Application of ultraviolet fluorometry and excitation-emission matrix spectroscopy (EEMS) to fingerprint oil and chemically dispersed oil in seawater

Excitation-emission matrix spectroscopy (EEMS) was used to characterize the ultra violet fluorescence fingerprints of eight crude oils (with a 14,470-fold range of dynamic viscosity) in seawater. When the chemical dispersant Corexit 9500 was mixed with the oils prior to their dispersion in seawater, the fingerprints of each oil changed primarily as an increase in fluorescence over an emission band centered on 445 nm. In order to simplify the wealth of information available in the excitation-emission matrix spectra (EEMs), two ratios were calculated. A 66-90% decrease in the slope ratio was observed with the addition of Corexit. When the slope ratios were reduced in complexity to intensity ratios, similar trends were apparent. As a result either of the ratios could be used as a simple and rapid means of identifying and monitoring chemically dispersed oil in the open ocean.     

放射性碳限定了南极威德尔海冰盖的进退

南极冰盖,尤其是西南极冰盖的稳定性是争论较多的一个话题,引发了理论大讨论。一些研究人员对西南极冰盖偶发崩裂的可能性进行了调查。饶有兴趣的是,这些文章的发表与北大西洋冰盖,尤其是劳伦泰德冰盖东区反复发生冰裂的证据作为一个重要的科学范例得到进一步充实几乎...     

内蒙古新地沟金矿床中金的赋存状态研究

内蒙古新地沟金矿床为一典型绿岩型金矿。利用显微镜、扫描电子显微镜观察到自然金602粒。研究表明,金的赋存形式主要有包体金、裂隙金、粒间金和连生金。载金矿物以黄铁矿、石英为主,所占比例达到95%;其次是钾长石、绢云母、菱铁矿、褐铁矿、黝铜矿、方铅矿、闪锌矿等。自然金的粒度主要以显微极微粒金(0.2~5μm)、显微细粒金(10~20μm)、显微中粒金(20~50μm)、显微微粒金(5~10μm)为主,分别占32.23%、26.91%、20.6%、16.11%;手标本及显微镜下也能观察到显微粗粒金(50~100μm)和巨粒金(100~200μm),虽然其含量仅占4.15%,但其面积可达33.97%,对于矿石品位和储量来说十分重要。电子探针和物相分析显示,矿石中金主要以独立矿物存在,包括大量的自然金和少量的银金矿;通过计算表明金的平均成色为803,金矿物的成色和特征反映金矿形成条件为中温和中等深度。     

区域斜坡不稳定空间预测

将场地斜坡稳定随机模拟分析结果与区域斜坡空间不稳定性预测结合起来,基于层次分析建立了区域斜坡空间破坏概率的多层模糊稳定分析方法,实现了场地斜坡稳定非确定性模型评价结果与区域稳定性研究相结合,借助这一关系模型可以实现空间点评价向空间面评价的过渡．以川南经济开发区区域斜坡空间破坏概率预测为例进行了方法验证,结果显示这种方法可以克服区域斜坡不稳定性评价中的定量化困难,物理意义更加明确．     

Ground water sustenance of Nebraska's unique Sand Hills peatland fen ecosystems

Many ecosystems have evolved under conditions where ground water is critical to the survival of the unique species contained therein. One example is Nebraska's Sand Hills fens. The Sand Hills region comprises lush interdunal valleys amid grass-stabilized dunes. One valley type, fens, are ground water-fed wetlands that have several meters of saturated, organic soils comprising peat formed under anaerobic conditions where plant growth exceeds decomposition. These fens support unique flora and fauna such as rush aster and northern redbelly dace that are typically found in more boreal regions of North America. This study characterized the hydrogeology of a representative fen in the Jumbo Valley to explore how these relict species survive in a hot, arid climate and to understand present and historical relations between ground water and these unique ecosystems. Results indicate that ground water's present role in sustaining the fens is twofold: (1) wetland plant transpiration of shallow ground water across the valley creates a cooler, humid microclimate that sustains the fens in the region's hot, arid climate and (2) the large volume of ground water pumped through the fens by plant transpiration transports necessary nutrients to the root zone. Results suggest that, in the past, in addition to its sustaining role, ground water also played a vital role in fen development and in fen preservation through nearly 15,000 years of existence. Thus, as with like ecosystems, the role of ground water must be considered in future Sand Hills fen protection, restoration, and management.     

Effects of sonication and advanced chemical oxidants on the unicellular green alga Dunaliella tertiolecta and cysts, larvae and adults of the brine shrimp Artemia salina: a prospective treatment to eradicate invasive organisms from ballast water

Uptake and release of ship-borne ballast water is a major factor contributing to introductions of aquatic phytoplankton and invasive macroinvertebrates. Some invasive unicellular algae can cause harmful algal blooms and produce toxins that build up in food chains. Moreover, to date, few studies have compared the efficacy of ballast water treatments against different life history phases of aquatic macroinvertebrates. In the present study, the unicellular green alga Dunaliella tertiolecta, and three discrete life history phases of the brine shrimp Artemia salina, were independently used as model organisms to study the efficacy of sonication as well as the advanced oxidants, hydrogen peroxide and ozone, as potential ballast water treatments. Algal cells and brine shrimp cysts, nauplii, and adults were subjected to individual and combined treatments of sonication and advanced oxidants. Combined rather than individual treatments consistently yielded the highest levels of mortality in algal cells (100% over a 2 min exposure) and in brine shrimp (100% and 95% for larvae and adults, respectively, over a 2 min exposure). In contrast, mortality levels in brine shrimp cysts (66% over 2 min; increased to 92% over a 20 min exposure) were moderately high but consistently lower than that detected for larval or adult shrimp. Our results indicate that a combination of sonication and advanced chemical oxidants may be a promising method to eradicate aquatic unicellular algae and macroinvertebrates in ballast water.     

Biogeochemical evolution of a landfill leachate plume, Norman, Oklahoma

Leachate from municipal landfills can create groundwater contaminant plumes that may last for decades to centuries. The fate of reactive contaminants in leachate-affected aquifers depends on the sustainability of biogeochemical processes affecting contaminant transport. Temporal variations in the configuration of redox zones downgradient from the Norman Landfill were studied for more than a decade. The leachate plume contained elevated concentrations of nonvolatile dissolved organic carbon (NVDOC) (up to 300 mg/L), methane (16 mg/L), ammonium (650 mg/L as N), iron (23 mg/L), chloride (1030 mg/L), and bicarbonate (4270 mg/L). Chemical and isotopic investigations along a 2D plume transect revealed consumption of solid and aqueous electron acceptors in the aquifer, depleting the natural attenuation capacity. Despite the relative recalcitrance of NVDOC to biodegradation, the center of the plume was depleted in sulfate, which reduces the long-term oxidation capacity of the leachate-affected aquifer. Ammonium and methane were attenuated in the aquifer relative to chloride by different processes: ammonium transport was retarded mainly by physical interaction with aquifer solids, whereas the methane plume was truncated largely by oxidation. Studies near plume boundaries revealed temporal variability in constituent concentrations related in part to hydrologic changes at various time scales. The upper boundary of the plume was a particularly active location where redox reactions responded to recharge events and seasonal water-table fluctuations. Accurately describing the biogeochemical processes that affect the transport of contaminants in this landfill-leachate-affected aquifer required understanding the aquifer's geologic and hydrodynamic framework.