Why is guayule particularly useful? Explain
What will be an ideal response?
Guayule can replace natural rubber (latex). In the Second World War, Malayan
plantations were occupied by the Japanese armed forces and it was feared that there would
be no rubber for tires for military and domestic purposes. Plantations of guayule were a
hedge against this problem; the development of artificial rubber also had an effect.
My daughter Katarina is latex intolerant, but materials made from the latex from guayule
(Parthenium argentatum) does not cause the same reaction. Latex intolerance is very
common and if you are asked about allergies when confronting medical procedures and are
latex intolerant, you need to make that clear. Almost 10% of the population has allergic
reactions to Hevea latex, the usual source.
Wood residue from guayule (after resin removal) can be burned for energy. Guayule is also
used as a wood preservative, in pesticides, and in making plastics more flexible as a
plasticizer. See, for example J. D. Bultman, S. L. Chen, and W. W. Schloman, Jr., "The
efficacy of guayule resin as a pesticide," Bioresource. Technol. 35, 201 (1998) and F. S.
Nakayama, P. Chow, D. S. Bajwa, J. A. Youngquist, J. H. Muehl, and A. M. Krzysik,
"Preliminary investigation on the natural durability of guayule (Parthenium argentatum)-
based wood products," paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the International Research
Group on Wood Preservation, Kona, Hawaii, 14 May - 19 May 2000, Document IRG/WP
00-40154.
The Arid Land Agricultural Research Center of the U. S. Department of Agriculture has
additional information on guayule and other dryland plants. The Forest Products
Laboratory of the U. S. Department of Agriculture also has interesting information on
woody species available.
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Fill in the blank(s) with correct word
Exhibit 15-1
A dictator has built a bunker for his use in emergencies. Its dimensions are shown below. When it floods to ground level during a tropical storm, air is trapped above the dashed line in the bunker.
?
?
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Refer to Exhibit 15-1. The absolute pressure at point A, in Pa, is
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