Observations of complex terrain flows using acoustic sounders: Echo interpretation

We examine methods for the interpretation of sodar facsimile records obtained in the study of complex terrain flows. Acoustic scattering theory is presented first and then interpreted using a simpolified second-order turbulence closure scheme. The use of this theory suggests the strong sensitivity of acoustic scatter to changes in the wind shear. With this introduction, detailed sodar facsimile records, temperature and wind profiles, and model calculations follow. Characteristic scattering patterns are described for simple drainage jets, complex basin flows, convection with a capping inversion, stratus, and dynamical instabilities. Examples are also shown of bistatic facsimile records detailing the strong temporal and spatial variability in small-scale turbulence.     

On the use of sodars to study stably stratified flow influenced by terrain

The use of sodars in the study of stably stratified flows influenced by terrain is reviewed. We start with the equations of motion governing flow over inclined slopes and describe the relation between acoustic backscatter and local Richardson number. We then discuss sodar observations taken over the east Antarctic ice sheet and in a variety of complex terrain studies. These diverse observations reveal the influence of waves at periods from minutes to hours, the effects of ambient winds aiding and opposing drainage flows, complex phenomena in basin topography, and the breakup of the valley inversions with the onset of solar insolation.     

Measuring the waterbalance of a three-layer cover of a domestic waste landfill

A covering system is described that is to be installed at a domestic waste landfill to reduce the generation of leachate.

The covering system consists of three parts: 1.5 m top- and subsoil, 0.5 m barrier layer and 0.3 m gas drainage layer. The waterbalance of the covering system is measured by two large-scale lysimeters (9.5 X 16.5 m) and soil moisture measurements with neutron moisture probe.     

Influence of canyon-induced flows on flow and dispersion over adjacent plains

Summary The study investigates two effects that a valley or canyon opening onto a plain can have on flow and contaminant dispersion over the downwind plain. The first effect is the channeling of strong ambient flow by the canyon when the wind is nearly aligned with the canyon axis. Two cases showed that these conditions produced a region of focused flow downwind of the canyon mouth. The second effect is the formation of canyon exit jets on nights with weaker ambient flow. In two case studies under these conditions strong exit jets formed that were several hundred meters deep. The jets remained narrow and strong at least 10 km onto the plains, and in one of the cases the jet extended more than 20 km over the plains. These deep jets only lasted 2–3 h, and they had a small but significant effect on surface-released tracer transport as indicated by surface sampling. We hypothesize that the near-surface advection of tracer was accomplished by a thin katabatic layer of flow, and that an elevated release or elevated sampling would have indicated a greater effect of the exit jet on tracer transport.With 18 Figures     

Oil well produced water discharges to the North Sea. Part I: comparison of deployed mussels (Mytilus edulis), semi-permeable membrane devices, and the DREAM model predictions to estimate the dispersion of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

The oil companies operating in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea have conducted field studies since the mid-1990s to monitor produced water discharges to the ocean. These studies have been used to refine monitoring methods, and to develop and validate a dispersion and impact assessment model. This paper summarizes monitoring data from surveys conducted in two major oil and gas production areas, and compares the results to concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in surface waters predicted by the dose-related risk and effect assessment model (DREAM). Blue mussels and semi-permeable membrane devices (SPMDs) were deployed in the Ekofisk and Tampen Regions and analyzed for more than 50 PAH. PAH concentrations in ambient seawater were estimated based on the mussels and SPMD concentrations, and compared to model predictions. Surface water total PAH concentrations ranged from 25 to 350 ng/L within 1 km of the platform discharges and reached background levels of 4-8 ng/L within 5-10 km of the discharge; a 100,000-fold dilution of the PAH in the discharge water. The PAH concentrations in surface water, predicted by three methods, compared well for the Ekofisk Region. The model predicted higher concentrations than the field-based methods for parts of the Tampen Region; particularly the most tidally influenced areas. Tidally-mediated fluctuations in PAH concentrations in surface water must be considered because they affect the estimation of PAH concentrations from mussel and SPMD residue data, and the predictions by the DREAM model. Predictions using mussels, SPMDs, and modeling support and complement each other; all are valuable tools for estimating the fate and impact of chemical contaminants in produced water that are discharged to the ocean.     

Oil well produced water discharges to the North Sea. Part II: comparison of deployed mussels (Mytilus edulis) and the DREAM model to predict ecological risk

Large volumes of water often are produced with oil and gas from offshore platforms. The produced water is separated from the oil and gas and either reinjected into a deep formation or discharged to the ocean. The Norwegian oil and gas industry advocates ecological risk assessment as the basis for managing produced water discharges to the North Sea. In this paper, we compare estimates of ecological risks to water-column communities based on data on hydrocarbon residues in soft tissues of blue mussels deployed for a month near offshore platforms and based on predictions of the Dose related Risk and Effect Assessment Model (DREAM). The study was performed near produced water discharges to the Tampen and Ekofisk Regions of the Norwegian Sector of the North Sea. Because polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are considered the most important contributors to the ecological hazard posed by produced water discharges, comparisons made here focus on this group of compounds. The mussel approach is based on predicted environmental concentrations (PECs) of individual PAH, estimated from PAH residues in mussels following deployment for a month near several produced water discharges, and predicted no effects concentrations (PNECs) based on a K(ow) regression model. In the DREAM method, PECs for three PAH fractions are estimated in the three-dimensional area around produced water discharge with the DREAM model. PNECs for each fraction are based on the chronic toxicity of a representative PAH from each fraction divided by an assessment factor to account for uncertainty in the chronic value. The mussel method gives much lower estimates of ecological risk than the DREAM method. The differences are caused by the much lower PNECs used in DREAM than derived from the regression model, and by the lower concentrations of aqueous PAH predicted by DREAM than estimated from PAH residues in mussel tissues. However, the two methods rank stations at different distances from produced water discharges in the same order and both identify 2- and 3-ring PAHs as the main contributors to the ecological risk of produced water discharges. Neither method identifies a significant ecological risk of PAH in the upper water column of the oil fields. The DREAM model may produce an overly conservative estimate of ecological risk of produced water discharges to the North Sea.     

A search for planetary system candidates

We report on our search for possible planetary system candidates in a volume-limited sample of 62 nearby A stars. Since the evolutionary lifetimes of A stars ( 10⁹ yrs) roughly correspond to the era of planet formation and subsequent heavy bombardment in our solar system, our study could provide valuable insight into the origin of our own Solar System. From our ground-based visual and IUE high-resolution spectroscopy of all the northern nearby A stars, we have identified at least 12 stars with circumstellar gas. Combining these results with our previous IRAS survey we are probing the link between stars with circumstellar gas and those showing circumstellar dust disks. Our aim is not just to identify stars with gas, or stars with both gas and dust, but to identify systems with dynamic spectral activity similar to Pic, a well known proto-planetary system candidate. By measuring the gas dynamics in the disks of these Pic-like stars, we can begin to study the physics of accretion disks of young evolving systems.     

The use of natural and archeological analogues for understanding the long-term behavior of nuclear glasses

The knowledge of the long-term behavior of nuclear waste in anticipation of ultimate disposal in a deep geological formation is of prime importance in a waste management strategy. If phenomenological models have been developed to predict the long-term behavior of these materials, validating these models remains a challenge, when considering the time scale of radioactive decay of radionuclides of environmental concern, typically 10⁴–10⁵ yrs. Here we show how natural or archaeological analogues provide critical constraints not only on the phenomenology of glass alteration and the mechanisms involved, but also on the ability of experimental short-term data to predict long-term alteration in complex environments.