Abstract: Quercus cerris, the Turkey oak, is an oak species native to southern central and southeastern Europe, extending into southwestern Asia. It is present in a large extent in the forests of the Republic of Kosovo, and at present used mainly for bio-energy. The potential use of Q. cerris wood for construction and higher value wood products has been investigated in the last years. However limited information is available on wood characteristics and performance, mainly regarding chemical composition and durability. The heartwood of Q. cerris taken from 70-90 year-old trees grown in two sites in Kosovo was studied regarding resistance to termite attack, chemical composition and hardness. The heartwood contained only 6,7% extractives, with a small content of tannins. The wood density was on average 0,81 at 12% moisture content and Brinell hardness 36,2 N mm-2. It was classified as not durable against subterranean termites and therefore not suitable for external use in ground contact in termite areas unless adequately protected. Nevertheless, Q. cerris wood showed adequate hardness and density for interior uses like flooring for domestic and commercial applications with moderate use.

Resumo O propósito deste trabalho é o desenvolvimento e implementação de um procedimento numérico voltado para o dimensionamento de pilares de concreto armado e pilares mistos de aço e concreto totalmente revestidos. Assim, foi desenvolvido um procedimento computacional para a determinação da capacidade resistente desses pilares, a partir do Método Geral adotado pela ABNT NBR 6118:2014. O programa emprega um processo iterativo a partir da integração das curvaturas ao longo do pilar, obtidas através da determinação da relação momento-curvatura da seção transversal pelo método de Newton-Raphson, com base em um modelo discreto de fibras. Diversos resultados numéricos e experimentais são utilizados em comparações para comprovação da eficácia do procedimento implementado.

Abstract The purpose of this work is the development and implementation of a numerical procedure for the design of reinforced concrete columns (RC) and composite columns with fully concrete encased steel I-section (SC). For this purpose, a computer program was developed to determine the load capacity of these columns, applying the General Method adopted by ABNT NBR 6118:2014. The program is based on an iterative process from integration of the curvatures along the column, obtained by determining the moment-curvature relationship of the cross section by the Newton-Raphson method. Several experimental and numerical results are compared to the program's to demonstrate the accuracy of the procedure.

Our investigation of integrated biological control (IBC) started with an assay testing activity of the predacious yeast Saccharomycopsis crataegensis UFMG-DC19.2 against Penicillium digitatum LCP 4354, a very aggressive fungus that causes postharvest decay in oranges. Under unfavourable environmental conditions, the yeast showed a high potential for control (39.9% disease severity reduction) of this fungus. This result was decisive for the next step, in which S. crataegensis was tested in association with sodium bicarbonate salt, a generally regarded as safe (GRAS) substance. The yeast was able to survive at different concentrations of the salt (1%, 2% and 5%), and continued to grow for a week at the wound site, remaining viable at high population for 14 days on the fruit surface. The yeast alone reduced the severity of decay by 41.7% and sodium bicarbonate alone reduced severity of decay by 19.8%, whereas the application of both led to a delay in the development of symptoms from 2 to 10 days. Ingredients of the formulations were not aggressive to fruits since no lesions were produced in control experiments.

A ABNT NBR 8800 (2008) permite dois critérios para avaliação da força cortante longitudinal resistente última em lajes mistas de aço e concreto: método m-k e método da interação parcial. O método m-k é o método considerado internacionalmente como padrão para o cálculo dessa força cortante longitudinal resistente. Neste método, a resistência das lajes é obtida por regressão linear dos resultados de ensaios realizados com fôrma de uma mesma espessura. O método da interação parcial, por outro lado, surge como alternativa ao método m-k, para melhor explorar o comportamento dúctil dos perfis de fôrma de aço disponíveis no mercado, os projetos de mossas mais bem elaborados e a utilização de vãos maiores. Dentro deste cenário, o objetivo deste trabalho é fazer uma análise comparativa entre estes dois critérios. Para atingir este objetivo, lajes mistas, em escala natural e com diferentes dimensões de vãos e altura total, foram construídas e testadas, na condição de simplesmente apoiadas. A fôrma de aço incorporada utilizada foi o steel-deck MF 50 fabricado pela METFORM. A análise dos resultados revela valores similares da força cortante longitudinal resistente última entre os dois critérios para a fôrma de aço incorporada utilizada.

ABNT NBR 8800 (2008) prescribes two longitudinal shear design criteria for composite slabs with ribbed decking: m-k method and partial interaction method. The m-k method is considered the worldwide standard method. In this method, the longitudinal resistant shear strength is obtained from linear regression of test results. The partial composite method is an alternative to the m-k method and shall be used only for composite slabs with a ductile behavior. In this scenario, the objective of this paper is to compare these two methods with respect to test results of full size composite slabs employing steel-deck MF 50 manufactured by METFORM. The analysis of the comparative study shows good correlation between the two methods with respect to the prediction of the ultimate strength of the tested composite slabs.