Factors influencing ammonia volatilization from urea in soils of the shortgrass steppe

The effects of soil moisture, temperature, and humidity treatments on urea hydrolysis and NH₃ volatilization were assessed in the laboratory. Field studies were conducted to determine seasonal NH₃ losses from simulated urine patches applied to contrasting soils of a representative hillslope of the shortgrass steppe region in the North American Great Plains.Losses of NH₃–N were most influenced by soil moisture. The effects of temperature and humidity on total, or temporal, losses of NH₃ were dependent on soil moisture. Losses ranged from 18.5% under conditions of low-temperature/high-humidity/wet soil to 7.7% under conditions of high-temperature/low-humidity/dry soil. In contrast, urea hydrolysis was not affected by soil moisture.Losses of NH₃–N from simulated urine applied to field plots ranged from 1.5% on footslope soils in summer to 14.1% on backslope (midslope) soils in summer, whereas losses were 8.1% on back-slope soils in winter. Factors such as soil texture, microbial activity, and plant productivity along a toposequence had larger effects than climatic variables on variation in the volatile losses of NH₃–N from this grassland.This paper is a report on the work presented at the international symposium Influence of marine and terrestrial biosphere on the chemical composition of the atmosphere, held in Mainz, F.R.G., on 16–22 March 1986.     

Laboratory studies of some environmental variables controlling sulfur emissions from plants

Several trace sulfur gases that can have a significant influence on atmospheric chemistry are emitted from biological systems. In order to begin to address biological questions on the mechnisms of production of such gases, laboratory-scale experiments have been developed that reproduce such emissions under controlled conditions. Using a flux chamber technique, flats containing soil, or soil plus plants were sampled for the net fluxes of sulfur gases. The major sulfur gas emitted from all the plants tested (corn, alfalfa, and wheat) was dimethyl sulfide (DMS). Alfalfa and wheat also emitted lesser amounts of methanethiol, variable amounls of hydrogen sulfide, and in some experiments wheat emitted carbon disulfide. The use of a plant incubator allowed a systematic study of the effects of variables such as temperature, photon flux, and carbon dioxide levels, on these emissions. Fluxes of all the emitted sulfur gases increased exponentially with increasing air temperature, and increased with increasing photon flux up to a saturation level of \~300 E/m^–2 sec^-1. Three to four-fold changes in DMS flux were observed during light to dark or dark to light transitions. By varying the CO₂ content of the chamber flush gas, it was shown that the observed sulfur fluxes from corn and alfalfa were not related to the CO₂ concentration. Growing these crop plants through holes in a Teflon soil-covering film allowed a separate determination of soil and foliage emissions and substantiation of the light dependent uptake of COS by growing vegetation observed in previous field studies.     

Geothermal observations in east Liaoning and haicheng seismic area

We have obtained altogether heat flux data of 23 drill holes including 2 observational holes of thermal flow in the Haicheng seismic area. These data show roughly thermal structure of the crust in eastern Liaoning and in the Haicheng seismic area. The results indicate that there is higher value of heat flow in the belt north by east from Liaoyang to Xiongyue, the average thermal flux being 8.29× 10⁻²J/m²·s (2.0 hfu). The average thermal fulx in the Haicheng seismic area is 9.22×10²J/m²·s (2.2 hfu). Comparing with other known geophysical data of the Haicheng seismic area, we give a geophysical section of comprehensive interpretation. We suppose the low-velocity layer in the lower crust of the Haicheng seismic area is a result from intrusion of large-scale uper mantle substance. High temperature and low velocity mean that the layer has the nature of plastic mechanics. The focal region of the Haicheng earthquake is situated right in the upper part of that plastic layer. Obviously, this result is significant for studying the seismogenic process of the Haicheng earthquake and other intra-plate earthquakes. We attempt to emphasize that observation of heat flow is necessary for earthquake study. Gu Haoding did the actual writing.     

江西城门山矿露采场疏干预测

本文在分析矿区水文地质条件并加以简化的基础上,对含水层的边界条件及非均质性作了技术处理,从而确定了矿区水文地质计算模型,然后运用泰斯非稳定流理论建立求解疏干流量的数学模型。在规定的疏干要求下,预测了各阶段的疏干流量及相应的疏干时间。文中对阶梯流量迭加计算过程,当含水层为承压—无压状态下,如何确定水力传导系数,提出了新的方法。     

An analytic formulation for NO and NO2 flux profiles in the atmospheric surface layer

The chemical reactivity of NO and NO₂ is so rapid that their fluxes and concentrations can be considerably modified from that expected for conserved variables in the atmospheric surface layer, even as low as a meter above the surface. Fitzjarrald and Lenschow (1983) have calculated flux and mean concentration profiles for NO, NO₂ and O₃ in the surface layer using numerical techniques. However, their solutions do not approach the photostationary state at large heights. Here we solve a simpler set of equations analytically (i.e. we assume a constant O₃ concentration and neutral hydrodynamic stability), and are able to show how the flux profiles behave at large heights assuming that the concentrations approach their photostationary values. We find, for example, that at large heights the ratio of the flux of NO to that of NO₂ is equal to the ratio of their concentrations. These results are relevant to estimating surface fluxes of NO and NO₂, and are most applicable to nonurban environments where NO and NO₂ concentrations are usually much less than O₃ concentration.The National Center for Atmospheric Research is sponsored by the National Science Foundation.     

Distribution of thermal areas on an active lava flow field: Landsat observations of Kilauea,Hawaii, July 1991

A Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) image acquired on 23 July 1991 recorded widespread activity associated with the Episode 48 of the Pu'u 'O'o-Kupaianaha eruption of Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii. The scene contains a very large number (>3500) of thermally elevated near infrared (0.8–2.35 m) pixels (each 900 m²), which enable the spatial distribution of volcanic activity to be identified. This activity includes a lava lake within Pu'u 'O'o cone, an active lava tube system (7.9 km in length) with skylights between the Kupaianaha lava shield and several ocean entry points, and extensive active surface flows (total area of 1.3 km²) within a much larger area of cooling flows (total16 km²). The production of an average flux density map from the TM data of the flow field, wherein the average flux density is defined in units of Wm^-2, allows for the chronology of emplacement of active and cooling flows to be determined. The flux density map reveals that there were at least three breakouts (>5000 Wm^-2) feeding active flows, but on the day that the data were collected the TM recorded a waning phase of surface activity in this area, based on the relatively large amount of intermediate power-emitting (cooling) flows compared to high power-emitting (active) flows. The production of a comparable flux density map for future eruptions would aid in the assessment of volcanic hazards if the data were available in near-real time.     

Gas hazard assessment in a densely inhabited area of Colli Albani Volcano (Cava dei Selci, Roma)

The northwestern flank of the Colli Albani, a Quaternary volcanic complex near Rome, is characterised by high pCO₂ values and Rn activities in the groundwater and by the presence of zones with strong emission of gas from the soil. The most significant of these zones is Cava dei Selci where many houses are located very near to the gas emission site. The emitted gas consists mainly of CO₂ (up to 98 vol%) with an appreciable content of H₂S (0.8–2%). The He and C isotopic composition indicates, as for all fluids associated with the Quaternary Roman and Tuscany volcanic provinces, the presence of an upper mantle component contaminated by crustal fluids associated with subducted sediments and carbonates. An advective CO₂ flux of 37 tons/day has been estimated from the gas bubbles rising to the surface in a small drainage ditch and through a stagnant water pool, present in the rainy season in a topographically low central part of the area. A CO₂ soil flux survey with an accumulation chamber, carried out in February–March 2000 over a 12 000 m² surface with 242 measurement points, gave a total (mostly conductive) flux of 61 tons/day. CO₂ soil flux values vary by four orders of magnitude over a 160-m distance and by one order of magnitude over several metres. A fixed network of 114 points over 6350 m² has been installed in order to investigate temporal flux variations. Six surveys carried out from May 2000 to June 2001 have shown large variations of the total CO₂ soil flux (8–25 tons/day). The strong emission of CO₂ and H₂S, which are gases denser than air, produces dangerous accumulations in low areas which have caused a series of lethal accidents to animals and one to a man. The gas hazard near the houses has been assessed by continuously monitoring the CO₂ and H₂S concentration in the air at 75 cm from the ground by means of two automatic stations. Certain environmental parameters (wind direction and speed; atm P, T, humidity and rainfall) were also continuously recorded. At both stations, H₂S and CO₂ exceeded by several times the recommended concentration thresholds. The highest CO₂ and H₂S values were recorded always with wind speeds less than 1.5 m/s, mostly in the night hours. Our results indicate that there is a severe gas hazard for people living near the gas emission site of Cava dei Selci, and appropriate precautionary and prevention measures have been recommended both to residents and local authorities.     

Investigations on distributions and fluxes of sea-air CO_2 of the expedition areas in the Arctic Ocean

揋reenhouse effect?causing global warming has been an important issue of studying climate change. In the latest 100 years, the earth surface temperature has been increased by about 0.4℃—0.8℃[1,2]. And this has been becoming a hotspot of the world[3,4]     

祁连山-黑河流域水循环中的大气过程

利用气象台站探空资料、地面观测资料和NCEP/NCAR再分析气候资料,分析了祁连山-黑河流域水循环中的大气过程,结果表明:受西风带波动影响的水汽来源贫乏是此区大气水汽含量少的原因之一;水汽输送通量辐散是此区大气水汽含量少的原因之二;就年平均而言,祁连山-黑河流域大气水汽含量仅为高湿的江南地区的20%,为半干旱区的华北中部的约40%;高海拔的祁连山区因降水效率高,地面蒸发量小,地表水物质易于聚积形成径流;黑河流域因降水效率低,降水量值与地面蒸发量值相当,对地表水的贡献很小。在祁连山黑河流域25°×25°区域上空,大气年输入水量为6678亿m3,输出为6502亿m3,净输入水量为176亿m3;输入水汽呈逐年减少的趋势。20世纪70～80年代有明显的下降,近40年来祁连山黑河流域的气温在升高,大气中的水汽含量在减少,降水量的减少将难以避免。     

粘性土-砂井地基单井固结模型的改进

单井固结模型的计算中通常将砂井周围土体简单划分为涂抹区和非涂抹区,不符合实际砂井周围土体的渗透系数分布复杂的事实。本文在Terzaghi固结理论的基础上提出了改进的单井固结模型,以一个待定参数流量系数Cq取代涂抹区和非涂抹区渗透系数来刻画砂井周围土体的横向渗透性特征,使单井固结问题得到高度简化又不失严密性。本文将改进模型用于非完整砂井单井固结的最终沉降量的数值计算,并将计算结果与谢康和改进法以及Hart法的解析解进行了比较,证明了改进模型数值解的可靠性。