eChapters

Phosphorus in soil present both in inorganic form and organic form. The inorganic P can be divided into different pools. The major active inorganic forms are: P bound to aluminium (Al-P), iron (Fe-P), calcium (Ca-P) and silicate minerals and relatively less active forms are occluded and reductant soluble forms of P. On the other hand the principal organic P compounds present in soil are (i) inositol phosphate, (ii) phospholipids, (iii) nucleic acid and other unidentified esters and phosphoproteins.

15.1. Determination of Available Soil P

The availability of soil P to plant varies greatly depending upon the reaction, minerological composition and amount of the soil colloid. Very little P is present in the soil solution except in recently fertilized or sodic soils. The type of phosphate ions present in the soil solution depends on the soil pH. In soils of neutral to slightly alkaline pH, HPO₄^2- ion is the dominant form. In slightly or moderately acidic soils, both H₂PO₄^- and HPO₄^2- ions prevail. At strongly acidic soil H₂PO₄^- ion tends to dominate, while above pH 9.0, the PO₄^3- ion becomes more important than H₂PO₄^-.

Abstract

Mulberry is a fast growing deciduous woody perennial plant. It has a deep root system. the leaves are simple, alternative, stipulate, petiolate, entire or lobed. The number of lobes varies from one to five. Plants are generally dioecious. Inflorescence is catkin with pendent or drooping peduncle bearing unisexual flowers. Inflorescence is always auxiliary. Male catkins are usually longer than the female catkins. Male flowers are loosely arranged and after shedding the pollen, the inflorescence dries and falls off. These are four presistent parianth lobes and four stamens implexed in bud. Female Inflorescence is usually short and the flowers are very compactly arranged. There are four presistent parianth lobes. The ovary is one-celled and the stigma is bilid. The chief pollinating agent in mulberry is wind. Mulberry fruit is a sorosis, mainly violet black in  colour. 

Environmental Ethics is a conceptual term which consist various aspects of environmental fundaments, Enviromental ethics is responsible to protect and sustain the resources and ecological system.

5.1 Introduction

The densification of biomass involves transforming loose and low-density organic materials, such as wood residues, agricultural waste, and plant-based materials, into compact and energy-dense forms. This process is necessary because natural biomass can be challenging to handle, transport, and store. Densification uses mechanical, thermal, or chemical processes to increase the material’s density and energy characteristics. The resulting products, such as pellets, briquettes, or cubes, offer several advantages, including higher energy content per unit volume, efficient storage and transportation, reduced moisture content, and improved combustion efficiency. These products are utilized in various industries, including energy production, residential heating, waste management, and industrial applications. Biomass densification promotes sustainable practices by effectively utilizing biomass resources, reducing waste, and promoting the use of renewable energy sources while mitigating environmental impacts.

Gasification is a process that turns materials containing carbon, like wood, crops, coal, or waste, into a type of fuel called producer gas or syngas. This is done by heating the carbon-rich material with a controlled amount of oxygen at high temperatures. Gasification is a type of partial oxidation, which means using less oxygen than needed to burn the same amount of fuel. Knowing the necessary amount of air for the conversion process is important to run a gasifier correctly. This requires understanding the stoichiometry based on the composition of the biomass. A chemical formula for the biomass can be calculated by analyzing the elements present, which serves as the basis for estimating the air-fuel ratios through stoichiometric calculations. Gasification only uses 25 to 40% of the theoretical oxidant, producing heat for fuel conversion. In gasification, the main combustible products are carbon monoxide and hydrogen.

Expanding on the importance of understanding monsoons from a regional perspective, Chapter 4, “Regional Phenomena Exerting Influence on Monsoons in Different Regions,” takes a closer look at the unique fingerprints that specific geographical features and localized climate dynamics leave on these vital weather systems around the world. While Chapter 3 provided the grand narrative of globalscale influencers, this chapter delves into the intricate details of how monsoons are fine-tuned and often dramatically altered by the characteristics of the land and oceans they interact with on a regional level. Consider, for instance, the colossal impact of the Tibetan Plateau’s summer heating on the Indian Summer Monsoon. The intense solar radiation absorbed by this vast elevated landmass creates a powerful upper-level heat source, driving a strong low-pressure system that acts like a vacuum, pulling in the moistureladen winds from the Indian Ocean that deliver the life-sustaining rains to the subcontinent. Similarly, in North America, the development of the North American Monsoon Anticyclone, a large high-pressure system aloft, plays a crucial role in steering moisture from both the Pacific and the Gulf of Mexico into the arid Southwest, transforming parched landscapes into vibrant green during the summer months. We will also explore phenomena like the Saharan Heat Low, a thermal low-pressure system over the vast desert that is instrumental in drawing in the rain-bearing southwesterly winds from the Atlantic Ocean to fuel the West African Monsoon, a lifeline for numerous nations. Furthermore, the chapter will examine the regional oceanic influence of the Indian Ocean Dipole and how the temperature differences between the western and eastern parts of the Indian Ocean can significantly modulate the strength and distribution of rainfall during the Indian monsoon and in neighboring regions. Through a series of regional case studies, this chapter will illuminate the diverse ways in which local geography, land surface characteristics, and regional atmospheric and oceanic circulations act as critical modifiers of global monsoon patterns. This detailed exploration underscores the necessity of understanding these regional nuances for accurate forecasting, effective water resource management, and the development of tailored strategies to cope with the inherent variability of monsoons in different parts of our planet.

11.1 General

The world is currently facing a critical turning point in its pursuit of sustainable energy solutions. With the global population growing and concerns about climate change increasing, it is crucial to move away from finite fossil fuels and towards renewable alternatives. One promising contender in this field is biodiesel, which has the potential to power our future while also reducing environmental impacts. At the heart of biodiesel production lies the complex process of oil-based biomass processing. This involves extracting valuable oils from various sources and using them to create renewable and eco friendly fuel. Oil-based biomass processing is a dynamic intersection where innovation meets necessity, combining chemistry, engineering, sustainability, and environmental consciousness. It is an intricate and multifaceted endeavor requiring careful attention to detail and a collaborative effort to succeed.

Earth’s atmosphere is a dynamic and complex system that plays a crucial role in supporting life as we know it. This chapter explores into the fascinating world of this gaseous envelope that surrounds our planet, exploring its composition, structure, and the processes that drive both our daily weather and long-term climate. It includes:
• Composition and Structure: It will begin by examining the unique blend of gases that make up the atmosphere, including nitrogen, oxygen, argon, and trace amounts of others. It will also be explored how the atmosphere is structured into distinct layers (troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere, and exosphere), each with its own characteristics and role.
• Weather: Weather refers to the short-term conditions of the atmosphere at a specific time and place. We’ll discuss the key elements of weather, such as temperature, pressure, humidity, wind, and precipitation, and how they interact to create the ever-changing weather patterns we experience.
• Climate: In contrast to weather, climate describes the long-term average of atmospheric conditions in a particular region. We’ll investigate the factors that influence climate, including latitude, altitude, proximity to oceans, and atmospheric circulation patterns. We’ll also explore the different climate zones found across the globe.
• Interconnectedness: A key focus of this chapter understands how weather and climate are interconnected. Daily weather patterns are influenced by the same fundamental atmospheric processes that shape long-term climate. For example, the way the sun’s energy interacts with the atmosphere drives both daily temperature variations and global climate patterns.

The research methodology constitutes a comprehensive and well-structured plan of action for conducting the investigation and serves as a blueprint for the research process. Its purpose is to gain an understanding of the underlying concepts, methods, and techniques employed to define the study, gather relevant information, analyse data, and interpret the findings, thereby revealing concrete evidence and formulating theories.

In this chapter, an in-depth exploration of the research methodology is undertaken to comprehend the concepts, methods, and techniques employed for designing the study, gathering data, conducting data analysis, and interpreting the results. To facilitate clarity and ease of comprehension, the chapter has been divided into the following sub-headings:

1. Research Design

2. Locale of research

3. Pilot study

4. Sampling Design

5. Variables and their Empirical measurement 6. Methods of Data collection

7. Preparation of Interview Schedule

8. Item analysis and Expert’s rating for devising scoring technique for variables

9. Pre-testing of Interview Schedule

10. Data Processing and Analysis for FCM

11. Statistical Tools used for Data Analysis

12. Software used for Data Analysis

Introduction
Management of abiotic stresses in fruit orchards are essential and key issue for sustaining productivity. Worldwide fruit consumption has increased significantly because of the new recognitions of its broad relevance for health, nutrition and livelihood (Lansky and Newman, 2007). Fruits like pomegranate, grapes, dragon fruit, mango and sapota are being grown in tropical humid to dry as well as arid and semi-arid climates of India, especially in states like Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Gujarat. Significant cultivars such as Bhagwa of pomegranate, Hapus, Kesar, Langra, Banganpalli, Totapuri of mango and Kallipati, Cricket ball of Sapota are being dominantly grown in these areas. Area under pomegranate was 2.62 lakh ha in 2018-19, producing 30.04 lakh MT at a productivity of 11.58  ha-1 with an export of 80.5 thousand MT during 2019-20 (Maity et al., 2020). The estimated area under grapes, mango, pomegranate and sapota in India is 0.14, 2.29, 0.26, 0.08 million ha, respectively whereas production estimates are reported to be 31.25, 204. 44, 23.15 and 10.03 million MT, respectively (NHB 2019-20 2nd estimate). Besides area of dragon fruit in India is rapidly expanding due to its high nutritional content, antioxidant properties, and market opportunities, covering around 20 thousand ha with annual production of 0.3 million MT. Despite the fact that >15 species of Hylocereus have been reported; only 3 to 4 are under cultivation. Among these, white flesh (H. undatus) occupied more than half of the area. However, the current premium pricing and consumer demand for pink flesh may shift cultivation to H. polyrhizus. Furthermore, species with yellow peel and white flesh (H. megalanthus) is now being cultivated. In this context, the issuances of agro-advisory services to farmers are essential for adopting time bound management protocols (Adak et al.,2018a). The importance of this scientific management is significantly linked with the fruit business both in domestic market and foreign export. Therefore, it is of great importance for advisory, training, farmers-scientific interaction and other human resource management programmes to sensitize and develop trained man power sufficiently which contributes to the horticultural growth and development. In this backdrop, fruit orchards and their scientific management is discussed in this chapter with special reference to abiotic and biotic stress management in Pune region of Maharashtra.

Introduction
Spices have been considered significant in the culinary art from time immemorial. India, “The Homeland of Spices” is one among the largest producers, consumers and exporters of spices as well as spice products. Spices comprise different plant components such as floral parts or fruits or berries or seeds or rhizomes or roots or leaves or kernel or aril or bark or bulbs. The recorded history of the use of spices dates back to 5000 years or so from the Egyptian or at the most from the Indus valley civilization. Spices are used for flavouring, seasoning and imparting aroma in various cuisines. Besides these inherent qualities, some of them are known to be fungistatic, antimicrobial or antibiotic. They are also processed into numerous ‘value added’ products such as oleoresins, essential oils, curry powder etc. Black pepper, cardamom and turmeric are the major spice crops and its production and marketing are the main economy stays of lakhs of people of the country. Billions of rupees are involved in domestic trading and foreign export. Therefore, it is highly imperative for farmers to adopt the advanced practices to sustain spices productivity. Even, additional income could be generated from the intercropping of spices from the interspaces in mango orchards (Shukla and Adak, 2020). Thus the present chapter included all aspects of production to protection and value addition for  the benefits of growers.

Methods and procedures for the qualitative characterization and quantitative analysis of different constituents of soil organic matter are presented in this Chapter.

20.1. Moisture

The soil sample should be in an air-dry condition after mixing, sieving and grinding. When stored in a moisture-tight container, the free H₂O content should not vary appreciably during storage. While most determinations can be done on air-dry samples, for certain purposes such as obtaining summation values, a moisture content value is required.

12.1 What is Climate Change?
 
The earth receives short-wave radiation from the sun, one-third of which is absorbed by the atmosphere, ocean, ice-land and living organisms. The energy absorbed from solar radiation is balanced, in the long-term, by the outgoing radiation from the earth and atmosphere. While short-wave radiation from the sun can easily pass through the atmosphere, the long-wave radiation emitted by the warm surface of the earth is partially absorbed by trace gases in the atmosphere called greenhouse gases’ (GHGs).

We are entering an era when certain environmental conditions will exert a degree of concern which has never been before encountered by man in the course of human history.

The survival of human beings depends on the realisation that they have to live in harmony with the various elements of the environment which are interconnected.
    
(i)     An understanding of the components and processes which takes place in the environment.
    
(ii)     The relationship between different abiotic and biotic components and the assessment of resources with reference to needs of people in a region is essential for their survival.
    
(iii)     A reduction in rate of growth of population in developing countries and a reduction in consumption of resources by developed countries would lead to a balance between population and resources. In this manner, the awareness of the problems faced by environment would enable people to take appropriate decisions. This makes the earth habitable for future generations.

The mass of a body is usually defined as the material content of the body whereas the weight of the body is defined as the force with which the body is attracted towards the earth due to gravity. Therefore, the weight of a body is the product of its mass and acceleration due to gravity. The air in the atmosphere, which is a mixture of several gases has certain mass and although not very dense, will acquire some weight due to gravitational force of attraction when the entire column of the atmosphere from the ground level to the top of it is considered. Pressure is defined as the force for unit area. Therefore, the atmospheric pressure is defined as the force exerted by an air column of units area of cross section extending from earth’s surface to the top of atmosphere. As we go up in the atmosphere the height of the air column decreases, the air also become rarer and the atmospheric pressure decreases with increase in height.

Introduction 
Crop-weather models are sophisticated constructs, meticulously designed to replicate the dynamic and intricate interplay among atmospheric conditions, complex soil processes, nuanced plant physiology, and the decisive influence of human management interventions. The agricultural system is a prime example of a highly interconnected and non-linear system, where changes in one component can ripple through and affect many others, often with time lags and feedback loops. To truly comprehend, effectively design, rigorously develop, and clearly communicate the inner workings of such multifaceted simulations, relying solely on dense textual descriptions or abstract mathematical equations can prove daunting and often insufficient. This is precisely where relationship diagrams emerge as indispensable tools. At their core, relationship diagrams are powerful visual representations that translate the abstract scientific concepts and mathematical formulations embedded within crop-weather models into intuitive graphical formats. They are essentially the architectural blueprints and flowcharts of these complex systems, allowing us to see, rather than just read, how various components of the agricultural ecosystem interact. Imagine trying to understand the intricate wiring of a skyscraper or the precise movements of a symphony orchestra purely from a written description; diagrams provide the essential visual mapping that brings clarity and coherence to complexity. These diagrams are not mere aesthetic additions; they are fundamentally required because of the inherent complexity and interdisciplinary nature of crop modeling. They bridge critical gaps: Bridging Disciplinary Gaps: Agricultural system modeling brings together experts from diverse fields – agronomists who understand plant responses, meteorologists who provide weather insights, soil scientists who grasp soil physics and chemistry, and computer scientists who implement the models.

Key facts

    
•    Though water is the most widely occurring substance on earth, freshwater accounts for only 2.5% whereas the rest of water is saltwater. The agriculture sector uses more than 75% of freshwater available. 
    
•    The current observed climate change impacts on water resources include increased precipitation at high latitudes and temperate areas, decreasing precipitation at low latitudes; decreasing snow covers, and glaciers in most regions; decreasing flows in some river basins; floods and droughts in some countries and significant decreases in lake and river size in Africa.
    
•    A number of climate models projected that a doubling of atmospheric concentrations of CO₂ would increase global precipitation by at least 5%.  The precipitation is expected to increase in some areas, such as, at high latitudes and in the tropics (south east monsoon regions and over the tropical Pacific), whereas the precipitation is likely to decrease in the sub-tropics (e.g. much of North Africa and northern Sahara).

Introduction

Plant growth and productivity are adversely affected by various abiotic stresses. Plants are frequently exposed to a plethora of stress conditions such as low temperature, salt, drought, flooding, heat, and oxidative stress. Various anthropogenic activities have accentuated the existing stress factors. All these stress factors prevent them from reaching their full genetic potential and limit the crop productivity. In the event of growing concerns of uncertainties in climatic conditions, the abiotic stresses have become the major threat to agriculture production worldwide (Bray et al., 2000). The plant responses to abiotic stress condition are believed to be complex in nature as these are the reflections of integration of stress effects and responses at various levels of plant organization. To provide tolerance against stresses, plants are equipped with several inbuilt physiological and biochemical mechanisms occurring at cellular level. An understanding of processes linked to these mechanisms is vital in optimizing the crop growth and productivity under stress conditions.

Key facts

    
•    Fish is an important source of animal protein for billions of people (estimate 2.6 billion people). About 200 million people and their dependants worldwide, mostly in developing countries, live by fishing and aquaculture. 
    
•    Fish living in temperate and Polar Regions could be benefited from climate changes since an increase in water temperature would extend the fish growing season. Moreover, rising temperature could reduce over-wintering stress normally experienced by temperate fishes.
    
•    Rise of temperature may cause a decrease in dissolved oxygen (DO) or hypoxic conditions (as temperature and DO are inversely related) and can impair fish reproduction and may cause endocrine disruption in fish (increase incidence of malformations and may alter sex differentiation and sex determination in fish).
    
•    Bioavailability and toxicity of common pollutants such as pesticides and heavy metals may be enhanced with increasing temperatures. Therefore, exposure of toxicants at elevated temperatures may cause a decline in recreational and commercial fisheries.

Introduction

The age-old necessities of life are food, clothing and shelter. The 20^th century had dramatized a fourth-energy. Energy starvation of the technological complex that maintains modern society may soon be as crucial a problem as feeding the hungry. Indeed, energy starvation could well precipitate more wide spread food starvation. Solutions for the energy crisis are strongly dependent on the technology of how energy is produced and used. To make a physical change in the world it is necessary to use four resources: energy, matter, space and time. How well a task has been performed can be measured in terms of amount of fuel consumed, the mass of material used, the space occupied, the hours of labour to accomplish it, and the ingenuity with which these resources are utilized. Squandering of irreplaceable energy resources, waste of materials, or large expenditure of space and time cannot be tolerated if the necessities of life are to be provided for all. Energy is intricately linked to development of a country. Growing demand on account of industrialization, urbanization, transportation and also increase consumption in rural areas is putting added pressure on energy supply network. Electricity generation has been increased from 1,400 MW in the year 1947 to 303,118 MW up to August 31, 2016 in India but still there is 10-15% shortage of power in peak hours and all villages are not electrified. Even many electrified villages receive 6 to 8 hours of electricity per day in India. To overcome this shortage there is a need to utilise new and renewable sources of energy. Fortunately, India is blessed with abundant solar energy. The arid parts of India receives much more radiation as compared to the rest of country i.e. maximum solar radiation i.e. 7600-8000 MJm^-2 (2111-2222 kWhm^-2) per annum, followed by semi-arid parts, 7200-7600 MJm^-2 (2000-2111 kWhm^-2), per annum and least on hilly areas where solar radiation is still appreciable i.e. 6000 MJm^-2 (1667 kWhm^-2) per annum (IMD 1985). In this chapter review of different solar thermal technologies in Indian perspective has been carried out.