A literature review of the saturation state of seawater with respect to calcium carbonate and its possible significance for scale formation on OTEC heat exchangers

An investigation has been made of available data on the saturation state of seawater with respect to calcium carbonate and its possible significance for scale formation on Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) heat exchangers. Pertinent oceanographic data is lacking at or near potential OTEC sites for the calculation of the degree of saturation of seawater with respect to calcium carbonate. Consequently, only “extrapolated” saturation values can be used. These indicate that near surface seawater is probably supersaturated, with respect to the calcium carbonate phases calcite and aragonite, at all potential OTEC sites. The deep seawater that would be brought to the surface at the potential Atlantic Ocean sites is also likely to be supersaturated with respect to calcium carbonate. The deep seawater at the potential Pacific Ocean sites may be slightly undersaturated.The fact that OTEC heat exchangers will be operating in seawater, which is supersaturated with respect to calcium carbonate, means that if nucleation of calcite or aragonite occurs on the heat exchanger surfaces, significant growth rates of calcium carbonate scale may be expected. The potential for calcium carbonate nucleation is highest at cathodic metal surface locations, which are produced as the result of aluminum corrosion in seawater. Consequently, corrosion and scale formation may be closely related. What the possible effects of biofouling may be on this process are not known.     

Constraints of the laboratory physics on the model of the universe

Constraints of the laboratory physics on the model of the universe are considered. The constraints are derived from the measurement procedure for the flux of electromagnetic radiation and valid for any model of the universe. In classical physics, an observer in the frame of the detector can measure the transformation (1+z)^?1 for the energy flux of the electromagnetic wave emitted in the frame of the source but cannot any transformation for space and time between the frames of the source and detector. In quantum mechanics, the energy of the electromagnetic radiation as a function of the distance may be measured as a redshifted frequency of photon (1+z) or as a decrease of the intensity of radiation (1+z).     

Thermal properties of charged dilaton black hole, energy and momentum in teleparallel equivalent of general relativity

Two different charged dilaton black holes in 4-dimension, within teleparallel equivalent of general relativity (TEGR), are derived. These solutions are related through local Lorentz transformation. The total energy of these black holes, using three different methods, the Hamiltonian method, the translational momentum 2-form and the Euclidean continuation method given by Gibbons and Hawking, is calculated. It is shown that the three methods give the same results. The value of energy is shown to depend on the mass M and charge q. The verification of the first law of thermodynamics is proved. Finally, it is shown that if the charge q is vanishing then, the total energy reduced to that of Schwarzschild’s black hole.     

北阿尔金巴什考供-斯米尔布拉克花岗杂岩特征及锆石SHRIMP U-Pb定年

北阿尔金巴什考供-斯米尔布拉克杂岩体位于巴什考供盆地北缘, 呈东西向展布, 宽约 2~6 km, 长约30 km, 出露面积约140 km². 主要由灰黑色石英闪长岩、灰白色花岗岩、粉红色花岗岩和花岗伟晶岩组成. 围岩为前寒武系片岩、变质泥岩及变质凝灰岩. 岩石地球化学特征表明, 石英闪长岩属钙碱性系列, 具有Ⅰ型花岗岩的属性; 而粉红色和灰白色花岗岩属高钾钙碱性系列, 具有S型花岗岩的属性. 锆石SHRIMP定年结果表明, 石英闪长岩的年龄为(481.6±5.6) Ma, 而灰白色花岗岩和粉红色花岗岩的年龄在误差范围内基本一致, 分别为(437.0±3.0)~(433.1±3.4) Ma 和(443±11)~(434.6±1.6) Ma. 结合区域地质特征, 认为石英闪长岩可能形成于洋壳俯冲环境, 而灰白色和粉红色花岗岩可能形成于碰撞后环境.     

Irrigated area determination: a case study in the Province of San Juan,Argentina

Much of the central-western region of Argentina, where San Juan Province is located, experiences arid to semi-arid climatic conditions with low average annual rainfall accompanied by substantial evapotranspiration. Consequently, a viable crop industry depends to a large extent upon irrigation from major river systems. Increasing demand for water in the lower basin of the San Juan River is emphasizing the need for more accurate estimates of water used for irrigation. Since the water demand for a particular crop is very closely related to crop area, monitoring the area of crop under irrigation is considered a proxy for the amount of water used. Landsat 5 imagery for the growing season, field data and aerial photographs were used to evaluate crop area.     

Testing a model for predicting the timing and location of shallow landslide initiation in soil‐mantled landscapes

The growing availability of digital topographic data and the increased reliability of precipitation forecasts invite modelling efforts to predict the timing and location of shallow landslides in hilly and mountainous areas in order to reduce risk to an ever‐expanding human population. Here, we exploit a rare data set to develop and test such a model. In a 1·7 km² catchment a near‐annual aerial photographic coverage records just three single storm events over a 45 year period that produced multiple landslides. Such data enable us to test model performance by running the entire rainfall time series and determine whether just those three storms are correctly detected. To do this, we link a dynamic and spatially distributed shallow subsurface runoff model (similar to TOPMODEL) to an in?nite slope model to predict the spatial distribution of shallow landsliding. The spatial distribution of soil depth, a strong control on local landsliding, is predicted from a process‐based model. Because of its common availability, daily rainfall data were used to drive the model. Topographic data were derived from digitized 1 : 24 000 US Geological Survey contour maps. Analysis of the landslides shows that 97 occurred in 1955, 37 in 1982 and ?ve in 1998, although the heaviest rainfall was in 1982. Furthermore, intensity–duration analysis of available daily and hourly rainfall from the closest raingauges does not discriminate those three storms from others that did not generate failures. We explore the question of whether a mechanistic modelling approach is better able to identify landslide‐producing storms. Landslide and soil production parameters were ?xed from studies elsewhere. Four hydrologic parameters characterizing the saturated hydraulic conductivity of the soil and underlying bedrock and its decline with depth were ?rst calibrated on the 1955 landslide record. Success was characterized as the most number of actual landslides predicted with the least amount of total area predicted to be unstable. Because landslide area was consistently overpredicted, a threshold catchment area of predicted slope instability was used to de?ne whether a rainstorm was a signi?cant landslide producer. Many combinations of the four hydrological parameters performed equally well for the 1955 event, but only one combination successfully identi?ed the 1982 storm as the only landslide‐producing storm during the period 1980–86. Application of this parameter combination to the entire 45 year record successfully identi?ed the three events, but also predicted that two other landslide‐producing events should have occurred. This performance is signi?cantly better than the empirical intensity–duration threshold approach, but requires considerable calibration effort. Overprediction of instability, both for storms that produced landslides and for non‐producing storms, appears to arise from at least four causes: (1) coarse rainfall data time scale and inability to document short rainfall bursts and predict pressure wave response; (2) absence of local rainfall data; (3) legacy effect of previous landslides; and (4) inaccurate topographic and soil property data. Greater resolution of spatial and rainfall data, as well as topographic data, coupled with systematic documentation of landslides to create time series to test models, should lead to signi?cant improvements in shallow landslides forecasting. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Pathways of clay mineral transport in the coastal zone of the Brazilian continental shelf from Ceará to the mouth of the Amazon River

The transport pathways of fine sediments (fraction <2 μm) along the Brazilian continental shelf from Ceará to the Amazon River mouth were studied by means of clay mineral analyses. On the continental shelf southeast of the Amazon mouth, fluctuations in clay mineral compositions reflect simple mixing between the suspended load of the North Brazil Current and sediment from several smaller rivers. Previously, clay mineral variations west of the Amazon mouth have been explained by variable settling velocities of different grain-size classes within the <2 μm fraction or by selective coagulation of individual clay mineral groups. By contrast, our experiments with river bank samples show that selective coagulation does not occur in Amazon River sediments. A more appropriate explanation for observed variations in clay mineral composition off the Amazon mouth seems to be, similarly to that for the shelf between Ceará and the Amazon mouth, a mixing of Amazon sediments with suspended material of the North Brazil Current. This interpretation is supported by data on clay mineral composition east and south of the Amazon mouth, showing more affinity to sediments of the North Brazil Current than to the suspended load of the Amazon River. Additionally, relatively low sedimentation rates and low concentrations of fine-grained sediments on the shelf suggest that high riverine input by the Amazon River does not overprint the sediments of the North Brazil Current in this region. The strong North Brazil Current shunts the Amazon suspended load in a north-westerly direction along the north-eastern coast of South America. Hence, stronger sedimentation of Amazon sediments would occur only west of the river mouth.     

西藏结则茶卡湖岸沉积物中铀系年龄及意义

通过对藏北高原西北部结则茶卡湖泊及其沿岸地质地貌调查,发现其为一个富含硼、锂、钾、锶的封闭型盐湖,沿岸海拔4 850 m拔湖325 m有一条明显的高位湖岸线,该湖岸线到湖面之间有六级湖积阶地发育,六级以上阶地保存零星。沿湖岸不同高度上的湖积物U系年龄分别为(14.2±1.2)ka BP(T2)、(38.0±3.5)ka BP(T4)和(41.6±3.2)ka BP(T5)。湖面下降的幅度是藏北高原迄今所知最大。根据湖面平均下降速度推算高位湖岸线和高位湖积层的形成年龄在(120~90)ka BP,与东部的纳木错和西部的甜水海基本一致,说明藏北高原在晚更新世初期有一个明显的泛湖期。大约100 ka BP结则茶卡湖面开始下降,晚更新世以来湖泊演化是在封闭体系干旱环境下进行的,盐湖形成于14 ka BP左右,藏北高原在晚更新世以来气候变化可能为自西向东逐渐变为干寒。     

Coral reef education in schools of Quintana Roo, Mexico

Coral reefs are vital to the livelihood of coastal communities in Quintana Roo, México and the preservation of these ecosystems relies on the establishment of protected areas. Education should be one of the most important management tools in coral reef preservation. Surveys were made among primary and secondary school students of Quintana Roo to determine the level of education regarding coral reefs and their importance. Students had little awareness about reefs. Coverage of coral reef issues is insufficient in school curricula and information media. Many students will leave school and become users of the reef with little understanding of it and of the consequences of exploitation of the reef. Creation of marine parks has not increased education and public awareness. There is an immediate need to establish appropriate and continuously available educational programs in order to preserve coral reefs. Education should encourage codes of behavior and community support to management issues.