The inhibition of marine nitrification by ocean disposal of carbon dioxide

In an attempt to reduce the threat of global warming, it has been proposed that the rise of atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations be reduced by the ocean disposal of CO2 from the flue gases of fossil fuel-fired power plants. The release of large amounts of CO2 into mid or deep ocean waters will result in large plumes of acidified seawater with pH values ranging from 6 to 8. In an effort to determine whether these CO2-induced pH changes have any effect on marine nitrification processes, surficial (euphotic zone) and deep (aphotic zone) seawater samples were sparged with CO2 for varying time durations to achieve a specified pH reduction, and the rate of microbial ammonia oxidation was measured spectrophotometrically as a function of pH using an inhibitor technique. For both seawater samples taken from either the euphotic or aphotic zone, the nitrification rates dropped drastically with decreasing pH. Relative to nitrification rates in the original seawater at pH 8, nitrification rates were reduced by ca. 50% at pH 7 and more than 90% at pH 6.5. Nitrification was essentially completely inhibited at pH 6. These findings suggest that the disposal of CO2 into mid or deep oceans will most likely result in a drastic reduction of ammonia oxidation rates within the pH plume and the concomitant accumulation of ammonia instead of nitrate. It is unlikely that ammonia will reach the high concentration levels at which marine aquatic organisms are known to be negatively affected. However, if the ammonia-rich seawater from inside the pH plume is upwelled into the euphotic zone, it is likely that changes in phytoplankton abundance and community structure will occur. Finally, the large-scale inhibition of nitrification and the subsequent reduction of nitrite and nitrate concentrations could also result in a decrease of denitrification rates which, in turn, could lead to the buildup of nitrogen and unpredictable eutrophication phenomena. Clearly, more research on the environmental effects of ocean disposal of CO2 is needed to determine whether the potential costs related to marine ecosystem disturbance and disruption can be justified in terms of the perceived benefits that may be achieved by temporarily delaying global warming.     

Seasonal fluctuations in the deep central equatorial Atlantic Ocean: a data–model comparison

Low-frequency current fluctuations in the deep central equatorial Atlantic are analyzed using current meter measurements recorded from November 1992 to November 1994. Current meters were located at about 14°W of longitude and 1° of latitude on both sides of the equator between 1,700 m depth and the ocean bottom. At all sampling depths, the velocity fluctuations are dominantly zonal and symmetrical with respect to the equator. At 1,700 and 2,000 m, the flow is dominated by annual period fluctuations, at 3,000 m, the velocity field amplitude presents a minimum, and at 3,750 and 3,950 m, the flow is modulated by annual and semiannual period variability. The annual signal exhibits an apparent upward phase propagation. When considering the phase and the amplitude of the seasonal fluctuations, the data compare well with the outputs of a realistic numerical simulation of the Atlantic Ocean. Together with a previous analysis of the model simulations, this supports the idea that the observed annual fluctuations are due to wind-forced vertically propagating Kelvin and Rossby waves. Data and model do not provide deciding evidences of the presence of semiannual equatorial waves deeper than 3,500 m depth in the central equatorial Atlantic Ocean.     

Delivering pro-poor water and sanitation services: The technical and political challenges in Malawi and Zambia

Meeting Millennium Development Goals on water and sanitation services in developing countries are fraught with difficulties, as can be seen most clearly from the experiences of Malawi and Zambia, two of the world’s poorest countries that have committed to meeting these goals. The challenges are not only technical, requiring programmatic or engineering solutions, but are also and most importantly political, because solutions will most often cause a rearrangement of the peculiar forms of power relations that have emerged within institutional and political environments of the two countries. The challenges include weak state support for water and sanitation provision, unreliable and contested indicators of coverage, poor sectoral co-ordination, and fragmented donor efforts. This field note examines these challenges in greater detail to cast new light as well as draw attention to possible solutions that can be implemented.     

TL age-estimates for the Middle Palaeolithic layers at Theopetra cave (Greece)

The lowest stratigraphic unit of Theopetra cave (Greece) contains a Middle Palaeolithic sequence radiocarbon dated to between 46 and 35 ka BP; at the limit of this dating method. The upper part of this sequence has yielded late Middle Palaeolithic lithic assemblages containing several early Upper Palaeolithic artifacts. To get more precise dates for the human occupation of the cave, burnt flint specimens from these Middle Palaeolithic layers were dated by thermoluminescence. The dates obtained are coherent and indicate that the first human occupation of the cave took place at the end of isotopic stage 6 or more probably at the beginning of stage 5, much earlier than previously proposed. In the light of this new evidence, it is reasonable to assume that: (a) Theopetra contains the oldest dated Middle Palaeolithic deposits of Greece and (b) that the assemblages first interpreted as “Transitional Middle/Upper Palaeolithic” industries may be the result of post-depositional mixing of cultural material.     

On the interest and the limits of using combined ESR/U-series model in the case of very late uranium uptake

Before ESR/U-series models were applied to ungulate teeth, it is generally assumed that calculated ages are close to the “real” ages when they range between the values obtained with the EU and LU models. When the samples show signs of uranium-leaching, a realistic mathematical modelling of the age is not possible. On the other hand, some samples have undergone a very late U-uptake “affecting” directly the U-series ages and rendering the calculated ages younger.

We present results obtained on two open-air sites, which show the limits of such combined models in the case of late uranium incorporation. For the Middle Pleistocene site of Isernia la Pineta (Italy), the ESR dates are expected to fall within the limits imposed by the Ar–Ar results. The other site, the Lower Palaeolithic deposits of Ambrona (Spain), yielded two sets of samples: some at the top of the sequence with uranium uptake ranging between EU and LU limits and thus giving a good idea of the “real” age of the site; others at the base displaying a very late U-uptake, which render an age determination difficult.     

Cenozoic post-collisional brittle tectonic history and stress reorientation in the High Zagros Belt (Iran, Fars Province)

The Zagros fold-and-thrust belt of SW-Iran is among the youngest continental collision zones on Earth. Collision is thought to have occurred in the late Oligocene–early Miocene, followed by continental shortening. The High Zagros Belt (HZB) presents a Neogene imbricate structure that has affected the thick sedimentary cover of the former Arabian continental passive margin. The HZB of interior Fars marks the innermost part of SE-Zagros, trending NW–SE, that is characterised by higher elevation, lack of seismicity, and no evident active crustal shortening with respect to the outer (SW) parts. This study examines the brittle structures that developed during the mountain building process to decipher the history of polyphase deformation and variations in compressive tectonic fields since the onset of collision. Analytic inversion techniques enabled us to determine and separate different brittle tectonic regimes in terms of stress tensors. Various strike–slip, compressional, and tensional stress regimes are thus identified with different stress fields. Brittle tectonic analyses were carried out to reconstruct possible geometrical relationships between different structures and to establish relative chronologies of corresponding stress fields, considering the folding process. Results indicate that in the studied area, the main fold and thrust structure developed in a general compressional stress regime with an average N032° direction of σ₁ stress axis during the Miocene. Strike–slip structures were generated under three successive strike–slip stress regimes with different σ₁ directions in the early Miocene (N053°), late Miocene–early Pliocene (N026°), and post-Pliocene (N002°), evolving from pre-fold to post-fold faulting. Tensional structures also developed as a function of the evolving stress regimes. Our reconstruction of stress fields suggests an anticlockwise reorientation of the horizontal σ₁ axis since the onset of collision and a significant change in vertical stress from σ₃ to σ₂ since the late stage of folding and thrusting. A late right-lateral reactivation was also observed on some pre-existing belt-parallel brittle structures, especially along the reverse fault systems, consistent with the recent N–S plate convergence. However, this feature was not reflected by large structures in the HZB of interior Fars. The results should not be extrapolated to the entire Zagros belt, where the deformation front has propagated from inner to outer zones during the younger events.     

An SEM study of porosity and grain boundary microstructure in quartz mylonites, Simplon Fault Zone, Central Alps

A backscattered and secondary electron SEM study of the grain boundary microstructure in quartz mylonites sampled along the length of the retrograde Simplon Fault Zone established three characteristic components. (1) Fine isolated pores (≤?1?μm diameter) are scattered across two-grain interfaces, preferentially concentrated on surfaces in extension. Pores are uncommon on three-grain junctions and there is no evidence for fluid interconnectivity along three- and four-grain junctions. The fine porosity may develop by accumulation of original, mainly intragranular fluid inclusions to the grain boundary during deformation and recrystallization and by cavitation of grain boundaries during grain boundary sliding. Dynamic cavitation implies that the “ductile” mylonitic deformation is at least locally dilatant and therefore pressure sensitive. (2) Large “vug”-like pores (up to mm-scale) extend along multi-grain boundaries. Observed in all samples, they are most common in the higher initial temperature, coarse-grained samples with a microstructure dominated by grain boundary migration recrystallization. Grains bordering this connected porosity develop perfect crystal faces, undecorated by fine pores or pits. The irregular “lobate” optical microstructure of many migrating grain boundaries actually consists of a series of straight crystal faces. The coarse porosity is probably due to accumulation during dynamic recrystallization of (CO₂-rich ?) fluid with a high wetting angle against quartz. (3) In one sample, interconnected sinuous ridges, ≤?0.2?μm high, are observed to follow three- and four-grain junctions and disjoint into more isolated worms and spheroidal globules. On two-grain interfaces, these are transitional to more branching vein-like or convoluted brain-like forms. The brain-like and globular forms have been observed, with varying frequency, through the range of samples, with the globules attaining sizes of up to 60?μm. Vein structures have also been observed on intragranular fractures. These topologies do not match across adjoining surfaces and must have developed into free space. The ridge-vein-brain-spheroid structure is distinctly different to that previously observed on experimentally healed microcracks and its origin is not unequivocally established. They could represent unstable meniscus necking of a thin grain-boundary phase of low viscosity, developed due to quasi-adiabatic shear and/or local stress-induced dilatancy during microcracking.     

Variability associated with α accretion disc theory for standard and advection-dominated discs

The α turbulent viscosity formalism for accretion discs must be interpreted as a mean field theory, modelling a steady state only on spatial or time-scales greater than those of the turbulence. The extent of the scale separation determines the relative precision error (RPE) of the predicted luminosity L _ν. Turbulence and the use of α implies that (1) field line stretching gives a magnetic pressure  α²/6 of the total pressure generally, and a one-to-one relation between α and the pressure ratio for thin discs, and (2) large turbulent scales in advection-dominated accretion flows (ADAFs) predict a lower L _ν precision than thin discs for a given observation duration and central mass. The allowed variability (or RPE) at frequency ν increases with the size of the contributing region. For X-ray binary ADAFs, the RPE ∼ 5 per cent at R  ≤ 1000 Schwarzchild radii ( R _s) for averages over  1000 s. However, current data for galaxies like NGC 4258 and M87 give RPEs in L _ν of 50–100 per cent even at R  ≤ 100  R _S. More data are required, but systematic deviations from ADAF predictions are more significant than random deviations, and may constrain properties of the turbulence, the accretion mode, the assumption of a steady state or the accretion rate.