On multicomponent gas diffusion and coupling concepts for porous media and free flow: a benchmark study

Computational Geosciences - Multicomponent gas transport in porous media and at the interface between porous media and free flow occurs in a wide range of technical and environmental systems....     

Hambergite-rich melt inclusions in morganite crystals from the Muiane pegmatite, Mozambique and some remarks on the paragenesis of hambergite

Raman spectroscopic studies of daughter crystals of hambergite [Be₂BO₃(OH, F)] in primary melt and secondary fluid inclusions in morganite crystals from the Muiane pegmatite, Mozambique, show that the inclusions have extremely high beryllium concentrations, corresponding to as much as 10.6% (g/g) in melt inclusions and 1.25% (g/g) BeO in fluid inclusions. These melt and fluid inclusions were trapped at about 610°C and 277°C, respectively. We propose two possible mechanisms for the formation of the hambergite crystals: (i) direct crystallization from a boron- and beryllium-rich pegmatite-forming melt or (ii) these are daughter crystals produced by the retrograde reaction of the boron-rich inclusion fluid with the beryl host, after release of boric acid from the primary trapped metastable volatile-rich silicate melt during cooling and recrystallization. Although we favor the second option, either case demonstrate the extent to which Be maybe concentrated in a boron-rich fluid at relatively high temperatures, and in which species of Be maybe transported. One important constraint on the stability of the hambergite paragenesis is temperature; at temperatures of ≥650°C (at 2 kbar) hambergite is not stable and converts to bromellite [BeO].     

Global structure of self-excited magnetic fields arising from the magnetic shear instability

The global structure of a self-excited magnetic field arising from the magnetic shear instability has been simulated in spherical geometry by a 3D fully non-linear approach. In order to model the structure of an accretion disc we prescribe a rotation profile of the Brandt type which is Keplerian in the outer regions but yields rigid rotation at the inner core. We performed a whole series of runs at different dynamo numbers with an increasing number of modes in spectral space, thereby checking the influence of the numerical resolution in our simulations. Starting from arbitrary small perturbations, the magnetic and kinetic energies grow by several orders of magnitude as soon as a certain azimuthal resolution of at least m =15 was used at a dynamo number of order C =10⁵. Several phases of the transition to turbulence are realized and interpretations are given for the respective effects occurring at each stage. The resulting magnetic field is highly non-axisymmetric and possesses a pronounced inhomogeneous vortex structure of twisted flux tubes. The flow is almost axisymmetric but shows a Kolmogorov-like behaviour for small scales. The outer surface of the shell is penetrated by magnetic field lines in spot-like regions, which are located mainly in the equatorial plane. For very high dynamo numbers we find a cyclic behaviour of the averaged magnetic field amplitude. The problem of angular momentum transport is discussed in terms of the ShakuraSunyaev viscosity alpha , which depends exponentially on the radial distance and adopts values in the range 10³10⁵.     

Reduction of nutrient loading, planktivore removal and piscivore stocking as tools in water quality management: The feldberger haussee biomanipulation project

The Feldberger Haussee, a highly eutrophic stratified hard-water lake located in the eastern part of Germany's Baltic lake district, was selected for a restoration programme combining external nutrient loading reduction and long-term biomanipulation. In 1980 the external phosphorus loading (1.8 g TP m⁻² a⁻¹) decreased by 90%, but water quality did not improve significantly within the following 6 years. In 1985 biomanipulation was initiated, with manual removal of cyprinid fish coupled with piscivore introductions as the principal measures. The expected changes in the pelagic community and improvements of water quality occurred after a delay of several years. Despite intensive manual removal of cyprinids and stocking of piscivores, standing stocks of cyprinid fish remained relatively high (130-260 kg ww ha⁻¹) after some years of decline. Compared to the pre-biomanipulation period, mean seasonal (May-September) Daphnia spp. biomass roughly doubled (0.037 g C m⁻³vs. 0.084 g C m⁻³). However, the predominance of small (<1 mm) D. cucullata throughout the whole investigation period indicated that planktivory was still substantial. Paired observations between edible phytoplankton biomass and Daphnia spp. indicated that a significant decline in algal stocks would only occur if herbivorous biomass was above a certain threshold (0.2 g C m⁻³). Reduced external and internal loading in concert with pelagic calcite precipitation were most likely responsible for the decline in lake phosphorus concentrations, thereby substantially improving the water quality of Feldberger Haussee. Although this is not supported by quantitative evidence, we hypothesize that resource-related water quality improvements were caused by changes in the structure of the pelagic community leading to increased calcite precipitation. In agreement with the results of other investigations, we conclude that because stabilising mechanisms such as macrophyte growth were lacking in Feldberger Haussee, biomanipulation in stratified lakes may not be as successful as has been observed in shallow lakes. However, in hard-water lakes, calcite precipitation may act as another stabilising resource-related mechanism. Phosphorus associated with sedimenting calcite particles is insensitive to redox-conditions and may therefore not be re-mobilised from lake sediments even if hypolimnetic oxygen is depleted.     

The <Emphasis Type="Italic">M</Emphasis><Subscript>w</Subscript> 3.1–4.7 earthquakes in the southern Baltic Sea and adjacent areas in 2000, 2001 and 2004

The area south and east of the Baltic Sea has very minor seismic activity. However, occasional events occur as illustrated by four events in recent years, which are analysed in this study: near Wittenburg, Germany, on May 19, 2000, M _w = 3.1, near Rostock, Germany, on July 21, 2001, M _w = 3.4 and in the Kaliningrad area, Russia, two events on September 21, 2004 with M _w = 4.6 and 4.7. Locations, magnitudes (M _L and M _w) and focal mechanisms were determined for the two events in Germany. Synthetic modeling resulted in a well-confined focal depth for the Kaliningrad events. The inversion of macroseismic observations provided simultaneous solutions of the location, focal depth and epicentral intensity. The maximum horizontal compressive stress orientations obtained from focal mechanism solutions, approximately N–S for the two German events and NNW–SSE for the Kaliningrad events, show a good agreement with the regionally oriented crustal stress field.     

Fate of Benzalkonium Chloride in a Sewage Sludge Low Temperature Conversion Process Investigated by LC‐LC/ESI‐MS/MS

Thermocatalytic low temperature conversion (LTC) is a new method for the disposal of sewage sludge. Using this method, sludge is converted into a residual solid (coal) along with reaction water, oil, and non‐condensable gases. The oil can be used as an energy source and the coal as a substitute for charcoal. To this end, it is important to determine whether there are any easily available contaminants present in the coal generated by the process. Contaminants that can be strongly sorbed by sewage sludge solids are, e. g., pharmaceuticals and disinfectants. As an example the fate of the persistent and strong adsorbing disinfectant benzalkonium chloride (BAC) has been investigated within the LTC process. The sewage sludge was spiked with BAC and then subjected to the LTC process. The resulting coal was extracted and analyzed using LC‐LC/ESI‐MS/MS (ion trap). BAC could not be detected in the LTC coal, although it could be extracted from the spiked sludge before the LTC treatment. It can thus be concluded that the investigated compound is not easily available in the coal, and hence that its use does not present a risk.