Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2026
Authors
Lumbani Benedicto Banda Frank Thomas Ndjomatchoua Ritter Atoundem Guimapi Komi Mensah Agboka Abdelmutalab G.A. Azrag Wezi G. Mhango Trust Kasambala Donga Chikondi Makwiza Karl Thunes Elfatih M. Abdel-RahmanAbstract
The cassava whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) greatly constrains cassava production across Africa due to its role as a vector of viral diseases that cause substantial yield losses. Effective management of this insect pest requires detailed knowledge of its spatio-temporal distribution, however long-term datasets are scarce. Mechanistic models circumvent these long-term data needs by modelling temperature-dependent processes that govern population dynamics. Nevertheless, their application to B. tabaci remains poorly explored. Here, we developed a mechanistic model to derive a risk index (RI) for B. tabaci across Africa, focusing on Malawi. The model integrates the effects of temperature on the life stages of B. tabaci to predict temporal risk dynamics and assess climate change impacts. Validation against historical data demonstrated strong agreement, with high cosine similarity values (0.95 in 1988 and 0.96 in 1990) and high correlation coefficients (0.73 and 0.78 in 1988 and 1990, respectively), supporting its suitability as a proxy for whitefly population dynamics. Areas with temperatures between 20.2 °C and 32.5 °C are conducive to B. tabaci population increase, with suitability peaking near 27.5 °C. Cassava-growing regions in central and western Africa experience year-round higher RI values, whereas southeastern Africa experiences peak RI values from October to March. In Malawi, the lakeshore and southern regions were most vulnerable, with RI peaking in these areas during the rainy season. At continental and national scales, climate change is projected to increase RI values. These findings underscore the importance of timing pest control interventions to align with peak risk periods and highlight the utility of mechanistic models for informing region-specific whitefly management strategies.
Authors
Getachew Birhanu AberaAbstract
Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a biological process where microorganisms degrade organic waste under anaerobic condition and produce biogas consisting of 50–75% methane (CH4), 25–50% carbon dioxide (CO2), and other trace gases. However, the presence of non-methane gases reduces the heating value of biogas and impurities, such as H2S, reduces its desirability. To improve the quality, biomethanation could upgrade biogas via converting CO2 using green hydrogen (H2) into additional CH4 by the action of methanogenic archaea. Despite this potential, the presence of process inhibitors like H2S and NH3-N can impact the efficiency of this environmentally friendly method. To address this challenge, the application of biofilm has emerged as a promising approach to improve system performance and stability under varying operational parameters and inhibitory conditions. For instance, a case study from a Norwegian full-scale biofilm plug flow reactor (BPFR) included in this study demonstrated the potential of biofilm-based AD in maintaining stable CH4 yield, even under a higher FOS/TAC ratio of greater than 0.4 and NH3-N concentration of 5500 ppm. Based on this foundation, this PhD study investigated the impact of H2S and NH3-N on biomethanation and the role of biofilm-based biomethanation in mitigating these effects.
Abstract
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Authors
Rupesh Kumar Singh Henrique Trindade João Ricardo Sousa Arne Sæbø Vishnu D. Rajput Tao ZhangAbstract
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Authors
Mandeep PoudelAbstract
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No abstract has been registered
Authors
Abdullah Bugra Senol Linn Solli John Morken Wietske Annechien Stel Nazli Pelin Kocatürk SchumacherAbstract
Aquaculture sludge from recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) represents a growing waste stream with potential for biogas recovery; however, elevated salinity can inhibit anaerobic digestion (AD). This study evaluated the biochemical methane potential (BMP) of RAS sludge under freshwater (0%), brackish (1.2%), and marine (3.3%) conditions and assessed the effectiveness of biochar and zeolite. Batch BMP assays were conducted under mesophilic conditions at an inoculum-to-substrate ratio of 2:1, with additives applied at 0.8 g/g VS. Increasing salinity significantly reduced methane yields (p < 0.05), from 533.6 ± 3.4 NmL CH4/g VS in freshwater to 478.1 ± 10.2 and 341.3 ± 0.6 NmL CH4/g VS in brackish and marine conditions, respectively. Biochar enhanced methane production by 5.9–11.3% across all salinities, while zeolite increased yields by 7.7% and 15.7% under brackish and marine conditions, respectively, but had no effect in freshwater. Methane production kinetics were well described by the modified Gompertz model (R2 = 0.983–0.999). Overall, biochar was more effective at low salinity levels, whereas zeolite mitigated salinity-induced inhibition, indicating that targeted additive application can enhance methane recovery from saline aquaculture sludge and support sustainable RAS waste management.
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Kai Yue Pieter Vangansbeke Isla H. Myers-Smith Donald M. Waller Kris Verheyen Markus Bernhardt-Römermann Lander Baeten Ingmar R. Staude Anne D. Bjorkman Radim Hédl Christopher Andrews Elena Barni Thomas Becker Antoine Becker-Scarpitta José Luis Benito-Alonso Jonathan Bennie Imre Berki Volker Blüml Jörg Brunet James M. Bullock Hans Van Calster Michele Carbognani Markéta Chudomelová Déborah Closset-Kopp Pavel Dan Turtureanu Gergana N. Daskalova Guillaume Decocq Jan Dick Martin Diekmann Thomas Dirnböck Tomasz Durak Ove Eriksson Brigitta Erschbamer Bente Jessen Graae Thilo Heinken Martin Hermy Peter Horchler Ute Jandt Bogdan Jaroszewicz Róbert Kanka Jozef Kollár Martin Kopecký Thomas Kudernatsch Andrea Lamprecht Jonathan Lenoir Martin Macek Marek Malicki František Máliš Ottar Michelsen Fraser Mitchell Tobias Naaf Thomas A. Nagel Miles Newman Adrian C. Newton Lena Nicklas Ludovica Oddi Anna Orczewska Simone Orsenigo Adrienne Ortmann-Ajkai Jan den Ouden Harald Pauli George Peterken Petr Petřík Remigiusz Pielech Mihai Puşcaş Christophe Randin Kamila Reczyńska Christian Rixen Fride Høistad Schei Wolfgang Schmidt Jan Šebesta Alina Stachurska-Swakon Tibor Standovár Krzysztof Świerkosz Balázs Teleki Jean Paul Theurillat Tudor Mihai Ursu Thomas Vanneste Mark Vellend Philippine Vergeer Ondřej Vild Luis Villar Pascal Vittoz Manuela Winkler Sonja Wipf Fuzhong Wu Shengmin Zhang Pieter De FrenneAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
James Weldon Wenche Aas Barbara Albiniak Algirdas Augustaitis Ieva Baužienė Camilla Capelli Nicholas Clarke Thomas Cummins Heleen de Wit Thomas Dirnböck Ika Djukic Karin Eklöf Martin Forsius Martyn Futter Ulf Grandin Sergei Gromov Adéla Holubová Šmejkalová Ricardo Ibañez Iveta Indriksone Sara Jutterström Johannes Kobler Heidi Koger Angelika Kölbl Andrzej Kostrzewski Anna Koukhta Pavel Krám Robert Kruszyk Esther Lasheras Kairi Lõhmus Mikołaj Majewski Ulla Makkonen Hampus Markensten Rafael Miranda Michael Mirtl Filip Moldan Giancarlo Papitto Johannes Peterseil Ainis Pivoras Thomas Plha Gisela Pröll Pernilla Rönnback Carolina Santamaría Jesús Miguel Santamaría Krzysztof Skotak David Elustondo Mercedes Valerio Sarah Venier Lieke E. Vlaar Liisa Ukonmaanaho Jussi Vuorenmaa Nicole WellbrockAbstract
Abstract The International Cooperative Programme on Integrated Monitoring of Air Pollution Effects on Ecosystems (ICP IM) presents a comprehensive long-term dataset of ongoing integrated ecosystem monitoring from European forested catchments. The dataset encompasses measurements from 46 monitoring stations across 14 European countries, with temporal coverage mostly extending from the early 1990s to 2020 (48 sites are currently active). The integrated monitoring approach applies over 20 monitoring subprogrammes to simultaneously measure physical, chemical, and biological properties across multiple ecosystem compartments including atmosphere, precipitation, throughfall, soil water, groundwater, runoff water, soil, vegetation, and biota. All measurements follow standardised protocols detailed in the ICP IM Manual, ensuring data quality and comparability across sites and time periods. The dataset supports research on ecosystem responses to air pollution, climate change impacts, and biogeochemical cycling. Data are available under a Creative Commons By Attribution (CC BY) licence, providing valuable long-term environmental monitoring data for the scientific community.