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.     

Bathymetric and magnetic survey of California Seamount (17°40′N × 124°W)

A bathymetric and magnetic survey of the California Seamount region (17°40′N × 124°00′W) shows that existing charts are in error. California Seamount is a peak extending to within 454 m (248 fathoms) of the surface. Its true location is 17°41′N × 124°01′W, 25 km southwest of the charted position. Near the old charted position there is an elongated feature which extends to within 1818 m (994 fathoms) of the surface. Both features are located on the Clarion Fracture Zone.     

新疆西天山菁布拉克基性杂岩体闪长岩锆石SHRIMP定年及其地质意义

文章对新疆西天山特克斯县菁布拉克基性杂岩体中辉石闪长岩样品中的锆石进行了SHRIMP U-Pb定年研究,获得了(434.4±6.2)Ma的和谐年龄,该结果表明菁布拉克岩体的侵位时间为早志留世。结合岩石地球化学分析所揭示的形成环境信息和最新的区域地质资料,认为菁布拉克岩体的形成与早志留世到早石炭世发生的南天山洋向北与中天山板块的俯冲作用密切相关,岩浆显现出的岛弧岩浆特点可能是由于洋壳向亏损地幔的俯冲所引起的。     

Transient sediment supply in a high‐altitude Alpine environment evidenced through a 10Be budget of the Etages catchment (French Western Alps)

Although beryllium‐10 (¹⁰Be) concentrations in stream sediments provide useful synoptic views of catchment‐wide erosion rates, little is known on the relative contributions of different sediment supply mechanisms to the acquisition of their initial signature in the headwaters. Here we address this issue by conducting a ¹⁰Be‐budget of detrital materials that characterize the morphogenetic domains representative of high‐altitude environments of the European Alps. We focus on the Etages catchment, located in the Ecrins‐Pelvoux massif (southeast France), and illustrate how in situ ¹⁰Be concentrations can be used for tracing the origin of the sand fraction from the bedload in the trunk stream. The landscape of the Etages catchment is characterized by a geomorphic transient state, high topographic gradients, and a large variety of modern geomorphic domains ranging from glacial environments to scarcely vegetated alluvial plains. Beryllium‐10 concentrations measured in the Etages catchment vary from ~1 × 10⁴ to 4.5 × 10⁵ atoms per gram quartz, while displaying consistent ¹⁰Be signatures within each representative morphogenetic unit. We show that the basic requirements for inferring catchment‐wide denudation from ¹⁰Be concentration measurements are not satisfied in this small, dynamic catchment. However, the distinct ¹⁰Be signature observed for the geomorphic domains can be used as a tracer. We suggest that a terrestrial cosmogenic nuclide (TCN) budget approach provides a valuable tool for the tracing of material origin in basins where the ‘let nature do the averaging’ principles may be violated. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Reconstructing historic Glacial Lake Outburst Floods through numerical modelling and geomorphological assessment: Extreme events in the Himalaya

Recession of high‐mountain glaciers in response to climatic change frequently results in the development of moraine‐dammed glacial lakes. Moraine dam failure is often accompanied by the release of large volumes of water and sediment, termed a Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF). Chukhung Glacier is a small (~3 km²) receding valley glacier in Mt. Everest (Sagarmatha) National Park, Nepal. Unlike many Himalayan glaciers, which possess a thick mantle of supraglacial debris, its surface is relatively clean. The glacier terminus has receded 1.3 km from its maximum Holocene position, and in doing so provided the space for an ice‐contact moraine‐dammed lake to develop. The lake had a maximum volume of 5.5 × 10⁵ m³ and drained as a result of breaching of the terminal moraine. An estimated 1.3 × 10⁵ m³ of material was removed from the terminal moraine during breach development. Numerical dam‐breach modelling, implemented within a Generalised Likelihood Uncertainty Estimation (GLUE) framework, was used to investigate a range of moraine‐dam failure scenarios. Reconstructed outflow peak discharges, including failure via overtopping and piping mechanisms, are in the range 146–2200 m³ s^‐1. Results from two‐dimensional hydrodynamic GLOF modelling indicate that maximum local flow depths may have exceeded 9 m, with maximum flow velocities exceeding 20 m s^‐1 within 700 m of the breach. The floodwaters mobilised a significant amount of material, sourced mostly from the expanding breach, forming a 300 m long and 100 m wide debris fan originating at the breach exit. moraine‐dam. These results also suggest that inundation of the entire floodplain may have been achieved within ten minutes of initial breach development, suggesting that debris fan development was rapid. We discuss the key glaciological and geomorphological factors that have determined the evolution of a hazardous moraine‐dammed lake complex and the subsequent generation of a GLOF and its geomorphological impact. © 2014 The Authors. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.     

Investigation on strength and stability of jointed rock mass using three‐dimensional numerical manifold method

This paper proposes a numerical model for jointed rock masses within the 3‐D numerical manifold method (NMM) framework equipped with a customized contact algorithm. The strength of rock sample containing a few sets of discontinuities is first investigated. The results of models with simple geometries are compared with the available analytical solutions to verify the developed computer code, whereas models with complex geometries are simulated to better understand the fundamental behavior and failure mechanism of jointed rock mass. Furthermore, the stability of jointed rock mass in an underground excavation is studied, where rock failure process is determined by the 3‐D NMM simulation. The simulation results provide valuable guidance on excavation process design and stabilization design in rock engineering practice. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Metric Impact of Reduction Optics in Digital Cameras

The recently released Nikon E2 still video camera incorporates reduction optics technology which enables a full conventional 35mm image to be recorded on a 2/3 inch (17mm) CCD array. This paper investigates the metric impact of reduction optics through application of the technique of multisensor system self-calibration. The influence of the JPEG image compression facility contained within the E2 is also assessed in an overall evaluation of the camera for vision metrology applications which demand relatively high object point triangulation accuracies.     

Modeled Sverdrup flow in the North Atlantic from 11 different wind stress climatologies

In studies of large-scale ocean dynamics, often quoted values of Sverdrup transport are computed using the Hellerman–Rosenstein wind stress climatology. The Sverdrup solution varies, however, depending on the wind set used. We examine the differences in the large-scale upper ocean response to different surface momentum forcing fields for the North Atlantic Ocean by comparing the different Sverdrup interior/Munk western boundary layer solutions produced by a 1/16° linear numerical ocean model forced by 11 different wind stress climatologies. Significant differences in the results underscore the importance of careful selection of a wind set for Sverdrup transport calculation and for driving nonlinear models. This high-resolution modeling approach to solving the linear wind-driven ocean circulation problem is a convenient way to discern details of the Sverdrup flow and Munk western boundary layers in areas of complicated geometry such as the Caribbean and Bahamas. In addition, the linear solutions from a large number of wind sets provide a well-understood baseline oceanic response to wind stress forcing and thus, (1) insight into the dynamics of observed circulation features, by themselves and in conjunction with nonlinear models, and (2) insight into nonlinear model sensitivity to the choice of wind-forcing product.The wind stress products are evaluated and insight into the linear dynamics of specific ocean features is obtained by examining wind stress curl patterns in relation to the corresponding high-resolution linear solutions in conjunction with observational knowledge of the ocean circulation. In the Sverdrup/Munk solutions, the Gulf Stream pathway consists of two branches. One separates from the coast at the observed separation point, but penetrates due east in an unrealistic manner. The other, which overshoots the separation point at Cape Hatteras and continues to flow northward along the continental boundary, is required to balance the Sverdrup interior transport. A similar depiction of the Gulf Stream is commonly seen in the mean flow of nonlinear, eddy-resolving basin-scale models of the North Atlantic Ocean. An O(1) change from linear dynamics is required for realistic simulation of the Gulf Stream pathway. Nine of the eleven Sverdrup solutions have a C-shaped subtropical gyre, similar to what is seen in dynamic height contours derived from observations. Three mechanisms are identified that can contribute to this pattern in the Sverdrup transport contours. Along 27°N, several wind sets drive realistic total western boundary current transport (within 10% of observed) when a 14 Sv global thermohaline contribution is added (COADS, ECMWF 10 m re-analysis and operational, Hellerman–Rosenstein and National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) surface stress re-analysis), a few drive transport that is substantially too high (ECMWF 1000 mb re-analysis and operational and Isemer–Hasse) and Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center (FNMOC) surface stresses give linear transport that is slightly weaker than observed. However, higher order dynamics are required to explain the partitioning of this transport between the Florida Straits and just east of the Bahamas (minimal in the linear solutions vs. 5 Sv observed east of the Bahamas). Part of the Azores Current transport is explained by Sverdrup dynamics. So are the basic path of the North Atlantic Current (NAC) and the circulation features within the Intra-Americas Sea (IAS), when a linear rendition of the northward upper ocean return flow of the global thermohaline circulation is added in the form of a Munk western boundary layer.