A simulation study on the uncertainty of environmental contours due to sampling variability for different estimation methods

Environmental contours are often used in design of marine structures to identify extreme environmental conditions that may give rise to extreme loads and responses. Recently, attention has been given to the fact that different methods exist for establishing such contours, and that in some cases significant differences may be obtained from the various methods.In this study, another aspect of the uncertainty related to the calculation of environmental contours is addressed, namely the uncertainty due to sampling variability when environmental contours are constructed based on metocean data of finite sample size. The uncertainty of environmental contours for the joint distribution of significant wave height and wave period for different sample sizes (10, 25 and 100 years of data) are investigated considering different underlying datasets and for different estimation methods for the joint distribution. Both cases where samples are drawn from a known joint distribution of wave height and periods and cases where samples are drawn from a real hindcast dataset and fitted to the joint distribution are considered. The uncertainty of the estimated contours is quantified and discussed in light of differences that can be anticipated from the different methods used to calculate the contours. Moreover, the potential bias from assuming different estimation methods is illustrated.     

Probabilistic modeling of ship powering performance using full-scale operational data

The energy efficiency of ocean-going vessels can be increased through various operational considerations, such as improved cargo arrangements and weather routing. The first step toward the goal of maximizing the energy efficiency is to analyze how the ship's powering performance changes under different operational settings and weather conditions. However, existing analytical models and empirical methods have limitations in reliably estimating the powering performance of full-scale ships in real operating conditions. In this study, machine learning techniques are employed to estimate the powering performance of a full-scale ship by constructing regression models using the ship's operational data. In order to minimize the risk of overfitting in the regression process, domain knowledge based on physical principles is combined into the regression models. Also, the uncertainty of the estimated performance is evaluated with consideration of the environmental uncertainties. The obtained regression models can be used to predict the ship speed and engine power under different operational settings and weather conditions.     

Environmental policies and marine engines—effects on the development and adoption of innovations

This study indicates that environmental policy interventions significantly influence the innovation processes for reducing the emissions of marine engine technology. Several different types of interventions have been important and the effect is not directly proportional to the strength or spatial coverage of the intervention. Despite its relative weakness, the MARPOL rule on NO_x emissions has contributed to technology development. We also show that the rise of environmental issues in other fields has had a marked effect on the development of the marine sector and that relatively local interventions can influence innovation even in an international sector like marine transport.     

光电化学阴极保护技术研究进展

海洋环境下的金属面临着非常严峻的腐蚀问题,必须采取措施进行防护.光电化学阴极保护是一种绿色环保的新型防腐蚀技术,受到了广泛的关注.本文简要阐述了光电化学阴极保护技术的原理以及对光阳极的要求;详细介绍了以二氧化钛为代表的几种常见光阳极材料及其不同改性方法;此外还介绍了兼具储能与阴极保护功能的光阳极,它有望实现暗态下连续保护的目标;最后讨论了光电化学阴极保护技术的发展趋势.     

氧掺杂碳气体扩散电极用于电催化产活性氧抗菌防污研究

过氧化氢(H₂O₂)等活性氧(ROS)物质因具有绿色高效的特点,在废水处理、杀菌消毒等领域受到研究者广泛关注。利用电催化生成H₂O₂是一种实时提供活性氧物质的有用方法。然而,目前报道的大多数高性能催化材料都是粉体形式,不便于在实际场景中的应用。因此,制备可直接应用的电极材料显得尤为重要。本研究利用喷涂-热解的制备方法,制备了高活性氧催化活性的氧化炭黑(O−CB)/多孔碳毡电极,通过聚四氟乙烯(PTFE)的修饰优化电极表面的氧气传质,成功制备氧掺杂碳气体扩散电极。研究结果表明,O−CB/PTFE-5 wt%电极具有最高的催化性能,其合成H₂O₂的速率达27.19 mg·L^-1(mg catalyst)^-1·cm^-1·h^-1。海洋典型污损微生物假单胞菌(Pseudomonas sp.)的抗菌实验表明,该电极电催化作用60 min产生的活性氧对Pseudomonas sp.的杀菌率可达到97.69%,作用120 min的杀菌率可达到99.99%。     

Aerospace methods and technologies for monitoring oil and gas areas and facilities

The urgency and specific features of the application of the up-to-date aerospace methods and technologies in order to monitor different oil and gas facilities; study subsurface geology of oil and gas areas; search for oil and gas deposits (particularly in Arctic regions); control oil, gas, and product pipelines; and estimate the environmental conditions in the areas of hydrocarbon production and transportation on land and on the sea are justified and analyzed. The problems in the oil and gas industry which can be solved using aerospace data are systematized. The principles of organization of aerospace monitoring and the physical bases of remote sensing methods for solving different problems in the oil and gas industry are considered. The application of aerospace methods and technologies in order to monitor the environmental conditions in the oil and gas production areas, monitor pipelines, detect pollution of the marine environment with oil products (particularly, after the accident on the oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010), and control the ice conditions in the Arctic oil and gas areas is illustrated.     

Primary production in the Strait of Gibraltar: Carbon fixation rates in relation to hydrodynamic and phytoplankton dynamics

Primary production was studied at nine sites distributed within the Strait of Gibraltar (Southern Spain) and North-Western (NW) Alboran Sea by analyzing photosynthesis-irradiance (P–I) relationships and integrated primary production rates in relation to the different types of Deep Chlorophyll Maxima (DCM) detected in the area. The characteristics of the DCM were examined by several methods, including flow cytometry, quantification of transparent expolymer particles and fluorimetric measurements that were applied in order to assess the photo-physiological state of the phytoplankton assemblages with respect to their species composition and water column structure (hydrology). The photosynthetic parameters (derived from P–I relationships) and integrated primary production (range 6–644 mg m⁻² d⁻¹) responded greatly to the diverse DCM identified and thereby the spatial variability of the primary production observed in the region was found to depend upon the occurrence of the different types of phytoplankton accumulations, which were themselves indicative of the previous history of the water column. The net contribution of the primary production to the air–sea CO₂ exchange process was also evaluated in the area. Results indicated that this region behaved as a net sink for the atmospheric CO₂, with the intensity of the flux being strongly modulated by the wind intensity.     

Symbiodinium diversity within Acropora muricata and the surrounding environment

Several long‐term studies have monitored populations of algal symbionts, Symbiodinium sp., in coral hosts over different temporal and spatial scales, and among multiple host species. The extension of these studies to include environmental pools of algal symbionts from sources such as the water column, sediments, free‐floating mucus mats and those settling on biofilms has only been studied by a few, yet has the potential to enhance our understanding of the dynamics and controls on symbiont populations. Adaptive changes in the coral symbiont complement rely either on the uptake of new strains from the environment or population expansion of rarer strains in the existing symbiont population. The relative scope for these alternative pathways of uptake is unknown. This study therefore examined spatial changes in Symbiodinium clades within the water column at two different time periods and compared these with other environmental pools (biofilms, sediments, and mucus mats) and those within the dominant reef‐building species at the study site, Acropora muricata. A diversity of algal symbiont clades were detected in environmental pools, with specific clades associated with different habitats. At an island scale, there was significant variation in clade composition between sites separated by 0.5–7 km, a result which was repeated for both sample periods encompassing different seasons (March 2009 and August 2010). Although no single environmental pool contained a Symbiodinium complement comparable to that of the host coral species investigated, the dominant coral Symbiodinium were available in combinations of the environmental pools, indicating that the coral has the potential to obtain its symbionts from a variety of environmental sources.     

Evaluation of the "time factor" and "light factor" methods for estimating daily phytoplankton production at the sea surface

Daily phytoplankton production was estimated at the sea surface in the southern Benguela Current during January, March, April and October 1978 by different methods of calculation. Actual daily production (P_{24 meas}) was obtained from a series of short-term (3—4 h) incubations spanning 24 hours. Daily production was also extrapolated from single measurements during daylight by the "time factor" and "light factor" methods of calculation. These estimates (P_{24 calc}) vary considerably from P_{24 meas}, but on average they underestimate daily production. Estimates by the "light factor" method are generally lower and more variable than those from the "time factor" method. Differences in amplitude and timing of fluctuations in the rate of net production during daylight make it impossible to calculate reliable factors for correcting diel variations in photosynthesis when estimating daily production from short-term measurements. It is suggested that the effects of diel variation in production are likely to be less significant in the euphotic zone as a whole than at the sea surface alone.     

Modeling environmental effects on the size-structured energy flow through marine ecosystems. Part 2: Simulations

Numerical simulations using a physiologically-based model of marine ecosystem size spectrum are conducted to study the influence of primary production and temperature on energy flux through marine ecosystems. In stable environmental conditions, the model converges toward a stationary linear log–log size-spectrum. In very productive ecosystems, the model predicts that small size classes are depleted by predation, leading to a curved size-spectrum.It is shown that the absolute level of primary production does not affect the slope of the stationary size-spectrum but has a nonlinear effect on its intercept and hence on the total biomass of consumer organisms (the carrying capacity). Three domains are distinguished: at low primary production, total biomass is independent from production changes because loss processes dominate dissipative processes (biological work); at high production, ecosystem biomass is proportional to primary production because dissipation dominates losses; an intermediate transition domain characterizes mid-production ecosystems. Our results enlighten the paradox of the very high ecosystem biomass/primary production ratios which are observed in poor oceanic regions. Thus, maximal dissipation (least action and low ecosystem biomass/primary production ratios) is reached at high primary production levels when the ecosystem is efficient in transferring energy from small sizes to large sizes. Conversely, least dissipation (most action and high ecosystem biomass/primary production ratios) characterizes the simulated ecosystem at low primary production levels when it is not efficient in dissipating energy.Increasing temperature causes enhanced predation mortality and decreases the intercept of the stationary size spectrum, i.e., the total ecosystem biomass. Total biomass varies as the inverse of the Arrhenius coefficient in the loss domain. This approximation is no longer true in the dissipation domain where nonlinear dissipation processes dominate over linear loss processes. Our results suggest that in a global warming context, at constant primary production, a 2–4 °C warming would lead to a 20–43% decrease of ecosystem biomass in oligotrophic regions and to a 15–32% decrease of biomass in eutrophic regions.Oscillations of primary production or temperature induce waves which propagate along the size-spectrum and which amplify until a “resonant range” which depends on the period of the environmental oscillations. Small organisms oscillate in phase with producers and are bottom-up controlled by primary production oscillations. In the “resonant range”, prey and predators oscillate out of phase with alternating periods of top-down and bottom-up controls. Large organisms are not influenced by bottom-up effects of high frequency phytoplankton variability or by oscillations of temperature.     

Mercury methylation/demethylation and volatilization pathways in estuarine sediment slurries using species-specific enriched stable isotopes

Species-specific enriched stable isotopes have been used to study mercury transformations (methylation, demethylation and volatilization) in estuarine sediments under different environmental conditions (both biotic and abiotic and oxic and anoxic). These experiments have demonstrated the potential for the isotopically enriched species in combination with highly sensitive measurement methods (ICP MS) to facilitate the study of mercury speciation and reactivity. Sediments (sterilized and nonsterilized) were spiked with both isotopically enriched inorganic (¹⁹⁹Hg) and monomethylmercury (MM²⁰¹Hg) at environmental levels to avoid perturbing the system and incubated under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions. The formation of MM¹⁹⁹Hg and the degradation of MM²⁰¹Hg were measured simultaneously during time series experiments by capillary gas chromatography-inductively coupled mass spectrometry. Specific methylation and demethylation rate constants (K_m and K_d) were calculated. Results clearly showed that methylmercury levels in sediments are controlled by competing and simultaneous methylation and demethylation reactions. Operating conditions, likely to drastically modify the reactivity of the media, were of primary importance to assess the relative significance of each mechanism. In estuarine sediments, mercury methylation was enhanced under anaerobic nonsterile conditions, whereas other environmental conditions were either less favorable for monomethylmercury production or more effective for its degradation. The production of total gaseous mercury was found to be minimal, although it could be demonstrated that it was related to the fate and transformation of methylmercury.     

Assessing the performance of the Aichi Biodiversity Targets in Brazil: a test using two regional-scale indices related to coastal and marine ecosystem conservation

One of the main challenges of international environmental agreements is improving relevant policy actions to promote adequate environmental responses. To support the work of decision makers, recent studies have used environmental and social indicators to construct global and regional-scale indices. This study aimed to use the Ocean Health Index and the Management Ranking for Brazilian States to assess Brazil’s performance regarding the Aichi Biodiversity Targets (ABTs) for coastal and marine ecosystems. Thus, six ABTs were matched and their performance was evaluated. These ABTs focused on the following topics: pollution, fish and invertebrate stocks, pressures on coral, threatened species and their conservation, the contribution of biodiversity to carbon stocks and the national biodiversity strategy and action plan. However, although the indices used showed many pathways to explore how Brazil is performing, it is still complex to evaluate ABTs’ performance regarding coastal and marine ecosystems at a global and regional scale.     

基于ST-ConvLSTM的南海海表面CO2分压的空间和时间序列预测

海表面二氧化碳分压(pCO₂)的未来变化趋势,对统计评估全球碳收支以及理解全球气候变化背景下的海洋酸化现象至关重要。目前传统的海面pCO₂预测方法大部分基于有限的实测数据,然而实测数据存在着时间和地理方面的制约,且计算成本较高。近年来,随着时空观测数据的爆炸性增长,基于深度学习的数据驱动模型在海表面pCO₂预测方面中表现出良好的潜力。然而,由于多种环境因素与海表面pCO₂之间的关系错综复杂,到目前为止尚无十分简单有效的相关模型来对海表面pCO₂进行预测。为应对这一挑战,利用时空卷积长短时记忆神经网络(ST-ConvLSTM)模型,通过海面温度(sea surface temperature, SST)、海面盐度(sea surface salinity, SSS)、叶绿素a浓度(chl a)和海面pCO₂数据,预测南海的海面pCO₂,并将2019年1～12月的数据作为测试集对模型的表现进行了验证。结果显示, ST-ConvLSTM模型...     

Carbon to nitrogen (C:N) stoichiometry of the spring–summer phytoplankton bloom in the North Water Polynya (NOW)

The carbon to nitrogen (C:N) stoichiometry of phytoplankton production varied significantly during the spring–summer bloom in the North Water Polynya (NOW), from April through July 1998. The molar ratio of particulate organic carbon (POC) to nitrogen (PON) production by phytoplankton (ΔPOC:ΔPON) increased from 5.8 during April through early June to 8.9 in late June and July. The molar dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) to nitrate+nitrite (NO₃) drawdown ratio (ΔDIC: ΔNO₃) increased from 6.7 in April and May, to 11.9 in June (no estimate for July because of ice melting). The discrepancy between ΔPOC:ΔPON and ΔDIC:ΔNO₃ was likely due to dissolved organic carbon (DOC) production. Increased ΔPOC:ΔPON of phytoplankton and surface water ΔDIC:ΔNO₃ throughout the phytoplankton blooms resulted from changes in physical properties of the upper water column, such as reduced thickness of the surface mixed layer that exposed phytoplankton to increased photosynthetically available radiation (PAR), accompanied by NO₃ depletion. This is expected to have significant effects on the cycling of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) in pelagic ecosystems, as the increased C:N ratio of organic matter decreases its quality as substrate for grazers and microbial communities. Based on ΔPOC:ΔPON, the ratio of POC to chlorophyll a (Chl) production (ΔPOC:ΔChl) and the relationship between Chl yields and NO₃ depletion, we estimate that 71±17% and 46±20% of the depleted NO₃ went to PON production in the euphotic zone over the polynya from April to early June, and late June to July, respectively. The remaining NO₃ was likely channelled to dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) and heterotrophic bacteria, which were not returned to the dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) pool through recycling during the course of the study. Hence, the autotrophic production of organic N and its recycling by the microbial food web were not coupled temporally.     

海水二氧化碳分压测量用水-气平衡器

水-气平衡法被广泛地应用于海水CO₂分压（partial pressure,pCO₂）的测定。该方法采用水-气平衡器,使海水与平衡器上部顶空中的空气进行CO₂交换,达到平衡后测定该顶空空气中CO₂的浓度,再换算成海水pCO₂。水-气平衡器是海水pCO₂测量仪器的关键部件,其性能在很大程度上决定所获得的pCO₂数据的准确度和可靠性。本文介绍了水-气平衡器的平衡原理、平衡器时间常数的测量方法及影响因素,归纳了现有的4种用于海水pCO₂测量的水-气平衡器即喷淋式、鼓泡式、层流式及混合式平衡器的结构与特点,着重介绍了两种新型的水 气平衡器即基于射流器的鼓泡式平衡器和基于球形降膜的层流式平衡器,比较了不同水-气平衡器的尺寸、运行参数及时间常数,分析了设计和应用水-气平衡器时需考虑的因素。本文可为使用水-气平衡器测定海水pCO₂的技术人员提供技术参考。     

Assessment of uncertainty in environmental contours due to parametric uncertainty in models of the dependence structure between metocean variables

A key factor for computing environmental contours is the appropriate modeling of the dependence structure among the environmental variables. It is known that all the information on the dependence structure of a set of random variables is contained in the copulas that define their multivariate probability distribution. Provided that copula parameters are estimated by means of statistical inference using observations, recordings, numerical or historical data, uncertainty is unavoidably introduced in their estimates. Parametric uncertainty in the copulas parameters then introduces uncertainty in the environmental contours. This study deals with the assessment of uncertainty in environmental contours due to parametric uncertainty in the copula models that define the dependence structure of the environmental variables. A point estimation approach is adopted to estimate the statistics of the uncertain coordinates of the environmental contours considering they are given in terms of inverse functions of conditional copulas. A case study is reported using copulas models estimated from storm hindcast data for the Gulf of Mexico. Uncertainty in environmental contours of significant wave height, peak period and wind speed is assessed. The accuracy of the point estimation of the mean and variance of the contour coordinates is validated based on Monte Carlo simulations. A parametric study shows the manner in which greater parametric uncertainty induces larger variability in the environmental contours. The influence of parametric uncertainty for different degrees of association is also analyzed. The results indicate that variability between contours considering parametric uncertainty can be meaningful.     

Protein expression signatures: an application of proteomics

The methods of proteomics, the study of the protein complement of the genome, are applicable to environmental testing. Sets of proteins specific to different stressors can be isolated using computer imaging software. Individual proteins can be identified by mass spectrometry. The Protein Expression Signatures (PES) obtained have potential in diagnosing adverse factors in the environment. The challenge is to demonstrate their feasibility in complex environments. We have shown that PES for three endocrine disrupting compounds in trout (Onchorhynchus mykiss), can be detected in mixed sewage effluent. Other studies support these results. As protein databases expand, identification becomes routine, and capture molecules specific to each protein are developed, the possibility of simple field tests for multiple stressors becomes real.     

Regional study on potential CO2 geosequestration in the Collie Basin and the Southern Perth Basin of Western Australia

Coal-fired power stations in Collie, Western Australia emit 10 million tonnes of CO₂ per year. This study assesses the potential opportunities of geological storage of CO₂ both within the Collie Basin and the onshore part of the adjacent Southern Perth Basin of Western Australia within 50 km of Collie town site through a desktop evaluation of existing data. The aquifers and coal formations within both basins have been evaluated for their suitability for storage based on geological, geographical and environmental criteria related to storage capacity, injectivity, proximity to sources of CO₂, location of other natural resources and containment security. The study has concluded that there is limited scope for large-scale storage of CO₂ within the Collie Basin. In addition the potential for storage within coals of either basin is not a viable solution. This assessment is based on published criteria for CO₂ storage in sedimentary basins and coal-bearing formations.     

Export Production in the Subarctic North Pacific over the Last 800 kyrs: No Evidence for Iron Fertilization?

The subarctic North Pacific is a high nitrate-low chlorophyll (HNLC) region, where phytoplankton growth rates, especially those of diatoms, are enhanced when micronutrient Fe is added. Accordingly, it has been suggested that glacial Fe-laden dust might have increased primary production in this region. This paper reviews published palaeoceanographic records of export production over the last 800 kyrs from the open North Pacific (north of ∼35°N). We find different patterns of export production change over time in the various domains of the North Pacific (NW and NE subarctic gyres, the marginal seas and the transition zone). However, there is no compelling evidence for an overall increase in productivity during glacials in the subarctic region, challenging the paradigm that dust-born Fe fertilization of this region has contributed to the glacial draw down of atmospheric CO₂. Potential reasons for the lack of increased glacial export production include the possibility that Fe-fertilization rapidly drives the ecosystem towards limitation by another nutrient. This effect would have been exacerbated by an even more stable mixed layer compared to today. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Influence of small-molecule material on performance of polymer solar cells based on MEH-PPV:PCBM blend

In this work, the influence of a small-molecule material, tris(8-hydroxyquinoline) aluminum (Alq₃), on bulk heterojunction (BHJ) polymer solar cells (PSCs) is investigated in devices based on the blend of poly(2-methoxy-5-(2-ethylhexyloxy)-1,4-phenylenevinylene) (MEH-PPV) and [6,6]-phenyl-C₆₁-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM). By doping Alq₃ into MEH-PPV:PCBM solution, the number of MEH-PPV excitons can be effectively increased due to the energy transfer from Alq₃ to MEH-PPV, which probably induces the increase of photocurrent generated by excitons dissociation. However, the low carrier mobility of Alq₃ is detrimental to the efficient charge transport, thereby blocking the charge collection by the respective electrodes. The balance between photon absorption and charge transport in the active layer plays a key role in the performance of PSCs. For the case of 5 wt.% Alq₃ doping, the device performance is deteriorated rather than improved as compared with that of the undoped device. On the other hand, we adopt Alq₃ as a buffer layer instead of commonly used LiF. All the photovoltaic parameters are improved, yielding an 80% increase in power conversion efficiency (PCE) at the optimum thickness (1 nm) as compared with that of the device without any buffer layer. Even for the 5 wt.% Alq₃ doped device, the PCE has a slight enhancement compared with that of the standard device after modification with 1 nm (or 2 nm) thermally evaporated Alq₃. The performance deterioration of Alq₃-doped devices can be explained by the low solubility of Alq₃, which probably deteriorates the bicontinuous D-A network morphology; while the performance improvement of the devices with Alq_3 as a buffer layer is attributed to the increased light harvesting, as well as blocking the hole leakage from MEH-PPV to the aluminum (Al) electrode due to the lower highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) level of Alq₃ compared with that of MEH-PPV.