The relation between agriculture and energy is very close. Agricultural sector itself is an energy user and energy supplier in the form of bio-energy (Alam et al., 2005). It uses large quantities of locally available non-commercial energies, such as seed, farmyard manure and animate energy, and commercial energies directly and indirectly in the form of electricity, diesel fuel, chemical fertili...

In this paper we derive the mass function of seed black holes that result from the central mass concentrated via disc accretion in collapsed haloes at redshift z ≈ 15. Using standard arguments including stability, we show that these pre-galactic discs can assemble a significant mass concentration in the inner regions, providing fuel for the formation and initial growth of super-massive black ho...

Jatropha curcas is a multipurpose tree, which has potential as an alternative source for biodiesel. All of its parts can also be used for human food, animal feed, fertilizer, fuel and traditional medicine. J. curcas seed cake is a low-value by-product obtained from biodiesel production. The seed cake, however, has a high amount of protein, with the presence of a main toxic compound: phorbol est...

this study examined suitable mechanized methods to seed rice in dry-bed conditions using dried seeds and determined the most suitable varieties for each method. the experimental design was strip-plots in a randomized complete block design with two factors (seeding methods and rice varieties) and three replications. the testing took place during 2003-2004 at the shavour agricultural research sta...

Amethodology has been developed for defining the various threshold conditions required for the opening of serotinous cones and viable seed release in the overstorey canopies in jack pine (Pinus banksiana) and lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia) forests on the basis of fireline intensity and, in turn, rate of fire spread and fuel consumption. The extent of the effects to the overstore...

Pistacia chinensis seed oil is proposed as a promising non-edible feedstock for biodiesel production. Different extraction methods were tested and compared to obtain crude oil from the seed of Pistacia chinensis, along with various deacidification measures of refined oil. The biodiesel was produced through catalysis of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and potassium hydroxide (KOH). The results showed th...

Several options for designing fast reactors to operate in the Breed-and-Burn (B&B) mode are compared and a strategy is outlined for early introduction of B&B reactors followed by a gradual increase in the fuel utilization of such reactors. In the first phase the fast reactor core will consist of a subcritical B&B blanket driven by a relatively small critical seed. As the required discharge burn...

Modern industrialized agriculture is based on monocultures of annual crops requiring massive levels of biocide, fertilizer, and fossil fuel inputs. This form ofagriculture has led to soil erosion and chemical contamination ofsoil and ground water. The Land Institute is studying a new modelfor grain agriculture, based on the prairie ecosystem, involving diversified plantings ofperennial seed cro...

The importance of maize (Zea mays) in Ugandan economy has been increasing since 1990’s. The crop is grown for both local and foreign markets by mainly small-scale farmers. The bulk of the crop is shelled using the rudimentary traditional methods, which have low productivity and result into maize grain of low market value. Earlier studies conducted by Agricultural Engineering and Appropriate Tec...