Radiocarbon application in dating “complex” hot and cold CO2-rich mineral water systems: A review of case studies ascribed to the northern Portugal

The use of radioactive isotopes plays a very important role in dating groundwater, providing an apparent age of the systems in the framework of the aquifers conceptual modelling making available important features about the water fluxes, such as recharge, horizontal flow rates and discharge. In this paper, special emphasis has been put on isotopic constraints in the use of δ¹³C and ¹⁴C content as a dating tool in some hot (76 °C) and cold (17 °C) CO₂-rich mineral waters discharging in the Vilarelho da Raia–Pedras Salgadas region (N-Portugal). The radiocarbon content determined in these CO₂-rich mineral waters (¹⁴C activity from 4.3 up to 9.9 pmc) is incompatible with the systematic presence of ³H (from 1.7 to 7.9 TU). The δ¹³C values of the studied CO₂-rich mineral waters indicate that the total C in the recharge waters is being masked by larger quantities of CO₂ (¹⁴C-free) introduced from deep-seated (upper mantle) sources. This paper demonstrates that a good knowledge of mineral water systems is essential to allow hydrologists to make sound conclusions on the use of C isotopic data in each particular situation.     

Performance of the L2C civil GPS signal under various ionospheric scintillation effects

As GPS is modernizing, there are currently fourteen satellites transmitting L2C civil code and seven satellites transmitting L5 signal. While the GPS observables are subject to several sources of errors, the ionosphere is one of the largest error sources affecting GPS signals. Small irregularities in the electrons density along the GPS radio signal propagation path cause ionospheric scintillation that is characterized by rapid fluctuations in the signal amplitude and phase. The ionospheric scintillation effects are stronger in equatorial and high-latitude geomagnetic latitude regions and occur mainly due to equatorial anomaly and solar storms. Several researchers have analyzed the L2C signal quality since becoming available in December, 2005. We analyze the performance of L2C using GPS data from stations in the equatorial region of Brazil, which is subject of weak, moderate and strong ionospheric scintillation conditions. The GPS data were collected by Septentrio PolaRxS–PRO receivers as part of the CIGALA/CALIBRA network. The analysis was performed as a function of scintillations indexes S4 and Phi60, lock time (time interval in seconds that the carrier phase is tracked continuously without cycle slips), multipath RMS and position variation of precise point positioning solutions. The analysis shows that L2C code solutions are less affected by multipath effects than that of P2 when data are collected under weak ionospheric scintillation effects. In terms of analysis of positions, the kinematic PPP results using L2C instead P2 codes show accuracy improvements up to 33 % in periods of weak or strong ionospheric scintillation. When combining phase and code collected under weak scintillation effects, the results by applying L2C against P2 provide improvement in accuracy up to 59 %. However, for data under strong scintillation effects, the use of L2C for PPP with code and phase does not provide improvements in the positioning accuracy.     

Seasonal variations of water quality in a highly populated drainage basin,SE Brazil: water chemistry assessment and geochemical modeling approaches

The São João Drainage Basin is a very important and strategic waterbody located in the Lagos Region, Rio de Janeiro State, one of the most popular tourist regions of Brazil. However, the fast economic and subsequent population growth in that region has created untreated wastes from several anthropogenic activities, which include the trace metals disposal into the surface waterbody. This study aims to relate the major ions and trace metals behavior during a 1-year sampling campaign and to provide information about the sources of chemical constituents and the factors that control their concentrations in the three main fluvial compartments of the drainage basin, including the Juturnaíba Reservoir which has a crucial role for water supply in the Lagos Region. The chemical data reveal that rainfall is the main factor responsible for the physicochemical parameters and the water dissolved constituent’s variations. The geological and anthropogenic factors which are the main sources of water constituents were assessed by the Inorganic Chemical Index. Those data corroborate the great influence of rainfall and reveal the importance of anthropogenic sources of chemical constituents in some parts of the Juturnaíba Reservoir. The geochemical modeling suggests that hydrolysis reactions are primarily responsible for the trace metals availability in the three fluvial compartments in both dry and wet seasons, followed by carbonate and sulfate complexation.     

Fluvial carbon export and CO2 efflux in representative nested headwater catchments of the eastern La Plata River Basin

This study involved a baseline evaluation of fluvial carbon export and degas rates in three nested rural catchments (1 to 80 km²) in Taboão, a representative experimental catchment of the Upper Uruguay River Basin. Analyses of the carbon content in stream waters and the catchment carbon yield were based on 4‐year monthly in situ data and statistical modeling using the United States Geological Survey load estimator model. We also estimated p CO₂ and degas fluxes using carbonate equilibrium and gas‐exchange formulas. Our results indicated that the water was consistently p CO₂ saturated (~90% of the cases) and that the steep terrain favors high gas evasion rates. The mean calculated fluvial export was 5.4 tC·km^?2·year^?1 with inorganic carbon dominating (dissolved inorganic carbon:dissolved organic carbon ratio >4), and degas rates (~40 tC km^?2·year^?1) were nearly sevenfold higher than the downstream export. The homogeneous land use in this nested catchment system results in similar water‐quality characteristics, and therefore, export rates are expected to be closely related to the rainfall–runoff relationships at each scale. Although the sampling campaigns did not fully reproduce storm‐event conditions and related effects such as flushing or dilution of in‐stream carbon, our results indicated a potential link between dissolved inorganic carbon and slower hydrological pathways related to subsurface water storage and movement.     

Fossil Fuel Saving through a Direct Solar Energy Water Heating System

The global warming and energy crisis is motivating the search for sustainable power sources. The objective of this work is to analyze the economic return and quantify the reduction in the emission of pollutants, when low‐cost solar collectors are used as a partial substitute for a boiler that uses fuel oil as the energy source, in order to heat water for the swimming pools of the Physical Education Center, Federal University of Santa Maria. The collectors are made from PVC and other easily acquired materials. The estimations for energy saving are based on a collecting area of 182 m². From knowledge of the collectors' efficiency, the mathematical demonstration shows a fuel oil saving of 13,174 kg, representing 24% of the total amount consumed per annum. The investment required for the construction and installation of the collectors is US$ 6,445 and the estimated useful live is five years. The internal rate of return is 30%. The emission of pollutants is reduced by a considerable amount of 41,213 kg CO₂ equivalent/year. The use of direct sun energy as an alternative power source represents a significant economic interest as well as contributing to the mitigation of greenhouse gases.     

Input of Sr/Sr ratios and Sr geochemical signatures to update knowledge on thermal and mineral waters flow paths in fractured rocks (N-Portugal)

Strontium isotopes and other geochemical signatures are used to determine the relationships between CO₂-rich thermal (Chaves: 76 °C) and mineral (Vilarelho da Raia, Vidago and Pedras Salgadas: 17 °C) waters discharging along one of the major NNE–SSW trending faults in the northern part of mainland Portugal. The regional geology consists of Hercynian granites (syn-tectonic-310 Ma and post-tectonic-290 Ma) intruding Silurian metasediments (quartzites, phyllites and carbonaceous slates). Thermal and mineral waters have ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr isotopic ratios between 0.716713 and 0.728035. ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr vs. 1/Sr define three end-members (Vilarelho da Raia/Chaves, Vidago and Pedras Salgadas thermal and mineral waters) trending from rainfall composition towards that of the CO₂-rich thermal and mineral waters, indicating different underground flow paths. Local granitic rocks have ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios of 0.735697–0.789683. There is no indication that equilibrium was reached between the CO₂-rich thermal and mineral waters and the granitic rocks. The mean ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratio of the thermal and mineral waters (0.722419) is similar to the Sr isotopic ratios of the plagioclases of the granitic rocks (0.71261–0.72087). The spatial distribution of Sr isotope and geochemical signatures of waters and the host rocks suggests that the thermal and mineral waters circulate in similar but not the same hydrogeological system. Results from this study could be used to evaluate the applicability of this isotope approach in other hydrogeologic investigations.     

Opportunistic macroalgae metrics for transitional waters. Testing tools to assess ecological quality status in Portugal

Macroalgae communities constitute one of the ecological quality elements for the evaluation of the ecological quality status (EQS) of coastal and transitional waters, required to implement the WFD. While these algae are natural components of estuarine systems and play important roles in several estuarine processes, macroalgal blooms are of ecological concern because they can reduce the habitat quality. Several works are being carried out to set standard methods for monitoring macroalgae blooms, in order to develop tools to derive EQS based upon this biological quality element. The aim of this paper is to apply the methodology described by Scanlan et al. [Scanlan, C.M., Foden, J., Wells, E., Best, M.A., 2007. The monitoring of opportunistic macroalgal blooms for the water framework directive. Marine Pollution Bulletin 55, 162–171] to a series of data assembled in the south arm of the Mondego estuary (Atlantic coast of Portugal) considering two different ecological situations. Additionally, an alternative assessment method intended to be used when no biomass data are available was also tested. In general, both options captured the inter-annual variations in accordance with the system evolution. Option 2, less expensive and time-consuming, allowed an EQS evaluation with accurate results when biomass data were not available. The results suggest that sampling should be carried out from April to June.     

Overwash vulnerability assessment based on long-term washover evolution

An integrated methodology for evaluation of overwash vulnerability is developed with respect to the historical washover evolution of a barrier island system. Three different aspects of overwash are addressed in the vulnerability indices developed: overwashed shoreline ratio, maximum overwash intrusion recurrence, and complete barrier overwash. The indices were applied to the barriers in the Ria Formosa system in Southern Portugal using an aerial photography catalogue covering the period 1947–2001. Historical trends of washover evolution were observed to be different between the barriers analysed, but generally, there was a decrease in washover number and dimensions throughout the analysed period. The final overwash diagnostic obtained allowed an integrated overwash vulnerability rating to be defined for each barrier, with vulnerabilities ranging from low to extreme. The methodology has produced results that may assist coastal managers with information concerning barrier island system overwash hazard, define the temporal and geographical distributions of overwash, and provide indications as to where overwash is most likely to occur in the future.     

Evaluation and modeling of runoff and sediment yield for different land covers under simulated rain in a semiarid region of Brazil

This paper quantifies the runoff and sediment yield for four different land covers in a semiarid region of Brazil. The WESP model, a distributed, event-oriented runoff-erosion model, was applied and its physical parameters, N_s and K_R, were adjusted based on observed runoff and sediment yield data using simulated rainfall with an average intensity of 53 mm h^-1. The sediment yield obtained was 53.02 kg ha^-1 (caatinga vegetation), 231.96 kg ha^-1 (bare soil), 309.75 kg ha^-1 (beans), and 847.38 kg ha^-1(corn). The results showed that caatinga cover yields the lowest erosion and runoff when compared to the other treatments. The results also show that the sediment yield and runoff values simulated with N_s, K_I, and K_R parameters were well calibrated, within acceptable deviations. The caatinga vegetation was more effective in protecting the soil, when compared to the other types of coverage. The beans and corn covers had the highest values of runoff and sediment yield, even higher than those observed for bare soil.     

Vertical deformation partitioning across a collapsing large and hot orogen

Featuring 3 000-km-long large and hot orogen, the Mantiqueira Province provides a rare opportunity to study the process of gravitational collapse at mid to deep crustal levels. Distinct but contemporary (~500 Ma) post-collisional intrusions show structures and anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) fabrics related to their emplacements, recording different flow patterns. In southern deep-seated intrusions, ellipsoidal-shaped roots with gabbroic-to-hybrid cores surrounded by granitic rocks show concentric patterns of AMS fabrics that cut across the NE-trending regional foliation. In contrast, northern intrusions, exposed as the upper sections of batholith-size bodies of coarse-grained granite emplaced at the shallow to mid-crust, show general NS-trending magnetic fabrics roughly parallel to strike of the orogen and the regional foliation of host rocks. These contrasting magnetic patterns from shallow to deeper crust suggest vertical magma migration from the overthickened orogenic core to be emplaced across its thinner stretched flanks during the gravitational collapse of the orogenic edifice.