Comparison of two methods for ground level vapour sampling and influence of meteorological parameters on its stable isotopic composition at Roorkee,India

Ground level vapour (GLV) samples were collected at Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India using two methods: liquid condensation (LC) at 0 °C and cryogenic trap (CT) at ?78 °C for the period 2009–2011. The study reveals that there is a considerable fluctuation in stable isotopic composition of GLV throughout the year. The study area receives complex moisture source during different seasons, which is evident from the moisture flux received during different seasons. The isotopic composition of the GLV in both methods shows depleted nature during rainout process. CT method shows exact isotopic signature of GLV because of maximum trapping of air moisture and its condensation, whereas LC method shows depleted or enriched character because of the prevalence of kinetic and diffusive fractionation. The d value shows that LC method acts as magnifier of the CT method and clearly shows seasonal effect than the clustered CT method. Hence, to decipher the original isotopic signature of GLV, isotopic composition of GLV_LC can be converted to GLV_CT by deriving an empirical relationship with changing season and locations. Meteorological parameters show varied behaviour with GLV_{CT and LC} because of moisture sources in all seasons. The GLV_{CT and LC} method shows significant correlation with meteorological parameters when the region is dominated by single moisture source. The GLV_LC method magnifies the correlation with meteorological parameters when the region is influenced by more than one source. The study shows that the GLV_LC methods can be used in place of GLV_CT when the objective is to understand the influence of different moisture sources on GLV. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Modeling the behaviour of alluvial and blasted quarried rockfill materials

Two types of modeled rockfill materials were collected from Renuka dam site, Himachal Pradesh, India and Salma dam site, Afghanistan. The rockfill material collected from Renuka dam site is rounded to sub-rounded in shape and the rockfill material collected from Salma dam site is angular to sub-angular in shape. The prototype gradation rockfill material consists maximum particle size larger than 1,000 mm. Therefore, for carrying out laboratory testing and modeling the bahaviour, the prototype rockfill material is scaled down to the maximum particle size (d_max) of 25, 50 and 80 mm for both projects material using parallel gradation technique. Triaxial compression and Index properties tests were conducted on both project rockfill materials and are presented. From the triaxial behaviour, it is observed that the stress–strain behaviour is non-linear, inelastic and stress dependent for both the materials. The material compresses during the initial shearing and shows dilation effect with further shearing. It is observed that the ?-value for alluvial rockfill material increases with increase in d_max and reverse trend is observed for blasted quarried rockfill material which shows the importance of the type of material. The stress–strain-volume change behaviour of both projects modeled rockfill material was predicted by using hierarchical single surface (HISS) model based on elasto plasticity and compared with the laboratory test results. From the comparison, it is observed that both results match closely. It is, therefore, suggested that the behaviour of both types of rockfill materials can be characterized successfully using HISS model.     

Conservation of biodiversity of the coastal resources of Sundarbans,Northeast India: an integrated approach through environmental education

The Indian Sundarbans, a diversified coastal wetland on the southern fringe of the State of West Bengal, harbors a luxuriant biodiversity and acts as a potential refuge of living marine resources. Girdled with thick mangrove foliage, this estuarine delta system offers an excellent nursery ground for most of the brackishwater finfish and shellfish. Since supply of hatchery-produced tiger prawn seed (Penaeus monodon) is highly inadequate in West Bengal, the aquaculture farms of this region largely depend on the supply from natural resources. Being motivated by a regular cash income, the majority of coastal people from Sundarbans have adopted prawn seed collection as their profession almost throughout the year as an important source of earning. The users are neither trained nor guided at any stage from collection to marketing and are fully dependent on traditional methods. They first sort out the tiger prawn seeds (mainly the postlarval stage PL 20) accounting only 0.25-0.27% of the total catch and thereafter the major portion of the haul are thrown away on the beach flats or the tidal mudflats. This wasted by-catch contains the juveniles of economic and uneconomic varieties of finfish and shellfish along with a bulk of holoplankters and meroplankters (non-target species). This practice causes several ecological and occupational consequences, namely, (i) the huge destruction of the pelagic biota that can lead to severe stock depletion as well as hamper the energy transference through the marine ecosystem food webs; (ii) constant dragging of nets along the coast and tidal creeks paves the way for soil erosion, uprooting the mangrove seedlings and saltmarsh vegetation; (iii) the water quality is deteriorating in the catchment areas due to mud erosion and (iv) due to constant contact with the seawater, the collectors are affected with waterborne diseases, skin infections, reproductive tract disease in women and many other contagious diseases.This paper, in addition to identifying the challenge to environmental quality and resource abundance, emphasizes the need for grass-root public education so that local people come to understand, support and implement sustainable resource conservation and environmental protection activities now and in the future. As a follow-up course of action, the authors have initiated a general awareness program for developing consciousness among the coastal people regarding proper use of natural resources. Initiatives are taken for educating coastal people by holding workshops and seminars with the use of educational resource materials. Exclusive awareness camps and grass root level training for coastal people are also being proposed as a future course of action by means of exhibitions, audiovisuals etc. It is proposed that local government bodies come forward to mitigate this problem with scientific and rational approaches and to take proper actions towards conservation.     

Three dimensional velocity structure of the Koyna-Warna region using local earthquake tomography

A dense seismic network (～100 stations) was operated in the Koyna-Warna region from January 2010 to May 2010, that allow us to collect 400 high-quality local earthquake data of magnitude less than 4. In this region, the fault structure and tectonic setting that accommodate the induced seismicity is not well understood. To investigate the seismotectonics of the region, we have inverted 7826 P- and 7047 S-P arrival times for 3-D Vp and Vp/Vs tomographic models along with hypocenters parameters in the region. Although, Dixit et al. (2014) have performed 3-D local earthquake tomography with double-difference tomography code using catalog differential time data. In this paper, Simulps14 code on the same data set is applied. For better approach P arrival time and S-P travel times are inverted directly for Vp, Vp/Vs variations and earthquake locations. High Vp ～5.9 to 6.5 and low to high Vp/Vs ～1.69-1.74 imaged in the hypocenter region. These features interpreted as a fluid bearing rock mass under high pore pressure. It is also observed that below the trap basement form a local topography depression between the Koyna and Warna Reservoirs. To the South of the Warna reservoir, intense seismic activity defines a major cluster of ～ 5 km width at 3 to7 km deep, located under the trap, where the basement is deepening. Such regions are inferred to be associated with the seismically active faults zones. The obtain velocity anomalies are reliable down to a depth of 10 km. This is also confirmed by the analysis of three resolution parameters viz. Hit count, Derivative Weight sum (DWS) and Resolution Diagonal Elements (RDE).     

Wind-Wave Characteristics and Climate Variability in the Indian Ocean Region Using Altimeter Data

The significant wave height and wind speed derived for the period 1993–2010 from altimeter data sets over the Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal, and the Indian Ocean categorized as six zones has been analyzed. The average variation of both significant wave height and wind speed is found to be almost stable for the period of study. The study reveals that the average wind speed increases by about 6cm/sec/year during monsoon and post monsoon in the southern Indian Ocean. The distribution of wind and waves was studied in the context of seasonal variations. In addition, the average inter-annual and intra-annual variations along with the statistical parameters such as standard deviation, and root mean square wave height for the six zones are also reported in this paper.     

Metal Impregnated Silica‐Carbon Materials from Rice Husk: A Versatile Sorbent for Toxic Organics and Inorganics in Water and Air

Carbon bearing materials derived from rice husk (RH) have long been recognized as sorbents for diverse chemicals – both organic and inorganic. This work presents an overview of studies demonstrating a single step process of carbonization of chemically pretreated RH to produce metal impregnated silica‐carbon char designated as silicarbon materials that can be utilized in sorbing out water‐borne organic and inorganic hazardous substances (such as phenol, hexavalent chromium, fluoride, and arsenic) and air‐borne volatile organic chemicals (such as acetone, chloroform, benzene, and pyridine). The metal‐impregnated silicarbon solids derived from RH appear to constitute renewable, low‐cost, user‐friendly, and efficient materials for control systems for indoor air contamination and for industrial as well as non‐industrial hazardous aqueous pollution.     

Petrological and geochemical characteristics of Marunthurkota syenites from the Kerala khondalite belt,southern India

This note reports new occurrences of syenite bodies around Marunthurkota area from the Kerala khondalite belt (KKB). Petrological and geochemical studies suggest that the syenites have a pronounced A-type affinity, metaluminous characteristics with high concentrations of alkalies, Rb, Sr, Zr, and high K₂O/Na₂O ratio. Miaskitic nature (agpaitic index<1) of syenite suggest involvement of CO₂ related phase in their genesis. The petrological characteristics signify crystallization of the rock at shallow levels within the crust. Geochemistry favours mantle origin of the magma and enrichment of Ba and Sr are indicative of involvement of carbonatite melt in the source region. The study envisages the presence of a juvenile CO₂ enriched upper mantle below the southern Indian continental crust during the Pan-African time.     

‘Thermohaline front’ off the east coast of India and its generating mechanism

Physical oceanography measurements reveal a strong salinity (0.18 psu km⁻¹) and temperature (0.07 °C km⁻¹) front off the east coast of India in December 1997. T–S diagrams suggest lateral mixing between the fresh water at the coast and the ambient warmer, saltier water. This front seems to be the result of southward advection of fresh and cool water, formed in the northern Bay of Bengal during the monsoon, by the East Indian Coastal Current, as suggested by the large-scale salinity structure in the SODA re-analysis and the anti-cyclonic gyre in the northwestern Bay of Bengal during winter. The data further reveals an offshore front in January, which appears to be the result of a meso-scale re-circulation around an eddy, bringing cold and freshwater from the northern Bay of Bengal further away from the shore. Our cruise data hence illustrates that very strong salinity fronts can appear in the Bay of Bengal after the monsoon, as a result of intense coastal circulation and stirring by eddies.