drought periods. The mortality rates of dry-habitat species were less affected by the drought both in dry and wet conditions. A similar pattern was also found in common Dipterocarpaceae species; mortality rates increased more in species associated with wet-habitat in the drought and post-drought periods. Species and families with higher mortality in the pre-drought period tended to experience greater mortality increases during the drought and post-drought periods. These results suggest that changes in drought regimes alter the species composition and spatial distribution of dipterocarp forests.

Study on complex micro surface finishing of alumina ceramic by the magnetic abrasive finishing process using alternating magnetic field

Abstract: In order to achieve the precision machining of the alumina ceramic surface, we propose surface finishing of alumina ceramic by the magnetic abrasive finishing (MAF) process using low-frequency alternating magnetic field. In previous studies, the effects of important process parameters on finishing force and finishing characteristics were investigated when the magnetic particle diameter was 6 and 30 μm. Due to the higher hardness of alumina ceramics, greater finishing force is needed, so we studied the effect of magnetic particle diameter and alternating magnetic field frequency on the finishing force. In order to determine the best experimental conditions, we study the effect of important process parameters on the finishing characteristics. The experimental results prove that the surface finishing of alumina ceramic can be achieved. The surface roughness of the alumina ceramic plate can be improved from 244.6 nm Ra to 106.3 nm Ra.

A study on ultra–high-speed cutting of aluminium alloy:: Formation of welded metal on the secondary cutting edge of the tool and its effects on the quality of finished surface

Abstract: To investigate the mechanism of ultra–high-speed cutting for aluminium alloy, cutting experiments by using a machine tool equipped with an active magnetic bearing spindle were performed over a range of cutting speeds from 20 to 260 m/s. On the whole, the finished surface tends to improve with an increase in cutting speed. However, the formation of welded metal on the tool edge in the speed range from 100 to 200 m/s promotes the material side flow on the finished surface, which causes the surface roughness to increase.

Novel Carotenoid-Based Biosensor for Simple Visual Detection of Arsenite: Characterization and Preliminary Evaluation for Environmental Application

Abstract: A novel whole-cell arsenite biosensor was developed using the photosynthetic bacterium Rhodopseudomonas palustris no. 7 and characterized. A sensor plasmid containing the operator-promoter region of the ars operon and arsR gene from Escherichia coli and the crtI gene from R. palustris no. 7 was introduced into a blue-green mutant with crtI deleted, R. palustris no. 711. The biosensor changed color in response to arsenite, and the change was obvious to the naked eye after 24 h without further manipulation. Real-time reverse transcription-PCR showed that the crtI mRNA was induced 3-fold at 3 h and 2.5-fold at 6 h after addition of 50 μg/liter arsenite compared with the no-arsenite control, and consistent with this, the relative levels of lycopene and rhodopin also increased compared with the control. Colorimetric analysis of the bacteria showed that the hue angle had clearly shifted from green-yellow toward red in an arsenic dose-dependent manner at 24 h after arsenite addition. This obvious shift occurred irrespective of the culture conditions before arsenite was added, indicating that the color change of the biosensor is stable in water samples containing various concentrations of dissolved oxygen. Finally, assays using samples prepared in various types of mineral water indicated that this biosensor could be used to screen groundwater samples for the presence of arsenite in a variety of locations, even where electricity is not available.