• Energy Research

Two models were developed to simulate energy flows in a mangrove area of A. germinans and A. bicolor in the Bay of Panama, considering the importance of these areas in CO2 fixation. The first model (black box) consisted of the use of artificial neural networks for estimation, using meteorological data and energy flows calculated by the Eddy Covariance method for model training. The second model (grey box) used the RC circuit theory, considering a non-steady state model for the flow of water from the ground to the atmosphere. A methodology was developed to reduce the uncertainty of the data collected by the sensors in the field. The black box model managed to predict the fluxes of latent heat (R2 > 0.91), sensible heat (R2 > 0.86), CO2 (R2 > 0.88), and the potential of water in the air (R2 > 0.88) satisfactorily, while the grey box model generated R2 values of 0.43 and 0.37, indicating that it requires further analysis regarding the structuring of the equations and parameters used. The application of the methodology to filter the data improved the effectiveness of the model during the predictions, reducing the computational capacity necessary for the resolution of the iterations.

Trees are resources that provide multiple benefits, such as the conservation of fauna, both terrestrial and marine, a source of food and raw material, and offering protection in storms, which makes it practical to understand their behavior against different phenomena. Such understanding may be possible through process modeling. Studies confirm that mangrove forests can store more carbon than other forests, influencing the fight against global warming. Thus, a critical and systematic review was carried out regarding studies focusing on mangroves to collect information on the models that have been applied and the most influential variables highlighted by other authors. Applying a systematic search for the most relevant topics related to mangroves (basic as well as recent information), it is possible to group models and methods carried out by other authors to respond to certain behaviors presented by mangroves. Moreover, possible structuring of a mathematical model applied to a species of interest thanks to the analyzed references could provide justified information to the authorities on the importance of these forests and the benefits of their preservation and regeneration-recovery.