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Copyright of Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society is the property of Cambridge University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Agricultural utilization of organic residues is often included in Life cycle assessment (LCA) studies on livestock and crop production as well as waste and wastewater treatment. A review on the current state-of-the-art practices in agricultural use of organic residues in LCA studies is presented. This reveals that agricultural use of organic residues in LCA studies can be represented in several ways and at different levels of detail. About 100 published references were thoroughly analyzed showing that agricultural use of organic residues usually replaces the use of a mineral fertilizer (substitution of avoided mineral fertilizer). The mineral fertilizer equivalents (MFE) applied are rarely documented, although LCA results can be significantly affected by the way avoided impacts are modeled. Accounting of field emissions from organic residue application varies with the topic of the LCA study. To facilitate nitrogen MFE and field emission calculations, an Excel-tool is proposed for determining the nitrogen MFE of organic residues, direct nitrogen field emissions from organic residue applications, as well as avoided emissions (avoided mineral fertilizers). Computation of the nitrogen MFE of organic residues is based on their nitrogen content and composition, and on nitrogen emissions from field applications of the organic residues. Nitrogen field emissions were estimated using simple models and average climate and soil conditions. A global sensitivity analysis revealed that the choice of the application method, which determines the extent of incorporation into the soil, is the main cause of uncertainty in calculated nitrogen MFE values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the results of an inorganic and organic approach to Roman amphorae found at the rural Roman site of Sa Mesquida (Mallorca). A set of amphorae were discovered in some rooms of the earlier phases of the villa. These amphorae were assigned to a general Tarraconensian and Italic provenance on a macroscopic level. In order to verify this and to accurately determine the provenance an archaeometric characterization was carried out on twelve amphorae. The analytical approach combined wavelength dispersive X-ray fluorescence (WD-XRF) for the chemical analysis, as well as powder x-ray diffraction (XRD) and optical microscopy by thin-section analysis (OM) for the mineralogical and petrographic characterization. In addition, organic residue analysis by gas-chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was applied to investigate the content of some of the amphorae for which wine was suggested on an archaeological basis. The results have allowed for a better provenance determination identifying some amphorae from specific workshops or micro-regions within ancient Tarraconensis, as well as a better definition of the Italic materials. The organic analysis has confirmed the presence of wine in the analysed samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista da Faculdade de Letras-Ciências e Técnicas do Património is the property of Universidade do Porto, Faculdade de Letras and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Organic waste accrues as liquid and solid material which requires different treatment in anaerobic digestion plants. Food leftovers, such as kitchen waste have high energy potential but are low in structural compounds and the biogas-forming process is often impaired by accumulation of volatile organic acids. The effect of additional bioflim carriers on process stability and biogas yield was tested in two of four parallel operating experimental digesters of 9L volume. It has been found that slight amendment of plant structures for bioflim formation significantly stabiused methane production compared to control digesters. Anaerobic treatment of municipal solid waste (MSW) can be done in garage-shaped fermentation containers. The efficiency of the degradation of volatile solids (VS) and potential methane yield was evaluated using fermentation bags in a full-scale biogas plant. The results showed levels of VS degradation of the studied MSW above 50 %. Both experimental approaches have demonstrated that organic waste can be a valuable source of regenerative energy when appropriate technology is applied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: To date, the ethanol production industry in Canada is comprised mainly of small-scale plants producing ethanol primarily from agricultural crops as feedstocks. Research interests in the area of bio-ethanol production from organic waste materials emerged in the late 1980s. Significant advances in lignocellulosic material extraction and enzymatic hydrolysis have been reported in the last decade, however, continued research efforts are critical for the development of technically feasible and economically viable large-scale enzyme-based biomass-to-ethanol conversion processes which employ organic waste materials as alternative sources of feedstocks. The source of the lignocellulosic material, waste management practices and delignification procedures have a significant impact on the quantity and quality of delignified materials derived from these lignocellulosic feedstocks. The success of cellulose-to-ethanol conversion from lignocellulosic material feedstocks is generally a function of fibre pre-treatment, enzyme selection and operating conditions. These will differ depending on the source of the biomass feedstock. This paper illustrates the potential that Canada has to utilize its residual or waste biomass resources to provide a renewable and sustainable supply of bio-ethanol to help meet Canada''s future energy needs. Canada could produce 5336millionL of bio-ethanol annually based on the recoverable fraction of crop residues generated in 2001. Based on bio-ethanol feasibility studies conducted on livestock manures and municipal biosolids and sludges, an estimated 6.22Mt/year of sugar could be produced from this waste biomass for subsequent fermentation to bio-ethanol. The long-term benefits of using waste residues as lignocellulosic feedstocks will be to introduce a sustainable solid waste management strategy for a number of lignocellulosic waste materials; contribute to the mitigation in greenhouse gases through sustained carbon and nutrient recycling; reduce the potential for water, air, and soil contamination associated with the land application of organic waste materials; and to broaden the feedstock source of raw materials for the bio-ethanol production industry. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Organic residues emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are toxic to plant-parasitic nematodes (PPNs). In this study, we demonstrated that whey produced by cow milk emit VOCs that are toxic to Meloidogyne incognita second-stage juveniles (J2), causing immobility above 80% and significant (P < 0.05) mortality compared to controls. The analysis of the volatilome done by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry revealed 28 compounds, predominantly carboxylic acids and esters. Four of those volatile fatty acids (VFAs), namely acetic acid, octanoic acid, ethyl octanoate, and isovaleric acid, were chosen to further studies. The four tested VFAs were toxic to M. incognita J2, with lethal concentration values required to kill 50% of the nematode population (LC 50), ranging from 134.30 to 236.08 μg mL−1. However, on eggs, only acetic acid and ethyl octanoate were consistent with J2 hatch inhibition, reaching 80% at a concentration of 1000 μg mL−1. In a greenhouse assay, when the VFAs were applied as soil fumigant, M. incognita infectivity and reproduction were significantly (P < 0.05) reduced compared to the negative control (water). Among them, ethyl octanoate application reduced (P < 0.05) the number of eggs to the level of the commercial fumigant dazomet. Overall, the volatile compounds released by whey were toxic to M. incognita J2 and contained a great diversity of molecules. Among the VFAs, ethyl octanoate stood out and showed the potential to be used in future field studies. • Short-chain molecules from whey control Meloidogyne incognita in the greenhouse. • Acetic acid and ethyl octanoate were toxic to Meloidogyne incognita eggs and J2. • Ethyl octanoate showed a potential to be used in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]