Recommended Values of 239Pu, 240Pu and 239+240Pu Concentrations in Reference Material IAEA-315 (Marine Sediment) Estimated by Thermal Ionisation Mass Spectrometry, Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry and Alpha Spectrometry

The recommended concentrations of ²³⁹Pu, ²⁴⁰Pu and ^239+240Pu in reference material IAEA‐315 (marine sediment) were estimated by three analytical methods: isotope dilution thermal ionisation mass spectrometry (TIMS), isotope dilution inductively coupled plasma‐mass spectrometry (ICP‐MS) and alpha spectrometry. The determination of ²³⁹Pu and ²⁴⁰Pu (^239+240Pu by alpha spectrometry) was carried out with samples from randomly selected bottles using each method. Plutonium‐238 was also measured by alpha spectrometry. A plutonium‐242 reference material was used as a spike for the quantitative analysis. The influence of ²⁴²Pu in the samples was therefore calculated; however, this contribution was less than the range of uncertainty and did not influence the final results. The obtained data were statistically analysed using variance component analysis and paired comparison. The combined standard uncertainties from “method/measurement”, “bottle” and “sub‐sample” were in the order of 3 to 6%. The main contributions to the uncertainty were from the material heterogeneity and from systematic differences between methods. Based on this study with twenty‐seven analyses using 10–14 g sample mass, concentrations of (38 ± 3) Bq kg^?1, (28 ± 3) Bq kg^?1 and (66 ± 4) Bq kg^?1 are proposed as recommended values for ²³⁹Pu, ²⁴⁰Pu and ^239+240Pu, respectively, and (9.5 ± 0.4) Bq kg^?1 for ²³⁸Pu as an information value in reference material IAEA‐315. In mass concentration units, these amount to (16.4 ± 1.2) ng kg^?1, (3.3 ± 0.4) ng kg^?1 and (0.015 ± 0.003) ng kg^?1 for ²³⁹Pu, ²⁴⁰Pu and ²³⁸Pu, respectively. The certified reference materials NIST 4350B and NIST 4354 were also analysed by TIMS for quality assurance of the method used in this study.     

The Rho Ophiuchi cloud — An overview

The relative short distance (165 pc) and considerable mass (2000M ) of the Rho Ophiuchi cloud enable the study of the physical conditions within the cloud with a fine detail as it is reached in few complexes only. On the basis of the observations between 10^–14 and 10^–1 m wavelength, the most remarkable features of the cloud detected are: (1) The cloud represents one of the strongest detectable -ray sources for energies greater than 100 MeV. (2) X-ray observations gave no evidence that the cloud is interacting with a supernovae remnant or a neutron star what was supposed to account for the observed -ray flux. (3) Ultraviolet observations indicate that a considerable number of small particles is present toward the embedded star HD 147889 being placed at the edge of the cloud. (4) The ratio of total to selective extinction isR>4 toward the denser regions of the cloud. (5) An embedded stellar cluster of about 50 stars was detected by four IR-surveys toward the central region of the cloud. (6) Far-IR observations indicate that there are only 3 B-stars within the cloud. The dust-temperature reaches locally 50 K. (7) More than 10 different molecular species were detected by ratio observations. A considerable depletion of heavy elements is observed. There are two dense regions within the cloud which are likely contracting.Paper presented at a Workshop on The Role of Dust in Dense Regions of Interstellar Matter, held at Georgenthal, G.D.R., in March 1986.     

Some aspects of modelling low-level jets

An improved non-stationary two-layer model is presented for the simulation of wind speed maxima in the nocturnal boundary layer. The model is based on the idea of Blackadar (1957), who proposed as forcing mechanism an inertial oscillation of the ageostrophic component of the wind vector in the levels above the top of the nocturnal radiation inversion. First, the time-dependent variation of the nocturnal boundary-layer height is studied by means of prognostic equations; there is a good agreement between observed and calculated height data for three days of the Wangara experiment. Furthermore, a diurnal variation of the drag coefficient is considered in the lower layer by decreasing the coefficient by a factor of 10–20 due to stabilization of this layer during the night. The marked temporal decrease (increase) of the drag coefficient in the first hours after sunset (sunrise) is described by a function . The incorporation of these two effects into the model gives results which are in good agreement with observed wind data for Wangara days 13/14, 30/31, and 33/34.     

Health risk analysis of volcanic SO<Subscript>2</Subscript> hazard on Vulcano Island (Italy)

Since the last eruption of the Fossa crater in 1888–1890, intense volcanic degassing has been remaining on Vulcano Island of Sicily (Italy). Toxic sulfur dioxide (SO₂) of the solfataric action in this area represents, when inhaled, a permanent natural hazard harming humans. Approximately 500 permanent residents live and 15,000 tourists visit during the summer time the Porto village in the North of Vulcano Island. A cross-disciplinary fuzzy logic risk assessment has been conducted to evaluate health risks of human individuals exposed to higher SO₂-concentrations C over certain exposure times t. The simple approach, based on fuzzy set theory, explains health risks semantically by words rather than by numbers. Advantages of this approach are, first, experts, non-experts, decision makers, or the public are able to understand and communicate risk degrees by words without using numbers. Second, in comparison to other risk definitions, the risk is not equal to the vulnerability; it is based on the hazard (SO₂-gas clouds) and vulnerability (health effects) in combination. Third, risk levels can be still estimated even when limited or no statistical information is available, e.g., high SO₂-concentrations or long exposure times. Moreover, human health risks were determined for C−t-scenarios based on threshold values of the European Union and the World Health Organization. Independently, two additional methods were used to determine the proportions of the population who are exposed to levels of SO₂ at which health effects may be expected and also safety zones for civil protection around the degassing fields. In conclusion, SO₂-gas concentrations in many parts of Vulcano Island go beyond the proclaimed alert threshold of the European Union and the World Health Organization. For example, the results show that sensitive individuals, such as asthmatics, young children, or elderly people, should not be exposed at any time to the degassing areas in Porto di Levante and at the NE-rim of the Fossa crater. In contrast, healthy non-sensitive individuals should be exposed less than 10 min to the SO₂-clouds at these degassing areas, while hiking on the crater rim.     

Recommendation for the discrimination of human-related and natural seismicity

Various techniques are utilized by the seismological community, extractive industries, energy and geoengineering companies to identify earthquake nucleation processes in close proximity to engineering operation points. These operations may comprise fluid extraction or injections, artificial water reservoir impoundments, open pit and deep mining, deep geothermal power generations or carbon sequestration. In this letter to the editor, we outline several lines of investigation that we suggest to follow to address the discrimination problem between natural seismicity and seismic events induced or triggered by geoengineering activities. These suggestions have been developed by a group of experts during several meetings and workshops, and we feel that their publication as a summary report is helpful for the geoscientific community. Specific investigation procedures and discrimination approaches, on which our recommendations are based, are also published in this Special Issue (SI) of Journal of Seismology.     

Mechanical and statistical evidence of the causality of human-made mass shifts on the Earth��s upper crust and the occurrence of earthquakes

A global catalog of small- to large-sized earthquakes was systematically analyzed to identify causality and correlatives between human-made mass shifts in the upper Earth??s crust and the occurrence of earthquakes. The mass shifts, ranging between 1?kt and 1?Tt, result from large-scale geoengineering operations, including mining, water reservoirs, hydrocarbon production, fluid injection/extractions, deep geothermal energy production and coastal management. This article shows evidence that geomechanical relationships exist with statistical significance between (a) seismic moment magnitudes M of observed earthquakes, (b) lateral distances of the earthquake hypocenters to the geoengineering ??operation points?? and (c) mass removals or accumulations on the Earth??s crust. Statistical findings depend on uncertainties, in particular, of source parameter estimations of seismic events before instrumental recoding. Statistical observations, however, indicate that every second, seismic event tends to occur after a decade. The chance of an earthquake to nucleate after 2 or 20?years near an area with a significant mass shift is 25 or 75?%, respectively. Moreover, causative effects of seismic activities highly depend on the tectonic stress regime in which the operations take place (i.e., extensive, transverse or compressive). Results are summarized as follows: First, seismic moment magnitudes increase the more mass is locally shifted on the Earth??s crust. Second, seismic moment magnitudes increase the larger the area in the crust is geomechanically polluted. Third, reverse faults tend to be more trigger-sensitive than normal faults due to a stronger alteration of the minimum vertical principal stress component. Pure strike-slip faults seem to rupture randomly and independently from the magnitude of the mass changes. Finally, mainly due to high estimation uncertainties of source parameters and, in particular, of shallow seismic events (<10?km), it remains still very difficult to discriminate between induced and triggered earthquakes with respect to the data catalog of this study. However, first analyses indicate that small- to medium-sized earthquakes (<M6) seem to be induced and large-sized events (>M6) seem to be triggered. The rupture propagation of triggered events might be dominated by pre-existing tectonic stress conditions.     

Landslide impacts in Germany: A historical and socioeconomic perspective

Landslide impacts on infrastructure and society in the Federal Republic of Germany are associated with damage costs of about US$300 million on annual average. Despite the large overall losses due to widespread landslide activity, there is a lack of historical impact assessments, not just for Germany’s low mountain areas but those of entire Central Europe as well. This paper is a collection of three case studies from Germany that seek a better understanding of landslide impacts and their economic relevance at local and regional level. The first case study investigates damage types and mitigation measures at a representative landslide site in ways that support to gain insight into historical hazard interactions with land use practices. This case history is followed by a case study dealing with fiscal cost impacts of landslide damages for an example city and the highway system of the Lower Saxon Uplands, NW Germany. In addition to a cost-burden analysis for affected public budgets, an overview of the principles of disaster financing in landslide practice is given. The third case study is focused on the conflicts of urban development in hazard areas, with an economic approach to balancing safety and public welfare interests. Each case study is based on historical data sets extracted from Germany’s national landslide database. This paper presents three different case studies that in combination are a first step towards assessing landslide impacts in integrated perspective.     

Spatial predictions of geological rock mass properties based on in-situ interpretations of multi-dimensional seismic data

The article presents a statistical approach to characterize and predict engineering geological conditions in the up to 2000 m deep Faido tunnel and Gotthard base tunnel in Switzerland. Seismic investigations were conducted to improve the technology of interpreting seismic tomographic images. Overall, the goal of this study was to predict spacial maps of geological rock mass properties, such as, uniaxial compressive strength or total fracture spacing, by using up to six seismic features in combination, e.g., compression-wave and shear-wave velocities and dynamic Poisson's ratio. Self-Organizing Mapping (SOM), an artificial intelligent method, was used for the purposes of interpreting multi-dimensional geophysical attributes derived from seismic profiles of tomographic images along tunnel sidewalls. The SOM-method was applied in the Faido tunnel to delineate complex physical relations between the geological and seismic parameters. Then, the method was applied to predict geological properties around a segment of the Gotthard base tunnel with unknown geological–geotechnical conditions. The results illuminate that correlation analyses (pairwise parameter classification) are substantially less powerful than the SOM-method (multi-parameter classification) in order to interpret geological features from seismic in-situ data. Moreover, predicted spatial distributions of the total fracture spacing and the uniaxial compressive strength, for example, corresponded well with drill core and tunnel mapping results. The SOM-approach was a helpful tool for practitioners in predicting zones of instabilities and geological complexity during underground excavation processes of the Gotthard base tunnel. It is suggested to use such an interpretation method as decision support for purposes of sub/surface exploration and long-term geophysical monitoring of large-scale geoengineering projects, such as, disposals of nuclear waste and greenhouse gases or geopower plants for renewable energy (geothermal, biosoils).