Use of low quality/saline water for turf irrigation, especially in regions experiencing water shortage is increasing. This imposes more salt stress on turfgrasses which are already under stress in these regions. Therefore, there is a great need for salt tolerant turfgrasses to survive under such stressful conditions. This study was conducted in a greenhouse, using hydroponics system, to compare growth responses of three warm-season turfgrasses, bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon L.), cv. Tifway 419, seashore paspalum (Paspalum vaginatum Swartz), cv. Sea Isle 2000, and saltgrass (Distichlis spicata L), accession A55 in terms of shoot and root lengths and DM, and canopy green color (CGC) under salt stress condition. Whole plants, stolons, and rhizomes were grown in Hoagland solution for 4 months prior to initiation of salt stress. Then, plants were grown for 12 weeks under 4 treatments (control, 7000, 14000, and 21000 mg/L NaCl) with 4 replications in a RCB design trial. During the stress period, shoots were clipped bi-weekly for DM production, shoot and root lengths were measured, and CGC was evaluated weekly. The bi-weekly clippings and the roots at the last harvest were oven dried at 60o C and DM weights were recorded. Shoot and root lengths and shoot DM weights decreased linearly with increased salinity for bermudagrass and paspalum. However, for saltgrass these values increased at all NaCl levels compared with the control. For bermudagrass and paspalum, the highest values were obtained when the whole plants were used, and the lowest ones resulted when the rhizomes were used. The reverse was found for saltgrass. For the control plants, the measured factors were higher and the canopy colors were greener for bermudagrass and paspalum compared with saltgrass. The canopy color changed to lighter green for bermudagrass and paspalum as NaCl salinity increased, but saltgrass maintained the same color regardless of the level of salinity.

This study was conducted in a greenhouse, using hydroponics system, to compare growth responses of three cool-season turfgrass species, Creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera), Rough bluegrass (Poa trivialis), and Perennial ryegrass (Lolium sperenne) in terms of shoot and root lengths and dry matter (DM), and percent canopy green cover (%CGC) under salinity and drought stresses. Grasses were grown in Hoagland solution for 90 days prior to initiation of salinity or drought stresses. Then, 24 meq NaCl/L culture solution/day were added for each -0.1 MPa OP of salinity stress, or 75 and 119 g of PEG/L were added for -0.2 and -0.4 MPa OP of drought stress treatments, respectively. The treatments included control, -0.2 and -0.4 MPa OP salinity, -0.2 and -0.4 MPa OP drought stress. Four replications of each treatment were used in a RCB design experiment. During the stress period, grass shoots were clipped weekly for DM production, shoot and root lengths were measured, and %CGC was evaluated. The weekly clippings and the roots at the last harvest were oven dried at 60o C and DM weights were recorded. All 3 grass species were more severely affected by drought than salinity. Bluegrass was the most and bentgrass the least severely affected by either drought or salinity stress.

Revised; Originally Published: 2006 / 4 pp.

The history of crude oil desalting/dehydration plant (DDP) has been marked in progressive phases-the simple gravity settling phase, the chemical treatment phase, the electrical enhancement phase and the dilution water phase. In recent times, the proper cachet would be the control-optimisation phase marked by terms such as "DDP process control", "desalter optimisation control" or "DDP automating technology". Another less perceptible aspect, but nonetheless important, has been both a punch listing of traditional plant boundaries and a grouping of factors that play the essential roles in a desalting/dehydration plant (DDP). Nowadays, modelling and optimising of a DDP performance has become more apparent in petroleum and chemical engineering, which has been traditionally concerned with production and refinery processing industries. Today's desalting/dehydration technology finds itself as an important factor in such diverse areas as petroleum engineering, environmental concerns, and advanced technology materials. The movement into these areas has created a need not only for sources useful for professionals but also for gathering relevant information essential in improving product quality and its impact on health, safety and environmental (HSE) aspects. All of the foregoing, clearly establishes the need for a comprehensive knowledge of DDP and emulsion theories, process modelling and optimisation techniques. The main objective of this work is to model and qualitatively optimise a desalting/dehydration plant. In due course, the contents of this thesis will cover in depth both the basic areas of emulsion treatment fundamentals, modelling desalting/dehydration processes and optimising the performance of desalting plants. In addition, emphasis is also placed on more advanced topics such as optimisation technology and process modifications. At the results and recommendation stage, the theme of this work-optimising desalting/dehydration plant will practically be furnished in an applicable scheme. Finally, a significant compendium of figures and experimental data are presented. This thesis, therefore, essentially presents the research and important principles of desalting/dehydration systems. It also gives the oil industry a wide breadth of important information presented in a concise and focused manner. In search of data quality and product on-line-improvement, this combination will be a powerful tool for operators and professionals in a decision support environment.

The lower St Johns River is a low-gradient coastal river with tidal hydrodynamics that remain active from the Atlantic Ocean through to the upstream end of Lake George (river km 200). Salinity in the lower St Johns River is spatially and temporally variable, whereby the salinity distribution is driven primarily by the combination of ocean processes of tides and storm surges and hydrological processes of watershed runoff. This study examines the probability distributions and modes of behavior of salinity for present-day conditions using data, numerical modeling and eigen-analysis. The hypothesis is that long-term changes (decadal scale) in the ocean processes will cause the probability distributions of salinity to adjust, and therefore there is a quantifiable non-stationarity of salinity in the lower St Johns River (shifts in the probability distribution of salinity, as representative of salinity increase) due to sea-level rise. The numerical modeling is validated against data, then the model is applied to generate synthetic salinity records for the main river stem and tributaries of the lower St. Johns based on present-day conditions. The synthetic salinity records are transformed into probability distribution functions (PDFs) and eigen-functions. The same analysis is performed on synthetic salinity records generated by the model when applied in forecast mode (i.e., sea-level rise). Comparisons of the forecasted PDFs and eigen-functions with those for present-day conditions quantify the non-stationarity (shifts in probability distributions and changes in eigen-structure) of the salinity in the lower St Johns River. The underlying physics of the cause (sea-level rise)-effect (non-stationarity of salinity) relationship are assessed in terms of coastal/river hydrodynamics.

Mean salinity concentrations in the four reservoirs (Moss, Ray Hubbard, Texoma and Possum Kingdom) ranged from 0.2 ppt in Moss Lake to 2.01 ppt in Possum Kingdom Lake. Reservoir sodium and chloride concentrations were hypotonic to hypertonic to plasma levels in all species. Interspecific differences were seen in ionic concentrations within each reservoir. Total osmotic and sodium concentrations in carp, Cyprinus carpio, were correlated to their concentrations in the reservoirs. No such relationship was noted for chloride, potassium and calcium. A laboratory study indicated that fish collection by electroshock did not bias plasma ion concentrations. Exposures to wide variations in ionic concentrations did not appear to induce stress in the species studied.

Sarotherodon melanotheron est un poisson euryhalin endémique d'Afrique de l'ouest, qui vit et se reproduit dans tous les milieux aquatiques. Dans cette région où le changement climatique a provoqué l'apparition d'estuaires hypersalés, cette espèce est la seule à survivre en milieu hyperhalin, et constitue donc un excellent modèle biologique. Les milieux aquatiques côtiers sont aussi impactés par de nombreux contaminants issus de l'activité humaine. L'objectif de cette thèse était d'évaluer l'impact des effets croisés de la salinité et des contaminants chez S. melanotheron dans des milieux très contrastés au Sénégal en utilisant une approche multi-multiparamétrique. Des indicateurs physiologiques (taux de croissance, facteur de condition) et une batterie de biomarqueurs en lien avec l'osmorégulation (pompe NKA), le métabolisme des xénobiotiques (EROD et GST), la protection vis-à-vis du stress (TBARS), la transmission de l'influx nerveux (AChE) et la reproduction (vitellogénine et histopathologie gonadique) ont été mesurés. Ils ont été complétés par une étude de la diversité génétique et de la forme des otolithes pour différencier les populations. Un dosage préalable de la contamination des sédiments a permis de caractériser précisément les sites échantillonnés. L'induction de l'activité EROD sur le site le plus impacté en HAP et celle de la NKA sur les sites de salinité plus élevée ont montré la sensibilité de ces biomarqueurs. Des expérimentations sur S. melanotheron en milieu contrôlé ont permis d'appréhender l'impact des effets combinés de la salinité et du DDT, et de caractériser l'activité NKA et les transporteurs protéiques (NKA et CFTR) mis en jeu lors de l'osmorégulation. L'immunofluorescence prononcée des transporteurs et leur abondance au niveau des branchies suggèrent leur implication fonctionnelle dans l'osmorégulation. L'analyse de la forme des otolithes et de la génétique des populations de S. melanotheron échantillonnées ont montré que la distance géographique semble être discriminante pour les variations morphométriques des otolithes, alors que la variabilité génétique observée traduisait l'histoire de la colonisation postglaciaire et les évènements démographiques affectant les populations les plus isolées. Tous les résultats montrent l'intérêt de l'utilisation d'une approche multi-paramétrique pour caractériser l'impact de perturbateurs environnementaux multiples. Des travaux complémentaires permettraient d'affirmer que ce tilapia est un très bon indicateur utilisable dans l'évaluation de la qualité des écosystèmes côtiers en milieu tropical. / The euryhaline black-chinned tilapia Sarotherodon melanotheron heudelotii is endemic in West Africa and able to adapt to changes of salinity, to survive and to reproduce in different natural conditions. It is one of rare species to survive in hyperhaline area. Increased of the salinity levels is one of the consequences of climate change in West Africa coastal environments. However coastal zones are also the ultimate sink of chemical contaminants. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of the combined effects of salinity and pollutants in the black-chinned tilapia for evaluate the Senegalese aquatic habitat quality. In accord to this objective physiological marker (condition factor and growth rate) and several biochemical biomarkers to link with osmoregulatory (NKA), xenobiotic metabolisation (EROD, GST), oxidative stress (TBARS), neurotoxicity (AChE) and reproduction (VTG and gonad histopathology) were assessed. Field studies revealed that EROD and NKA can discriminate different sampling site and could be used as biomarkers on pollutants and salinity exposure respectively. The combined effects of salinity and DDT on osmoregulatory were characterized in laboratory conditions. Results showed that influenced the osmoregulatory mechanisms with differential abundance of transport proteins (NKA and CFTR) in gill and induction of NKA. The results showed that a set of biomarkers to assess effects of multiple stressors can be useful in S. melanotheron. In addition, the S. melanotheron population structure using morphologic and genetic analysis revealed that otolith shape analysis provides a geographical discrimination and microsatellites analysis allow genetic pool discrimination. Results show the absence of correspondence between the morphologic and genetic patterns. The present study demonstrated that importance of use multi-parametric approach to assess impact of multiple stressors, such as salinity and contaminants on black-chinned tilapia. Further studies should be realized for a better characterize this set of biomarker responses.

Le loup Dicentrarchus labrax est un téléostéen euryhalin qui effectue des migrations saisonnières de la mer vers les lagunes et les estuaires où la salinité est très variable et peut changer rapidement. Les mécanismes d'osmorégulation sont bien connus chez les téléostéens, alors que le rôle de l'osmodétection dans leur mise en place reste actuellement largement méconnu. Le but de cette étude a été d'améliorer les connaissances sur l'osmodétection et sur la mise en place des mécanismes d'hyper-osmorégulation (à court et long terme).Tout d'abord, le canal calcique “Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid 4” ou TRPV4, candidat osmodétecteur, a été étudié chez des loups adaptés à l'eau de mer (EM) ou exposés à l'eau douce (ED) durant des temps différents. Au niveau branchial, le TRPV4 ne semble pas impliqué dans l'osmodétection au niveau des ionocytes, mais plutôt dans l'absorption de Ca2+ par les chondrocytes, notamment en ED. Il pourrait avoir un rôle dans l'osmodétection systémique au niveau de l'hypophyse et dans l'absorption de Ca2+ dans le rein. Sa forte expression en EM dans les cellules rénales réabsorbant de l'eau suggère que le TRPV4 est impliqué dans la régulation de leur volume cellulaire.En second lieu, le canal à chlore ClC-3, candidat osmodétecteur et potentiellement impliqué dans les mécanismes de diminution régulatrice du volume cellulaire (RVD), a été étudié dans les mêmes conditions expérimentales que précédemment. Ce canal a été localisé dans la membrane basolatérale des ionocytes des branchies (EM et ED) et des tubes collecteurs du rein (en ED ; pas immunodétecté en EM). Il pourrait jouer un rôle dans la protection des cellules contre un choc hypotonique, et donc dans la RVD en EM dans ces deux organes. En ED, la localisation du ClC-3 suggère fortement sa participation dans l'hyper-osmorégulation au niveau des branchies et du rein.Enfin, un protocole d'isolement des ionocytes branchiaux a été mis au point ; il permettra de poursuivre et d'approfondir les travaux sur l'osmodétection cellulaire. L'évolution au cours du temps du volume cellulaire d'un ionocyte a pu être évaluée après un choc hypotonique. De futures expérimentations permettront d'évaluer le lien entre l'osmodétection, les osmodétecteurs et les effecteurs osmotiques. / The European sea bass Dicentrarchus labrax is a euryhaline teleost that migrates seasonally from the sea to lagoons and estuaries, where salinity is very variable and changes rapidly. Osmoregulatory mechanisms are well known in teleosts, while the role of osmosensing in their set-up is yet poorly understood. The objective of this study was to improve the understanding of osmosensing and of its relations with hyper-osmoregulatory mechanisms in sea bass over short- and long-term salinity exposures.First, the Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) Ca2+-channel, a potential osmosensor, has been studied in fish adapted to sea water (SW) or exposed to fresh water (FW) for various times. The TRPV4 did not seem to be involved in osmosensing in mitochondrion-rich cells (MRC) in gills. It may be involved in systemic osmosensing and in Ca2+ uptake by branchial chondrocytes and by renal collecting ducts in FW. This channel may also have a role in cell volume regulation of kidney cells allowing water reabsorption.Secondly, the ClC-3 chloride channel, another potential osmosensor and potentially involved in regulatory volume decrease (RVD) mechanisms, has been studied in fish under similar conditions. This channel has been localized in the basolateral membrane of ionocytes in gills (SW and FW) and kidney (FW – in SW, expressed but not immunodetected). It might be involved in cell protection against hypotonic shock and thus in RVD in both organs in SW. In FW, its localization strongly suggests a role in hyper-osmoregulation in gills and kidney.Finally, a protocol to isolate MRCs has been developed; it has been used to study cell osmosensing and it will be used on future studies. The changes in cell volume following a hypotonic shock have been evaluated. Future experiments will allow a better understanding of the relations between cell osmosensing, osmosensors and effectors.

Les écosystèmes méditerranéens littoraux sont soumis à divers stress environnementaux naturels (stress hydrique et halin) et anthropiques susceptibles de s'intensifier dans les prochaines décennies. Dans ce contexte, le fonctionnement des communautés microbiennes - encore très peu étudiés dans de tels milieux - était important à préciser. L'effet du stress halin sur la transformation de la matière organique dans la litière de pin d'Alep issues des calanques de Marseille a été estimé ainsi que le potentiel de biodégradation d'un polluant chronique, l'anthracène, un Hydrocarbures Aromatiques Polycycliques. Différents approches in situ, ex situ et in vitro ont été utilisées en associant différentes méthodes afin de mesurer l'état fonctionnel du milieu (activités enzymatiques, respirométrie basale), la diversité fonctionnelle microbienne (Catabolic Level Physiological Profile), la biomasse microbienne et l'évolution chimique de la matière organique (RMN du solide du 13C). En mésocosmes, les laccases, induites par la présence d'anthracène, ont contribué à son oxydation et ont été séquencées par LC/MS/MS afin de déterminer les espèces fongiques à l'origine de leur synthèse. Les résultats montrent que certaines activités enzymatiques du cycle du carbone sont peu affectées par la salinité et l'apport d'anthracène. Toutefois la diversité fonctionnelle des communautés autochtones de litière de pin d'Alep issues de ces environnements est modifiée à une échelle micro-locale par l'effet marin. Par ailleurs les réponses fonctionnelles face à l'apport d'anthracène des communautés microbiennes de litières de pin d'Alep en zone continentale sont différentes de celles des zones littorales / Mediterranean coastal ecosystems are subjected to various natural and anthropogenic environmental pressures which are supposed to be enhanced because of climatic changes. Little is known about microbial community functioning in such ecosystems. Our site of study is located in the Calanques of Marseille, a hot spot of biodiversity. The effect of salinity (via sea spray exposure) on microbial communities and their ability to transform organic matter in an Aleppo pine litter have been studied as well as the potential of autochthonous microorganisms to transform anthracene used as a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon model. To do so, different approaches (in situ, ex situ and in vitro experimental design) were used and we combined various methods such as enzyme activities (laccase, cellulase, phosphatase, lipase), CLPP (Biolog ECO and FF plates), respirometry (basal and induced) and litter chemical characterization (solid-state 13C NMR). Laccases were induced by anthracene in mesocosms and oxidized this compound (with anthraquinone as an intermediate). These enzymes were sequenced by LC/MS/MS to determine the fungal strains responsible for their production. We also found that enzyme activities were not strongly influenced by salinity or anthracene inputs. On the other hand, functional diversity was structured at a small-spatial scale. Moreover, functional responses of microbial communities from inland areas strongly differ from those of coastal areas regarding anthracene inputs since no laccase induction was observed in inland litter.

The Rio Grande cichlid (Herichthys cyanoguttatus) has been established in the Greater New Orleans Metropolitan Area (GNOMA) for at least 20 years. It is often the most common fish species in urban canals and has also been found in natural waterways outside of the GNOMA. The effects and potential for further spread of H. cyanoguttatus is uncertain. My research addressed how extensive the cichlids spread in the GNOMA, how H. cyanoguttatus interacted with L. macrochirus, a native fish, and what salinity tolerance this species has. Surveys on Lake Pontchartrain and in the GNOMA indicated that H. cyanoguttatus is well established in urban habitats. These surveys also indicate that H. cyanoguttatus has spread rapidly into Bayou Saint John and City Park in recent years and that H. cyanoguttatus populations were relatively unaffected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. There is little evidence that H. cyanoguttatus has become established outside of the GNOMA, but this lack of persistence cannot be explained by abiotic variables I measured. Salinity may be a factor and this was measured in growth trials of H. cyanoguttatus. Salinities up to 16 ppt, however, had no significant effect on H. cyanoguttatus growth. Interspecific behavioral experiments were conducted to examine potential biotic interactions with native fish species. Prior resident trials indicated that H. cyanoguttatus was aggressive whether holding territory or not, and that native bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) was only aggressive while holding territory. Feeding experiments were performed to examine biotic interactions between H. cyanoguttatus and L. macrochirus. Lepomis macrochirus grew faster than H. cyanoguttatus when inter- and intraspecific trials were compared; however, no significant growth differences were seen when trials were structured with L. macrochirus as prior residents. The major findings of my research are a high salinity tolerance of H. cyanoguttatus, a potential mechanism for H. cyanoguttatus affecting native fishes through aggression as residents and invaders, and the presence of H. cyanoguttatus throughout the GNOMA, before and after the hurricanes.