Isotope Tracking of Surface Water Groundwater Interaction in the Beninese Part of the Iullemeden Aquifer System

The Kandi basin is located in northeast Benin (West Africa). This study is focused on the estimation of water fluxes exchanged between the river Niger (and its tributaries) and the transboundary Iullemeden Aquifer System. In that framework, an innovative approach based on the application of the Bayesian Mixing Model (MixSIAR) analysis on water isotopes (oxygen-18, deuterium and tritium) was performed. Moreover, to assess the relevance of the model outputs, Pearson’s correlation and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) have been done. A complex relationship between surface water and groundwater has been found. Sixty percent (60%) of groundwater samples are made of more than 70% river water and rainwater;while 31.25% of surface water samples are made of about 84% groundwater. To safeguard sustainable water resources for the well-being of the local communities, surface water and groundwater must be managed as a unique component in the Kandi basin.

Effects of Desalination Processes on the Water Circulation and Earth System

Desalination is emerging as a promising alternative among various technologies to resolve water shortage. However, desalination requires a sufficient energy and cooling device and therefore poses limitations for its installation and application. In particular, many countries suffering water deficits are economically underdeveloped and cannot afford the technology. As this technology, which changes seawater into freshwater, has little environmental impact, developed countries will need to assist less developed countries to introduce this technology as a humanitarian effort. This will help reduce the number of countries that have experienced difficulty with development.

Carbon and Water Footprint Evaluation of 120Wp Rural Household Photovoltaic System: Case Study

This study uses the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) to evaluate the magnitude of the environmental impact, in terms of global warming potential, and water footprint throughout the 20 years of useful life of a rural electrical energy concession comprised of 120Wp Households photovoltaic systems (HPS) in the isolated communities of San Martin, in the Peruvian Amazon region. On the other hand, due to the particular conditions of the system (installation, operation, maintenance, monthly tariff collection), it is necessary to know its real impact and sustainability;not only through the aforementioned environmental impact indicators, but also by energy intensity values required by the system throughout its life cycle. Therefore, this paper used the Cumulative energy demand (CED) method to determine the amount of energy taken from natural resources for each process involved in the LCA and calculated with this, i.e., the Energy Payback Time (EPBT) of the whole system. Likewise, the HPS has been environmentally compared to other case studies and the Peruvian Energy Mix, revealing a lower impact in the latter case and results within the range for stand-alone systems. Besides, the HPS shows a strong relation between energy production and O&M condition. Additionally, this study allows a further promotion of the use of this type of system in isolated areas, as well as the diversification of electricity generation in Peru.

Preliminary Study on the Effect of Different Ecological Cultivation Modes on the Water Stability of Soil Aggregates in Rubber Based Agroforestry Systems

Rubber trees (Hevea brasiliensis Müll. Arg.) have been commercially cultivated for a century and a half in Asia, particularly in China, and they constitute a common element of plantation ecosystems in tropical regions. Soil health is fundamental to the sustainable development of rubber plantations. The objective of the study is to explore the influence of different complex ecological cultivation modes on the stability of soil aggregates in rubber based agroforestry systems. In this study, the ecological cultivation mode of rubber—Alpinia oxyphylla plantation, the ecological cultivation mode of rubber—Phrynium hainanense plantations, the ecological cultivation mode of rubber—Homalium ceylanicum plantations and monoculture rubber plantations were selected, and the particle size distribution of soil aggregates and their water stability characteristics were analyzed. The soil depth of 0 - 20 cm and 20 - 40 cm was collected for four cultivation modes. Soil was divided into 6 particle levels > 20 cm. soil was divided into 6 particle levels > 5 mm, 2 - 5 mm, 1 - 2 mm, 0.5 - 1 mm, 0.25 - 0.5 mm, and 0.053 - 0.25 mm according to the wet sieve method. The particle size proportion and water stability of soil aggregates were determined by the wet sieve method. The particle size proportion and water stability of soil aggregates under different ecological cultivation modes were analyzed. The results showed that under different ecological cultivation modes in the shallow soil layer (0 - 20 cm), the rubber—Alpinia oxyphylla plantation and the rubber—Phrynium hainanense plantation promoted the development of dominant soil aggregates towards larger size classes, whereas the situation is the opposite for rubber—Homalium ceylanicum plantation. In soil layer (20 - 40 cm), the ecological cultivation mode of rubber—Phrynium hainanense plantation developed the dominant radial level of soil aggregates to the diameter level of large aggregates. Rubber—Alpinia oxyphylla plantation and rubber—Homalium ceylanicum plantation, three indicators, including the water-stable aggregate content R0.25 (>0.25 mm water-stable aggregates), mean weight diameter (MWD), and geometric mean diameter (GMD), were all lower than those in the rubber monoculture mode. However, in the rubber—Phrynium hainanense plantation, the water-stable aggregate content R0.25, mean weight diameter, and geometric mean diameter were higher than in the rubber monoculture mode, although these differences did not reach statistical significance.

Research on Policy Diffusion Path and Reproduction of River Chief System

The River Chief System (RCS) has evolved from local innovative practices to a national water governance strategy to address the current challenges in China’s water environmental management. In contrast to existing research that focuses on the strengths, weaknesses, and improvements of RCS, this study uses literature study to reveal the dynamic evolution of RCS through three phases, with RCS spreading from developed coastal areas to central and western inland regions. RCS’s diffusion path involves vertical diffusion between central and local levels and horizontal diffusion among local governments. Moreover, RCS has also achieved conceptual spillover, gradually expanding into other governance domains, such as the Lake Chief System, the Field Chief System, the Forestry Chief System, and the integration of multiple chief roles. However, it is essential to scrutinize the phenomenon of applying similar governance mechanisms to different areas, as it may result in challenges such as overburdening local governments, insufficient public participation, oversimplification of differences in natural resource endowments, and limited applicability. This study also provides suggestions on how to address these challenges. The study contributes theoretical insights and policy implications, providing a foundation for practical policy innovation.

A Triple Nexus Water-Energy-Housing (WEH) Framework Modelling towards Improved Decision-Making in Humanitarian Operations

Given the challenges facing most humanitarian operations worldwide, a change of approach is needed to ensure greater sustainability of humanitarian settlements right from the planning stage. Some studies attribute unsustainability to inadequate provision of basic resources and highlight the apparent bottlenecks that prevent access to the meaningful data needed to plan and remedy problems. Most operations have relied on an “ad hoc ism” approach, employing parallel and disconnected data processing methods, resulting in a wide range of data being collected without subsequent prioritization to optimize interconnections that could enhance performance. There have been little efforts to study the trade-offs potentially at stake. This work proposes a new framework enabling all subsystems to operate in a single system and focusing on data processing perspective. To achieve this, this paper proposes a Triple Nexus Framework as an attempt to integrate water, energy, and housing sector data derived from a specific sub-system within the overall system in the application of Model-Based Systems Engineering. Understanding the synergies between water, energy, and housing, Systems Engineering characterizes the triple nexus framework and identifies opportunities for improved decision-making in processing operational data from these sectors. Two scenarios illustrate how an integrated platform could be a gateway to access meaningful operational data in the system and a starting point for modeling integrated human settlement systems. Upon execution, the model is tested for nexus megadata processing, and the optimization simulation yielded 67% satisfactory results, demonstrating that an integrated system could improve sustainability, and that capacity building in service delivery is more than beneficial.

Effect of Soil Drought Stress on Leaf Water Status, Membrane Permeability and Enzymatic Antioxidant System of Maize

A simulation experiment on the responses of maize (Zea mays L.) from the third leaf stage to maturity for different soil water levels (well-watered, moderately stressed, and severely stressed) was conducted by controlling irrigation and using a mobile rain shelter in a neutral loam, meadow soil to determine the effects on leaf water status, membrane permeability and enzymatic antioxidant system for different growth stages. The results indicated that drought stress relied on drought intensity and duration, with more severe drought stress creating more serious effects on maize. Compared with well-watered conditions, during the silking and blister stages moderate stress did not significantly change the relative water content (RWC) and did change significantly the relative conductivity (RC) (P < 0.05) of the leaves; however, severe stress did significantly decrease (P < 0.01) the leaf RWC and increase (P < 0.01) membrane permeability (leaf relative conductivity). Furthermore, under severe drought stress antioxidant enzyme activities declined significantly (P < 0.01) in later stages, namely for superoxide dismutase (SOD) the tasseling and blister stages, for peroxidase (POD) the milk stage, and for catalase (CAT) during the tasseling, blister, and milk stages. Meanwhile, membrane lipid peroxidation (measured as malondialdehyde content) significantly increased (P < 0.01) in all stages.

Optimal Dispatching of Large-scale Water Supply System

This paper deals with the use of optimal control techniques in large-scale water distribution networks. According to the network characteristics and actual state of the water supply system in China, the implicit model, which may be solved by utilizing the hierarchical optimization method, is established. In special, based on the analyses of the water supply system containing variable-speed pumps, a software tool has been developed successfully. The application of this model to the city of Shenyang (China) is compared to experiential strategy. The results of this study show that the developed model is a very promising optimization method to control the large-scale water supply systems.

System Dynamics Approach to Urban Water Demand Forecasting—A Case Study of Tianjin

A system dynamics approach to urban water demand forecasting was developed based on the analysis of urban water resources system, which was characterized by multi-feedback and nonlinear interactions among sys-tem elements. As an example, Tianjin water resources system dynamic model was set up to forecast water resources demand of the planning years. The practical verification showed that the relative error was lower than 10%. Fur-thermore, through the comparison and analysis of the simulation results under different development modes pre-sented in this paper, the forecasting results of the water resources demand of Tianjin was achieved based on sustain-able utilization strategy of water resources.

Study of Dynamic Robustness of Servo Control System on a Water Press

The reliability and robustness of the electro-hydraulic servo control system for heavy-duty forging machine play an important role in forging processes. A mathematic model of 50 MN water press for free forging was created in this research. The dynamic robust compensator integrating with PID control method is designed and applied to the mathematical model simulation. The simulated results approved that the dynamic robust compensator application restrains interference from extra load and improves the electro-hydraulic position servo control system accuracy and stability.

Spatial variations of aluminum species in drinking water supplies in Xi'an studied applying geographic information system

This article aimed to investigate the variation of aluminum species and the effects of coagulant type and water quality on aluminum speciation in drinking water. Statistical analysis showed that the concentration of total aluminum （AlT） of drinking water in Xi＇ an ranged from 0.051 to 0.417 mg/L and the concentration of A1T in about 24.7% studied samples was higher than the currently recommended value （0.2 mg/L）. The areas fed by surface water plants had a larger portion （39.4%） of samples over the recommended value. In drinking water treated by alum coagulant, the average concentration of monomeric aluminum （Ala） was higher than that in water treated by poly aluminum chlorine （PACl） and poly aluminum ferric chloride （PAFC）. The average concentrations of polynuclear aluminum （Alb） and colloidal/suspended aluminum （Ale） in the drinking water treated by alum were lower than those in water treated by PACl and PAFC. There was a notable decrease in AlT along with the delivery pipeline away from the plants, with an average decline of about 36 μg/（L-km）. Besides coagulant type, water quality also could affect aluminum speciation. In drinking water without orthophosphate, the concentrations of Ala and AlT were positively correlated with pH; while, in drinking water with orthophospbate, the concentrations of Ala and AlT were negatively correlated with pH. The addition of orthophosphate salts in the drinking water treatment process would be an effective method for aluminum control in pH range 6.5-8.2.

Comment on: Cloning and characterization of porcine aquaporin 1 water channel expressed extensively in the gastrointestinal system

TO THE EDITOR Sir,I read with great interest the recently pubiished article in rhe World Journal of Gastroenterology by JIn and co-workers on the cloning and characterization of Porcine aquaporin 1 water channel from the pig liver and studies on its expression in

GIS Spatial-Temporal Modeling of Water Systems in Greater Toronto Area, Canada

Modeling landscape with high-resolution digital elevation model (DEM) in a geographic information system can provide essential morphological and structural information for modeling surface processes such as geomorphologic process and water systems. This paper introduces several DEM-based spatial analysis processes applied to characterize spatial distribution and their interactions of ground and surface water systems in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Canada. The stream networks and drainage basin systems were derived from the DEM with 30 m resolution and the regularities of the surface stream and drainage patterns were modeled from a statistical/multifractal point of view. Together with the elevation and slope of topography, other attributes defined from modeling the stream system, and drainage networks were used to associate geological, hydrological and topographical features to water flow in river systems and the spatial locations of artesian aquifers in the study area. Stream flow data derived from daily flow measurements recorded at river gauging stations for multi-year period were decomposed into 'drainage-area dependent' and 'drainage-area independent' flow components by two-step 'frequency' and 'spatial' analysis processes. The latter component was further demonstrated to relate most likely to the ground water discharge. An independent analysis was conducted to model the distribution of aquifers with information derived from the records of water wells. The focus was given on quantification of the likelihood of ground water discharge to river and ponds through flowing wells, springs and seepages. It has been shown that the Oak Ridges Moraine (ORM) is a unique glacial deposit that serves as a recharge layer and that the aquifers in the ORM underlain by Hilton Tills and later deposits exposed near the steep slope zone of the ridges of ORM provide significant discharge to the surface water systems (river flow and ponds) through flowing wells, springs and seepages. Various statistics (cross- and auto-correlation coefficients, fractal R/S exponent) were used in conjunction with GIS to demonstrate the influence of land types, topography and geometry of drainage basins on short- and long-term persistence of river flows as well as responding time to precipitation events. The current study has provided not only insight in understanding the interaction of water systems in the GTA, but also a base for further establishment of an on-line GIS system for predicting spatial-temporal changes of river flow and groundwater level in the GTA.

Partial Least Squares Regression Model to Predict Water Quality in Urban Water Distribution Systems

The water distribution system of one residential district in Tianjin is taken as an example to analyze the changes of water quality.Partial least squares(PLS) regression model,in which the turbidity and Fe are regarded as control objectives,is used to establish the statistical model.The experimental results indicate that the PLS regression model has good predicted results of water quality compared with the monitored data.The percentages of absolute relative error(below 15%,20%,30%) are 44.4%,66.7%,100%(turbidity) and 33.3%,44.4%,77.8%(Fe) on the 4th sampling point;77.8%,88.9%,88.9%(turbidity) and 44.4%,55.6%,66.7%(Fe) on the 5th sampling point.

Urban surface water system in coastal areas: A comparative study between Almere and Tianjin Eco-city

In the purpose of defining typical urban water management challenges in coastal lowlands in the context of global climate change, a comparative study was conducted between two coastal new towns respectively located in the Netherlands and Northern China. Comparative method is applied to define main functioning patterns of urban water systems in the two cases, then computer simulations were used to furthercompare drainage capacity in order to reveal the trends of urban water management. Major resulthas shown that Almere in the Netherlands generally more advanced in urban water management asmultiple functioning patterns are available.Strong dykes maintain competence for land subsidence and sea level rise. Open water system decreases local runoff and increaseswater retention level. Systematic control ofsluicesand locks which serve for shipping and waterfront landscaping are simultaneously isolating contaminants from outer water body. Tianjin Eco-city in China has shown both strengths and weaknesses. It takes large amount of reclaimed water as main landscaping water source, which adapts to local water pollution and shortage while requires highly centralized facilities. Large water body is reserved and huge scale underground drainage system built, but it is still vulnerable to heavy storms due to the lack of efficient surface water drainage system. Coastal line control does not adequately prevent from increasing storm surge risks in the future. SWMMsimulations have supported the viewpoint ofdistributed surface water with a higher efficiency for storm drainage. Meanwhile, surface water system returns more added values to urban development. The study is corresponding well with the theory of water sensitive city. As a conclusion, urban water system should always incorporate methods to achieve higher system resilience based on multiple functioning patterns.

A system dynamics approach for water resources policy analysis in arid land:a model for Manas River Basin

The Manas River Basin in Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, similar to other arid regions, is facing water constraints which challenge decision-makers as to how to rationally allocate the available water resources to meet the demands from industries and natural ecosystems. Policies which integrate the supply and demand are needed to address the water stress issues. An object-oriented system dynamics model was developed to capture the interrelationships between water availability and increasing water demands from the growth of industries, agri- cultural production and the population through modeling the decision-making process of the water exploration ex- plicitly, in which water stress is used as a major indicator. The model is composed of four sectors： 1 ） natural surface and groundwater resources; 2） water demand; 3） the water exploitation process, including the decision to build reservoirs, canals and pumps; 4） water stress to which political and social systems respond through increasing the supply, limiting the growth or improving the water use efficiency. The model was calibrated using data from 1949 to 2009 for population growth, irrigated land area, industry output, perceived water stress, groundwater resources availability and the drying-out process of Manas River; and simulations were carried out from 2010 to 2050 on an annual time step. The comparison of results from calibration and observation showed that the model corresponds to observed behavior, and the simulated values fit the observed data and trends accurately. Sensitivity analysis showed that the model is robust to changes in model parameters related to population growth, land reclamation, pumping capacity and capital contribution to industry development capacity. Six scenarios were designed to inves- tigate the effectiveness of policy options in the area of reservoir relocation, urban water recycling, water demand control and groundwater pumping control. The simulation runs demonstrated that the technical solutions for im- proving water availability and water use efficiency are not sustainable. Acknowledging the carrying capacity of water resources and eliminating a growth-orientated value system are crucial for the sustainability of the Manas River Basin.

Modeling of residual chlorine in water distribution system

Water quality within water distribution system may vary with both location and time. Water quality models are used to predict the spatial and temporal variation of water quality throughout water system. A model of residual chlorine decay in water pipe has been developed, given the consumption of chlorine in reactions with chemicals in bulk water, bio films on pipe wall, in corrosion process, and the mass transport of chlorine from bulk water to pipe wall. Analytical methods of the flow path from water sources to the observed point and the water age of every observed node were proposed. Model is used to predict the decay of residual chlorine in an actual distribution system. Good agreement between calculated and measured values was obtained.

Bioremediation of Acetochlor in Soil and Water Systems by Cyanobacterial Mat

This study investigated the bioremediation of organic pollution in soil and water systems by cyanobacterial mats collected from Wadi Gaza. Acetochlor, a model compound of herbicide, was used as a standard organic pollutant. Various concentrations of acetochlor were injected in soil and water samples pre-treated with cyanobacterial mat for several periods of time. Percentage of growth of wheat as a test plant was taken as indicator of bioremediation of acetochlor. Results showed that acetochlor was degraded in both soil and water systems. Degradation was?much?faster in the water system than in the soil system. Concentrations of acetochlor above the field rate did not affect the bioremediation process in the water system whereas it did in soil pots. Furthermore, bioremediation in water system was nearly completed in 15 days whereas it did not reach high percentage?in the soil system. These encouraging results are new contribution in field of bioremediation of pesticide by cyanobacterial mats and suggest that application of cyanobacterial mat could be a fast and suitable methodology for bioremediation of organic pollutant in the ecosystem.

Analysis on Biological Stability and Influencing Factors of Northern Living District Water Distribution System

A northern living strict water network was employed to investigate interaction among biological stability and classical water quality indexes. Key water quality indexes on water quality were determined by the static test,then the correlations between biological stability and traditional water quality parameters were analyzed. Traditional water quality parameters and limited factors on bacteria were measured in summer and winter respectively. The results show that BDOC concentration change differently in summer and winter.Among classical parameters turbidity has a positive relation with BDOC but pH has a negative relation with BDOC. Total bacteria number shows a positive correlation with BDOC in the water distribution system.Residual chlorine shows a negative relation with total bacteria number. Fe content increasing will induce turbidity rising in water. To guarantee water safety,BDOC and chlorine content control must be incorporated together to restrict bacteria regrowth.

Optimal operation of water supply systems with tanks based on genetic algorithm

In view of the poor water supply system’s network properties, the system’s complicated network hydraulic equations were replaced by macroscopic nodal pressure model and the model of relationship between supply flow and water source head. By using pump-station pressure head and initial tank water levels as decision variables, the model of optimal allocation of water supply between pump-sources was developed. Genetic algorithm was introduced to deal with the model of optimal allocation of water supply. Methods for handling each constraint condition were put forward, and overcome the shortcoming such as premature convergence of genetic algorithm; a solving method was brought forward in which genetic algorithm was combined with simulated annealing technology and self-adaptive crossover and mutation probabilities were adopted. An application example showed the feasibility of this algorithm.