The capacity of marine plankton, macrophytes and particulate matter to adsorb Cu in the presence of Mg

A complexometric titration technique was employed to measure the total capacity of a variety of marine organisms to adsorb Cu²⁺. Measured adsorption capacities were 0.22 meq g⁻¹ for phytoplankton, 0.3–1.0 meq g⁻¹ for macrophytes, 1.0–2.5 meq g⁻¹ for zooplankton and 0.3 meq g⁻¹ for suspended particulate matter. The capacity of these materials to adsorb Cu²⁺ was reduced significantly in the presence of Mg²⁺ at seawater concentrations. Competition between Mg^t2+ and Cu²⁺ for adsorption sites at pH 6 is described by an average conditional equilibrium constant of 10^3.7. This constant is such that very little Cu²⁺ may be adsorbed onto particulates and marine phytoplankton in the presence of Mg²⁺. Further, primary productivity data and estimates of the detrital carbon sedimentation in Long Island Sound suggest that the flux of particulate carbon is insufficient to remove significant amounts of Cu from the water column to sediments by adsorption mechanisms.     

Measurement of alkaline and earthy ions in fish otolith and sea water using a high performance ion chromatography

Fish growth and the relation between growth and environmental conditions offer a good opportunity for measuring alkaline and earthy ions in fish otoliths.The analytical method must involve high sensitivity when attempting to discriminate between fish growth and environmental conditions.The aim of this paper is to propose a chromatographic method, with low detection limits, as a new approach in determining some important micronutrients present in sea water and fish otoliths.The work samples are: coastal, off-shore and sediment waters and fish otoliths (Engraulis encrasicholus, Mullus barbatus, Umbrina cirrhosa, Sciaena umbra, Pagellus erythrinus) in the Adriatic Sea and the Canal of Sicily.The analytical method includes an IONPAC CS12A chromatographic column and a 18 mM methanesulfonic acid eluent.The detection limit readings obtained with this method, for one E. encrasicholus fish otolith, weighing 2.6 mg are equal or inferior to 0.1 μg/L for lithium (Li), 59 μg/L for sodium (Na), 46 μg/L for ammonium (NH₄), 23 μg/L for potassium (K), 13 μg/L for magnesium (Mg), 88 μg/L for manganese (Mn), 2.567 μg/L for calcium (Ca) and 13 μg/L for strontium (Sr).The HPIC method minimizes overlaps such as Na on Li, and NH₄ in seawater and Ca on Mg and Sr in fish otolith. These elements are an essential constituent present in otoliths when describing the relation between growth and environmental conditions.Good separation among analytes is achieved within 16 min.     

Inverse reconstructions of ecosystem flows in investigating regime shifts: impact of the choice of objective function

Inverse analysis is increasingly used in ecosystem modelling to objectively reconstruct a large number of unknown flows or interactions from a small number of observations. This type of analysis may be useful in relating observed regime shifts in ecosystem structure to underlying processes. Inversions of ecosystem flow networks currently use a constrained least-squares solution which at the same time minimizes the squared norm (the sum of squares) of the reconstructed flows. This minimum norm (MN) inversion is thought to be a parsimonious solution to the ecosystem flow inverse problem, but it may well not reflect how ecosystems are organised. It has been proposed instead that ecosystems evolve to maximize energy/mass flows or that they maximize the information content of the network weighted by ecosystem flows (ascendancy). We used simulated inverse experiments, where inverse analyses are applied to simulations of flow networks, to explore objective functions different than the MN generally used. We could not compute inverse solutions that maximize ascendancy because the objective function is unbounded. We could calculate inversions that maximize flows; however, these generally overestimated the simulated flows, even though the simulations were designed to maximize flows. It appears that the ecosystem flow inverse problem is too under-determined (too few data relative to the number of unknowns) to allow the use of these maximizing goal functions. We introduce a new minimization that simultaneously minimizes the squared flows and the squared differences between flows. This smoothing minimization makes the inverse flows as even as possible and it helps with some technical issues with MN inversions. The simulated inverse experiments indicated that this smoothed norm (SM) is the most robust in comparative analyses of contrasting ecosystem states, such as those that can be associated with regime shifts. Like the MN inversion, the SM inversion has no ecological basis. However, it is a conservative norm that is less likely to produce false differences between the dynamics of regimes.     

An improved Ewing heat probe frame

The standard Ewing heat probe frame has been improved through the design of a new takedown model whose parts are held together by lynch pins. When a 600 lb (272 kg) unit of this type is taken apart, the heaviest single piece of the dismantled unit weighs only 75 lb (34 kg).This makes it feasible for one person to handle, transport, and assemble the new unit. A central, main support member of a heat probe using this frame can be suspended over the side of a research vessel while the heavier temperature recorder and ballast weights are attached by means of the quickaction lynch pins. This makes it possible to use this device on relatively small vessels which are not designed for coring work, having a minimum of free deck space and without launching platforms or hydraulic A-frame booms.     

Gravity field analysis of Sio Guyot: An isostatically compensated seamount in the Mid-Pacific Mountains

Positive gravity anomalies indicate two dense conduits or eruptive centers beneath the northern summit of Sio Guyot, western Mid-Pacific Mountains. The low amplitude of the positive anomalies and the gravity lows flanking the guyot can be explained by crust 2.5 times the normal Pacific Ocean crustal thickness extending to a depth of 22 ± 2 km. The excess mass of the seamount is 100% locally isostatically compensated by the mass deficit below; this compensation may result from flexural loading and voluminous sill injection near a former ridge-crest transform fault system trending roughly ENE and NNW.     

The buckling of plastic oblate hemi-ellipsoidal dome shells under external hydrostatic pressure

The paper presents a theoretical and an experimental investigation into the buckling of seven oblate hemi-ellipsoidal dome shells under external hydrostatic pressure. Four of the shells were made in glass reinforced plastic and three were made from a thermosetting plastic called solid urethane plastic. All the vessels were tested to destruction. The theoretical study was made with the aid of a non-linear finite element solution, where both geometrical and material non-linearity were allowed for. Good agreement was found between experiment and theory for all the vessels. The very oblate domes failed axisymmetrically. Theoretical convergence was good for the more oblate domes but it was not as good as for the less oblate domes. This may have been because the less oblate domes did not fail in a classical axisymmetric manner as was expected. This work is of much importance in ocean engineering.     

Thermodynamic characterization of the partitioning of iron between soluble and colloidal species in the Atlantic Ocean

Recent electrochemical measurements have shown that iron (Fe) speciation in seawater is dominated by complexation with strong organic ligands throughout the water column and have provided important thermodynamic information about these compounds. Independent work has shown that iron exists in both soluble and colloidal fractions in the Atlantic Ocean. Here we have combined these approaches in samples collected from a variety of regimes within the Atlantic Ocean. We measured the partitioning of Fe between soluble (< 0.02 μm) and colloidal (0.02 to 0.4 μm) size classes and characterized the concentrations and conditional stability constants of Fe ligands within these size classes. Results suggest that equilibrium partitioning of Fe between soluble and colloidal ligands is partially responsible for the distribution of Fe between soluble and colloidal size classes. However, a significant fraction of the colloidal Fe was inert to ligand exchange as soluble Fe concentrations were generally lower than values predicted by a simple equilibrium partitioning model.In surface waters, strong ligands with conditional stability constants of 10¹³ relative to total inorganic Fe appeared to dominate speciation in both the soluble and colloidal fractions. In deep waters these ligands were absent, and instead we found ligands with stability constants 12–15 fold smaller that were predominantly in the soluble pool. Nevertheless, significant levels of colloidal Fe were found in these samples, which we inferred must be inert to coordination exchange.     

Water vapor in the atmosphere over the northern Tien Shan

Refined data of systematic measurements of total water vapor in the atmosphere from May 1980 to April 2005 are presented. The data were obtained at the Issyk Kul atmospheric-monitoring station by the method of solar molecular-absorption spectroscopy. Over 25 years, the annual mean water-vapor content in the atmosphere increased by 4.5% at a mean rate of increase of 0.18% per year. However, the water-vapor content decreased in the last five years. The results of statistical processing of experimental data (general statistical characteristics, correlation coefficients, composite oscillations) are described. A refined model is proposed for forecasts of temporal variations in the monthly mean and annual mean water-vapor contents for the coming years. The model includes a linear trend and the sum of oscillations with periods close to the periods of a number of well-known geophysical phenomena. Regression equations are proposed to relate the water-vapor content in the atmospheric column to the surface temperature and absolute humidity.