A Comprehensive Method for Fractionating Soil Organic Matter Not Protected and Protected from Decomposition by Physical and Chemical Mechanisms

The objective of this work was to describe a method for isolating meaningful and measurable soil organic matter (SOM) pools that differ in the mechanisms by which they are protected from decomposition. The proposed method is appropriate for soil C stabilization and sequestration studies. Unlike previous fractionation schemes, this procedure allows free SOM located between aggregates (unprotected C pool) and SOM occluded within both macroaggregates and microaggregates (C weakly and strongly protected by physical mechanisms, respectively) to be recovered separately, freed from the soil mineral matrix and the mineral‐associated SOM pool (C pool protected by chemical mechanisms) and thus well suited to advanced chemical characterization by ¹³C‐NMR. Briefly, free SOM is isolated by an initial density separation. Stable macroaggregates are broken up into stable microaggregates and intra‐macroaggregate SOM, which is then separated by density. Finally, intra‐microaggregate SOM is isolated from mineral‐associated SOM by a third density separation after ultrasonic disruption. The SOM dissolved during the fractionation procedure is also recovered. Results obtained on soil samples with contrasting textures suggested that clay content induces a decrease of the proportion of free organic C and an increase of mineral‐associated organic C content. Free SOM is characterized by a marked presence of undecayed organic material and biologically labile substances, such as carbohydrates and proteins. In contrast, SOM occluded within aggregates, especially within microaggregates, represents a more decomposed fraction, relatively enriched in unsubstituted‐aliphatic material, most probably lipid biopolymers.     

Cladocora caespitosa bioconstructions in the Columbretes Islands Marine Reserve (Spain,NW Mediterranean): distribution,size structure and growth

Today, living banks of the coral Cladocora caespitosa appear to be restricted to a few Mediterranean locations and are threatened by the escalating impacts affecting coastal areas. In this study the exceptional occurrence of the Mediterranean coral C. caespitosa in the Columbretes Islands Marine Reserve (NW Mediterranean, Spain) is characterised in terms of spatial distribution, cover area, colony size and growth rates. The coral colonies form beds and banks in rocky bottoms within a semi‐enclosed bay that offers both hydrodynamic protection and high water exchange. The spatial distribution of the C. caespitosa colonies, from 5 to 27 m depth, is highly aggregated, depending on sea‐floor morphology and showing up to 80% of substrate coverage. The annual corallite growth rates obtained through the alizarin red staining method and x‐ray image analysis are similar, and range between 2.55 ± 0.79 mm and 2.54 ± 0.81 mm, respectively. The exceptional nature of these bioconstructions is due to their cumulative cover area, which is comparable in size to the largest C. caespitosa bioconstructions described to date in Mljet National Park (Croatia, Adriatic Sea).     

Mercury partition in the interface between a contaminated lagoon and the ocean: The role of particulate load and composition

After having estimated the patterns of flow to the ocean and found some seasonal and tidal differences, mainly with regard to the relative importance of dissolved and particulate fractions, mercury partitioning at the interface between a contaminated lagoon and the Atlantic Ocean was investigated during four tidal cycles in contrasting season and tidal regimes. Mercury was found to be located predominantely in the particulate fraction throughout the year, contributing to its retention within the system. Seasonal conditions, variations in marine and fluvial signals and processes affecting bed sediment resuspension influenced the character and concentration of suspended particulate matter in the water column. Variation in the nature, levels and partitioning of organic carbon in the particulate fraction affected levels of particulate mercury as well as mercury partitioning. These results highlight the dominant role of suspended particulate matter in the distribution of anthropogenic mercury and reinforce the importance of competitive behavior related to organic carbon in mercury scavenging.     

Becoming coca: A materiality approach to a commodity chain analysis of hoja de coca in Colombia

Coca is a controversial plant, existing on the boundary between legality and illegality. This study aims at providing an analytical technique for discussing the problematic of coca in Colombia. Using new theoretical propositions in human geography, a more‐than‐human approach is adopted to encounter coca holistically. The results are a narrative account of coca's social life as experienced by the researcher following its network of non‐cocaine derivatives. An analytical section invokes the Foucauldian dispositif to the drug trade and utilizes concepts of informed materials and technological zones to describe coca outside a political economy discourse. The research finds that coca's dynamic materiality complicates it as a commodity and that these conventional approaches do not fully encapsulate this complexity. By grappling with the messiness of coca's materiality, this paper reveals the multiplicity and interplay of coca's definitions, which lie at the heart of many conflicts.     

Life-cycle based design of mass dampers for the Chilean region and its application for the evaluation of the effectiveness of tuned liquid dampers with floating roof

The assessment of the effectiveness of mass dampers for the Chilean region within a multi-objective decision framework utilizing life-cycle performance criteria is considered in this paper. The implementation of this framework focuses here on the evaluation of the potential as a cost-effective protection device of a recently proposed liquid damper, called tuned liquid damper with floating roof (TLD-FR). The TLD-FR maintains the advantages of traditional tuned liquid dampers (TLDs), i.e. low cost, easy tuning, alternative use of water, while establishing a linear and generally more robust/predictable damper behavior (than TLDs) through the introduction of a floating roof. At the same time it suffers (like all other liquid dampers) from the fact that only a portion of the total mass contributes directly to the vibration suppression, reducing its potential effectiveness when compared to traditional tuned mass dampers. A life-cycle design approach is investigated here for assessing the compromise between these two features, i.e. reduced initial cost but also reduced effectiveness (and therefore higher cost from seismic losses), when evaluating the potential for TLD-FRs for the Chilean region. Leveraging the linear behavior of the TLD-FR a simple parameterization of the equations of motion is established, enabling the formulation of a design framework that beyond TLDs-FR is common for other type of linear mass dampers, something that supports a seamless comparison to them. This framework relies on a probabilistic characterization of the uncertainties impacting the seismic performance. Quantification of this performance through time-history analysis is considered and the seismic hazard is described by a stochastic ground motion model that is calibrated to offer hazard-compatibility with ground motion prediction equations available for Chile. Two different criteria related to life-cycle performance are utilized in the design optimization, in an effort to support a comprehensive comparison between the examined devices. The first one, representing overall direct benefits, is the total life-cycle cost of the system, composed of the upfront device cost and the anticipated seismic losses over the lifetime of the structure. The second criterion, incorporating risk-averse concepts into the decision making, is related to consequences (repair cost) with a specific probability of exceedance over the lifetime of the structure. A multi-objective optimization is established and stochastic simulation is used to estimate all required risk measures. As an illustrative example, the performance of different mass dampers placed on a 21-story building in the Santiago area is examined.     

Web-oriented GIS system for monitoring, conservation and law enforcement of the Brazilian Amazon

A web GIS (WGIS) system for the Brazilian Amazon, named ImazonGeo and based on open source and public domain data, is presented. ImazonGeo was built following three principles. First, the system is based on Spatial Data Infrastructure architecture and web interface built using free software and public domain data. Second, we went beyond visualization of maps and spatial queries by providing information obtained with spatial analysis models. To do that, we designed a database that stores the results of previously defined spatial analyses and developed customized reports and query tools to facilitate fast access of information by end-users. Finally, the system is application-oriented in the areas of forest monitoring, conservation and forest law enforcement, meaning that it aims to contribute to support the protection of Brazilian Amazon forests. We illustrate these principles by presenting ImazonGeo’s technology, architecture, content and tools. Moreover, we present two successful cases to demonstrate how the system is being used. We conclude the paper discussing the challenges and potential solutions to turning our WGIS-SDI system into an internet hub of geo-information about the Brazilian Amazon.     

A neuro fuzzy approach to recognize rock magnetic and lithological patterns in a stratigraphic well from the Llanos Foreland Basin (Colombia)

The Neuro Fuzzy System (NFS) is a hybrid algorithm that combines fuzzy logic with neural networks. Since it can be used as a pattern recognition technique, we explore its potential to characterize the major lithological units encompassed by the first 512 m of the Colombian stratigraphic well Saltarin 1A (Guayabo and León Formations). Thus, we employ the NFS to infer the magnetic remanence S-ratio using bulk magnetic susceptibility (κ), κ-normalized saturation isothermal magnetization (SIRM κ) and/or volume of shale (V_sh) obtained from a gamma-ray log. The best results in terms of their corresponding Root Mean-Square Error (RMSE) values, throughout most of the upper Guayabo Formation, where magnetite seems to be an important magnetic phase, are attained with logκ and SIRM κ as input variables. Beyond 350 m downcore, the quality of the inference decreases over the León Formation, characterized by a significant presence of pyrrhotite. However, the extra input variable V_sh adjusts the inferred S-ratio to their experimental counterparts throughout this formation suggesting that the early diagenesis process that led to the formation of dispersed clay in these samples was also responsible for the formation of pyrrhotite. Hence the inclusion of manifold input data increases the ability of the net to predict S-ratio in complex geological settings with a sequence of changing lithologies, varying amounts and types of magnetic minerals, and different distributions of mineral grain sizes. In case these variables do not properly infer the actual S-ratio data, the extent of the different lithostratigraphic units would be still identifiable in some cases by the uneven quality of the correlation observed between inferred and experimental values.     

Disentangling the role of the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans during the Amazonian droughts in 2015

Theoretical and Applied Climatology - El Niño events lead to worldwide changes in the inter-annual variability of precipitation, and more in particular to South America droughts. In the year...