Mercury speciation in soil in vicinity of coal beds using sequential extraction

The sequential extraction procedure was proposed and used to study of mercury speciation in real samples of soil. Samples of soil profiles together with bedrock and coal were taken from sampling spots in the vicinity of surficial coal beds in an area with natural coal outcrops. The proposed sequential extraction procedure involves the following fractionation: organic mercury compounds, extractable mercury in an acidic medium, mercury bound to humic substances, elemental Hg and mercury bound to complexes, HgS and residual mercury. The significant distribution of mercury between the two portions—mercury bound to humic substance and HgS was determined in the majority of samples. The mercury bound to humic substances created a significant contribution, especially to the top layer of soil. On the other hand, HgS was the dominant form in the samples from lower layers of the soil profile. The mercury content in the samples did not show a distinct mobility. The influence of soil parameters on the mercury distribution in the studied samples was investigated and discussed.     

Mercury in coal and the impact of coal quality on mercury emissions from combustion systems

The proportion of Hg in coal feedstock that is emitted by stack gases of utility power stations is a complex function of coal chemistry and properties, combustion conditions, and the positioning and type of air pollution control devices employed. Mercury in bituminous coal is found primarily within Fe-sulfides, whereas lower rank coal tends to have a greater proportion of organic-bound Hg. Preparation of bituminous coal to reduce S generally reduces input Hg relative to in-ground concentrations, but the amount of this reduction varies according to the fraction of Hg in sulfides and the efficiency of sulfide removal. The mode of occurrence of Hg in coal does not directly affect the speciation of Hg in the combustion flue gas. However, other constituents in the coal, notably Cl and S, and the combustion characteristics of the coal, influence the species of Hg that are formed in the flue gas and enter air pollution control devices. The formation of gaseous oxidized Hg or particulate-bound Hg occurs post-combustion; these forms of Hg can be in part captured in the air pollution control devices that exist on coal-fired boilers, without modification. For a given coal type, the capture efficiency of Hg by pollution control systems varies according to type of device and the conditions of its deployment. For bituminous coal, on average, more than 60% of Hg in flue gas is captured by fabric filter (FF) and flue-gas desulfurization (FGD) systems. Key variables affecting performance for Hg control include Cl and S content of the coal, the positioning (hot side vs. cold side) of the system, and the amount of unburned C in coal ash. Knowledge of coal quality parameters and their effect on the performance of air pollution control devices allows optimization of Hg capture co-benefit.     

Trace element distribution in US groundwaters: a probabilistic assessment using public domain data

A large database of dissolved-fraction groundwater concentrations for Ag, As, Ba, Be, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, Sb, Se, Tl, Sn, V and Zn was constructed using public domain data. Data analysis techniques for multiply-censored sample populations were used to extract salient information regarding sample populations from the raw data. The results of this work show that trace element concentrations are approximately log-normally distributed. Median values for <90% censored sample populations range from 0.2 to 35 μg l⁻¹. Minimum to maximum concentrations range as high as 7 orders of magnitude for certain elements (e.g. Zn). This work provides a rapid, cost-effective screening tool for evaluating groundwater quality based on observed trace element concentration data.     

Mercury content of the Springfield coal, Indiana and Kentucky

With pending regulation of mercury emissions in United States power plants, its control at every step of the combustion process is important. An understanding of the amount of mercury in coal at the mine is the first step in this process. The Springfield coal (Middle Pennsylvanian) is one of the most important coal resources in the Illinois Basin. In Indiana and western Kentucky, Hg contents range from 0.02 to 0.55 ppm. The variation within small areas is comparable to the variation on a basin basis. Considerable variation also exists within the coal column, ranging from 0.04 to 0.224 ppm at one Kentucky site. Larger variations likely exist, since that site does not represent the highest whole-seam Hg nor was the collection of samples done with optimization of trace element variations in mind. Estimates of Hg capture by currently installed pollution control equipment range from 9–53% capture by cold-side electrostatic precipitators (ESP) and 47–81% Hg capture for ESP + flue-gas desulfurization (FGD). The high Cl content of many Illinois basin coals and the installation of Selective Catalytic Reduction of NO_x enhances the oxidation of Hg species, improving the ability of ESPs and FGDs to capture Hg.     

Estimation using spatially distributed multivariate data: An example with coal quality

A method to estimate several spatially related variables is presented. The method uses principal component analysis to produce cokriging results in a computationally efficient manner and enables a straightforward extension to more than two variables. An example is given that describes the estimation of the coal quality parameters, ash, heating value, and sulfur.     

Estimating the depth of underground coal fires using data integration techniques

Underground coal fires in China cause serious environmental problems, in addition to the loss of valuable coal resources. The present study aims at developing a quick and practical method to estimate the depth of coal fires using data integration techniques.
  In coal fields which have underground coal fires, the subsurface fires are associated with surface thermal anomalies. Airborne thermal infrared scanner data and colour infrared photographs were used in this study to depict the coal fire front and the outcrop of coal seams, respectively. A Digital Elevation Model (DEM) of the study area was produced from topographic maps at 1:25 000 scale. Finally, taking into account the spreading direction of the coal fires and the relationships between thermal anomalies, relief factors and the occurrence of coal seams, the depths of the coal fires were obtained automatically by means of integration of remote sensing data and GIS techniques. This helped to target the fire fighting operations and made them more cost effective.     

MONTBLEX tower observations: Instrumentation,data acquisition and data quality

Tower platforms, with instrumentation at six levels above the surface to a height of 30 m, were used to record various atmospheric parameters in the surface layer. Sensors for measuring both mean and fluctuating quantities were used, with the majority of them indigenously built. Soil temperature sensors up to a depth of 30 cm from the surface were among the variables connected to the mean data logger. A PC-based data acquisition system built at the Centre for Atmospheric Sciences, IISc, was used to acquire the data from fast response sensors. This paper reports the various components of a typical MONTBLEX tower observatory and describes the actual experiments carried out in the surface layer at four sites over the monsoon trough region as a part of the MONTBLEX programme. It also describes and discusses several checks made on randomly selected tower data sets acquired during the experiment. Checks made include visual inspection of time traces from various sensors, comparative plots of sensors measuring the same variable, wind and temperature profile plots, calculation of roughness lengths, statistical and stability parameters, diurnal variation of stability parameters, and plots of probability density and energy spectrum for the different sensors. Results from these checks are found to be very encouraging and reveal the potential for further detailed analysis to understand more about surface layer characteristics.     

The US Geological Survey's national coal resource assessment: the results

The US Geological Survey and the State geological surveys of many coal-bearing States recently completed a new assessment of the top producing coal beds and coal zones in five major producing coal regions—the Appalachian Basin, Gulf Coast, Illinois Basin, Colorado Plateau, and Northern Rocky Mountains and Great Plains. The assessments, which focused on both coal quality and quantity, utilized geographic information system technology and large databases. Over 1,600,000 million short tons of coal remain in over 60 coal beds and coal zones that were assessed. Given current economic, environmental, and technological restrictions, the majority of US coal production will occur in that portion of the assessed coal resource that is lowest in sulfur content. These resources are concentrated in parts of the central Appalachian Basin, Colorado Plateau, and the Northern Rocky Mountains.     

Mercury: reusable metadata management, data discovery and access system

Mercury is a federated metadata harvesting, search and retrieval tool based on both open source packages and custom software developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). It was originally developed for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the consortium now includes funding from NASA, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Mercury is itself a reusable software application which uses a service-oriented architecture (SOA) approach to capturing and managing metadata in support of twelve Earth science projects. Mercury also supports the reuse of metadata by enabling searches across a range of metadata specification and standards including XML, Z39.50, FGDC, Dublin-Core, Darwin-Core, EML, and ISO-19115. It collects metadata and key data from contributing project servers distributed around the world and builds a centralized index. The Mercury search interfaces allows the users to perform simple, fielded, spatial, temporal and other hierarchical searches across these metadata sources. This centralized repository of metadata with distributed data sources provides extremely fast search results (Table 1) to the user, while allowing data providers to advertise the availability of their data and yet maintain complete control and ownership of that data.     

利用地震资料预测煤层古河道冲刷带

为预测沁水盆地西缘某矿区煤层古河道冲刷带,开展了地震波数值正演模拟,利用地震属性分析技术,结合波阻抗反演技术、三维可视化技术等手段,研究了煤层古河道冲刷带分布的特征。后期钻孔验证表明,利用地震资料预测煤层古河道冲刷带的方法是可行的。     

Resource estimation from historical data: Mercury, a test case

A simple technique based on historical records of tonnage and grade of ore produced provides a means for calculating how much of a mineral product will be available in the future at various average grades. Estimates made on this basis are independent of geologic considerations or changing economic and political factors, although they are based on mining history, which was largely determined by these factors. The relatively minor element, mercury, was used for the test case reported here, but the method has been found applicable to forecasts of resources for other mineral products. Mercury resources available in ore in which the average grade is as low as 0.1% are estimated to be 53 ×10 ⁶ kg (1.5 ×10 ⁶ flasks) for the United States and 1551 ×10 ⁶ kg (45 ×10 ⁶ flasks) for the world; this amount is more than adequate to meet predicted demand to the year 2000. The expectable price of mercury in 1978 dollars at this 0.1% grade is projected to be $58.75 per kg ($2,025 per flask), but at a 10% annual inflation rate, it would be more than $12,000 per flask. To satisfy just the projected U.S. demand for mercury by 2000, the price is calculated to be $48.96 per kg ($1,688 per flask) in 1978 dollars at an average annual grade of 0.12%.     

煤层非均质程度测井定量评价方法

针对强非均质性对煤层气开采影响大的特点,通过分析测井渗透率分布规律可定量评价煤层的平面和纵向非均质程度。采用达西公式确定煤层基质渗透率,运用双侧向测井资料估算裂缝渗透率,绘制煤层渗透率贡献率在序数百分数坐标下对应的累积分布曲线,定义坐标变换后累积分布曲线的斜率为非均质程度系数。实际应用表明：非均质程度系数能够反映不同煤层物性在横向和纵向上的差异,进而可定量评价煤层的非均质性。     

High-frequency radar observations of the June 2013 US East Coast meteotsunami

We report here on the observation and offline detection of the meteotsunami off the New Jersey coast on June 13, 2013, using coastal radar systems and tide gauges. This work extends the previous observations of tsunamis originating in Japan and Indonesia. The radars observed the meteotsunami 23 km offshore, 47 min before it arrived at the coast. Subsequent observations showed it moving onshore. The neighboring tide gauge height reading provides confirmation of the radar observations near the shore.     

测井曲线判识构造软煤技术预测煤与瓦斯突出

基于构造软煤与硬煤的物性差异,分析构造软煤分层在测井曲线上的响应特征;根据煤层段测井曲线的形态特征,将揭露区钻孔测井曲线初步判识的结果同钻孔邻近巷道煤壁观测的结果进行对比、验证,形成了一套测井曲线判识构造软煤技术。利用该技术获取了研究区的构造软煤资料,对研究区的煤与瓦斯突出危险性区域进行了预测。     

Tidal tilt observations in the Netherlands using shallow borehole tiltmeters

A small scale experiment with borehole tiltmeters above a gasfield in the Netherlands is described. Pressure variations in the gasfield may cause subsurface deformations leading to tilt. We describe the technique of the installation of the tiltmeters and the influence of the surface conditions on the measurements. For this case study we quantify the minimum pressure variation which is required to result in observable, induced tilt. Tidal tilt observations are shown and used for the verification of the measurements. Finally, we compare the observations with computed ocean tide loading tilt for the M2 tidal component.     

US billion-dollar weather and climate disasters: data sources, trends, accuracy and biases

This paper focuses on the US Billion-dollar Weather/Climate Disaster report by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Climatic Data Center. The current methodology for the production of this loss dataset is described, highlighting its strengths and limitations including sources of uncertainty and bias. The Insurance Services Office/Property Claims Service, the US Federal Emergency Management Agency’s National Flood Insurance Program and the US Department of Agriculture’s crop insurance program are key sources of quantified disaster loss data, among others. The methodology uses a factor approach to convert from insured losses to total direct losses, one potential limitation. An increasing trend in annual aggregate losses is shown to be primarily attributable to a statistically significant increasing trend of about 5 % per year in the frequency of billion-dollar disasters. So the question arises of how such trend estimates are affected by uncertainties and biases in the billion-dollar disaster data. The net effect of all biases appears to be an underestimation of average loss. In particular, it is shown that the factor approach can result in a considerable underestimation of average loss of roughly 10–15 %. Because this bias is systematic, any trends in losses from tropical cyclones appear to be robust to variations in insurance participation rates. Any attribution of the marked increasing trends in crop losses is complicated by a major expansion of the federally subsidized crop insurance program, as a consequence encompassing more marginal land. Recommendations concerning how the current methodology can be improved to increase the quality of the billion-dollar disaster dataset include refining the factor approach to more realistically take into account spatial and temporal variations in insurance participation rates.     

应用测井资料识别煤体结构及分层

煤体结构类型与煤储层孔裂隙特征密切相关,对煤层气开采具有重要意义。以韩城矿区为例,通过对区内的参数井取心样品分析,把煤体结构分为块煤(I类)、块粉煤(II类)、粉煤(III类)。对区内3号、5号和11号煤层的深侧向电阻率测井、井径测井和自然伽玛测井曲线特征进行对比,归纳了各煤体结构的测井曲线组合特征：I和III类煤电阻率曲线和自然伽玛曲线为平滑的箱型或钟形,II类煤则为波动的箱形;II和III类煤扩径严重,且II类煤差异扩径明显。据此,提出了一种利用电阻率测井、井径测井和自然伽玛测井等测井曲线组合识别煤体结构的方法,并利用这种方法准确识别出同一煤层不同煤体结构的分层。