Recent pH and CO2 profiles at Lakes Nyos and Monoun, Cameroon: implications for the degassing strategy and its numerical simulation

In situ pH profiles are reported for the first time for Lakes Nyos and Monoun. The pH profiles were converted to CO₂ profiles using HCO₃⁻ profiles calculated from conductivity data. Recent observations (1993–1996) at Lake Nyos indicates that CO₂ still accumulates below 180 m depth at a rate of 125 Mmol year⁻¹. At Lake Monoun, the majority of CO₂ is present below a depth of 60 m, only 25 m below the saturation depth. Consequently, a potential danger of gas explosion is high at both lakes, and artificial degassing of the lakes should be performed as soon as possible. A system for industrial degassing of the lakes is proposed. The system, based on the self-sustained gas lift principle, consists of multiple pipes (14 cm in diameter) with different intake depths; 12 pipes for Lake Nyos (four each at 185, 195 and 205 m) and three pipes for Lake Monoun (at 70, 80 and 90 m). The stepped degassing at different depths is intended to keep the maximum stability of the lakes. The proposed degassing operation was simulated using the code for both lakes. In 5 years, approximately 50% of currently dissolved CO₂ in Lake Nyos and 90% in Lake Monoun will be removed. The expected changes in the thermal and chemical structures of the lakes as degassing proceeds will be most easily monitored with a carefully calibrated CTD equipped with a pH sensor. The simulation indicates that the discharged degassed water will sink to a level of neutral buoyancy, i.e. to a maximum of 70 m at Lake Nyos and 35 m at Lake Monoun. There would be no possibility of triggering a gas explosion by this plunge of discharged water because the water present there would have already been replaced by water at lower CO₂ concentration, during the degassing from shallower pipes.     

Diatom transfer-functions for quantifying past air temperature, pH and total organic carbon concentration from lakes in northern Sweden

The relationships between diatoms (Bacillariophyceae) in surface sediments of lakes and summer air temperature, pH and total organic carbon concentration (TOC) were explored along a steep climatic gradient in northern Sweden to provide a tool to infer past climate conditions from sediment cores. The study sites are in an area with low human impact and range from boreal forest to alpine tundra. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) constrained to mean July air temperature and pH clearly showed that diatom community composition was different between lakes situated in conifer-, mountain birch- and alpine-vegetation zones. As a consequence, diatoms and multivariate ordination methods can be used to infer past changes in treeline position and dominant forest type. Quantitative inference models were developed to estimate mean July air temperature, pH and TOC from sedimentary diatom assemblages using weighted averaging (WA) and weighted averaging partial least squares (WA-PLS) regression. Relationships between diatoms and mean July air temperature were independent of lake-water pH, TOC, alkalinity and maximum depth. The results demonstrated that diatoms in lake sediments can provide useful and independent quantitative information for estimating past changes in mean July air temperature (R² _jack = 0.62, RMSEP = 0.86 °C; R² and root mean squared error of prediction (RMSEP) based on jack-knifing), pH (R² _jack = 0.61, RMSEP = 0.30) and TOC (R² _jack = 0.49, RMSEP = 1.33 mg l^-1). The paper focuses mainly on the relationship between diatom community composition and mean July air temperature, but the relationships to pH and TOC are also discussed.     

不同初始pH下海水中重金属含量变化及其影响因素

为了解烟气脱硫酸性海水排放对天然海水中重金属的影响,设置初始pH(pH0)分别为5.0、6.5、7.0、7.5、8.0等6个实验组,研究各组海水的pH、盐度、悬浮物以及Cr、Cu、Zn、Cd和Pb等重金属的变化规律。结果表明,随着实验的进行,各实验组水体的pH呈现开始升高、中期略降、后期趋稳的变化规律,且pH0越低,pH增加幅度越大;各实验组的悬浮物含量随pH的升高而增大,重金属含量和盐度均随pH的升高而降低。分析表明,藻类的光合作用是控制水体pH变化的主要过程,pH则是影响水体重金属含量的关键环境因子,符合pH越低、各重金属含量越高的普遍规律。因此,借助耐酸性藻类的光合作用提升水体pH,是减少烟气脱硫海水排放对天然海水中重金属的溶出、减轻重金属污染的可能途径。     

Effects of high CO2 seawater on the copepod (Acartia tsuensis) through all life stages and subsequent generations

We studied the effects of exposure to seawater equilibrated with CO(2)-enriched air (CO(2) 2380 ppm) from eggs to maturity and over two subsequent generations on the copepod Acartia tsuensis. Compared to the control (CO(2) 380 ppm), high CO(2) exposure through all life stages of the 1st generation copepods did not significantly affect survival, body size or developmental speed. Egg production and hatching rates were also not significantly different between the initial generation of females exposed to high CO(2) and the 1st and 2nd generation females developed from eggs to maturity in high CO(2). Thus, the copepods appear more tolerant to increased CO(2) than other marine organisms previously investigated for CO(2) tolerance (i.e., sea urchins and bivalves). However, the crucial importance of copepods in marine ecosystems requires thorough evaluation of the overall impacts of marine environmental changes predicted to occur with increased CO(2) concentrations, i.e., increased temperature, enhanced UV irradiation, and changes in the community structure and nutritional value of phytoplankton.     

北京市区居住环境的区位优势度分析

首先选取服务设施、自然环境、交通状况、区位条件等因子作为北京市城市内部居住环境区位优势度的评价要素;然后构建评价模型,对北京市不同区域居住环境进行区位优势度评价,并分析其空间特征;进一步又研究了居住环境区位优势度与住宅价格的空间关系,以及与居民居住区位选择行为的关系;最后得出结论为,居住环境区位优势度空间变化趋势与商品房价格的空间分异以及居民居住区位选择的空间偏好具有相似性,即居住环境区位优势度高的地区商品房价格也相对较高,也是居民居住空间偏好地区。     

西宁地区污染气象特征与降水pH值的初步分析

西宁是我国空气污染最严重的城市之一,冬春季节尤为严重,特别是当春季受到强沙尘暴影响时,会产生5级以上的严重空气污染。这除了当地污染源过量排放和外来沙尘输送外,当地大气扩散条件也是主要原因之一。利用西宁市2000年1月至2002年12月的各种常规气象观测资料和降水pH值资料,计算分析了西宁地区月、季、年各种逆稳层日数和混合层厚度,结果表明,西宁地区月逆温平均日数和月平均混合厚度基本呈反位向。冬半年各种逆温出现的总日数一般在15~24d之间,而夏半年在7~12d之间,前后二者相差一半。月平均混合厚度夏半年高,而冬半年低;季节变化是冬季平均混合厚度最低,春、夏季较高,秋季平均混合厚度介于春季和冬季之间,年最低和最高混合层厚度的平均年变差为145m。月逆温平均日数多(少)、月逆温厚度平均偏高(低),而月平均混合厚度偏低(高)。pH值月、季平均值与月、季平均混合厚度的变化趋势基本一致。混合层厚度高(低),湍流运动强(弱),空气在垂直和水平方向交换时间短(长)、扩散能力强(弱),pH值大(小)。     

天山东部冰芯pH值和电导率的大气环境空间差异

Electrical Conductivity Measurement (ECM) from ice core is a representative index for atmospheric environmental change. The pH value and ECM from three shallow ice cores (each 3.85 m, 231 ice samples total) on Glacier No.1 at the headwater of Urumqi River, Gla-cier No.48 in Kuitun area, and Miaoergou Glacier in Hami area in the eastern Tianshan Mountains, western China, were measured and analyzed for atmospheric environment re-cords research. Ice core record shows that the changing trend of pH and ECM in three sites in recent years is different: ECM in Kuitun increases with the ice depth change, but ECM in Hami and Urumqi Glacier No.1 ice cores show a decreasing trend. Average ECM value in Hami is much larger than other two sites, just as the dust concentration and ions concentra-tion are also very high in this site. ECM records in all three sites are mainly affected by aerosol mineral dust of Central Asia, and correlative coefficients of ECM and mineral ions such as Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+ are all significantly high. The pH value and ECM are also significantly high correlative coefficients in the eastern Tianshan Mountains. Comparison between the eastern Tianshan Mountains and other sites in western China, and Polar Regions, shows that the difference of ECM can very well reflect the spatial difference of worldwide atmospheric environment.     

天山东部冰芯pH值和电导率的大气环境空间差异

冰芯电导率是大气环境变化的替代性指标.对我国天山东部三个研究点奎屯哈希勒根48号冰川、乌鲁木齐河源1号冰川以及哈密庙儿沟平顶冰川粒雪芯中pH值和电导率的近期环境记录进行了分析研究.结果显示,三个研究点粒雪芯反映的近期pH值和电导率变化趋势不同:奎屯电导率随冰芯深度增加表现出升高趋势,哈密庙尔沟平顶冰川和乌鲁木齐河源1号冰川随冰芯深度增加表现出一定下降趋势;冰芯电导率平均值在哈密庙儿沟冰川最大,而其他两个点相对较小,这与矿物粉尘浓度和离子浓度的分布一致;雪冰电导率与粉尘及离子相关性分析表明,电导率主要受中亚粉尘活动影响,同时与Ca2+、Mg2+、Na+等相关性很高.通过比较显示,天山东部与我国西部其他研究点以及极地雪冰电导率的差异可以很好地反映大气环境的空间差异.     

A variational method for correcting non-systematic errors in numerical weather prediction

A variational method based on previous numerical forecasts is developed to estimate and correct non-systematic component of numerical weather forecast error. In the method, it is assumed that the error is linearly dependent on some combination of the forecast fields, and three types of forecast combination are applied to identifying the forecasting error: 1) the forecasts at the ending time, 2) the combination of initial fields and the forecasts at the ending time, and 3) the combination of the forecasts at...     

Controls on shell Mg/Ca and Sr/Ca in cultured planktonic foraminiferan, Globigerinoides ruber (white)

Mg/Ca and Sr/Ca ratios were determined on a single species of planktonic foraminiferan, Globigerinoides ruber (white), collected from the Gulf of Eilat and cultured in seawater at five different salinities (32 to 44), five temperatures (18 to 30 °C) and four pH values (7.9 to 8.4). The Mg/Ca-temperature calibration of cultured G. ruber (with an exponential slope of 8 ± 3%/°C) agrees well with previously published calibrations from core-tops and sediment traps. However, the dependence of Mg/Ca on salinity (with an exponential slope of 5 ± 3%/psu) is also significant and should be included in the calibration equation. With this purpose, we calculated a calibration equation for G. ruber dependent on both temperature and salinity within the 95% confidence limits:

Mg/Ca(mmol/mol)=exp[0.06(±0.02)*S(psu)+0.08(±0.02)*T(°C)−2.8(±1.0)],R²=0.95