The Effects of Fluid Sloshing on Different Baffle Configurations in Storage Tanks Transported on Trucks during an Emergency Braking

Different Baffle designs usable in cylindrical and elliptical storage tanks carried by trucks often used for transporting inflammable liquid materials in Cameroon are investigated to evaluate their safest fluid sloshing damping response during emergency braking where the magnitude of sloshing waves are the greatest. The uncontrolled fluid sloshing creates thrust on the walls of the tanks usually felt externally on the truck carrying the tank and capable of hindering driver’s effort to maintain steer ability and improve on safety during critical braking moments. The study first passes through COMSOL, to expose the safest margin of each Baffle type at instantaneous fluid pressure wave propagation initiated at a single phase to reflect sloshing in the storage tank during an emergency braking by the truck carrying the tank. The vivid results can be seen in the domain of Acoustic Iso-surface Pressure response;but also acoustic Pressure and Sound pressure response are seen automatically. Secondly, through an experimental finding in which fluid is forced to pass through each Baffle and the resistance to fluid flow is a measured as it’s the Baffle’s damping ability. Either, the fluid is lost through the Baffle and by determination of the surface load exerted on each Baffle due to the reaction of the residual fluid acting on the surface of each Baffle after some of it is Lost, the individual sloshing damping abilities are exposed. By comparing the Experimental outcome with the computational response obtained, an ideal Baffle design is proposed for cylindrical and elliptical tanks and considered to respond to abrupt braking more effciently. The application of the Baffle designs with an average multiple holes rather than the usual face centered proved to be more effcient in fluid sloshing as they provide a more uniformly distributed damping pressure during fluid sloshing in the tank thereby reducing the magnitude of forward thrust that can be created by the conventional Baffle type during emergency braking hence contributing to improving safety. Mindful of the human, material and environmental damages that an accident involving mobile petroleum storage tanks can course, this study is therefore of great significance for design optimization by petroleum storage tank manufacturing companies in Cameroon.

Modification of Wood by Tannin-Furfuryl Alcohol Resins-Effect on Dimensional Stability,Mechanical Properties and Decay Durability

Furfurylation is a well-known wood modification technology.This paper studied the effect of tannin addition on the wood furfurylation.Three kinds of dicarboxylic acids,adipic acid,succinic acid,and tartaric acid,as well as glyoxal as a comparing agent,were used to catalyse the polymerisation of furanic or tannin-furanic solutions during wood modification.Impregnation of furanic or tannin-furanic solution at a certain concentration into the wood followed with curing at 103℃for a specific duration was performed for the wood modification.Different properties of the modified woods like dimensional stability,resistance of treatment to leaching,mechanical properties,decay durability against white-rot(Coriolus versicolor,Pycnoporus sanguineus)and brown-rot(Coniophora puteana)as well as their chemical and anatomical characteristics were evaluated.Results revealed that the partial substitution of FA by the tannins improved the fixation of the chemicals impregnated in wood.Further,dimensional stability,leaching resistance,Brinell hardness,modulus of elasticity/modulus of rupture,and decay durability properties of the furfurylated wood were also improved in the presence of tannins.Scanning electron microscopy revealed the deposition of the polymer in the wood lumen cells and in the wood cell walls.

Learning-Based Metaheuristic Approach for Home Healthcare Optimization Problem

This research focuses on the home health care optimization problem that involves staff routing and scheduling problems.The considered problem is an extension of multiple travelling salesman problem.It consists of finding the shortest path for a set of caregivers visiting a set of patients at their homes in order to perform various tasks during a given horizon.Thus,a mixed-integer linear programming model is proposed to minimize the overall service time performed by all caregivers while respecting the workload balancing constraint.Nevertheless,when the time horizon become large,practical-sized instances become very difficult to solve in a reasonable computational time.Therefore,a new Learning Genetic Algorithm for mTSP(LGA-mTSP)is proposed to solve the problem.LGA-mTSP is composed of a new genetic algorithm for mTSP,combined with a learning approach,called learning curves.Learning refers to that caregivers’productivity increases as they gain more experience.Learning curves approach is considered as a way to save time and costs.Simulation results show the efficiency of the proposed approach and the impact of learning curve strategy to reduce service times.

Use of a Microwave Plasma Process at Atmospheric Pressure for Bacterial Inactivation without Thermal Effects

An atmospheric microwave plasma argon was used for the inactivation of bacteria E. coli. The employed device, called Axial Injection Torch (or TIA for Torche à Injection Axiale), consisted of a microwave power source, a waveguide and a gas supply system. Using this argon plasma source, we studied the effects of the exposure time, the exposure distance, the input power, and the gas flow rate on the reduction rate of Escherichia coli cells. The first part of the study was carried out with a static sample exposed to the plasma and then in the second part the sample was set in motion relative to the plasma jet. A log reduction number of E. coli of 4 (10-4 CFU/mL) was obtained with UV and active species, for UV only a log of 1 (10-1 CFU/mL) was obtained.

Evolution of gully erosion and susceptibility factors in the urban watershed of the Kimemi(Butembo/DR Congo)

Gully erosion is one of the most intense landscape degradation mechanisms in areas with varying environmental characteristics.Both natural and anthropogenic factors affect the gullying process.Reliable documentation of these processes in tropical African cities is scarce.This study assessed the gully erosion dynamic and the sus-ceptibility factors in the urban watershed of Kimemi in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo(DRC).Data were obtained through a combination of fieldwork and digitization of very high spatial resolution images from Google Earth(from 2011 to 2021).The length,width,and area of large gullies(width≥5 m)were measured for each year of the study.A logistic regression model(LRM)was also used to investigate the influence of both physical and anthropogenic factors on gully susceptibility.The results revealed that the number of gullies has increased from 36 to 61 during the last decade.The gully mean length of 63.9±61.1 m,129.3±104.9 m,and 174.7±153.8 m were obtained for the years 2011,2015,and 2021 respectively.The average density of gully network for the study period was 0.12 km/km^(2),while the degraded land was -1.3 and -1.1 ha/year for 2011-2015 and 2015-2021 for the entire watershed.The significant changes in morphometric parameters(length,width,area)were found only in the bare land and building land uses.A strong and positive relationship between the length(m)and the area(ha)was found.Furthermore,the susceptibility of gullying was significantly influenced by the slope,stream power index(SPI),distance to roads and rivers,land use and land cover(LULC),and normalized difference vegetation index(NDVI).This means the areas located in the bare land and building or close to roads and/or streams are more likely to be gullied.The findings emphasize the impact of urbanization on gully erosion in the Kimemi watershed,highlighting the importance of informed land management decisions with a close attention to anthropogenic factors.

Search and Rescue Optimization with Machine Learning Enabled Cybersecurity Model

Presently,smart cities play a vital role to enhance the quality of living among human beings in several ways such as online shopping,e-learning,ehealthcare,etc.Despite the benefits of advanced technologies,issues are also existed from the transformation of the physical word into digital word,particularly in online social networks(OSN).Cyberbullying(CB)is a major problem in OSN which needs to be addressed by the use of automated natural language processing(NLP)and machine learning(ML)approaches.This article devises a novel search and rescue optimization with machine learning enabled cybersecurity model for online social networks,named SRO-MLCOSN model.The presented SRO-MLCOSN model focuses on the identification of CB that occurred in social networking sites.The SRO-MLCOSN model initially employs Glove technique for word embedding process.Besides,a multiclass-weighted kernel extreme learning machine(M-WKELM)model is utilized for effectual identification and categorization of CB.Finally,Search and Rescue Optimization(SRO)algorithm is exploited to fine tune the parameters involved in the M-WKELM model.The experimental validation of the SRO-MLCOSN model on the benchmark dataset reported significant outcomes over the other approaches with precision,recall,and F1-score of 96.24%,98.71%,and 97.46%respectively.

On the thermo-mechanical properties of unsaturated soils

The establishment of energy balance equation is necessary to study the thermo-mechanical properties of unsaturated soils.To solve this equation,the determination of two fundamental parameters as volumetric specific parameter and thermal conductivity coefficient is essential.In this paper,the effective thermal conductivity coefficient of dry soil grain is analyzed for soils with different compositions,and the thermo-mechanical properties of porous media with water and gas are studied by considering the soil water retention curve（SWRC）.Different methods,i.e.volumetric average method,self-consistent method,Hashin-Strikman method,are employed to calculate thermal conductivity coefficients,and a new method is proposed to determine the thermo-mechanical parameters.Comparison of the results obtained by different methods shows that the proposed method is in a good agreement with the experimental results and is suitable for describing the main properties of the thermo-mechanical behaviors of soils.The relationship between the SWRC and the seepage curve is further studied by the natural proportional rule.The characteristics of the SWRC,its differential coefficient and the seepage curve,are investigated by considering the physico-mechanical mechanism;the limit scopes of the indices of the SWRC and the seepage curve are also given.

Characterization of Near Surface Intrusions in South-West Cameroon Zone Using Gravity Data: Mining and Geothermal Implications

The succession of tectonic phenomena in the South-West Cameroon area suggests that structures from the upper mantle infiltrated and took advantage of the cracks and fractures left by these phenomena to get closer to the earth’s surface. However, the intrusive structures closest to the surface remain poorly known. The objective of this work is to improve the knowledge related to the interpretation of gravity data in order to characterise the near-surface intrusive bodies in the South-West Cameroon area, and then analyse their mining and geothermal implications. To achieve this objective, the indirect, inverse and normalized standard deviation (NSTD) methods were used. The NSTD method was used to detect the contours of the intrusive bodies. The indirect method (spectral analysis) was used to determine the depths of the interfaces of three intrusive bodies, one located on the Bipindi-Ebolowa I axis (G5), the other on the Eseka-Pouma axis (G8) and the last on the Bokito-Monatele axis (G11). The results obtained show roofs located between 0 and 0.61 km, between 0 and 0.37 km and between 0 and 0.73 km for the G5, G8 and G11 bodies, respectively. Finally, the application of the 2D inversion method allowed us to estimate the density contrasts of the intrusive bodies (G5, G8 and G11). The superposition of the intrusive bodies detected by the NSTD with the geological and mineral resources map, as well as an analysis of the results obtained, gave indications of interesting zones for mining prospecting and for the search for geothermal reservoirs.

Farm-Scale Applicability of Three Covers (Peat, Polystyrene Balls and Synthetic Sheet Roof) to Reduce Ammonia Emissions from Pig Slurry Storage

Covering the slurry pit has been shown to be one of the best ways to reduce ammonia emissions (NH3) during manure management. Yet, few studies have been conducted at farm scale. We studied the feasibility of three cover materials (peat, polystyrene balls and synthetic sheet roof) to reduce ammonia (NH3) emissions during on-farm storage of pig slurry. The impact on greenhouse gas emissions, methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O) and carbon dioxide (CO2) of covering the slurry pit was also evaluated. Simultaneous field experiments were carried out using two similar pits at a farm with peat and polystyrene ball covers, which allowed direct comparison of the feasibility of the two covers to reduce gas emissions (measured using the dynamic chamber technique). Emissions from the third option (using a synthetic sheet roof) were estimated by measuring the concentrations in the headspace under the cover and the air leakage from the cover with a tracer gas (CO2). Results showed that the polystyrene balls cover reduced emissions of NH3 during storage by up to 80% whatever the season, but increased potential greenhouse gas emissions by 20% in summer. No consistent reduction was achieved with the peat cover even though some individual results seemed to indicate up to 25% reduction in ammonia emissions;moreover, there was a 30% increase in CH4 and CO2 emissions during the storage period. The use of a synthetic sheet roof enabled up to 90% reduction in NH3, CH4 and CO2 emissions whatever the season.

Words apart:Standardizing forestry terms and definitions across European biodiversity studies

Forest biodiversity studies conducted across Europe use a multitude of forestry terms,often inconsistently.This hinders the comparability across studies and makes the assessment of the impacts of forest management on biodiversity highly context-dependent.Recent attempts to standardize forestry and stand description terminology mostly used a top-down approach that did not account for the perspectives and approaches of forest biodiversity experts.This work aims to establish common standards for silvicultural and vegetation definitions,creating a shared conceptual framework for a consistent study on the effects of forest management on biodiversity.We have identified both strengths and weaknesses of the silvicultural and vegetation information provided in forest biodiversity studies.While quantitative data on forest biomass and dominant tree species are frequently included,information on silvicultural activities and vegetation composition is often lacking,shallow,or based on broad and heterogeneous classifications.We discuss the existing classifications and their use in European forest biodiversity studies through a novel bottom-up and top-driven review process,and ultimately propose a common framework.This will enhance the comparability of forest biodiversity studies in Europe,and puts the basis for effective implementation and monitoring of sustainable forest management policies.The standards here proposed are potentially adaptable and applicable to other geographical areas and could be extended to other forest interventions.

The coupled hydro-mechanical behaviours of compacted crushed Callovo-Oxfordian argillite

Callovo-Oxfordian （COx） argillite obtained from the excavation of high-level radioactive waste geological disposal has been evaluated as an alternative sealing/backfill material in France. This paper presents an experimental investigation into the hydro-mechanical behaviour of compacted crushed COx argillite. A series of oedorneter compressive tests including various loading-unloading cycles were conducted on COx argillite powders at different initial water contents. After reaching the desired dry density （2.0 Mg/m^3）, the vertical stress was reduced to different levels （7.0 and 0.5 MPa） and the compacted sample was then flooded under constant volume conditions while measuring the changes in the vertical stress. It was found that the initial water content significantly affects the compressive behaviour. The measured saturated hydraulic conductivity is less than 1×10^-10m/s.

Relationship between Mean Arterial Pressure, Uric Acid and Calcium with Xanthine Oxidase Activity and Fetal Outcome in Normotensive and Preeclampsia in a Nested Study

Preeclampsia is a pregnancy complication;early identification with increased risk is one of the key goals in obstetrics. In a nested case control study, serum uric acid and calcium measured in first and second trimesters of pregnancy were correlated with Xanthine oxidase (XO) activity, mean arterial pressure (MAP) and fetal birth weight. The mean ± SD of uric acid (2.01 ± 0.85, 4.8 ± 1.93), calcium (10.88 ± 1.97, 9.72 ± 2.04), MAP (84.32 ± 6.71, 78.40 ± 8.53) and XO activity (11.96 ± 1.91, 14.05 ± 3.09) of the study group (n=86) were observed in the first and second trimesters respectively. First trimester normotensive group (n=79) and preeclampsia cases (n = 7), showed a mean ± SD of uric acid (1.93 ± 0.80, 2.9 ± 0.88), Calcium (10.92 ± 1.9, 10.6 ± 1.72), MAP (84.19 ± 6.75, 85.71 ± 6.58) XO activity (11.82 ± 1.83, 13.57 ± 2.21). In the second trimester, normotensive group and preeclampsia cases showed a mean ± SD uric acid (4.6 ± 1.75, 7.3 ± 2.19), Calcium (9.4 ± 1.85, 12.9 ± 1.04), MAP (76.41 ± 5.41, 100.95 ± 2.52) and XO activity (13.37 ± 1.93, 21.70 ± 3.50). Statistical analysis revealed a non-significant positive correlation in first trimester between uric acid and MAP (r = +0.116, p = 0.288), negative correlations between uric acid and fetal birth weight (r = -0.118, 0.279) and between calcium and MAP (r =?-0.288, p = 0.007). In the second trimester, significant positive correlations were observed between uric acid (r = +0.246, p = 0.022), calcium (r = +0.326, p = 0.007) with MAP along with a significant negative correlation between uric acid (r = -0.641, p = 0.000), calcium (r = -0.316, p = 0.003), Proteinuria (r = -0.514, p = 0.000) with fetal birth weight. The screening of first and second trimesters XO activity, uric acid, calcium and MAP during pregnancy is beneficial in identifying women likely to develop preeclampsia with poor fetal outcome.

A Comparative Study for Compressible Turbulence Models

The incompressible models for the pressure-strain correlation are unable to correctly predict the turbulence flows evolving with significant compressibility. Huang and Fu use a damping function of the turbulent Mach number to modify two numerical coefficients of the incompressible model for the pressure strain developed by Launder, Reece and Rodi. This model predicts the spreading rate and the shear stress behavior in compressible turbulent mixing well. However, the model does not show the well-known compressibility effects on the compressible homogenous shear flow. In the present work, the model of Huang-Fu is revised, all resulting model coefficients become dependent on the turbulent Mach number, the gradient Mach number and the convective Mach number. The proposed model is tested in different compressible turbulent homogeneous shear flow and mixing layers cases. In general, the predicted results from the proposed model are in an acceptable agreement with DNS and experiment data.

Experimental study on hydro-mechanical coupling behaviours of highly compacted expansive clay

Highly compacted expansive clays have been usually considered as a possible material for sealing and backfill in deep geological disposal of radioactive waste. In this condition, the material is simultaneously subjected to water infiltration from the geological barrier and stresses generated by the swelling of engineered barriers in confined conditions. Its behaviour under hydro-mechanical loading is essential to the safe design of the whole storage system. In the present work, MX80 bentonite, a kind of expansive clay from Wyoming, USA, was studied. After compaction, its dry density was 1.8 Mg/m^3 and its initial suction was 110 MPa. Firstly, the soil was humidified under controlled suction and free-swelling conditions. Significant swelling was observed. Secondly, four values of suction of 110, 39, 9 and 0 MPa were employed to perform isotropic compressive tests at constant suction conditions. That allowed studying the effect of suction on the yield pressure, elastic and plastic compressibility parameters. The results show that the elastic and plastic compressibility parameters increase when the suction decreases. The relationship between these parameters and the logarithm of suction can be linearly correlated. The yield stress drastically decreases upon wetting under free-swelling conditions, from 12 - 18 MPa （at an initial suction of 110 MPa） to 0.2 MPa at saturated state.

Role of sirtuins in ischemia-reperfusion injury

Ischemia-reperfusion injury(IRI)remains an unresolved and complicated situation in clinical practice,especially in the case of organ transplantation.Several factors contribute to its complexity;the depletion of energy during ischemia and the induction of oxidative stress during reperfusion initiate a cascade of pathways that lead to cell death and finally to severe organ injury.Recently,the sirtuin family of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-dependent deacetylases has gained increasing attention from researchers,due to their involvement in the modulation of a wide variety of cellular functions.There are seven mammalian sirtuins and,among them,the nuclear/cytoplasmic sirtuin 1(SIRT1)and the mitochondrial sirtuin 3(SIRT3)are ubiquitously expressed in many tissue types.Sirtuins are known to play major roles in protecting against cellular stress and in controlling metabolic pathways,which are key processes during IRI.In this review,we mainly focus on SIRT1 and SIRT3 and examine their role in modulating pathways against energy depletion during ischemia and their involvement in oxidative stress,apoptosis,microcirculatory stress and inflammation during reperfusion.We present evidence of the beneficial effects of sirtuins against IRI and emphasize the importance of developing new strategies by enhancing their action.

Challenges and prospects for consumer acceptance of cultured meat

Consumer acceptance of cultured meat is expected to depend on a wide diversity of determinants ranging from technologyrelated perceptions to product-specific expectations, and including wider contextual factors like media coverage, public involvement, and trust in science, policy and society. This paper discusses the case of cultured meat against this multitude of possible determinants shaping future consumer acceptance or rejection. The paper also presents insights from a primary exploratory study performed in April 2013 with consumers from Flanders（Belgium）（n=180）. The concept of cultured meat was only known（unaided） by 13% of the study participants. After receiving basic information about what cultured meat is, participants expressed favorable expectations about the concept. Only 9% rejected the idea of trying cultured meat, while two thirds hesitated and about quarter indicated to be willing to try it. The provision of additional information about the environmental benefits of cultured meat compared to traditional meat resulted in 43% of the participants indicating to be willing to try this novel food, while another 51% indicated to be ‘maybe＇ willing to do so. Price and sensory expectations emerged as major obstacles. Consumers eating mostly vegetarian meals were less convinced that cultured meat might be healthy, suggesting that vegetarians may not be the ideal primary target group for this novel meat substitute. Although exploratory rather than conclusive, the findings generally underscore doubts among consumers about trying this product when it would become available, and therefore also the challenge for cultured meat to mimic traditional meat in terms of sensory quality at an affordable price in order to become acceptable for future consumers.

Solid solution evolution during mechanical alloying in Cu–Nb–Al compounds

This work concerns the structural evolution of Cu70Nb20Al10(at%) alloy processed by mechanical alloying using a planetary ball mill in air atmosphere for different times(4 to 200 h). The morphological, structural, microstructural, and thermal behaviors of the alloy were investigated by scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and differential scanning calorimetry. X-ray diffraction patterns were examined using the Rietveld refinement technique with the help of the MAUD software. A disordered FCC-Cu(Nb,Al) solid solution was formed after 8 h of milling. The crystallite size, microstrain, and lattice parameter were determined by the Rietveld method. With increasing milling time, the crystallite size of the final product-ternary-phase FCC-Cu(Nb,Al)-is refined to the nanometer scale, reaching 12 nm after 200 h. This crystallographic structure combines good mechanical strength and good ductility. An increase in microstrain and partial oxidation were also observed with increasing milling time.

Multiple Response Optimization of High Temperature, Low Time Aqueous Extraction Process of Phenolic Compounds from Grape Byproducts

In this study phenolic compounds extraction from grape byproducts was conducted using pure water as a solvent. High temperatures and low time incubation periods were used in the aim of reducing the cost of the process and heightening the phenolic compounds yield. Response surface methodology (RSM) was realized to study the effect of time and temperature on crushed and uncrushed grape pomace. The phenolic content was evaluated considering the quantity (total phenolics (TPC), flavonoids (FC), total monomeric anthocyanins (TMA) and tannins (TC)), and quality (antiradical activity (AA) and antioxidant capacity (AC)) of the extracts. High temperature low time extraction design used in this study was compared to the extraction process at moderate temperatures with relatively long periods of time. This was proved to ameliorate the quantitative extraction of phenolic compounds from grape pomace without affecting their bioactivity. Moreover, multiple response optimization showed the optimal extraction parameters to be 81?C and 140 minutes for the unmilled pomace samples, and 88?C and 5 minutes for the milled. TPC, FC, TMA, TC, AA and AC are almost the same for both optimums. Thus the possibility of replacing the milling process by the extraction time prolongation (for the unmilled pomace) of 135 minutes seems to be very plausible. HPLC analysis showed different quantity and diversity of extracted phenolics for the optimums. However this difference did not significantly affect the overall activity, showing that PC in the different extracts act in complete synergy all together leading to important biological properties. The obtained results using the extraction strategy adopted in this work could lead to several industrial applications.

Extraction of Total Phenolic Compounds, Flavonoids, Anthocyanins and Tannins from Grape Byproducts by Response Surface Methodology. Influence of Solid-Liquid Ratio, Particle Size, Time, Temperature and Solvent Mixtures on the Optimization Process

The current work concerns the optimization process of phenolic compounds solid liquid extraction from grape byproducts at high temperatures and short incubation times. The effect of five experimental parameters (solidliquid ratio, particle size, time, temperature and solvent mixture) mostly believed to affect the extraction process was undertaken. A first response surface methodology experimental design was used to optimize the solid-liquid ratio and milling time parameters. A second design was used for the optimization of the quantitative and qualitative parameters. The quantitative parameters studied are: total phenolic compounds, flavonoid content, total monomeric anthocyanin composition and tannin concentration. The qualitative parameters analyzed are: antiradical activity and antioxidant capacity. The second design was based on the use of time, temperature and solvent mixture as optimization parameters. The assays were first conducted separately revealing the best experimental conditions for the maximization of each response variable alone. A simultaneous response surface methodology of all the responses taken together was then conducted, showing the optimal extraction conditions to be: 93 minutes at 94?C and in 66% ethanol/water solvent. The maximal response values obtained for each parameter are: Total Phenolic Compounds yield (5.5 g GAE/100g DM), Flavonoid Content (5.4 g GAE/100g DM), Total Monomeric Anthocyanin yield (70.3 mg/100g DM), Tannin Concentration (12.3 g/L), Antiradical Activity (67.3%) and Total Antioxidant Capacity (393 mgAAE/L). All of the optimal values were acquired at 3 mL/g solid-liquid ratio and 6.8 min milling time. The obtained extracts could be used as natural bioactive compounds in several industrial applications.

Analysis of SSRs Uncovers Hierarchical Structure and Genetic Diversity in Chinese Soybean Landraces

For clarifying the hierarchical patterns of population structure of soybean landraces in China, the seven clusters previously identified using Bayesian clustering of 1 504 soybean landraces based on SSR markers genotyping data were further analyzed. Using the largest value of AK, these landraces could be split into 20 sub-clusters, which was supported by highly significant pairwise Fst-values and generally in accordance with the geographic origin and sowing types. The autumn-sowing types ended up in one distinct sub-cluster from the otherwise summer-sowing type, where the autumn- sowing types are most likely derived from. The division into 20 sub-clusters explained 7.3% of the genetic variation, next to 9.7% present among the seven clusters, 81.1% residing among landraces within sub-clusters, and 1.9% within the landraces. The distribution pattern of genetic diversity among the sub-clusters of each cluster was uneven, with two HSuM sub-clusters （Central China） and some South China sub-clusters showing significantly higher level of genetic diversity.