In situ Mixing of Organic Matter Decreases Hydraulic Conductivity of Denitrification Walls in Sand Aquifers

In a previous study, a denitrification wall was constructed in a sand aquifer using sawdust as the carbon substrate. Ground water bypassed around this sawdust wall due to reduced hydraulic conductivity. We investigated potential reasons for this by testing two new walls and conducting laboratory studies. The first wall was constructed by mixing aquifer material in situ without substrate addition to investigate the effects of the construction technique (mixed wall). A second, biochip wall, was constructed using coarse wood chips to determine the effect of size of the particles in the amendment on hydraulic conductivity. The aquifer hydraulic conductivity was 35.4 m/d, while in the mixed wall it was 2.8 m/d and in the biochip wall 3.4 m/d. This indicated that the mixing of the aquifer sands below the water table allowed the particles to re-sort themselves into a matrix with a significantly lower hydraulic conductivity than the process that originally formed the aquifer. The addition of a coarser substrate in the biochip wall significantly increased total porosity and decreased bulk density, but hydraulic conductivity remained low compared to the aquifer. Laboratory cores of aquifer sand mixed under dry and wet conditions mimicked the reduction in hydraulic conductivity observed in the field within the mixed wall. The addition of sawdust to the laboratory cores resulted in a significantly higher hydraulic conductivity when mixed dry compared to cores mixed wet. This reduction in the hydraulic conductivity of the sand/sawdust cores mixed under saturated conditions repeated what occurred in the field in the original sawdust wall. This indicated that laboratory investigations can be a useful tool to highlight potential reductions in field hydraulic conductivities that may occur when differing materials are mixed under field conditions.     

Intelligent ship traffic monitoring for oil spill prevention: risk based decision support building on AIS

The paper describes a model, which estimates the risk levels of individual crude oil tankers. The intended use of the model, which is ready for trial implementation at The Norwegian Coastal Administrations new Vard? VTS (Vessel Traffic Service) centre, is to facilitate the comparison of ships and to support a risk based decision on which ships to focus attention on. For a VTS operator, tasked with monitoring hundreds of ships, this is a valuable decision support tool. The model answers the question, "Which ships are likely to produce an oil spill accident, and how much is it likely to spill?".     

Prevention of oil spill from shipping by modelling of dynamic risk

This paper presents a new dynamic environmental risk model, with intended use within a new, dynamical approach for risk based ship traffic prioritisation. The philosophy behind this newly developed approach is that shipping risk can be reduced by directing efforts towards ships and areas that have been identified as high priority (high risk), prior to a potential accident. The risk model proposed in this paper separates itself from previous models by drawing on available information on dynamic factors and by focusing on the ship's surroundings. The model estimates the environmental risk of drift grounding accidents for oil tankers in real time and in forecast mode, combining the probability of grounding with oil spill impact on the coastline. Results show that the inherent dynamic risk introduced by an oil tanker sailing along the North Norwegian coast depends, not surprisingly, significantly upon wind and ocean currents, as well as tug position and cargo oil type. Results of this study indicate that the risk model is well suited for real time risk assessment, and effectively separates low risk and high risk situations. The model is well suited as a tool to prioritise oil tankers and coastal segments. This enables dynamic risk based positioning of tugs, using both real-time and projected risk, for effective support in case of a drifting ship situation.     

Analyzing shallow faulting at a site in the Wasatch fault zone, Utah, USA, by integrating seismic, gravity, magnetic, and trench data

Gravity, magnetic, and seismic surveys were conducted across the Wasatch fault zone east of Springville, Utah, near the mouth of Hobble Creek Canyon. The geophysical data were acquired, processed, and interpreted to determine possible locations of larger [total offset greater than 6 ft (1.8 m)], shallow normal faults within the fault zone. Interpretations of the individual data sets were integrated to help eliminate spurious readings and to strengthen the interpretations. Visual methods of integration, along with computer modeling, were chosen for this study. Furthermore, the geophysical data were correlated and integrated with available trench data and surface data. In addition to verifying locations of known faults, the geophysical surveys detected numerous possible additional faults not previously mapped. Of particular interest is a newly discovered graben structure near the southern end of the site, where building of new homes has recently been proposed.

New structural information about fault densities and styles was also determined from the surveys. The fault concentration for this site is 1.3 faults/100 ft (30.5 m), or one fault per 77 ft (23.5 m). Interpreted antithetic faults at the Hobble Creek site account for 65% of the total, while synthetic faults account for 35% with respect to the main fault strand.

Information derived from this study should be useful during planning and development of areas within the Wasatch fault zone. The characteristics of subsurface deformation can be used to gain a better understanding of the potential for surface rupture at a given site. This is also useful in planning appropriate site development and remedial measures to help mitigate hazards associated with large-magnitude earthquakes.     

Studies on the flotation of sulphides. I. The effect of Cu(II) ions on the flotation of zinc sulphide

The effect of Cu(II) ions on the froth flotation of ZnS in the absence of any collector has been studied in a Fuerstenau microflotation cell. The flotation of pure synthetic ZnS, in both cubic and hexagonal modifications, can be greatly enhanced by the adsorption of traces of Cu(II) ions. In the case of cubic ZnS, the “activating” effect of Cu(II): (a) involves the stoichiometric replacement of one Zn(II) ion in the lattice by one Cu(II) ion from solution at a rate which is independent of pH (1–5); (b) is noticeable at coverages corresponding to as little as 0.1% of a monolayer, reaches a maximum at coverages of 2–100% of a monolayer, and decreases again at higher coverages; (c) is unaffected by the presence or absence of O₂, by variation of the pH of flotation (6–10), by heating in vacuum at 250°C for two hours or by storing in the dry state for over one year; and (d) does not appear to involve any significant change in surface area or in the state of aggregation of the particles.     

Thicknesses of some lunar mare basalt flows and ejecta blankets based on chemical kinetic data

Data on the kinetics of some chemical reactions occurring in lunar samples are used to estimate cooling rates over limited temperature ranges. These results, together with data on thermal conductivity and specific heats of lunar samples, have been applied to estimate the thicknesses of the cooling units.Estimates for mare basalts indicate that they were derived from cooling units no thicker than 10 m. Breccias are derived from cooling units up to a few meters in thickness. This suggests that most lunar breccias are the product of a series of relatively local events rather than large basin-forming events. If this conclusion is correct, the significance of the radiometric ages of lunar breccias needs to be re-evaluated, as does the assignment of breccias to individual basin-forming events on the basis of their trace element contents. If the breccias are a product of the major basin-forming events, it is unlikely that so many would show an age of about 4.0 b.y. It is likely that a large proportion of materials sampled would have escaped resetting by these major events, and a wider spread of ages would be observed. Attempts to link a given breccia to a specific basin-forming event on the basis of its crystallization age therefore appear to be unfounded.     

A lunar rock of deep crustal origin: sample 76535

Lunar sample 76535 is a coarse-grained troctolitic granulite exhibiting a texture indicative of long annealing times. It is composed of homogeneous crystals of plagioclase (58 per cent, An₉₆), olivine (37 per cent, Fo₈₈) and bronzite (4 per cent, En₈₆).Chromian spinel-bronzite-diopside (Wo₄₆En₅₀Fs₄) symplectic intergrowths commonly occur along olivine-plagioclase boundaries and as tiny inclusions within olivine grains. These symplectites apparently formed by a reaction of the type:

$\text{OI + An + Chromite → Opx + Cpx + Al-Mg-chromite}$

. The reaction is related to the experimentally determined reaction

$\text{OI + An = Opx + Cpx + Sp}$

of Kushiro and Yoder (1966). The enstatite content of the diopside coexisting with the bronzite indicates equilibration at about 1000°C. Thermodynamic calculations for 1000°C indicate that the symplectites formed at a minimum pressure of about 0.6 kb. Low alumina contents of the pyroxenes indicate equilibration near this minimum pressure.Clusters of the same assemblage found in the symplectic intergrowths, but containing accessory metal, troilite, Ca-phosphates, baddeleyite, plagioclase and/or K-feldspar occur sporadically throughout the rock. These apparent late stage products crystallized in the low temperature-high pressure region discussed above.Phase relations of co-existing metal phases indicate that the rock cooled at a few tens of degrees/my, corresponding to depths of 10–20 km below the lunar surface, in agreement with the above pressure estimate.We infer that 76535 represents an original cumulate deposited at a depth between about 10 and 30 km. The last liquid crystallized in the relatively high pressure-low temperature field opx + cpx + Al-Mg-chromite. Cooling was extremely slow and accompanied by extensive chemical and textural re-equilibration. Reaction to form the symplectites occurred during the late stages of re-equilibration.     

The geochemistry of selenium associated with coal waste in the Elk River Valley,Canada

Selenium (Se) concentrations more than 12 times greater than the provincial freshwater quality guideline (2 µg/L) were detected in the Elk River downstream from the five open-pit coal mines in southeastern British Columbia's Elk River Valley. To identify possible sources of Se to the Elk River, samples from the coal-bearing Mist Mountain Formation were studied using X-ray diffraction, elemental and oxide analyses, sequential extractions and heavy liquid separation. Between 2.5 and 21.3% of the total Se in the five types of materials studied is water-soluble and 1.0 to 10.6% is associated with hydrous ferric and manganese oxides. Se associated with sulphides and organic material varies between 60 and 84% of the total Se and Se in the silicate structure varies from 5.9 to 24.7%. The ratio of sulphides to the total of organic carbon is well-correlated with the amount of Se in materials closely associated with coal seams containing less than 6 mg/kg of Se (r=0.916). This may suggest that the amount of organic matter present during deposition affects the amount of Se incorporated into sulphides.     

Opportunities for geography in the New Zealand senior secondary school in the context of current curriculum developments

Abstract:  Current curriculum developments will provide a new framework for the teaching of social sciences, including geography, in New Zealand secondary schools. This article outlines recent challenges faced by the subject, and the development and likely nature of the new curriculum. Some ways in which teachers can plan and implement innovative programmes within the framework of the existing syllabus and the new curriculum are suggested.