The stability of a remediated bed in Hamilton Harbour,Lake Ontario,Canada

ABSTRACT In situ measurements of lakebed sediment erodibility were made on three sites in Hamilton Harbour, Lake Ontario, using the benthic flume Sea Carousel. Three methods of estimating the surface erosion threshold (τ_c(0)) from a Carousel time series were evaluated: the first method fits measures of bed strength to eroded depth (the failure envelope) and evaluates threshold as the surface intercept; the second method regresses mean erosion rate (E_m) with bed shear stress and solves for the floc erosion rate (E_f) to derive the threshold for E_m = E_f = 1 × 10^?5 kg m^?2 s^?1; the third method extrapolates a regression of suspended sediment concentration (S) and fluid transmitted bed shear stress (τ₀) to ambient concentrations. The first field site was undisturbed (C) and acted as a control; the second (W) was disturbed through ploughing and water injection as part of lakebed treatment, whereas the third site (OIP) was disturbed and injected with an oxidant used for remediation of contaminated sediment. The main objectives of this study were: (1) to evaluate the three different methods of deriving erosion threshold; (2) to compare the physical behaviour of lacustrine sediments with their marine estuarine counterparts; and (3) to examine the effects of ploughing and chemical treatment of contaminated sediment on bed stability. Five deployments of Sea Carousel were carried out at the control site. Mean erosion thresholds for the three methods were: τ_c(0) = 0·5 (±0·06), 0·27 (±0·01) and 0·34 (±0·03) Pa respectively. Method 1 overpredicted bed strength as it was insensitive to effects in the surface 1–2 mm, and the fit of the failure envelope was also highly subjective. Method 2 exhibited a wide scatter in the data (low correlation coefficients), and definition of the baseline erosion rate (E_f) is largely arbitrary in the literature. Method 3 yielded stable (high correlation coefficients), reproducible and objective results and is thus recommended for evaluation of the erosion threshold. The results of this method correlated well with sediment bulk density and followed the same trend as marine counterparts from widely varying sites. Mass settling rates, expressed as a decay constant, k, of S(t), were strongly related to the maximum turbidity at the onset of settling (S_max) and were also in continuity with marine counterparts. Thus, it appears that differences in salinity had little effect on mass settling rates in the examples presented, and that biological activity dominated any effects normally attributable to changes in salinity. Bedload transport of eroded aggregates (2–4 mm in diameter) took place by rolling below a mean tangential flow velocity (U_y) of 0·32 ms^?1 and by saltation at higher velocities. Mass transport as bedload was a maximum at U_y = 0·4 ms^?1, although bedload never exceeded 1% of the suspended load. The proportion of material moving as bedload was greatest at the onset of erosion but decreased as flow competence increased. Given the low bulk density and strength of the lakebed sediment, the presence of a bedload component is notable. Bedload transport over eroding cohesive substrates should be greater in estuaries, where both sediment density and strength are usually higher. Significant differences between the ploughed and control sites were apparent in both the erosion rate and the friction coefficient (φ), and suggest that bed recovery after disruption is rapid (< 24 h). τ_c(0) increased linearly with time after ploughing and recovered to the control mean value within 3 days. The friction coefficient was reduced to zero by ploughing (diagnostic of fluidization), but increased linearly with time, regaining control values within 6 days. No long‐term reduction in bed strength due to remediation was apparent.     

GPS-measured land subsidence in Ojiya City, Niigata Prefecture, Japan

Land subsidence caused by compression of clay layers in Ojiya City, Japan was measured by global positioning system (GPS) between 1 April 1996 and 31 December 1998.

Three baselines were selected in and around the city, and height difference on a WGS-84 ellipsoid was measured by GPS on each baseline. The ground at the GPS station in the city subsides and rebounds 7 cm every winter and spring, respectively. Measurement accuracy was 9.5 mm standard deviation. Ground water level was observed at a well near the GPS station. Regression analysis between total strain, calculated as ratio of the height difference displacement to the total thickness of the clay layers, and the layers' effective stress change with ground water level change gave good correlation. The slope of regression line 7.0×10⁻¹¹ m²/N was obtained as an average apparent coefficient of volume compressibility of the layers.     

Formation of Concentric Rings Around Sources

Zones of increased concentration formed by a solvent flowing from a source are considered. A matehmatical model for forming such zones is proposed. It takes into account that such a zone is composed of a set of independent particles. Hence the distribution of a substance around the source can be explained by movement of an individual particle. In the model this movement is a continuous semi-Markov process with terminal stopping at some random point in space. Parameters of the process depend on the velocity field of the flow. Forward and backward partial differential equations for the distribution density of a random stopping point of the process are derived. The forward equation is investigated for the centrally symmetric case. Solutions of the equation demonstrate either a maximum or a local minimum at the source location. In the latter case a concentric ring around the source is formed. If different substances vary in their absorption rates, they can form separable concentration zones as a family of concentric rings.     

Environmental impact of heavy-metal dispersion in the Huerva River (Iberian Range,NE Spain)

In this study, the methodology of geochemical prospecting has been applied to the study of cadmium, lead, copper and zinc dispersion in the fine sediments of the upper course of the Huerva River (Iberian Range, NE Spain). The survey was organised in two stages: (1) general sampling along the river and its tributary channels, aimed at selecting the sections with the highest contents of the target elements, and (2) detailed study of those sections, aimed at an interpretation of possible positive geochemical anomalies and identification of their sources. The results of this study prove the existence of multiple and complex sources, with a significant influence of sources related to anthropogenic activity. However, the system shows a good ability to depurate itself under current conditions.     

Surface-water quality for the Salí River watershed in NW Argentina

Spatial and temporal variations of Na, Mg, Si, K, Ca, SO₄^2-, Cl^-, HCO₃^-, Ag, Al, As, Au, B, Ba, Be, Bi, Br, Ce, Cd, Co, Cr, Cs, Cu, Dy, Er, Eu, F, Fe, Ga, Ge, Gd, Hf, Hg, Ho, I, La, Li, Mn, Mo, Nb, Nd, Ni, P, Pb, Pr, Rb, Sb, Sm, Sn, Sr, Ta, Tb, Te, Th, Ti, Tl, U, V, W, Y, Yb, Zn, and Zr were monitored through 37 sampling stations to determine the main aspects influencing the surface-water quality in the Salí River watershed (Tucumán Province, NW Argentina). The influence of the regional geological setting on water chemistry allows to distinguish three sub-basins. The interaction with sedimentary rocks was found to be dominant in the northern and central-eastern sub-basin as well as in the southern sub-basin, whereas the metamorphic-granitic basement of the Pampean Ranges was noted in the central sub-basin. In addition, anthropogenic activities affect the spatial variation of K, P, Mn, Rb, and Pb as well as dissolved oxygen concentrations and Eh. Temporal water-quality variation is related to the spatial distribution of precipitation and to the seasonal character of the main local industries (sugar cane, alcohol, citrus), increasing P and K concentrations and decreasing dissolved oxygen concentration and Eh in winter. Cl^-, Na, SO₄^2-, Al, As, B, Fe, Mn, Se and U concentrations exceed the regulated drinking-water thresholds at several sampling stations.     

Model of a multiscaled MHD dynamo

A simple model for a multiscaled MHD dynamo is suggested. The uppermost tier of the model controls the evolution of the large-scale magnetic field, while the lower tiers are responsible for the evolution of the small-scale velocity and magnetic fields. This approach makes it possible to reproduce, e.g., the evolution of the Galactic magnetic field for realistic magnetic Reynolds numbers, which cannot be done using direct, detailed simulations.     

Mineralized Microbiota: A Possible Indicator of Hydrocarbon Flows in the Rift Zone of Iceland

Relationships of mineralized microbiota with the content of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in hydrothermal systems are considered. It has been established that the mineralized microbiota can serve as an indicator of hydrothermal hydrocarbon flows in present-day and ancient deposits.     

Atomistic simulation of the structure and elastic properties of pyrite (FeS2) as a function of pressure

Interatomic potential parameters have been derived at simulated temperatures of 0 K and 300 K to model pyrite FeS₂. The predicted pyrite structures are within 1% of those determined experimentally, while the calculated bulk modulus is within 7%. The model is also able to simulate the properties of marcasite, even though no data for this phase were included in the fitting procedure. There is almost no difference in results obtained for pyrite using the two potential sets; however, when used to model FeS₂ marcasite, the potential fitted at 0 K performs better. The potentials have also been used to study the high-pressure behaviour of pyrite up to 44 GPa. The calculated equation of state gives good agreement with experiment and shows that the Fe–S bonds shorten more rapidly that the S–S dimer bonds. The behaviour of marcasite at high pressure is found to be similar to that of pyrite.