Detection of PAHs in seawater using surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS)

The laboratory characterization of a field-operable surface-enhanced Raman scattering sensor (SERS optode) is presented for the detection of aromatic hydrocarbons in seawater. The sensor has been developed for deployment with a robust underwater spectrograph. To meet the demands of the harsh seawater application, sol-gel derived SERS substrates were used. The calibration curves of six PAHs were determined to be of Langmuir adsorption isotherm type with limits of detection ranging from the microg l(-1) to ng l(-1) level. The experimentally determined adsorption constants varied strongly with the molecular weight of the analytes and correlated with their solubility. A mixture of five PAHs dissolved in seawater was investigated to demonstrate the utility of this method for screening. Emphasis was put on the interference from suspended particulate matter (SPM). The Raman measurement with backscattering configuration was shown to be immune against turbidities up to 1000 NTU. The physico-chemical interference arising from adsorption by the sediment was measured on-line by adding sediment to a PAH-spiked solution. According to the calibration curve, the PAH concentration decrease corresponded to more than 98% of the analyte being scavenged by the sediment.     

Climate change effects on tropical night days in Seoul, Korea

In Seoul (37.57°N, 126.97°E), South Korea (located at mid-latitudes), the frequency of tropical night (TN) days, which have been defined as days with a minimum temperature greater than 25°C, have shown an increase due to the effects of temperature and water vapor. It was found that TN days accounted for almost 10.2% (July) and 22.1% (August) of the total number of days in respective months during the last decade in Seoul, and these figures may be increasing with climatic change. The daytime and nighttime sky on TN days can contain water vapor when the monsoonal southwesterly flow prevails. This strong wind may induce moisture advection from the warm ocean, and consequently, there is much larger specific humidity over the city during TN days in comparison to non-TN days. The effect of climatic change on the specific humidity is related to an increase in the number of TN days, which has shown an upward trend of 13-day/100-year and is significantly modulated by both water vapor and air temperature during July and August. Moreover, the relative role of water vapor in increasing the frequency of TN days has become much more significant after the 1960s in comparison to that of air temperature, which may be attributed to urbanization in Seoul since the 1960s.     

Microscopic morphology and size distribution of particles in PM<Subscript>2.5</Subscript> of Guangzhou City

Samples of airborne PM_2.5 particles in Guangzhou urban area were collected during the autumn of 2006 and the spring of 2007. The morphologies and elemental compositions of individual particles were determined by Scanning Electron Microscopy coupled with Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectrometer (SEM-EDX). The obtained images were further analyzed for size distribution by an image analysis system. Based on the morphology, particles in PM_2.5 were classified into four groups: soot aggregates, minerals, fly ash and others. The amount of soot aggregates and minerals were higher than that of fly ashes. The distributions of particles by number and size in two seasons were bimodal with 90% less than 1.0 μm in diameter. The primary peak from the autumn samples was in the size range of 0.4 ~ 0.5 μm, and 0.3 ~ 0.4 μm for the spring samples. More soot aggregates (36.1%) and minerals (61.5%) were found than fly ash (2.4%) in autumn, but soot aggregates (89.9%) was the dominant particle type in spring. The size distribution of particles according to the volume was generally opposite to that according to the number. Particles less than 1.0 μm were as high as 89.5% in number but contributed only 18.9% in volume, indicating that fine particles contributed relatively little in volume although existing in large numbers.     

甘肃省夏季层状云微物理特征个例分析

对2004年6月12日甘肃河西地区一次降水性层状云的云物理飞机探测结果进行了分析,通过对云中粒子的浓度、直径、二维图像以及谱型变化地研究,并结合宏观观测记录,详细分析了云系的垂直和水平微物理特征.观测资料分析表明:此次云系为Ac-Sc结构,上层Ac云为纯冷云,下层Sc云为纯暖云,两层云之间存在较厚的干层.云中微物理量的垂直和水平变化均具有明显的不均匀性,整个探测过程中,FSSP-100所测云粒子的浓度和平均直径变化范围分别为0.1～-232.6cm-3和3.5～45.5μm,OAP-2D-GA2所测云粒子浓度及平均直径变化范围分别为0.01～116.7cm-3和32.2～995.7μm.粒子二维图像表明,上层高积云中冰相粒子的凇附、粘连现象普遍,说明云中存在较多的过冷水.图像及谱型分析表明,6000m以上某些区域有冰晶高浓度区存在,大量冰晶的成长消耗了云中过冷水,不利于大云粒子的形成和成长;这次降水雨滴主要由纯暖性Sc云中暖云成雨过程形成,冷云过程只在Sc云顶附近有一定作用,本次降水主要机制为下层层积云中的暖云过程.     

A site evaluation campaign for a ground based atmospheric Cherenkov telescope in Romania

Around the world, several scientific projects share the interest of a global network of small Cherenkov telescopes for monitoring observations of the brightest blazars??the DWARF network. A small, ground based, imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescope of last generation is intended to be installed and operated in Romania as a component of the DWARF network. To prepare the construction of the observatory, two support projects have been initiated. Within the framework of these projects, we have assessed a number of possible sites where to settle the observatory. In this paper we submit a brief report on the general characteristics of the best four sites selected after the local infrastructure, the nearby facilities and the social impact criteria have been applied.     

Effects of riverbed incision on the hydrology of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta

The hydrogeomorphology of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD) has been significantly altered by natural and anthropogenic drivers. In this study, the spatiotemporal changes of the flow regime were examined by analysing the long-term daily, monthly, annual and extreme discharges and water levels from 1980 to 2018, supported by further investigation of the long-term annual sediment load (from the 1960s to 2015), river bathymetric data (in 1998, 2014 and 2017) and daily salinity concentration (from the 1990s to 2015) using various statistical methods and a coupled numerical model. Then, the effects of riverbed incision on the hydrology were investigated. The results show that the dry season discharge (i.e., in March–June) of the Tien River increased by up to 23% from the predam period (1980–1992) to the postdam period (1993–2018) but that the dry season water level at My Thuan decreased by up to −46%. The annual mean and monthly water levels in June at Tan Chau and in January and June–October at My Thuan in the Tien River decreased statistically, even though the respective discharges increased significantly. These decreased water levels instead of the increased discharges were attributed to the accelerated riverbed incision upstream from My Thuan, which increased by more than three times, from a mean rate of −0.16 m/year (−16.7 Mm³/year) in 1998–2014 to −0.5 m/year (−52.5 Mm³/year) in 2014–2017. This accelerated riverbed incision was likely caused by the reduction in the sediment load of the VMD (from 166.7 Mt/year in the predam period to 57.6 Mt/year in the postdam period) and increase in sand mining (from 3.9 Mm³ in 2012 to 13.43 Mm³ in 2018). Collectively, the decreased dry season water level in the Tien River is likely one of the main causes of the enhanced salinity intrusion.     

Risk analysis for clustered check dams due to heavy rainfall

Check dams are commonly constructed around the world for alleviating soil erosion and preventing sedimentation of downstream rivers and reservoirs.Check dams are more vulnerable to failure due to their less stringent flood control standards compared to other dams.Determining the critical precipitation that will result in overtopping of a dam is a useful approach to assessing the risk of failure on a probabilistic basis and for providing early warning in case of an emergency.However,many check dams are built in groups,spreading in several tributaries in cascade forms,comprising a complex network.Determining the critical precipitation for dam overtopping requires a knowledge of its upstream dams on whether they survived or were overtopped during the same storm,while these upstream dams in turn need the information for their upstream dams.The current paper presents an approach of decomposing the dam cluster into(1)the heading dam,(2)border dams,and(3)intermediate dams.The algorithm begins with the border dams that have no upstream dams and proceeds with upgraded maps without the previous border dams until all the dams have been checked.It is believed that this approach is applicable for small-scale check dam systems where the time lag of flood routing can be neglected.As a pilot study,the current paper presents the analytical results for the Wangmaogou Check Dam System that has 22 dams connected in series and parallel.The algorithm clearly identified 7 surviving dams,with the remaining ones being overtopped for a storm of 179.6 mm in 12 h,which is associated with a return period of one in 200 years.     

Analyzing interactions between risk factors for ice disaster in Ning-Meng reach of Yellow River based on grey rough DEMATEL method

Natural Hazards - The ice disaster risk in Ning-Meng reach of Yellow River in China is affected by many factors, and the various risk factors are not independent with each other but present...     

中更新世转型时期南海北部上层水体结构演化特征——ODP1146站浮游有孔虫稳定同位素记录

文章以南海北部ODP1146站沉积物岩芯为研究材料,利用浮游有孔虫次表层水种Pulleniatina obliquiloculata壳体的氧、碳稳定同位素,结合该站位浮游及底栖有孔虫氧碳同位素数据,分析中更新世以来南海北部上层水体结构的演化。1.2 Ma以来ODP1146站P.obliquiloculata壳体δ^18O的变化可分3个阶段:1)1.2~0.9 Ma,冰期-间冰期变化幅度较小、主导周期为41 ka斜率周期;2)0.9~0.6 Ma,冰期旋回变化幅度逐渐增强、100 ka偏心率周期开始强化;3)0.6 Ma以来,冰期旋回呈现稳定且幅度较大的100 ka周期变化。0.9 Ma以来南海北部上层海水δ^18O的冰期旋回变幅增强,可能反映东亚冬季风在0.9 Ma之后显著强化。其中,表层水体δ^18O只在冰期变幅增强,P.obliquiloculata所反映的次表层水体δ^18O的变化幅度在冰期和间冰期都显著增强。约0.9 Ma浮游和底栖有孔虫δ^18O的100 ka周期几乎同时显现;但在0.9~0.6 Ma时期P.obliquiloculata的δ^18O偏心率周期更为显著、斜率周期的强度也更高。因此,冰期旋回周期转型及幅度变化两方面的证据共同反映温跃层结构演化在南海北部中更新世转型(MPT)气候转变过程中的特殊性。1.2 Ma以来ODP1146站P.obliquiloculata的δ^13C在0.02 Ma、0.49 Ma和0.99 Ma左右呈明显的碳重值,同时表层种-次表层种之间的δ^13C差值减小到近于0,可以解读为碳重值事件期间南海北部生产力相对减弱。     

Responses of chemically active and naturally fractured shale under time‐dependent mechanical loading and ionic solution exposure

In this paper, the analytical dual‐porosity dual‐permeability poromechanics solution for saturated cylinders is extended to account for electrokinetic effects and material transverse isotropy, which simulate the responses of chemically active naturally fractured shale under time‐dependent mechanical loading and ionic solution exposure. The solution addresses the stresses, fracture pore pressure, matrix pore pressure, fluid fluxes, ion concentration evolution, and displacements due to the applied stress, pore pressure, and solute concentration difference between the sample and the circulation fluid. The presented solution will not only help validate numerical simulations but also assist in calibrating and interpreting laboratory results on dual‐porosity dual‐permeability shale. It is recommended that the analytical solutions of radial and axial displacements be used to match the corresponding laboratory‐recorded data to determine shale dual permeability and chemo‐electrical parameters including membrane coefficient, ions diffusion coefficients, and electro‐osmotic permeability.