The purpose of the study was an assessment of LiDAR point clouds for automating the mapping of land use and land cover changes, mainly land abandonment and the process of secondary forest succession. Detailed information about land cover was determined based on airborne laser scanning data. The presented study focuses on the analysis of the spatial range and structure of vegetation. The study area was located in Milicz district in the voivodeship of Lower Silesia – the central west part of Poland. The areas of interest were parcels where agricultural land had been abandoned and forest succession processes had progressed. Analysis of the spatial range of the secondary forest succession was carried out using a reclassified nDSM. Reclassification of the nDSM was done using > 1 m, > 2 m and > 3 m for the pixel values, representing the height of vegetation above the ground. Parameters such as height of vegetation, standard deviation of height and cover density were calculated, to show the process of the increase in forest succession on abandoned agricultural land. The results confirmed a discrepancy between the cadastral data and the actual use of the plots. In the study area, more than three times as much forested and wooded area was detected than had been recorded in official databases. Analyses based on airborne laser scanning point clouds indicated significant diversity in the vertical and horizontal structure of vegetation. The results demonstrated gradual succession of greenery in the research area.

In 1985–2002 thirteen weeds resistant to atrazine were selected by a repeated application of triazine herbicides on arable land, in orchards, non-agricultural land and at railways in the Czech Republic. Recently Digitaria sanguinalis biotypes resistant to atrazine have been found at three railway junctions. Long-lasting application of the active ingredient imazapyr at railways caused selection of resistant Kochia scoparia biotypes. High resistance to chlorsulfuron has been discovered in five Apera spica-venti biotypes originating in winter cereals fields. The molecular basis of resistance to atrazine has been identified in the following weeds: Kochia scoparia, Solanum nigrum, Senecio vulgaris, Conyza canadensis, Digitaria sanguinalis, Amaranthus retroflexus and Chenopodium album. The resistance was conferred by a glycine for serine substitution at residue 264 of the D1 protein in all of those weeds. The resistance to imazapyr in Czech Kochia scoparia biotypes was conferred by a mutation at codon 574 of the ALS gene. Analysis of the results of DNA sequencing indicated, that the mutation induced a leucine for tryptophane substitution. There was excellent correspondence between the phenotypic resistance to herbicides of individual plants and the presence of mutations.

The paper presents results of a study concerning an AlSi7Mg alloy and the effect of subjecting the liquid metal to four different processes: conventional refining with hexachloroethane; the same refining followed by modification with titanium, boron, and sodium; refining by purging with argon carried out in parallel with modification with titanium and boron salts and strontium; and parallel refining with argon and modification with titanium, boron, and sodium salts. The effect of these four processes on compactness of the material, parameters of microstructure, and fatigue strength of AlSi7Mg alloy after heat treatment. It has been found that the highest compactness (the lowest porosity ratio value) and the most favorable values of the examined parameters of microstructure were demonstrated by the alloy obtained with the use of the process including parallel purging with argon and modification with salts of titanium, boron, and sodium. It has been found that in the fatigue cracking process observed in all the four variants of the liquid metal treatment, the crucial role in initiation of fatigue cracks was played by porosity. Application of the process consisting in refining by purging with argon parallel to modification with Ti, B, and Na salts allowed to refine the microstructure and reduce significantly porosity of the alloy extending thus the time of initiation and propagation of fatigue cracks. The ultimate effect consisted in a distinct increase of the fatigue limit value.

The presented access the influence of Mn content (0-0.94 wt.%) on the course of the cooling curves, phase transformation, macrostructure, and microstructure of Al-Cu alloys for three series: initial (Series I), with the addition of an AlTi master (Series II), and modified with AlTi5B1 (Series III). The maximum degree of undercooling ΔT was determined based on the cooling curves. The surface density of the grains (NA) was determined and associated with the inverse of solidification interval 1/ΔTk. Titanium (contained in the charge materials as well as the modifier) has a significant effect on the grinding of the primary grains in the tested alloys. A DSC thermal analysis allowed for the determination of phase transition temperatures under conditions close to equilibrium. For series II and III, the number of grains decreases above 0.2 wt.% Mn with a simultaneous increase in solidification interval 1/ΔTk. The presence of Al2Cu eutectics as well as the Cu-, Fe-, and Mn-containing phases in the examined samples was demonstrated using scanning electron microscopy.

In this Paper, a parametric study on pipes buried in soil was performed illustrating the results of blast loading. Effects of various parameters such as the physical properties of water, oil, gas, air, soil, pipes, and TNT have been investigated. The arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) method was employed using LS-DYNA software. The maximum pressure in a buried pipe explosive was observed at an angle of about 0° to 45° and the minimum pressure occurred at an angle of about 45° to 90°. Therefore, all figures in this study illustrate that fluid pressure levels in buried pipes can help in their stabilization. In generally, by increasing the 1.23 times of liquid density under the explosion, the pressure levels in the soil decreased by 1.3 percent. The gas pressure has been increasing more than oil and water pipes 39.73 and 40.52 percent, respectively.

The article focuses on the analysis of the effect of Zr on the properties of the aluminium alloy AlSi9Cu1Mg. The effect of Zr was evaluated depending on the change in mechanical properties and heat resistance during a gradual addition of Zr with an increase of 0.05 wt. % Zr. Half of the cast experimental samples from each variant were heat treated by precipitation hardening T6 (hereinafter HT). The measured values in both states indicate an improvement of the mechanical properties, especially in the experimental variants with a content of Zr ≥ 0.20 wt. %. In the evaluation of Rm, the most significant improvement occurred in the experimental variant with an addition of Zr 0.25 wt. % after HT and E in the experimental variant with addition of Zr 0.20 wt. % after HT. Thus, a difference was found from the results of the authors defining the positive effect of Zr, in particular at 0.15 wt. %. When evaluating the microstructure of the AlSi9Cu1Mg alloy after Zr alloying, Zr phases are already eliminated with the addition of Zr 0.10 wt. %. Especially at higher levels of Zr ≥ 0.20 wt. %, long needle phases with slightly cleaved morphology are visible in the metal matrix. It can be stated that a negative manifestation of Zr alloying is expressed by an increase in gassing of experimental alloys, especially in variants with a content of Zr ≥ 0.15 wt. %. Experimental samples were cast into ceramic moulds. The development of an experimental alloy AlSi9Cu1Mg alloyed with Zr would allow the production of a more sophisticated material applicable to thin-walled Al castings capable of operating at higher temperature loads.

This article presents a study of the crystallization and microstructure of the AlSi9 alloy (EN AC-AlSi9) used for the alfin processing of iron ring supports in castings of silumin pistons. Alfin processing in brief is based on submerging an iron casting in an Al-Si bath, maintaining it there for a defined time period, placing it in a chill mould casting machine and immersing it in the alloy. This technology is used for iron ring supports in the pistons of internal combustion engines, among others. Thermal analysis shows that when the AlSi9 alloy contains a minimal content of iron, nucleation and increase in the triple (Al)+Fe+(Si) eutectic containing the -Al8Fe2Si phase takes place at the end of the crystallization of the double (Al)+(Si) eutectic. Due to the morphology of the ”Chinese script” the -Al8Fe2Si phase is beneficial and does not reduce the alloy’s brittleness. After approx. 5 hours of alfin processing, the -Al5FeSi phase crystallizes as a component of the +Al5FeSi+(Si) eutectic. Its disadvantageous morphology is ”platelike” with sharp corners, and in a microsection of the surface, ”needles” with pointed corners are visible, with increases the fragility of the AlSi9 alloys.

Multilayered composites based on light metals are promising materials in many applications. In the present work the 15-layered clad, composed of alternately stacked of Ti(Gr.1) and AA1050-H24 alloy sheets of 1 mm thick has been investigated with respect to determination of the kinetic of the Al3Ti phase growth. The defect-free multilayered composite was successfully formed by explosive welding technology. Then EXW samples were modified via annealing at the temperature of 600oC in closed die under pressure of 44 MPa for various times ranged between 1 and 10 h. Transmission and Scanning Electron Microscopy examinations were conducted in order to study the kinetic of the elements migration across the interfaces between the layers of the Al/Ti composite. The macro-scale observations of samples after EXW revealed that wavy interfaces were always formed in layers near the explosive charge. The increase of the distance from the top surface leads to flattening of the interface with very thin reaction layer between Al and Ti sheets. During annealing the kinetic of the Al3Ti phase growth is similar near all interfaces and coincides with data from other works. It was found that despite the loading after 10 h of annealing still only small part of Al-sheets undergoes dissolution and the width of the reaction layer does not exceed 5-8 µm.