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  • 1
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    Citizen Science for Marine Litter Detection and Classification on Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Images (2021)
    MDPI
    Details
    Publication Date: 2021-11-26
    Description: Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV, aka drones) are being used for mapping macro-litter in the environment. As drone images require a manual processing task for detecting marine litter, it is of interest to evaluate the accuracy of non-expert citizen science operators (CSO) in performing this task. Students from Italian secondary schools (in this work, the CSO) were invited to identify, mark, and classify stranded litter items on a UAV orthophoto collected on an Italian beach. A specific training program and working tools were developed for the aim. The comparison with the standard in situ visual census survey returned a general underestimation (50%) of items. However, marine litter bulk categorisation was fairly in agreement with the in situ survey, especially for sources classification. The concordance level among CSO ranged between 60% and 91%, depending on the item properties considered (type, material, and colour). As the assessment accuracy was in line with previous works developed by experts, remote detection of marine litter on UAV images can be improved through citizen science programs, upon an appropriate training plan and provision of specific tools.
    Description: This paper is part of NAUTILOS project that has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 101000825. This work was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) and by the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER) through COMPETE 2020, Operational Program for Competitiveness and Internationalization (POCI) in the framework of UIDB/ 00308/2020 and the research project UAS4Litter (PTDC/EAM-REM/30324/2017).
    Description: Published
    Description: 3349
    Description: 7SR AMBIENTE – Servizi e ricerca per la società
    Description: JCR Journal
    Keywords: plastic ; remote sensing ; waste management ; coastal pollution ; beach ; drone ; Citizen Science for Marine Litter Detection
    Repository Name: Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV)
    Type: article
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  • 2
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    Entropy, Vol. 21, Pages 762: Maximum Entropy Methods for Loss Data Analysis: Aggregation and Disaggregation Problems (2019)
    MDPI
    In: Entropy
    Details
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: The analysis of loss data is of utmost interest in many branches of the financial and insurance industries, in structural engineering and in operation research, among others. In the financial industry, the determination of the distribution of losses is the first step to take to compute regulatory risk capitals; in insurance we need the distribution of losses to determine the risk premia. In reliability analysis one needs to determine the distribution of accumulated damage or the first time of occurrence of a composite event, and so on. Not only that, but in some cases we have data on the aggregate risk, but we happen to be interested in determining the statistical nature of the different types of events that contribute to the aggregate loss. Even though in many of these branches of activity one may have good theoretical descriptions of the underlying processes, the nature of the problems is such that we must resort to numerical methods to actually compute the loss distributions. Besides being able to determine numerically the distribution of losses, we also need to assess the dependence of the distribution of losses and that of the quantities computed with it, on the empirical data. It is the purpose of this note to illustrate the how the maximum entropy method and its extensions can be used to deal with the various issues that come up in the computation of the distribution of losses. These methods prove to be robust and allow for extensions to the case when the data has measurement errors and/or is given up to an interval.
    Electronic ISSN: 1099-4300
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology , Physics
    Published by MDPI
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  • 3
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    Geosciences, Vol. 8, Pages 486: Interception of Rainfall in Successional Tropical Dry Forests in Brazil and Costa Rica (2018)
    MDPI
    Details
    Publication Date: 2018
    Description: Tropical dry forests (TDF) are endangered ecosystems characterized by a matrix of successional forest patches with structural differences across the Neotropics. Until now, there have been few studies that analyze the partitioning of rainfall by forest interception in TDF. To contribute to the understanding of the TDF impact on the hydrological dynamic at the ecosystem and landscape levels, a rainfall interception study was conducted in Santa Rosa National Park in Costa Rica (SRNP) and in Mata Seca State Park in Brazil (MSSP). In each site, three plots per successional stage were studied. The successional stages were early, intermediate, and late. In each plot the rainfall, throughfall, and stemflow were monitored during one rainy season. The relationship between gross rainfall and water fluxes was evaluated using linear regression models. In general, net rainfall oscillated from 79.3% to 85.4% of gross rainfall in all the plots in MSSP without any trend related to forest succession, due to the effect of a high density of lianas in the intermediate and late stage plots. In SRNP, there was a clear trend of net rainfall among successional stages: 87.5% (early), 73.0% (intermediate), and 63.4% (late). Net rainfall correlated negatively only with plant area index in SRNP (r = −0.755, p 〈 0.05). This study highlights the need to study rainfall interception in successional stages to estimate net rainfall that reaches the soil. This would provide better hydrological information to understand water balance and water fluxes at the level of forest ecosystems and landscapes.
    Electronic ISSN: 2076-3263
    Topics: Geosciences
    Published by MDPI
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  • 4
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    Forests, Vol. 9, Pages 782: Calcium and Potassium Imbalance Favours Leaf Blight and Defoliation Caused by Calonectria pteridis in Eucalyptus Plants (2018)
    MDPI
    In: Forests
    Details
    Publication Date: 2018
    Description: The supply of nutrients in balanced proportions leads to greater crop yields and represents an alternative practice for the management of plant diseases. Accordingly, we investigated the effect of the doses of and the nutritional balance between calcium (Ca) and potassium (K) on the severity of leaf spot and defoliation caused by the fungus Calonectria pteridis. Moreover, the effect of the treatments on the growth of interspecific hybrid eucalyptus clone seedlings (Eucalyptus grandis Hill ex Maiden × E. urophylla S.T. Blake), which are highly susceptible to the disease, was evaluated. The 25 treatments comprised combinations of one of five doses of Ca (1.2, 3.0, 6.0, 9.0 and 12.0 mmol L−1) with one of five doses of K (0.8, 2.0, 4.0, 8.0 and 12.0 mmol L−1) and five replicates of each treatment were included in the study. The supply of high concentrations of K favoured C. pteridis infection and resulted in high disease severity, although defoliation was not observed. However, the supply of both nutrients in excess (12.0 mmol L−1 Ca × 9.0 mmol L−1 K) resulted in a higher disease severity and an increased defoliation percentage (82 and 64%, respectively). Defoliation not associated with Calonectria leaf blight disease was observed with the imbalanced treatments, that is, the treatments combining a low concentration of one nutrient and an excess concentration of the other nutrient. The supply of K at a level near the standard dose (6 mmol L−1) and of Ca at a dose above 4 mmol L−1 (standard dose) ensured high mean values for the morphological variables root and shoot biomass, plant height and chlorophyll a and b contents. These treatments also resulted in low disease severity and defoliation percentages, indicating that a balanced supply of Ca and K ensures reductions in disease severity and defoliation and contributes to higher growth.
    Electronic ISSN: 1999-4907
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition
    Published by MDPI
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  • 5
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    Water, Vol. 11, Pages 1911: Evaluation of MOD16 Algorithm over Irrigated Rice Paddy Using Flux Tower Measurements in Southern Brazil (2019)
    MDPI
    In: Water
    Details
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: Evapotranspiration (ET) is an important component of the hydrological cycle. Understanding the ET process has become of fundamental importance given the scenario of global change and increasing water use, especially in the agricultural sector. Determining ET over large agricultural areas is a limiting factor due to observational data availability. In this regard, remote sensing data has been used to estimate ET. In this study, we evaluated the Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) land surface ET product estimates (hereafter MOD16 ET – MODIS Global Terrestrial Evapotranspiration Product) over two rice paddy areas in Southern Brazil, through the ET measured using the eddy covariance technique (hereafter EC). The energy balance components were evaluated during fallow and flooded seasons showing latent heat flux dominates in both seasons. The results showed that MOD16 ET underestimated EC measurements. Overall, the RMSE (root mean square error) ranged between 13.40 and 16.35 mm 8-day−1 and percent bias (PBIAS) ranged between −33.7% and −38.7%. We also assessed the ET (measured and estimated) main drivers, with EC yielding higher correlation against observed net radiation (Rn) and global radiation (Rg), followed by air temperature (Temp) and vapor pressure deficit (VPD), whilst MOD16 ET estimates yielded higher correlation against leaf area index (LAI) and fraction of photosynthetically active radiation (fPAR). The MOD16 algorithm was forced with meteorological measurements but the results did not improve as expected, suggesting a low sensitivity to meteorological inputs. Our results indicated when a water layer was present over the soil surface without vegetation (LAI around zero), the largest differences between EC measurements and MOD16 ET were found. In this period, the expected domain of soil evaporation was not observed in MOD16 ET physical processes partition, indicating the algorithm was not able to detect areas with high soil moisture. In general, the MOD16 ET product presented low accuracy when compared against experimental measurements over flooded rice paddy, suggesting more studies are necessary, in order to reduce uncertainties associated to the land cover conditions.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4441
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
    Published by MDPI
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  • 6
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    IJERPH, Vol. 16, Pages 3803: Quality of Work Life and Organizational Performance: Workers’ Feelings of Contributing, or Not, to the Organization’s Productivity (2019)
    MDPI
    Details
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: This is a pioneering study on the relationship between quality of work life and the employee’s perception of their contribution to organizational performance. It unveils the importance of subjective and behavioral components of quality of work life and their influence on the formation of the collaborator’s individual desire to contribute to strengthening the organization’s productivity. The results obtained indicate that for workers: feeling their supervisors’ support through listening to their concerns and by sensing they take them on board; being integrated in a good work environment; and feeling respected both as professionals and as people; positively influence their feeling of contributing to organizational performance. The results are particularly relevant given the increased weight of services in the labor market, together with intensified automation and digitalization of collaborators’ functions. The findings also contribute to the ongoing debate about the need for more work on the subjective and behavioral components of so-called smart and learning organizations, rather than focusing exclusively on remuneration as the factor stimulating organizational productivity based on the collaborator’s contribution.
    Print ISSN: 1661-7827
    Electronic ISSN: 1660-4601
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering , Medicine
    Published by MDPI
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  • 7
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    Minerals, Vol. 9, Pages 176: Heavy Mineral Sands in Brazil: Deposits, Characteristics, and Extraction Potential of Selected Areas (2019)
    MDPI
    In: Minerals
    Details
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: In Brazil, heavy mineral sand deposits are still barely exploited, despite some references to Brazilian reserves and ilmenite concentrate production. The goal of this project is to characterize and investigate the potential recovery of heavy minerals from selected Brazilian placer occurrences. Two areas of the coastal region were chosen, in Piaui state and in Bahia Provinces. In all samples, the heavy minerals of interest (ilmenite, monazite, rutile, and zircon) were identified by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques and also quantified by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF) and Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES). The total heavy minerals (THM) in the Piaui samples were 6.45% and 10.14% THM, while the figure for the Bahia sample was 3.4% THM. The recovery test of the Bahia sample, using only physical separation equipment such as a shaking table and magnetic separator, showed valuable metallurgical recoveries at around or greater than 70% for each stage, and the final concentrate of pure ilmenite was composed of up to 60.0% titanium dioxide after the differential magnetic separation. Another aim is to compile accessible information about Brazilian heavy mineral main deposits complemented with a short economic overview.
    Electronic ISSN: 2075-163X
    Topics: Geosciences
    Published by MDPI
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  • 8
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    Forests, Vol. 10, Pages 252: Optimization of Skid Trails and Log Yards on the Amazon Forest (2019)
    MDPI
    In: Forests
    Details
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: Research highlights: We used Dijkstra Algorithm (DA) to define optimal allocation of yards in order to minimize total skid-trail’s distance in the Amazon Forest. DA minimized trails’ distances and associated transportation costs, leading to an even smaller value when the current planning was disregarded and suggesting the reduction of deleterious environmental externalities. Background and objectives: We sought to answer if it is possible to optimize distances and intrinsic costs in the management of Amazonian forests using DA. The objective was to minimize skid trails distances by best allocating yards using DA and to compare four scenarios of forest harvest planning in the Brazilian Amazon. Materials and methods: Tree census data from Gênesis-Salém Farm, state of Pará, Brazil, were used. The yards and roads located by Grupo Arboris (scenario 1) were compared to three alternative scenarios in terms of total skid distance, trails and road densities, and skidding costs for three successive harvests, seeking to minimize total skid-trails’ distance. Alternative scenarios were to keep the number of yards within work units (WU) and place them in the edge of existing roads (scenario 2); keep the number of yards within each WU (scenario 3); and place 23 yards, disregarding the current planning (scenario 4). Results: Total skid-trail’s distance, number of trees above optimal extraction distance and densities of skid trails and roads were smaller in scenarios 2, 3, and 4, compared to the current yard allocation (scenario 1). Scenario 4, with fewer restrictions, reduced skid-trails’ distances by 23%. Harvest costs decreased from scenario 1 to 4 in all three harvest cycles. Conclusions: DA allowed optimized distribution of yards and skid trails and generated efficient results for harvest planning. This reinforces the importance of optimized planning, which establishes satisfactory results in the effort to reduce costs and environmental impact keeping high efficiency.
    Electronic ISSN: 1999-4907
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition
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  • 9
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    Remote Sensing, Vol. 11, Pages 637: Cluster Analysis Applied to Spatiotemporal Variability of Monthly Precipitation over Paraíba State Using Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Data (2019)
    MDPI
    Details
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: In Paraíba state, precipitation is strongly affected by several climate systems, such as trade winds, the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ), easterly wave disturbances (EWDs), and the South Atlantic subtropical high. Accordingly, the objective of this study was to analyze the spatiotemporal variability in precipitation to identify homogeneous trends of that variable and the effects of climate systems in Paraíba state by cluster analysis. The precipitation data used in this study derive from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite for the period from January 1998 to December 2015, and hierarchical clustering was used to classify the sites into different groups with similar trends. The findings show an uneven spatiotemporal precipitation distribution in all mesoregions of the state and considerable monthly precipitation variation in space. The estimated precipitation depth was highest in coastal regions and in high-altitude areas due to orographic precipitation. In general, the precipitation over Paraíba is characterized by strong gradients in the coastal zone towards the continent (Agreste, Borborema, and Sertão mesoregions) and from north to south due to the physiography of the region and the effects of climate systems with different time scales. Finally, the proposed clustering method using TRMM data was effective in characterizing climatic systems.
    Electronic ISSN: 2072-4292
    Topics: Architecture, Civil Engineering, Surveying , Geography
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  • 10
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    Materials, Vol. 12, Pages 914: Oxidation Resistance and Microstructure Evaluation of a Polymer Derived Ceramic (PDC) Composite Coating Applied onto Sintered Steel (2019)
    MDPI
    In: Materials
    Details
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: Powder metallurgy is a competitive technology to produce ferrous near net shape parts for diverse engineering applications. However, their inherent porosity increases the susceptibility to oxidation and sealing their surface is mandatory to avoid premature degradation. Alongside, polymer derived ceramics (PDCs), such as silicon-carbonitride, have drawn attention concerning their high temperature and chemical stability. However, PDCs undergo volume shrinkage during ceramization that leads to defect formation. The shrinkage can be compensated by the addition of fillers, which are also capable of tailoring the ceramic resulting properties. This work evaluates the processing of PDC-based coatings loaded with ZrO2 and glass fillers to compensate for the shrinkage, densify the coating and seal the sintered steel surface. Therefore, polymeric slurries were sprayed onto sintered steel substrates, which were pyrolyzed at different temperatures for microstructural and oxidation resistance evaluation. Microstructural modifications caused by the enhanced glass viscous flow during pyrolysis at 800 °C resulted in more homogeneous, dense and protective coatings, which reduced the mass gain up to 40 wt% after 100 h of oxidation at 450 °C in air in comparison to the uncoated substrate. Moreover, no macrocracks or spallation were detected, confirming the feasibility of PDC composite barrier coatings for sintered steels.
    Electronic ISSN: 1996-1944
    Topics: Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics
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