Groundbreaking mathematical proof: new insights into typhoon dynamics unveiled

This study was published ahead of official release on July 24th via the online edition of Commun. Pure Appl. Math.

Peer-Reviewed Publication

ULSAN NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY(UNIST)

 

IMAGE: PROFESSOR KYUDONG CHOI FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES AT UNIST view more 

CREDIT: UNIST

In a remarkable breakthrough in the field of Mathematical Science, Professor Kyudong Choi from the Department of Mathematical Sciences at UNIST has provided an irrefutable proof that certain spherical vortices exist in a stable state. This groundbreaking discovery holds significant implications for predicting weather anomalies and advancing weather prediction technologies.

A vortex is a rotating region of fluid, such as air or water, characterized by intense rotation. Common examples include typhoons and tornadoes frequently observed in news reports. Professor Choi’s mathematical proof establishes the stability of specific types of vortex structures that can be encountered in real-world fluid flows.

The study builds upon the foundational Euler equation formulated by Leonhard Euler in 1757 to describe the flow of eddy currents. In 1894, British mathematician M. Hill mathematically demonstrated that a ball-shaped vortex could maintain its shape indefinitely while moving along its axis.

Professor Choi’s research confirms that Hill’s spherical vortex maximizes kinetic energy under certain conditions through the application of variational methods. By incorporating functional analysis and partial differential equation theory from mathematical analysis, this study extends previous investigations on two-dimensional fluid flows to encompass three-dimensional fluid dynamics with axial symmetry conditions.

One notable feature identified by Hill is the presence of strong upward airflow at the front of the spherical vortex—an attribute often observed in phenomena like typhoons and tornadoes. Professor Choi’s findings serve as a starting point for further studies involving measurements related to residual time associated with these ascending air currents.

“Research on vortex stability has gained international attention,” stated Professor Choi. “[A]nd it holds long-term potential for advancements in today’s weather forecasting technology.”

Supported by funding from Korea Research Foundation under the Ministry of Science and ICT as well as UNIST, this study was published ahead of official release on July 24th via the online edition of Communications on Pure and Applied Mathematics.

The streamline of Hill’s spherical vortex in the moving frame.

CREDIT

UNIST

Journal Reference
Kyudong Choi, “Stability of Hill’s spherical vortex,” Commun. Pure Appl. Math., (2023).

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JOURNAL

Communications on Pure and Applied Mathematics

ARTICLE TITLE

Stability of Hill's spherical vortex

 

To prepare for next pandemic, Pitt researchers tackle bird flu

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH

 

IMAGE: 

DOUG REED, PH.D.

view more 

CREDIT: DOUG REED

PITTSBURGH, September 29, 2023 – Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Vaccine Research Center have developed an improved way to test potential vaccines against bird flu. The report was published this week in the journal iScience.

Concerning reports about avian flu outbreaks at poultry facilities across the country and abroad highlight the increasingly urgent need for a safe and effective vaccine that could thwart a possible spread of the virus from human to human. To be ready to safely and efficiently test promising vaccine candidates, researchers developed an animal model that more closely mimics the typical symptoms of human infection than any such model so far. This proactive work minimizes the steps needed to quickly validate and deploy a new vaccine in a crisis.

“The COVID-19 pandemic got people to realize that it is not enough to respond to a pandemic when it happens. We really need to make sure that we are ready before it is here,” said co-senior author Doug Reed, Ph.D., associate professor of immunology at Pitt’s Center for Vaccine Research.

Bird flu, caused by H5N1 influenza virus, is primarily spread by migratory wild birds and can decimate poultry populations, including chickens and ducks. Although the virus has infected people, previous infections have not spread efficiently from human to human. However, there are documented cases of H5N1 spreading in mammalian populations, ranging from minks to sea lions and dolphins, raising concern about human-to-human spread.

People infected with H5N1 virus can develop acute respiratory distress syndrome, or ARDS, manifesting in short and labored breathing. H5N1 kills more than half of those infected.

To ensure that a future vaccine will be protective, the researchers turned to macaques, which have close anatomy and physiology to humans, making them a choice model for the testing of life-saving medicines.

Reed and his coauthor, Simon Barratt-Boyes, Ph.D., professor of infectious diseases and microbiology at the Pitt School of Public Health, reasoned that delivering H5N1 virus by small particle aerosol would make it more likely to reach deep into the lung and mimic natural exposure. They first demonstrated this aerosolized infection model in research published in 2017. In the new paper, they refined their model and evaluated whether a seasonal flu vaccine, which protects against human influenza A and B viruses, when given three times with an experimental adjuvant could prevent ARDS upon exposure to aerosolized H5N1 virus.

All monkeys that received adjuvanted seasonal flu vaccine were protected from death, and there were low but measurable neutralizing antibodies against H5N1 in their blood samples, the quantity of which was inversely correlated with the severity of their symptoms.

While the researchers caution that their findings do not mean that a seasonal flu vaccine can efficiently protect against bird flu, they are optimistic that protective efficacy of future vaccines that target H5N1 can be tested using this model and deployed faster.

“The original idea behind this work was more than 20 years in the making,” said Reed. “Now there is a path forward to get people protected against this devastating disease.”

Masaru Kanekiyo, Ph.D., of the NIH Vaccine Research Center, also contributed to the study.

The University of Pittsburgh has received funding support as an agreement under NIH contract number HHSN261201500003I to Leidos Biomedical Research in Frederick, Maryland.

The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

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JOURNAL

iScience

DOI

10.1016/j.isci.2023.107830 

ARTICLE TITLE

Refined semi-lethal aerosol H5N1 influenza model in cynomolgus macaques for evaluation of medical countermeasures

FOREVER CHEMICALS

University of Cincinnati research shows PFA exposure may delay girls’ puberty

Study is the first to pinpoint hormones as a functional mechanism in the delay

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI

Research from the University of Cincinnati shows that exposure to PFAS may delay the onset of puberty in girls. The research was published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.

This study is the first longitudinal research that included the component of the role hormones play in the delay, according to Susan Pinney, PhD, of the Department of Environmental and Public Health Sciences in the UC College of Medicine and corresponding author of the study. 

She says the delay of puberty in girls can lead to negative long-term health outcomes, including a higher incidence of breast cancer, renal disease and thyroid disease.

“Puberty is a window of susceptibility,” Pinney says. “Environmental exposures during puberty, not just to PFAS, but anything, have more of a potential for a long-term health effect. What these have done is extended the window of susceptibility, and it makes them more vulnerable for a longer period of time.”

The published research describes the findings from studying a total of 823 girls who were 6 to 8 years old when they were enrolled in the study — 379 were in the Greater Cincinnati area, the other 444 were in the San Francisco Bay Area. Researchers wanted to start the girls in the study before they hit the beginning of breast development. Then they followed them with exams every six to 12 months to see when they experienced the first signs of breast development and pubic hair.

The results found that 85% of the girls in the two cohorts had measurable levels of PFAS. Pinney says this PFAS research is unique because the hormone component was included and they discovered evidence of decreased hormones. The hormones that were decreased with PFAS exposure were consistent with findings of the delay of the onset of puberty.

“The study found that in girls with PFAS exposure puberty is delayed five or six months on average but there will be some girls where it’s delayed a lot more and others that it wasn’t delayed at all,” Pinney says. “We are especially concerned about the girls at the top end of the spectrum where it’s delayed more.”

The study also found that over 99% of the girls in the two cohorts had measurable levels of PFOA, one of the most important of the PFAS.

Pinney points to several factors playing a role in PFAS exposure in Greater Cincinnati. The Ohio River is the main source of drinking water in the area and a DuPont plant near Parkersburg, West Virginia, released PFAS into the river for decades which flowed downstream to major water intakes on both sides of the river near eastern Hamilton County. PFAS were also present in firefighting foam and there is a firefighting training ground near those same water intakes.

Pinney, who has studied this topic for years in collaboration with the now-retired Frank Biro, MD, of Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and the Department of Pediatrics at the UC College of Medicine, says this and other studies raise the question of, considering the known dangers of PFAS, how did we get to this point? She points to the fact that the United States doesn’t follow the “precautionary principle” which is the principle that the introduction of a new product or process whose ultimate effects are disputed or unknown should be resisted. 

“The evidence of PFAS being dangerous goes all the way back to the 1980s when chemists were doing studies, noticed that PFAS had the same chemical structure as other dangerous chemicals and they reported on it,” Pinney says. “It’s taken a very long time for us to recognize it as a human toxin. Meanwhile, all of these toxins got into our environment, and it’s going to take a long time before they leave.”

Pinney says one of the reasons is that PFAS do not degrade. Studies are being done to explore methods of breaking up the chemicals.

“It seems to take a long time to convince regulators about the health effects of PFAS,” she says. “We as scientists need to be more forceful with regulators and say, ‘Hey guys, you read the same science we read.’

“The whole thing has been a learning experience for me. Scientists are frustrated with the slowness of movement to change regulatory guidelines. Not only do we need to publish our research findings, but also do our best to inform the general population and the health care community. Efforts toward environmental cleanup have begun but it is very costly.”

 

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JOURNAL

Environmental Health Perspectives

DOI

10.1289/EHP11811 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Observational study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Exposure to Perfluoroalkyl Substances and Associations with Pubertal Onset and Serum Reproductive Hormones in a Longitudinal Study of Young Girls in Greater Cincinnati and the San Francisco Bay Area

Climate change and carnivores: shifts in the distribution and effectiveness of protected areas in the Amazon

Peer-Reviewed Publication

PEERJ

A new article published in PeerJ Life & Environment, authored by Camila Ferreira Leão at Universidade Federal do Pará sheds light on the effects of climate change on carnivorous mammals in the Amazon and their representation within Protected Areas (PAs). "Climate change and carnivores: shifts in the distribution and effectiveness of protected areas in the Amazon," reveals alarming findings about the vulnerable status of these animals and the effectiveness of conservation measures.

Carnivorous mammals, integral to the Amazon's ecosystem maintenance and functioning, are increasingly at risk due to human interference, especially climate change and deforestation. As these impacts escalate, it becomes crucial to understand how carnivore distribution and persistence are affected, particularly in the tropical region of the Amazon.

The research underscores the urgent need for robust conservation strategies to mitigate the potential loss of carnivore species in the Amazon. The study provides critical insights for policymakers and conservationists, emphasizing the necessity to adapt conservation measures to address the specific challenges posed by climate change on carnivores.

The study employed Species Distribution Models (SDMs) to evaluate the geographic distribution of 16 carnivore species in the Amazon, projecting into the future under two climate scenarios for the year 2070. By incorporating bioclimatic and vegetation cover variables, the research team assessed the potential area loss and climate suitability for these species, as well as the efficacy of existing Protected Areas in safeguarding their future.

Key findings of the study are:

• 1. Negative Impact of Climate Change: The SDMs projected a reduction in the potential distribution of carnivore species under both future climate scenarios. In the first scenario, five species are predicted to be negatively affected by climate change, increasing to eight species in the second scenario. This highlights the urgent need for targeted conservation efforts to protect these vulnerable animals.
• 2. Loss of Climatic Suitability: All species analyzed demonstrated a loss of climatic suitability, with some facing an almost complete loss of suitable habitat under the second scenario. This indicates the severity of climate change's impact on carnivores' ability to thrive in their current environments.
• 3. Protected Areas' Limited Effectiveness: Despite the presence of Protected Areas, the study found that they may not be as effective in safeguarding carnivore species as anticipated. The Gap analysis revealed that the PAs failed to demonstrate significant protection in terms of species richness, and their ability to retain species richness was not substantially different from chance expectations.

As we grapple with the global climate crisis, this research serves as a wakeup call to act swiftly and decisively to protect the Amazon's biodiversity and the carnivorous mammals that play a vital role in its preservation.

 

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JOURNAL

PeerJ

DOI

10.7717/peerj.15887 

ARTICLE TITLE

Climate change and carnivores: shifts in the distribution and effectiveness of protected areas in the Amazon

 

Research finds DEI initiatives during certain presidencies can affect bottom line

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

DURHAM, N.H. — Corporate initiatives focused on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) for vulnerable social groups can change a company in many ways. According to researchers at the University of New Hampshire, how DEI affects a business’ bottom line may depend on the presidential administration and the general public’s perception at the time. They found that DEI initiatives put in place to support a specific social group during a presidential administration perceived as unfriendly to a particular issue related to that community resulted in higher stock prices than during a presidency that had a better relationship with that community. 

“What I expected was no stock changes during the supportive administrations, like the Obama administration, but we found that DEI for groups like LGBT resulted in negative reactions to stock prices,” said Inchan Kim, assistant professor of business administration at UNH’s Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics. “It was surprising until we saw that it was really about perception. Some issues are still controversial in the eyes of the general public and that caused stakeholders and shareholders to react accordingly.”

Focusing on the idea that social groups in the U.S. can often be supported differently during individual administrations, the researchers took a closer look at two recent presidencies, that of Barack Obama and Donald Trump, who had different experiences with two social groups—LGBT groups and military veterans. In the study, published in the Journal of Business Research, the researchers analyzed the stock prices and public tweets of financial services firms listed in the Fortune 1000 related to DEI initiatives for LGBT groups and military veterans in the last 500 days of each presidency. They found that liberties, or DEI initiatives, put in place for LGBT groups yielded higher stock returns during the Trump presidency, which rolled back many supportive LGBT rights, as opposed to the Obama presidency, when ground-breaking policies were implemented. Conversely, liberties aimed at veterans generated higher stock returns during Obama's presidency, when the administration dealt with military budget cuts placed on them as part of a debt ceiling negotiation, as opposed to during the Trump presidency, when a lot of those military budgets restrictions were reversed. 

According to the study, during Obama’s administration companies with DEI for LGBT saw their stocks decrease by 0.34%, while companies with DEI for veterans saw their stocks increase by 0.65%. During Trump’s administration companies with DEI for LGBT saw their stocks increase by 0.24%, while companies with DEI for veterans saw very little change with stocks slightly increasing by 0.09%.

The researchers said they conducted the study to encourage businesses to participate in DEI initiatives while showing when they can be the most effective.

“DEI initiatives are important to companies—they can’t thrive without engaging in socially responsible issues—but I think they just have to be smart about it, as well as any perceptions around any controversial topics, because if they don’t, they will likely face a competitive disadvantage,” said Kim. “The key is that it is a matter of public perception and something they should be aware of, no matter who the is president.”

Along with their main findings, the researchers said it’s important to note that some of this data could be related to shareholders not believing that DEI initiatives are financially warranted to use firms’ limited resources for potential politically controversial issues. The Obama and Trump administrations were chosen for the study because they represented opposite political ideologies and implemented differing policies concerning veterans and LGBT groups. DEI initiatives were identified through an analysis of public tweets issued by financial services and other data from the financial firms listed in the Fortune 1000. 

Recognizing the study’s limitations, the researchers emphasize that their goal was to generate foundational insights that would encourage future studies. Researchers said the financial sector provided a fertile ground for observing DEI initiatives when they were not necessarily prevalent across other industries. They encourage more studies looking at both large and small firms in different sectors and focusing on more than one financial performance measure, which in this case was stock prices. 

Co-author on the study was Brandon McNeil, currently at Fidelity Investments and formerly a research assistant at UNH.

The University of New Hampshire inspires innovation and transforms lives in our state, nation and world. More than 16,000 students from all 49 states and 82 countries engage with an award-winning faculty in top-ranked programs in business, engineering, law, health and human services, liberal arts and the sciences across more than 200 programs of study. A Carnegie Classification R1 institution, UNH partners with NASA, NOAA, NSF, and NIH, and received over $210 million in competitive external funding in FY23 to further explore and define the frontiers of land, sea and space

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JOURNAL

Journal of Business Research

DOI

10.1016/j.jbusres.2023.114146 

E$G; GREEN CAPITALI$M

Groundbreaking control method reduces carbon emissions from zinc oxide rotary kilns, boosting profits for zinc smelting industry

Peer-Reviewed Publication

ENGINEERING

 

IMAGE: SCHEMATIC OF THE PROPOSED A MULTI-OBJECTIVE ADAPTIVE OPTIMIZATION MODEL PREDICTIVE CONTROL METHOD. view more 

CREDIT: KE WEI ET AL.

A research team from Central South University in China develops innovative control method to reduce carbon emissions from zinc oxide rotary kilns.

The zinc smelting industry is facing new challenges in meeting China’s carbon peak and carbon neutrality targets. To address these challenges, researchers from Central South University in China have developed a groundbreaking control method that reduces carbon emissions from zinc oxide rotary kilns while maintaining high profits. Their findings have been published in the journal Engineering.

Zinc oxide rotary kilns play a crucial role in the zinc smelting process. However, traditional stability control methods are no longer suitable for the industry’s multi-objective control tasks. In their paper, Keke Huang’s research team proposes a multi-objective adaptive optimization model predictive control (MAO-MPC) method based on sparse identification.

The researchers first formulated and solved a sparse regression problem to obtain a reduction model using a large amount of data collected from a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation model. This reduction model overcomes the high computational complexity of traditional CFD models, enabling real-time computation of the zinc oxide rotary kiln dynamics.

The proposed control method consists of a two-layered framework: real-time optimization (RTO) and model predictive control (MPC). In the RTO layer, an optimization problem is set up to achieve optimal operation performance and the lowest possible resource consumption. By solving this problem in real time, an optimal setting value is sent to the MPC layer, ensuring that the zinc oxide rotary kiln always operates in an optimal state.

The experiments conducted by the research team demonstrate the strength and reliability of the proposed method. It not only reduces the usage of coal but also maintains high profits for the industry. The control method offers a promising solution for zinc smelting companies to meet China’s carbon reduction goals and contribute to a greener future.

Nan Zhang, editor of the subject of chemical, metallurgical, and materials engineering of Engineering, commented, “This MAO-MPC method provides an effective approach for reducing carbon emissions from zinc oxide rotary kilns. By optimizing the process in real time, the zinc smelting industry can achieve significant reductions in coal consumption while maintaining high profits. This research has the potential to revolutionize the zinc smelting industry and contribute to China’s carbon neutrality goals.”

The research team’s work opens up avenues for further study, including improving the accuracy of first-principles models and designing optimization objective functions to enhance the performance of rotary kilns.

The paper “Multi-Objective Adaptive Optimization Model Predictive Control: Decreasing Carbon Emissions from a Zinc Oxide Rotary Kiln”, authored by Ke Wei, Keke Huang, Chunhua Yang, Weihua Gui. Full text of the open access paper: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eng.2023.01.017. For more information about the Engineering, follow us on Twitter (https://twitter.com/EngineeringJrnl) & like us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/EngineeringPortfolio).

 

About Engineering

Engineering (ISSN: 2095-8099 IF:12.8) is an international open-access journal that was launched by the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE) in 2015. Its aims are to provide a high-level platform where cutting-edge advancements in engineering R&D, current major research outputs, and key achievements can be disseminated and shared; to report progress in engineering science, discuss hot topics, areas of interest, challenges, and prospects in engineering development, and consider human and environmental well-being and ethics in engineering; to encourage engineering breakthroughs and innovations that are of profound economic and social importance, enabling them to reach advanced international standards and to become a new productive force, and thereby changing the world, benefiting humanity, and creating a better future.

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JOURNAL

Engineering

DOI

10.1016/j.eng.2023.01.017 

ARTICLE TITLE

Multi-Objective Adaptive Optimization Model Predictive Control: Decreasing Carbon Emissions from a Zinc Oxide Rotary Kiln

An intelligent control method reduces carbon emissions in energy-intensive equipment

Peer-Reviewed Publication

ENGINEERING

 

IMAGE: STRUCTURE OF THE INTELLIGENT CONTROL METHOD FOR LOW-CARBON OPERATION. view more 

CREDIT: TIANYOU CHAI ET AL.

A research team led by Professor Tianyou Chai from Northeastern University, China, has developed an innovative intelligent control method for the low-carbon operation of energy-intensive equipment. This groundbreaking research, published in the journal Engineering, presents a significant step towards reducing carbon emissions in the process industry.

The research team’s method combines mechanism analysis with deep learning, linking control and optimization with prediction, and integrating decision-making with control. By employing setpoint control, self-optimized tuning, and tracking control, the method ensures that the energy consumption per tonne is minimized while remaining within the target range.

The intelligent control system developed by adopting the end–edge–cloud collaboration technology of the Industrial Internet has been successfully applied to a fused magnesium furnace, yielding remarkable results in reducing carbon emissions. The CO2 emissions were reduced by an impressive 8.82%, while simultaneously increasing the yield of high-quality products by 3.65% and reducing electrode consumption by 3.73%.

The setpoint control component of the method includes a tracking control presetting model, a prediction model of energy consumption per tonne, a feedforward compensator, and a feedback compensator. The self-optimized tuning component involves operating condition recognition, an intelligent prediction model of energy consumption per tonne, and a self-tuning compensator. Lastly, the tracking control adopts an adaptive proportional–integral–derivative (PID) controller based on signal compensation.

While the research team celebrates these achievements, they acknowledge that further challenges lie ahead. The development of a modeling method based on digital twin technology, optimal decision-making of the setpoint for process control with conflicting objectives, and controller parameter optimization of a high-performance control system are among the challenges that require attention.

To realize the low-carbon operational control of complex industrial systems, the research team emphasizes the need for further study in several areas. These include developing a modeling method based on digital twins for complex production processes by combining mechanism analysis with deep learning, creating a method for high-performance control systems by combining digital twins with machine learning, establishing a low-carbon operational control method for complex industrial systems based on the industrial metaverse, and implementing end–edge–cloud collaboration technology to realize low-carbon operational control.

Professor Chai and his team’s research opens up a new path towards achieving low-carbon operational control in the process industry. By combining cutting-edge technologies and innovative approaches, they have demonstrated the potential for significant reductions in carbon emissions while maintaining optimal operational efficiency.

Nan Zhang, editor of the subject of chemical, metallurgical, and materials engineering of Engineering, commented, “This research has far-reaching implications for the future of sustainable industrial practices. As the world continues to grapple with the challenges of climate change, the intelligent control method developed by Professor Chai’s team presents a promising solution for reducing carbon emissions in energy-intensive equipment.”

The paper “An Intelligent Control Method for the Low-Carbon Operation of Energy-Intensive Equipment”, authored by Tianyou Chai, Mingyu Li, Zheng Zhou, Siyu Cheng, Yao Jia, Zhiwei Wu. Full text of the open access paper: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eng.2023.05.018. For more information about the Engineering, follow us on Twitter (https://twitter.com/EngineeringJrnl) & like us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/EngineeringPortfolio).

 

About Engineering

Engineering (ISSN: 2095-8099 IF:12.8) is an international open-access journal that was launched by the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE) in 2015. Its aims are to provide a high-level platform where cutting-edge advancements in engineering R&D, current major research outputs, and key achievements can be disseminated and shared; to report progress in engineering science, discuss hot topics, areas of interest, challenges, and prospects in engineering development, and consider human and environmental well-being and ethics in engineering; to encourage engineering breakthroughs and innovations that are of profound economic and social importance, enabling them to reach advanced international standards and to become a new productive force, and thereby changing the world, benefiting humanity, and creating a better future.

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JOURNAL

Engineering

DOI

10.1016/j.eng.2023.05.018 

ARTICLE TITLE

An Intelligent Control Method for the Low-Carbon Operation of Energy-Intensive Equipment

 

Illinois-led team puts cows and microbes to work to reduce greenhouse gases

Grant and Award Announcement

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURAL, CONSUMER AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

 

IMAGE: 

WITH FUNDING FROM THE FOUNDATION FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE RESEARCH, UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS FACULTY, ALONG WITH AN INTERNATIONAL TEAM OF SCIENTISTS, IS RECRUITING A SURPRISING ALLY TO MAKE A POWERFUL DENT IN GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS: THE COW. THE TEAM WILL WORK TO RE-ROUTE HYDROGEN ATOMS AWAY FROM METHANE DURING THE FERMENTATION PROCESS IN THE RUMEN, TOWARD MORE PRODUCTIVE END PRODUCTS.

view more 

CREDIT: UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS

URBANA, Ill. — As we hurtle toward crucial tipping points on a warming planet, an international team of scientists is recruiting a surprising ally to make a powerful dent in greenhouse gas emissions: the cow. Animal sciences researchers from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign are driving a new project to reduce methane production resulting from rumen fermentation in beef and dairy cattle. The 3-year, $3.2-million project is part of the Greener Cattle Initiative, led by the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (FFAR).

According to the researchers, aggressively targeting methane could help course-correct our climate trajectory on a quicker timeline than controlling carbon dioxide (CO2) alone. Methane is 28 times more potent than CO2 and degrades in the atmosphere within a dozen years, compared to the hundreds of years it takes CO2 to dissipate. 

“What this means is that anything we do now with ruminant animals can have a huge impact on warming within decades, rather than centuries. Our challenge is to reduce enteric methane emissions by about 30 to 40% with the technologies we have,” said project leader Rod Mackie, professor in the Department of Animal Sciences, part of the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) at U. of I. Mackie is also affiliated with the Division of Nutritional Sciences in ACES and the Carl R. Woese Institute of Genomic Biology. 

The project involves six research hubs around the world, all tackling the challenge of enteric methane, which is produced in the rumen as part of the microbial fermentation process. Mackie, along with Illinois animal sciences professor Josh McCann, will start by tracking hydrogen production and utilization during fermentation. 

A key step in the fermentation process is the regeneration of a high-energy carrier molecule known as NADH. For microbes to keep producing energy during glycolysis, NADH has to dump its hydrogen — the H in NADH — and wait for a recycled one to take its place from breakdown of carbohydrates and other fermentable organic matter provided in the diet. Normally, the excess hydrogen from NADH is used to convert CO2 to methane, a molecule comprised of one carbon and four hydrogen atoms. However, the research team thinks there may be ways to redirect the excess hydrogens towards more productive end-products. 

“In anaerobic fermentation in the rumen, you have to have some way of recycling hydrogen through the conversion of NADH to NAD. In that process, most of the excess hydrogen goes towards methane. If you shut down methane production, hydrogen builds up and inhibits glycolysis,” Mackie said. “We don't want that to happen. Instead, we want to redirect hydrogen into other products, such as propionate and butyrate, reduced fatty acids that serve as the primary energy source for all ruminants.”

McCann added, “There are a lot of groups working on inhibiting methane directly using dietary additives. Our focus is trying to figure out how we actually make it work in an animal and make it more energetically feasible. That's really been the missing piece,” he said. “If cows can’t metabolize the excess hydrogens for productive benefit and to improve growth, there will continue to be limited adoption of methane reduction strategies or additives. There's no economic incentive.” 

The team will start by taking a close look at hydrogen production and utilization in the lab. They will take rumen microbial communities from beef cattle that naturally produce more or less methane to explore potential adjustments they can make to the system with promising inhibitor compounds. Later, they will bring their findings back into cows.

“Most of the grant is focused on the basic and the mechanistic side, but once we make something that might work within a microbial community, it still has to work in an animal,” McCann said. “We have complicating factors like diet components and how much they want to eat. Not to mention dairy cattle and beef cattle are eating different things, so the bugs in the rumen function differently. So, if we apply a methane inhibitor to a dairy microbial community, we might have to approach the hydrogen capture a little bit differently than in a beef rumen community.”

Mackie said the project is the beginning of a longer-term endeavor to find enteric methane solutions. But by the end of three years, the goal is to be able to recommend specific amounts of inhibitors that don’t hinder or even improve production performance. 

Beyond that? “What we'd like is to have ruminants save the planet within 10 years,” he said. “That would be amazing.”

Institutions involved in the project include the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign as the project lead; the Grasslands Research Centre, AgResearch, New Zealand; the University of Alberta; Lethbridge Research and Development Centre, Agriculture and Agi-Food Canada; the Norwegian University of Life Sciences; Queen’s University Belfast, Northern Ireland; Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel; and ProAgni, Australia.